Taiwan baseball fans in Taipei, Tokyo show support in WBC opener

Taipei/Tokyo, March 5 (CNA) At least 500 people gathered in Taipei's Xinyi District on Thursday to watch a live broadcast of Taiwan's game against Australia at the World Baseball Classic (WBC), while many Taiwanese fans also went to Tokyo to cheer for the team, even though it lost its first Pool C game.

"Team Taiwan, go, go, go!" fans cheered as they watched the game on a large screen at a plaza in Xinyi District. Many were waving national flags and wearing jerseys with Taiwan printed on them.

After the 0-3 loss, Rodman Feng told CNA that Team Taiwan's players had "clearly given it their all," adding that the defeat was "quite unfortunate" but short tournaments are inherently harder to predict and control.

"More upsetting than the loss itself was seeing captain Chen Chieh-hsien (陳傑憲) injured. That was a pretty heavy blow for us," Feng said, referring to Chen's exit in the top of the sixth inning after being hit on the left hand by a pitch.

A big baseball fan since childhood, Feng, 46, said it will be difficult for Taiwan to beat Japan, whose roster is "simply too strong." He added that victories over the Czech Republic and South Korea would keep Taiwan's hopes of advancing out of Pool C alive.

Sitting in the front row during the outdoor livestream party, Carrie Lee (李幸儒) broke down in tears when the game ended.

Asked to recall the moment, the 45-year-old expressed regret, saying that in baseball a tiny margin can often make all the difference to the outcome.

Lee was still encouraged at the game's end, noting that Taiwan's players never gave up. She said she hopes that spirit can "carry over" into Friday's game against Japan.

"If everyone stays united, nothing is absolute," she added.

Describing herself as "a little sad" after catcher Lyle Lin (林家正) fell short of a home run in the final inning, Jennifer Teng (鄧惟) said she nevertheless felt energized as more and more people joined the livestream party.

"I think people are still paying close attention to Taiwan's games and are willing to cheer for the country in their own way -- I found that very moving," she said.

Similar parties are set to be held in cities and counties across Taiwan as the team continues its Pool C games through Sunday.

In Tokyo

At the Tokyo Dome, many Taiwanese fans also turned out to support the team in person, including Yu Hsueh-chih (游學志), who mobilized fellow fans to make 4,000 flags for distribution at the venue and offered one to anyone who shouted, "Go Taiwan!"

According to Yu, the flags were quickly snapped up.

Another Taiwan supporter living in Japan, Nobu, had been following the team since its warm-up games in Miyazaki Prefecture and brought along a handmade sign he used to cheer for Taiwan during the 2024 WBSC Premier12, which Taiwan won.

He said he hopes it will bring the team the same luck as last time.