Chien-Ming Wang of the New York Yankees pitches during the game against the Texas Rangers at Yankee Stadium in the Bronx, New York on June 4, 2009. (Photo by Rich Pilling/MLB via Getty Images)
Chien-Ming Wang, a former Major League Baseball starting pitcher from 2005-16 with the New York Yankees, Washington Nationals, Toronto Blue Jays, and Kansas City Royals, was inducted into the Taiwan Baseball Hall of Fame on Thursday.
Wang received 92.86% of the vote in his second year of eligibility for his outstanding play in MLB as a Taiwanese player and his accomplishments with the Chinese Taipei national team in multiple international tournaments.
Wang signed a contract with the New York Yankees in 2000 and made his MLB debut in 2005. He won 19 games in back-to-back seasons for the Yankees in 2006 and 2007 and was an exceptional contributor in the starting rotation, finishing second in the 2006 American League Cy Young voting to Minnesota Twins pitcher Johan Santana. Wang tore a ligament in his foot running the bases in a June interleague game against the Houston Astros in 2008, and multiple arm injuries allowed him to throw just 42 innings in 2009.
Wang played two seasons with the Nationals from 2011-12, one season with the Blue Jays in 2013, and one season with the Royals in 2016. However, he failed to reach the level of play he put forth with the Yankees in the last few seasons of his career. At his best, Wang had a deceptive and slow delivery, placing the ball above his head before whipping power sinkers. Wang kept the ball on the ground, leading MLB with 0.5 home runs allowed per nine innings in 2006 despite a meager 8.6 strikeout percentage.
Wang’s baseball roots began in Taiwan, where he was born in Tainan City in March 1980. He represented his home country in numerous international tournaments, including the 2002 Asian Games, the 2004 Olympics in Athens, Greece, and the 2013 World Baseball Classic.
In 2007 and 2008, Time magazine named Wang one of the “Time100 Most Influential People” for his popularity amongst Taiwanese baseball fans in the country. A documentary about Wang’s life, titled Late Life: The Chien-Ming Wang Story, was released in 2018.
After his playing days, Wang served as bullpen coach for Chinese Taipei in the WBSC Premier12 2019 and the 2023 World Baseball Classic. He is the current assistant pitching coach for the CTBC Brothers in the Chinese Professional Baseball League.
The Taiwan Baseball Hall of Fame introduced its first set of inductees in 2014; as of 2024, it has 45 members. Former players, managers, coaches, and executives are eligible for election.
