(Taipei, June 15) In the Yu-Shan Cup youth baseball tournament, Yunlin County faced Nantou County in a knockout match and secured a 7-6 victory in the ninth inning of extra play, thanks to a walk-off single by Ou Rui-Jie. Although primarily used as a pitcher, Ou delivered the game-winning hit and joked that he must have used up all his luck. After graduation, he plans to join Taipower's baseball team.

In the 2026 Yu-Shan Cup, Yunlin County battled Nantou County in the elimination round. The game was tied 4-4 after seven regulation innings. Neither team scored in the eighth inning. In the top of the ninth, Nantou scored two runs. In the bottom half, Yunlin tied the game with a double by Chen Cong-Wei, followed by Ou Rui-Jie's walk-off single, securing the win and keeping Yunlin's advancement hopes alive.

Ou Rui-Jie, a key pitcher for the team, rarely bats. Head coach Wu Bing-Lun joked, 'I don't know what to say—Ou doesn't bat often, yet he still managed a hit. This shows he truly has natural baseball instincts.'

The day before, Ou started as pitcher against New Taipei City, throwing 40 pitches over 1.2 innings, allowing three hits, one strikeout, one walk, and three earned runs, taking the loss.

Reflecting on his pitching, Ou rated his performance at 60 points: 'The problem was using a relief pitcher's approach while starting, which consumed too many pitches. But I was still able to show some control and suppression.'

On the decisive at-bat, Ou said, 'My last batting appearance was in a high school wood-bat league. I just wanted to make contact. This was my first career walk-off hit—my teammates joked I've used up all my luck.'

Ou possesses a fastball reaching 147 km/h. He has decided to join Taipower, a powerhouse in Taiwan's corporate baseball league, to refine his pitching stability before pursuing a professional career. He is also aware of Taipower's new policy: eligible official players may take up to three years of paid leave to pursue professional baseball with company approval. (Edited by Chang Ya-Ching) 20260615

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  • Source: CNA (Central News Agency)
  • Category: Event