Yu-Chieh Kao

Yu-Chieh Kao (高宇杰) (Sawmah)

• Bats Right, Throws Right
• Height 6' 0", Weight 194 lb.

• School National Taiwan Sport University
• High School Taoyuan Municipal Ping-Jen Senior High School

• Born July 17, 1997 in Taitung County Taiwan

Biographical Information

Yu-Chieh Kao has caught for the Taiwanese national team and in the CPBL.

Kao played for Taiwan's entry in the 2009 Little League World Series and the 2012 PONY League World Series (finishing second). In the 2015 U-18 Baseball World Cup, he was 2 for 12 with a double and a RBI; he had 26 error-free chances and allowed a steal in the only attempt. He had a big hit for Taiwan in the 2016 Haarlem Baseball Week. Down 4-2 with two outs in the bottom of the 10th and the bases loaded, he singled off Rodienne Albertus to drive in two as Taiwan would rally to win. He also played for Taiwan when they finished third in the 2016 U-23 Baseball World Cup. In the 2017 Asian Championship, he backed up Chia-Wei Huang and went 2 for 6 with a double and a run while handling 10 putouts. In the Gold Medal Game, he replaced Huang late in a 6-1 loss to Japan and was retired by Masaki Tanigawa in his lone at-bat. Kao was 7 for 17 with a triple and 5 RBI in the 2018 World University Championship , and went 7 for 27 with a double and 3 RBI in the 2018 U-23 Baseball World Cup.

Kao was selected by the CTBC Brothers in the 2nd round of 2018 CPBL draft. In his rookie year in the CPBL, Kao hit .287/.330/.404 with a dinger. He then made the Taiwanese team for the 2019 Premier 12. He went 4 for 9 with 2 runs, include a clutch double against South Korea. Kao batted .230/.284/.327 in 2020, and had his career year in 2021 with .233/.277/.348 and career-high 5 home runs. He was 3-for 11 in the 2021 Taiwan Series to help the Brothers swept the Uni-President Lions. When Francisco Peña joined the Brothers, Kao was forced to become his backup, and only hit .231/.290/.341 in 49 games. He still made Taiwan's roster for the 2023 World Baseball Classic, but with some clutch errors in the first game against Panama, he was replaced by Giljegiljaw Kungkuan and didn't played any games after that. He struggled in 2023, and he only hit .189/.239/.222 in 87 games.