Chinese Taipei announced their official roster for the 2025 World Baseball Baseball Classic Qualifiers on the Chinese Professional Baseball League in Taiwan’s Instagram page on Feb. 14.
An English-language version of the roster was released the following day by CPBL Stats.
The 28-man roster includes 22 players from the Chinese Professional Baseball League, four minor leaguers affiliated with Major League Baseball organizations, and two players from Nippon Professional Baseball in Japan.
Team Taiwan has announced the final 28-man roster for the upcoming 2025 World Baseball Classic Qualifiers.
The 28-man WBCQ roster consists players from:
???? CPBL – 22
???? MiLB – 4
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— CPBL STATS ???????? (@GOCPBL) February 15, 2025
On Feb. 4, World Baseball Classic Inc. officially announced Chinese Taipei’s roster for the 2025 WBC Qualifiers.
Chinese Taipei's roster for the 2025 #WorldBaseballClassic Qualifiers: pic.twitter.com/OlZFOX0dyP
— World Baseball Classic (@WBCBaseball) February 3, 2025
Jeffrey Jr. Koo serves as president of the Chinese Taipei Baseball Association.
With a spot in the 2026 World Baseball Classic on the line, Chinese Taipei will host the 2025 WBC Qualifiers at Taipei Dome in Xinyi, Taipei, from Feb. 21-25. The team will compete against South Africa, Spain, and Nicaragua for a place in next year’s tournament.
The 2024 Premier12 roster featured a mix of domestic talent from the Chinese Professional Baseball League and players from Nippon Professional Baseball and Major League Baseball. A similar structure is expected for the 2025 WBC Qualifiers under manager Hao-Jiu Tseng.
Chinese Taipei’s 2025 WBCQ coaching staff includes hitting coach Cheng-Min Peng, first base coach Chien-Min Ping, third base coach Chiang-Ho Chen, bench coach Chih-Kang Kao, and an additional coach, Yueh-Ping Lin.
Taiwanese media have not confirmed whether former MLB pitcher Chien-Ming Wang will return as Chinese Taipei’s pitching coach for the 2025 WBC Qualifiers after leading the pitching staff to victory at the 2024 Premier12.
The official 2025 WBCQ roster for Chinese Taipei is available here.
News and updates on the Chinese Taipei national team are available on the CPBL’s official website, as well as their Instagram and Facebook pages.
Chinese Taipei won the Formosa Series, sweeping the two-game exhibition series against the Korean Baseball Organization’s Lotte Giants at the Taipei Dome. They secured a 4-3 victory on Feb. 12 and followed up with a 7-3 win in Game Two on Feb. 13.
Ranked No. 2 in the World Baseball Softball Confederation rankings, Chinese Taipei will compete in the 2025 World Baseball Classic Qualifiers at the Taipei Dome from Feb. 21-25, facing No. 24 Spain, No. 16 Nicaragua, and No. 31 South Africa with hopes of securing a spot in the 2026 tournament.
The World Baseball Rankings are published by the WBSC.
Chinese Taipei did not qualify for the 2026 WBC, even though they ended up with the same record as Panama, Italy, Cuba, and the Netherlands at 2-2. The team was eliminated due to the WBSC, Team Quality Balance run differential rule.
Chinese Taipei will have to compete at a high level once they take the field at the Taipei Dome to open up the first day of the WBCQ on Feb. 21. They will face a Spain team that will have players mostly from all over Latin America that have played in the minor leagues in the United States, the División de Honor de Béisbol league, which is organized by the Real Federación Española de Béisbol y Sófbol, and players that have played this past winter league season outside of free agents.
Chinese Taipei went 1-2 in the first WBC in 2006 and did not qualify for the second round. They finished 0-2 in Pool A of the 2009 WBC, suffering losses to China and South Korea.
In 2013, Chinese Taipei had to qualify for the tournament and did so convincingly, defeating New Zealand 10-0, the Philippines 16-0, and New Zealand again 9-0 in the final qualifier game at Xinzhuang Baseball Stadium in Xinzhuang, New Taipei, Taiwan.
