Pin-Chieh Chen

Pin-Chieh Chen (陳品捷)

• Bats Left, Throws Right
• Height 5' 11", Weight 160 lb.
• High School Nan-Ying Vocational High School

• Born July 23, 1991 in Kaohsiung City Taiwan

BR register page

Biographical Information

Pin-Chieh Chen is an infielder from Taiwan. He was with the Taiwan national team in the 2009 Asian Junior Championship. He was signed by scout Steve Wilson for the Chicago Cubs for about $300,000 in July 2009, the 5th Taiwanese player to sign with the Cubs. Chen was noted for his speed. Chen made his pro debut on June 22 for the AZL Cubs, going 1 for 4 with a run. He hit .292/.372/.327 there, and also played 6 games with the Boise Hawks. Chen stayed with the Hawks in 2011, and he recorded a .301/.363/.424 batting line. He was 8th in the Northwest League in average (between Brett Krill and Jharmidy De Jesus) and led outfielders in fielding (1.000). Baseball America named him as the league's #14 prospect, between Matt West and Kevin Quackenbush. He was promoted to A Peoria Chiefs in 2012, and he hit .259/.345/.347 with 10 triples (5th in the Cubs chain and one behind Midwest League leader Ben McMahan). He also stole 36 bases, tying Jamal Austin for 5th in the MWL. After the 2012 season, Chen represented Taiwan in the 2012 Asian Championship, and he hit .389/.400/.556 with a triple.

In the 2013 season, Chen hit .242/.346/.298 with the Kane County Cougars, then recorded a .281/.369/.351 batting line with A+ Daytona Cubs. He also reached AA and played 6 games with the Tennessee Smokies. He played for Taiwan in the 2013 East Asian Games. Chen split time between A+ and AA in 2014, and he hit .275/.359/.389 in Daytona but only had a .232/.343/.297 batting line for the Smokies. He then made it onto Taiwan's roster for the 2014 Asian Games, and he was 8-for-17. Chen also represented Taiwan in the 2014 U-21 Baseball World Cup, and he hit .240/.321/.320 with 3 RBI.

Chen split action between A+ and AA again in 2015, and he hit .268/.334/.374 for Myrtle Beach Pelicans while batting .247/.352/.395 in Tennessee. The Cincinnati Reds selected him in the minor league portion of the 2015 Rule V Draft, and Chen hit .182/.325/.212 with AA Pensacola Blue Wahoos. Chen was traded to the Los Angeles Dodgers for cash considerations, and he had a .271/.349/.424 batting line with Rancho Cucamonga Quakes then became a free agent. Chen joined the Tokushima Indigo Socks after leaving the Dodgers, and he hit .286/.388/.419 there. He had a .280/.330/.330 batting line for Tokushima in 2017, and he decided to came back to Taiwan on May.

The Fubon Guardians selected Chen in the second round of the 2017 CPBL Draft, and he soon became their starting second baseman. He hit .325/.403/.509 with 7 homers in 2017 season. Chen then represented Taiwan in the 2017 Asia Professional Baseball Championship. Chen was 0-for-1 against South Korea and he had a 0-for-2 game versus Japan. Taiwan won Bronze in the event. He was selected into the 2018 CPBL All-Star Game, and he was 2-for-2 with 2 doubles. He ended up hitting .294/.368/.412 with 19 doubles, and he ranked 8th in hits (43 behind Chieh-Hsien Chen).

Chen attended the 2019 CPBL All-Star Games, and he was 1-for-6 with a RBI in the 2 games. He recorded a .258/.361/.398 batting line in 2019. Chen slumped to .179/.214/.359 in 22 games in 2020, and he mainly stayed in the minor league; he hit .288/.399/.441 there. The Wei Chuan Dragons then selected him in the expansion draft, and he hit .269/.329/.348 in 2021. He was plunked by Jen-Ho Tseng in 2022, and he fractured his rib. Thus, Chen only played 35 games with a .306/.411/.388 batting line. He slumped to .176/.240/.235 in 2023.

Sources

• Taiwan Baseball Blog
• Chinese Wiki Baseball
• 2017 Asia Professional Championship