BASEBALL / Brothers shortstop sets CPBL record with 6th straight Gold Glove honor

Taipei, Nov. 1 (CNA) Chiang Kun-yu (江坤宇), a shortstop of the CTBC Brothers, made history in Taiwan's Chinese Professional Baseball League (CPBL) by winning his sixth consecutive Gold Glove award -- the first infielder in the league to achieve the feat.

Chiang committed only five errors in 484 fielding opportunities over 112 games, earning a perfect score of 230 points in the voting, the league said in a press release on Thursday.

The 2018 11th overall draft pick surpassed his teammate Wang Wei-chen (王威晨), who had dominated the Gold Glove at third base for five straight seasons from 2019 to 2023.

Before Chiang, only two outfielders had ever won six consecutive Gold Glove awards -- Huang Kan-lin (黃甘霖, 1999-2004) and Liu Fu-hao (劉芙豪, 2006-2011) -- both of the Uni-President 7-Eleven Lions.

Chiang's next milestone will be to match the CPBL record for the most Gold Glove awards overall: nine, held by his former teammate Wang Sheng-wei (Haro Ngayaw, 王勝偉).

In addition to Chiang, "Captain Taiwan" Chen Chieh-hsien (陳傑憲) of the Uni-Lions also captured his fourth straight Gold Glove in the outfield.

Meanwhile, Chiang was among four players who were selected for both the Gold Glove and the CPBL 2025 All-Pro Team (known as the "Best Nine"). The others were his teammate Hsu Chi-hung (許基宏) at first base, Wei Chuan Dragons' second baseman Li Kai-wei (李凱威), and TSG Hawks third baseman Wu Nien-ting (吳念庭).

The Fubon Guardians were the only team without a player winning either award.

Award recipients will receive their trophies in a ceremony at the Kaohsiung Marriott Hotel on Wednesday evening, during which the league will also announce the MVP, Rookie of the Year, and Most Improved Player for the 2025 regular season.

The MVP finalists are Uni-Lions slugger Lin An-ko (林安可), Brothers ace pitcher Nivaldo Rodríguez, and Rakuten Monkeys ace pitcher Pedro Fernández, the 2025 Taiwan Series MVP. None of them has previously won the award for the regular season.