Tzu-Wei Lin

Tzu-Wei Lin
Boston Red Sox – No. 5
Third base
Born: (1994-02-15) February 15, 1994
Kaohsiung County, Taiwan
Bats: Left Throws: Right
MLB debut
June 24, 2017, for the Boston Red Sox
MLB statistics
Batting average .360
Hits 9
Teams

Tzu-Wei Lin (Chinese: 林子偉, born February 15, 1994), also Tahai Isiliduan in Bunun language , is a Taiwanese baseball infielder for the Boston Red Sox of Major League Baseball (MLB). Nicknamed Tzunami in Taiwan, Lin is touted as the next Linsanity after Jeremy Lin.[1]

Early life

Lin, a native of Namaxia District, Kaohsiung, is of Bunun descent.[2]

Career

Lin led Taiwan's team to victory in the Junior League World Series in 2007.[3][4] He played in the 2010 World Junior Baseball Championship, in which Taiwan won the championship.[5] He led all players in the tournament in batting average (.607), on-base percentage (.656), and slugging percentage (.907).[6] For his efforts, Lin was named the tournament's Most Valuable Player, best hitter, and to the All-Tournament Team as a third baseman.[7][8]

Lin agreed to sign a contract with the New York Yankees in 2010, when he was 16 years old, for a signing bonus of $350,000. Though Lin was eligible to sign at the time, the Chinese Taipei Baseball Association threatened to ban Lin from playing or coaching in Taiwan if he signed before completing high school, leading Lin not to complete the deal.[6] In 2011's Asian Youth Baseball Championship, he was named best outfielder of the tournament as he played mostly in left field. In 2012, Lin agreed to sign a contract with the Boston Red Sox, the Yankees' rivals, receiving a $2.05 million signing bonus,[9] the largest bonus for a Taiwanese position player, the second largest bonus for a Taiwanese player behind Chin-hui Tsao, and the third largest bonus for an Asian amateur after Tsao and Byung-hyun Kim.[6] His first Triple-A hit was a triple[10]

The Red Sox promoted Lin to the major leagues on June 24, 2017, directly called up from Double-A. He made his MLB debut as a pinch runner.[11] He recorded his first major league hit during his first major league at bat on June 26, 2017 in a 4-1 victory against the Minnesota Twins.[12] On July 14, Lin became the next Red Sox player after Nomar Garciaparra to wear the no. 5 jersey, after switching from number 73, (and after Rocco Baldelli and Nick Punto and Johnny Gomes and Allen Craig), when he played as a pinch-hitter in the 8th inning against New York Yankees. On July 20, he was sent down to Triple-A after Brock Holt returns from injury.

Lin is listed at 5 feet 9 inches (1.75 m) and 155 pounds (70 kg). Scouts view Lin as a capable fielder with an average throwing arm. He is seen as a fast runner and good hitter who could bat .300, though not with much power.[6] During his short career, he is also known as a patient hitter, and foul-tipping pitches to extend his at-bats.

References

  1. ↑ SETN News report (in Chinese)
  2. ↑ Pan, Jason (28 June 2017). "Lin Tzu-wei connects in MLB debut". Taipei Times. Retrieved 29 June 2017.
  3. ↑ "Chinese Taipei wins first-ever Junior League World Series in Taylor". City of Taylor. August 21, 2010. Retrieved June 28, 2012.
  4. ↑ Held, Scott (August 25, 2010). "JLWS: Late rally lifts Taiwan to first series championship (with video)". thenewsherald.com. Retrieved September 13, 2013.
  5. ↑ "Taiwan beats Canada in semifinal of World Jr Championship". Tsn.ca. July 31, 2010. Retrieved September 13, 2013.
  6. 1 2 3 4 Badler, Ben (June 28, 2012). "Prospects: International Affairs: Red Sox Sign Shortstop Tzu-Wei Lin For $2.05 Million". BaseballAmerica.com. Retrieved September 13, 2013.
  7. ↑ "All-IBAF Junior tournament team named". IBAF. August 2, 2010. Retrieved August 7, 2010. The 2010 All-World Junior Baseball team is headed by tournament MVP Wei Tzu Lin, third baseman of Chinese Taipei.
  8. ↑ "Searching for the next Wang Chien-ming". Taipei Times. September 6, 2013. Retrieved September 13, 2013.
  9. ↑ Flannery, Paul (June 22, 2012). "Full Count » Taiwanese phenom Tzu-Wei Lin close to starting pro career with Red Sox". Fullcount.weei.com. Retrieved June 28, 2012.
  10. ↑ 運動狂熱 HighHeatSports (2017-07-19), Tzu-Wei Lin's first Triple-A hit, retrieved 2017-07-20
  11. ↑ http://www.masslive.com/redsox/index.ssf/2017/06/tzu-wei_lin_joins_red_sox_from.html
  12. ↑ Powtak, Ken (June 26, 2017). "Sale gets 9 Ks, Moreland hits HR as Red Sox beat Twins 4-1". Retrieved June 26, 2017.
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