WorldBaseballPreviewXML.xml

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<!DOCTYPE message PUBLIC "-//TSN//DTD Preview 1.0/EN" "WorldBaseballPreviewXML.dtd">
<message>
<XML_File_ID>4019568</XML_File_ID>
<heading>FEV!PREVIEW-KOR-TPE</heading>
<game_id>3</game_id>
<schedule_id>3</schedule_id>
<category>Previews</category>
<sport>WBC</sport>
<title>
WBC Game Preview from The Sports Network
</title>
<vteam>Korea</vteam>
<hteam>Chinese Taipei</hteam>
<visitorprob record="0-0" ERA="0.00">Korea           - Chan Ho Park</visitorprob>
<homeprob record="0-0" ERA="0.00">Chinese Taipei  - Lin Ying-jei</homeprob>
<body>
 
<P>
 (Sports  Network) - The much ballyhooed World Baseball Classic gets underway
 today with the first of six games in Pool A, as Korea and Chinese Taipei open
 the tournament at the Tokyo Dome.
 
</P>
<P>
 Korea enters the tournament as one of the favorites in its pool thanks to a
 roster that includes several Major League ballplayers, most notably
 righthander Chan Ho Park.
 
</P>
<P>
 Park, probably the most famous pitcher in Korean history, has spent 12 years
 in the majors and posted a combined 12-8 mark last year with a 5.74 earned run
 average with the Texas Rangers and San Diego Padres.
 
</P>
<P>
 The 32-year-old hurler joins two other big league pitchers on Korea's staff,
 as Jae-Weong Seo and Sun Woo (Sunny) Kim join Park in the rotation.
 
</P>
<P>
 Byung-Hyun Kim, who made a career-high 22 starts for the Rockies last season,
 will likley handle the closing duties and has previous international
 experience with Korea's Junior National team (1996) and the National Team
 (1997-98).
 
</P>
<P>
 New York Mets' reliever Dae-Sung Koo will also see time.
 
</P>
<P>
 Korea's offense will be led by first baseman Heep Seop Choi, who has belted 40
 home runs during his four MLB seasons. Also, Seung-Yeop Lee, who will split
 time with Choi at first and at designated hitter. hit 56 home runs in his last
 Korea Baseball Organization season, is coming off a solid 2005 season in Japan
 with Chiba Lotte
 
</P>
<P>
 Centerfielder Yong-Taik Park will set the table, as well as provide some power
 from the top of the lineup for the Korean squad. Last year he led the KBO with
 90 runs scored and 43 stolen bases.
 
</P>
<P>
 Chinese Taipei, meanwhile, is considered a longshot to make it to Round 2,
 especially since two of its top players opted to skip the event.
 
</P>
<P>
 New York Yankees righthander Chien-Ming Wang, who is returning from a shoulder
 injury, decided to pull out and concentrate on the start of the MLB regular
 season, while first baseman Chen Chin-feng, who likely would have been the
 most productive hitter in the lineup, will miss the event because of a nagging
 hand injury.
 
</P>
<P>
 With Chin-Feng sidelined, Chinese Taipei's power will come from Chia-Hsien
 Hsieh, who belted 23 home runs and drove in 74 runs for the Macoto Cobras last
 season with the Chinese Professional Baseball League. Infielder Tai-Shan
 Chang, who has 154 home runs in a 10-year professional career, could also
 supply some pop.
 
</P>
<P>
 Southpaw Lin Ying-jei is expected to get the starting assignment in the
 opener. Last year with the Cobras, Ying-Jei posted a 12-10 mark with a 2.33
 ERA in 212 innings. He also fanned 174 batters.
 
</P>
 
</body>
<time_stamp>March 1, 2006, at 12:42 PM ET</time_stamp>
</message>