2023 Taiwan Series G6: Dragons 2 – Monkeys 0

We are getting a Game 7 in this year’s Taiwan Series!

On November 11, facing elimination, the Wei Chuan Dragons shut out the Rakuten Monkeys 2-0 in Game 6 of the 2023 Taiwan Series with Hsu Jo-Hsi’s dominant pitching. The Dragons have now levelled the best-of-7 series at 3-3, setting the stage for a final showdown tomorrow night at Tianmu Stadium.

Hsu Jo-Hsi Hurled a Flawless Game

The Dragons’ 23-year-old pitching phenom, Hsu Jo-Hsi, pitched perhaps one of the most important games of his career so far. The young fireballer stepped up and delivered, fighting fire with fire against the red-hot-hitting Rakuten Monkeys. Hsu Jo-Hsi started Game 6 throwing fireballs, with his fastball velocity reaching 157 kph (97.6 mph), keeping the Monkeys’ lineup quiet all night.

Hsu Jo-Hsi finished the night pitching seven scoreless innings on 78 pitches, allowing just one hit and logging seven strikeouts. Notably, Hsu carried a perfect game for 4.1 innings until he allowed a single by Chu Yu-Hsien.

“My game plan for today was to attack the strike zone and give everything I had,” said Hsu Jo-Hsi, who was named the G6 MVP after the game.

Game 6 Recap

The Dragons got the ball rolling in the bottom of the first inning with two back-to-back singles, followed by a bunt and a sacrifice fly from Liu Ji-Hong to take an early 1-0 lead.

Despite the first-inning jitter, Monkeys submariner Huang Tzu-Peng settled in and navigated calmly from the second to the fifth inning, keeping the score close and within striking distance.

In the bottom of the sixth inning, the Dragons launched their second round of assault after two outs. With two back-to-back singles, Chang Cheng-Yu ripped an RBI double, extending the lead to 2-0.

“I wanted to be aggressive with my hitting approach in that at-bat,” said Chang Cheng-Yu after the game. “This is a do-or-die game for us, so we just want to play this game with no regret.”

The Dragons went to their bullpen after the seventh inning. Lin Kai-Wei pitched a scoreless inning in the eighth, and closer Chen Kuan-Wei struck out two, successfully slamming the door on the Monkeys.

Post-Game Quotes From Managers

“Full credit to our players for their performance,” said the Dragons’ manager, Yeh Chun-Chang. “Tomorrow [Game 7] is the last game, and I want our players to maintain their confidence to bring home the championship.”

“Tomorrow is a crucial battle, and the main factor to victory still lies in our offensive power,” said the Monkeys’ manager, Tseng Hao-Chu. “Both teams have performed well up to this point, and we’ll stay focused until the very last moment.”

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