Hung-Chih Kuo

Hung-Chih Kuo (郭泓志) (The Phoenix)
(also known as Hong-Chih Kuo)

• Bats Left, Throws Left
• Height 6' 2", Weight 240 lb.
• High School Nan-Ying Vocational High School
• Debut September 2, 2005
• Final Game September 24, 2011
• Born July 23, 1981 in Tainan City, Taiwan

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Biographical Information

Hung-Chih Kuo pitched with the Los Angeles Dodgers from 2005 to 2011. He made his first major league start in a high-profile manner.

Kuo pitched for Taiwan in the 1999 World Port Tournament, striking out 9 in 4 2/3 IP but allowing 6 hits and 4 runs (3 earned) for the last-place team. He signed with the Los Angeles Dodgers as an international free agent in 1999 and became the first Taiwanese high schooler to be signed by a Major League Baseball team. He started in professional ball with the the San Bernardino Stampede in 2000, pitching just one game and then needing Tommy John surgery (However, he struck out 7 out of the 9 batters he faced.). He had limited action in 2001 and 2002 due to the injury (he appeared in 7 games each year). He did play, however, for Taiwan in the 2002 Asian Games. In 2003 he was recovering from his second Tommy John surgery and did not pitch. In 2004 he appeared in three games with the Columbus Catfish of the South Atlantic League.

Finally, in 2005, he was able to pitch in a substantial number of ballgames. He played 11 games for the Vero Beach Dodgers of the Florida State League, with an ERA of 2.08 and a record of 1-1, striking out 42 in only 26 innings and allowing a .202 average. He then moved up to the Jacksonville Suns of the Southern League for 17 games in relief; he had an ERA of 1.91 with a record of 1-1 and three saves. He broke in with the Los Angeles Dodgers for 9 games in relief, posting an ERA of 6.75 in 5 1/3 innings in 2005.

Kuo pitched for Taiwan in the 2006 World Baseball Classic, striking out 3 in 1 2/3 IP but allowing three runs. All his appearances for the Dodgers that year were in relief until September 8, 2006, when he made his first start, in Shea Stadium. Several thousand extra tickets were sold as New York's Taiwanese community honored him. That night he pitched 6 innings, giving up 0 runs. He had 7 strikeouts in the 6 innings. In 2006, until that game, he had appeared in 23 games in relief, with an ERA of 5.34. In 30 1/3 innings he had notched 36 strikeouts along with 26 walks. He was also in Triple A with the Las Vegas 51s that year, with an ERA of 3.06 and a record of 4-3 in 23 appearances, mostly in relief. He had 63 strikeouts in 53 innings.

The Tainan native holds the record for the fewest career wins at the time of a postseason start. He had only one major league win before starting Game 2 in the 2006 NLDS. The previous record was two wins, by Gary Waslewski of the Boston Red Sox in the 1967 World Series. He won Gold in the 2006 Asian Games, Taiwan's only Gold in baseball in an Asian Games through 2020. Oddly, the pitcher became the first Taiwanese player to homer in a major league game, though slugger Chin-Feng Chen had made the majors ahead of him. Kuo made history on June 12th when he homered off John Maine in the 2nd inning. It was the third Dodgers home run in a three-pitch stretch, following Wilson Betemit and Matt Kemp.

On June 29, 2007, Kuo and Chin-hui Tsao made history by being the first two Taiwan-born players to appear in the same game on the same major league team. Hung-Chih Kuo was named to the National League All-Star team in 2010, replacing the injured Jason Heyward. He was sporting a 1.03 ERA at the time and became the first All-Star from Taiwan. He finished the season with a 1.20 ERA, the lowest in team history.

Kuo was placed on the disabled list on May 11, 2011, suffering from anxiety disorder. He had battled bouts of losing his control completely in the past, a problem that is usually more psychological than physical, notably in 2009 when it had taken him three months to recover from the condition. He returned to the mound on June 21st, pitching a perfect inning against the Detroit Tigers. He underwent left elbow surgery after this season.

The Seattle Mariners signed him with a 1-year, 1-million dollar contract on February 17, 2012. However, he struggled in spring training so he was released on March 20. The Chicago Cubs then signed him with a minor league contract. Kuo didn't pitch any games for the Cubs due to injury, and the Cubs released him on July 3. He then represented Taiwan in the 2013 World Baseball Classic. He didn't pitched well in that event, allowing 5 runs in 3 1/3 innings. He then announced that he want to join the CPBL.

Kuo wanted to join his hometown team, the Uni-President Lions, but they didn't have the first overall pick in the 2013 CPBL Draft. Since Kuo intended to stay in the US rather than pitched for a non-Lions team in Taiwan, the Lions persuaded the league and added an "Outstanding Abroad Player Rule" aka the "Hung-Chih Kuo Rule". If a Taiwanese player who had significant achievements in other leagues like the MLB and the NPB, he can be defined as a "outstanding abroad player" if all teams in the CPBL agreed. Then, he can be signed by any team in the league, but the team which signs a outstanding abroad player should give compensation to the other team. The Lions lost their first three picks of the 2013 draft to sign Kuo.

In his first CPBL season, Kuo was the top native closer of the league. He collected 27 saves with a solid 2.59 ERA in 50 games, ranking 2nd in saves (8 behind Miguel Mejia) and 7th in appearances (15 behind Yu-Hsun Chen). He also pitched a shutout inning in the 2014 CPBL All-Star Game. However, the 2014 season was his only productive season in Taiwan. He only pitched 10 games in 2015, and he missed the entire 2016 season due to left shoulder injury. The Lions released him, and the Fubon Guardians signed him. Kuo posted a 6.27 ERA in 20 games in 2017, then he recorded a 3.71 ERA in 37 games in 2018 as a LOOGY. Kuo announced his retirement after the 2018 season.

Overall, Kuo was 13-17 with a 3.73 ERA, notched 55 holds and 13 saves, struck out 345 and pitched 292 1/3 innings in 7 seasons in MLB.

Notable Achievements

• NL All-Star (2010)

Related Sites

• Hung-Chih Kuo on mlb.com