Taiwan beat China 16-0 in the Under-12 Asian Baseball Championship. In the wake of a series of big baseball wins, enthusiasts are beginning to ask how Taiwan can maintain its dominance in the sport.
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00:00Ball meet bat.
00:04That's an introduction Taiwan's under-12 baseball team brokered several times during this game
00:09at the U-12 Asian Baseball Championship in Japan.
00:13Taiwan punched its ticket into the semifinals with a resounding victory over China, 16-0,
00:19triggering the tournament's mercy rule and ending the game in just the fourth inning.
00:24It then beat Japan 1-0 and is now in the finals.
00:27Accompanying this red-hot lineup are coaching staff that offer encouragement and guidance.
00:38This is hot off the heels of Taiwan's first-ever major international baseball win at the WSBC
00:44Premier 12 Tournament, where Taiwan managed to pull off a major upset by beating world
00:49number one Japan in Japan in the gold medal round.
00:54Many stars on that team, like infielder Jiang Kun-yu and pitcher Zhang Yi, got their start
00:59at the youth level.
01:01With Taiwan's baseball stars racking up the accolades, fans are now hoping the country
01:06can turn its recent successes into a longer-lasting legacy.
01:24A couple of local governments have announced more funding for baseball development programs.
01:34But that might not be enough to fulfill Taiwan's lofty national ambitions, particularly if
01:39the country is to continue contending with heavyweights like Japan.
01:59In the wake of the Premier 12 win, Taiwan's Professional Baseball Players Association
02:04released a statement calling for better infrastructure for the sport.
02:09It says Taiwan needs to address deficiencies in its education and sports programs to keep
02:14the momentum going.
02:16With Taiwan's sluggers on a hot streak, this may very well be a turning point for baseball
02:21in the country.
02:22Will Taiwan rest on its laurels, or will it go all-in and try to establish a dynasty of
02:27homegrown, home-run success?
02:30Patrick Chen, Lesley Biao and Eric Gao for Taiwan Plus.