Chinese Taipei went 2-1 in Pool B of the 2013 WBC at Taichung Intercontinental Baseball Stadium in Taichung, Taiwan and ended tied in first place with South Korea and the Netherlands. However, they were eliminated in the double-elimination Pool 1 second round, losing to Japan 4-3 and Cuba 14-0.
At the 2017 WBC in Pool B at Taichung Intercontinental Baseball Stadium, Chinese Taipei went winless at 0-3 and finished in last place against Israel, South Korea, and the Netherlands.
The 2025 WBCQ and a potential berth in the main tournament will be critical in shaping the future of Chinese Taipei’s baseball program, with many players aiming to make their mark in Major League Baseball or solidify their careers in the Chinese Professional Baseball League.
Chinese Taipei will open up on home soil at the Taipei Dome on Feb. 21 against No. 24 ranked Spain at 6 a.m. EST.
International Baseball Researcher Jeff Duda reported on Feb. 10 that Chinese Taipei’s starting rotation in the WBCQ will be Tzu-Chen Sha, Jo-Hsi Hsu, Po-Yu Chen, and Chen Zhong-Ao Zhuan, as reported by Yi-Gen Wang of NOWNews on Feb. 10.
According to reports, Taiwan’s starting rotation in the WBCQ will be Tzu-Chen Sha, Jo-Hsi Hsu, Po-Yu Chen and Chen Zhong-Ao Zhuang https://t.co/mY10MUESbG
— Jeff Duda (@INTLBaseball24) February 10, 2025
Players to Watch for Chinese Taipei at 2026 WBCQ
Tzu-Hao Chen made history by becoming the first Taiwanese professional player to sign a contract worth over NTD 100 million (approximately $3.05 million USD). After filing for free agency following the 2024 season, he secured a 10-year deal valued at NTD 130 million ($3.96 million USD), solidifying his position as a key figure in Chinese Taipei’s baseball landscape.
Other notable players under contract with Major League Baseball and Chinese Professional Baseball League organizations were granted permission to participate for Chinese Taipei at the 2025 WBCQ. The potential starting pitchers includes Po-Yu Chen, Chen Jong-Au Zhuang, and Tzu-Chen Sha, along with domestic standout Jo-Hsi Hsu. The bullpen will feature Sheng-En Lin, Wei-En Lin, and promising Nippon Professional Baseball prospects Yi-Lei Sun and Shiang-Sheng Hsu, the latter being the youngest member of the Yakult Swallows at 19.
Po-Yu Chen, a Pittsburgh Pirates prospect, is expected to be a key part of Chinese Taipei’s starting rotation at the 2025 World Baseball Classic Qualifiers. Jong-Au Zhuang and Tzu-Chen Sha, both of the Athletics organization, are also considered potential starters, along with Jo-Hsi Hsu, who plays for the Wei Chuan Dragons in the Chinese Professional Baseball League.
Sheng-En Lin, a two-way player in the Cincinnati Reds organization, and southpaw Wei-En Lin, who is also with the Athletics, could significantly impact the Chinese Taipei pitching staff at the 2025 WBCQ.
Veteran closer Yun-Wen Chen, who holds Taiwan’s Chinese Professional Baseball League all-time saves record, is a candidate for the closer role, supported by Chun-Yueh Tseng and Yen-Ching Lu, who both represented Chinese Taipei at the 2023 World Baseball Classic.
Yun-Wen Chen is ahead of Yueh-Ping Lin at second with 129 and Mike Garcia with 124 careers in the CPBL.
Pitching coach Yueh-Ping Lin acknowledged the team’s flexibility in bullpen management: “Yun-Wen Chen is the best closer we have, but we will assess game situations and adjust accordingly. Chen and Tseng can also be deployed as middle relievers,” stated on the WBSC website on Feb. 9.