Taipei, Oct. 28 (CNA) Taiwan routed a young Japanese national team 12-5 Thursday to win its first game in the semifinal round of the 2010 Intercontinental Cup baseball tournament in the central city of Taichung.
Japan could not hold off Taiwan's offensive as the home team blasted 14 hits against the young Nippon Professional Baseball pitchers, while its reliever Lin Yu-ching became the unlikely hero of the game.
Lin came up to the mound after starter Chen Hong-wen and the first relief pitcher Liao Wen-yang had failed to contain the opposing hitters. The amateur right-hander pitched 5 1/3 strong innings and gave up only one hit.
Taiwan, scheduled to meet Italy (2-1) in Taichung the following evening, was 2-1 and ranked second behind Cuba (3-0) in the six-team semifinal round. Japan was 1-2.
Unfazed by a 4-0 early deficit, Taiwan punished Japanese starter Takahiro Iwao with four hits in the bottom of the second inning, including two doubles and a triple by Lo Kuo-hui, to tie the score.
After Japan regained a 5-4 lead, the home boys again took advantage of Japanese reliever Hideki Sunaga's inconsistency and his teammates' shaky defense. Chen Chun-hsiu's double was followed by a deadball and an error as Taiwan tied the game and added two more runs by consecutive sacrifice flies to bring the score to 7-5.
The situation almost got out of hand in the top of the fourth inning, when Lin Yu-ching's consecutive hit batsmen came close to turning the game into a bench-clearing brawl as players from both teams exchanged heated words on the field before the umpire managed to regain control.
Japan, which had an average age of less than 23 as a team, was hurt by five defensive errors, four of which came in the first four innings, a rare showing for any Japanese national team. The first baseman Taishi Ota and shortstop Shota Ohmine committed two errors apiece.
Taiwan had six consecutive hits with two outs in the bottom of the eighth to add four runs and turn the game into a rout.
In other semifinal round games Thursday, Cuba beat the Netherlands 6-3 and Italy defeated South Korea 5-2.
Semifinal standings: Cuba 3-0, Italy 2-1, Taiwan 2-1, Japan 1-2, Netherlands 1-2, South Korea 0-3 (By Chris Wang) ENDITEM/J