Catcher in the Dai
Dai-An Lin's seven-year deal, plus an alleged jackpot for youth baseball
Since the free agency system in Taiwan was implemented in 2010, the CPBL has seen just eight transfers via free agency. The practice has gained momentum in recent years, and this year’s free agency signings include right-hander Tzu-Peng Huang’s deal with the TSG Hawks and now catcher Dai-An Lin’s deal with the Fubon Guardians.
The making of a historic deal
At age 33, Dai-An Lin is a tenured catcher in the league. Drafted by the Uni-President Lions in 2015, he became the team’s top catcher in 2019. He re-signed with the Lions to a three-year contract in 2022 and a one-year deal this past year.
At the end of the 2025 season, Lin became one of three players that entered free agency, along with teammate outfielder Chih-Chieh Su and Rakuten Monkeys right-handed pitcher Tzu-Peng Huang. The CTBC Brothers, Fubon Guardians, and TSG Hawks offered multi-year contracts, with TSG bowing out after signing Tzu-Peng Huang to a five-year, NT$66 million ($2.1 million) deal.
The Lions officially offered a five-year contract in an attempt to keep the star catcher. In the end, Fubon’s seven-year, NT$56 million ($1.8 million) contract, which includes provisions of transitioning to a coaching role in the last two years. Dai-An Lin represents the Guardians’ first acquisition via free agency and the Lions’ first departing transferee via free agency. The contract is the eighth largest in league history.
Hoarding catchers
Prior to submitting their 60-man protection roster, the Guardians had a total of 11 catchers between their major and minor league rosters, the most of any club in the league. In the major league, the starting spot was split between Pei-Feng Dai and Wei Li this year.
Dai was a member of Taiwan’s winning squad in the 2024 Premier12 but struggled at the plate in the second half of 2025. Li made the most errors out of all catchers in the league and was typically the weak link in the batting lineup, slashing a measly .190/.240/.234 in 2025. Naturally, the team needed a solution given its young prospects were still a couple years away from being ready for the job.
The Guardians selected the two top high school catchers in the country in this year’s draft: Yu-Hao Chang (Pu-Men HS) and Ting-Yi Chiang (Ping-Jen HS). They also signed undrafted Hsiao-Hu Yang as a development player. These three prospects are expected to spend most if not all of 2026 in a minor league capacity. The other top prospect is Yi-Ming Hsiao, a 2018 draftee along with Pei-Feng Dai.
The Guardians non-tendered four catchers this offseason to make room for Lin, who is now expected to split the starting catcher role with Pei-Feng Dai in 2026. His strength against left-handed pitchers complements Dai’s relative weakness. Most importantly, Lin’s elite intangibles as a catcher—communication on the field, pitch selection, etc.—and clubhouse presence are undoubtedly elements the Fubon front office was looking for to turn the team around.
Power Cup, by Uncle Super Lotto
What would you do if you won a $15 million lottery jackpot? In 2012, one man in eastern Taiwan knew exactly what he wanted to do when he won NT$600 million (about $15 million). He donated about a quarter of the earnings to start a youth baseball tournament.
Growing up in a poor family, the lottery winner did not have the means to play baseball. With his winnings, he decided to donate $4 million toward establishing a national baseball tournament in Hualien to be held for at least 20 years. The donation went to a charitable trust, which disburses roughly $20,000 each year for the tournament. The anonymous donor was dubbed “Uncle Super Lotto,” and the tournament was named Power Cup.1
The tournament reached new heights in 2017, with 20 teams entering to vie for the NT$1 million (about $33,000) grand prize. To date, over 4,000 players have participated in the Hualien Power Cup, including nine MiLB players. It is a fixture not just in Hualien, but in Taiwanese youth baseball.
In its 13th year, the tournament appears to be going strong. From across the country, 22 teams entered the competition. Hualien has two host teams, but due to damages and disruptions caused by Typhoon Ragasa earlier this year,2 there are only about 25 sixth-grade players in the whole county.
Parent company advertising
Author and journalist Robert Whiting said in an interview, “If American baseball is a business, Japanese baseball is a parent company advertising.” The observation about Japanese baseball is certainly true of Taiwanese baseball too.
CTBC, the parent company of the CTBC Brothers, operates the Taiwan Lottery Company. Uncle Super Lotto’s donation went to a charitable trust administered by, of course, the CTBC Charity Foundation. In partnership with CTBC and the Hualien County government, the foundation established what is officially named the Hualien Taiwan Lottery Power Cup, a case in point of a parent company advertising, for both Taiwan Lottery and its Power / Super Lotto game. Uncle Super Lotto remains nameless, but even his nickname became a branding opportunity.3
Whereas American little leagues or other youth tournaments are typically organized or sponsored by specialized baseball businesses,4 their Taiwanese counterparts are often packaged by large conglomerates then broadcast or otherwise covered nationally. It is a structural difference, and the focus notably shifts from developing player value (for recruiters, parents, or players themselves) to maximizing brand exposure.
While funding is crucial to youth baseball regardless of what form in comes in, it is worth contemplating an alternative mode. What would it look like if a lottery jackpot winner, or independently wealthy individual, funded a business venture centered around youth baseball? Rather than letting a conglomerate market itself in the name of baseball, an upstart can attract a new generation of parents, players, and fans and grow the pie.
Other news
JABA Select defeated NPB Select 5-2 to win the Asia Winter Baseball League championship game in Chiayi. Guardians slugger and former MLB infielder Yu Chang announced his intention to play for Team Taiwan in the World Baseball Classic.5 The Rakuten Monkeys re-signed right-hander Pedro Fernández, 2025 CPBL wins and strikeout leader, to a two-year deal.
The Weili lottery is sometimes translated as Super Lotto, but is closer in meaning to “power.”
Typhoon Ragasa in September brought a torrential downpour that wreaked havoc in Hualien, killing at least 19 people and destroying homes and buildings.
Incidentally, CTBC is also the naming sponsor of the Black Panther Banner high school tournament that wrapped last week.
Perfect Game USA, a nationwide scouting service, AAU, and Little League Baseball come to mind.
Chang was registered as Yu Chang in the MLB system, but he is known by his full name, Yu-Cheng Chang, in the CPBL.