Chang-Wei Tu

Chang-Wei Tu (杜章偉)

• Bats Right, Throws Right
• Height 6' 2", Weight 196 lb.

• School Chinese Cultural University
• High School Nan-Ying Vocational High School

• Born May 11, 1982 in Tainan City Taiwan

BR register page

Biographical Information

Chang-Wei Tu was a top amateur pitcher who sputtered in the professional ranks before scandal ended his career.

Tu was 0-2 with a 4.63 ERA in the 2002 Haarlem Baseball Week, allowing 18 hits in 11 2/3 IP. He went 1-1 with a 5.17 ERA in the 2002 Intercontinental Cup, posting the highest ERA on the Taiwanese staff. He again had a 1-1 record and 2.20 ERA in the 2002 World University Championship, fanning 14 in 16 1/3 IP and allowed a .185 average.

Chang-Wei was named MVP of the National Baseball Congress World Series in 2003, when Taiwan won the event. He had a 1-0, 1.42 record in the 2003 World Port Tournament. In the 2003 Baseball World Cup, the right-hander allowed only 6 hits in 37 AB and went 1-0 with a 1.74 ERA. He beat Team USA in the quarterfinals, the first Taiwanese hurler to beat the US at a Baseball World Cup since Chien-Fu Kuo Lee in 1990. Tu also was on Taiwan's roster for the 2003 Asian Championship but did not appear in a game.

During this time, there were rumors that US MLB teams were interested in Tu but could not come to terms with him due to high salary demands. He tossed five shutout innings of one-hit, one-walk ball in the 2004 Haarlem Baseball Week. In the 2004 Olympics, he was one of Taiwan's younger players. He struggled in his lone outing (facing the mighty Cuban national team), giving up 4 hits in 11 at-bats and 3 runs in 2 2/3 IP. Only the younger Po-Hsuan Keng had a worse ERA on the Taiwanese staff in Athens.

Tu did sign for a high bonus, equivalent to about $145,000 US, but with a team in his native Taiwan, the Chinatrust Whales after they drafted him in the first round of the 2004 CPBL Draft. At the time, only Chung-Nan Tsai had a higher signing bonus; in 2009, Yi-Chuan Lin evened Tu. Tu began his professional career in 2005, going 3-4 with a 3.00 ERA. He fell to 4-5, 4.59 in 2006. In 2007, he pitched 48 games, going 1-7 with two saves and a 3.28 ERA. He ended his pro career in 2008 with a 4-7, 4.20, two save finish. When the Whales folded as part of a gambling scandal, no team drafted Tu and he returned to the amateur ranks. In late 2009, he was banned from returning to the CPBL when he was also implicated in game-throwing.

Tu's repertoire consisted of a slider, changeup, curveball, forkball and fastball (peak speed of 92 mph).

Overall, Tu was 12-23 with a 3.84 ERA, struck out 198 and pitched 370 innings in 4 seasons in the CPBL.

Sources

• Taiwan Baseball Wiki
• Taiwan Baseball Blog
• Harry Wedemeijer's international tourney stats
• Defunct IBAF site