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Chih-Wei Hu

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Chih-Wei Hu
Chih-Wei Hu with the Tampa Bay Rays
Uni-President Lions – No. 58
Pitcher
Born: (1993-11-04) November 4, 1993 (age 31)
Taichung, Taiwan
Bats: Right
Throws: Right
Professional debut
MLB: April 24, 2017, for the Tampa Bay Rays
CPBL: August 29, 2021, for the Uni-President Lions
MLB statistics
(through 2018 season)
Win–loss record1–1
Earned run average3.52
Strikeouts21
CPBL statistics
(through 2024 season)
Win–loss record19-28
Earned run average4.10
Strikeouts191
Teams
Medals
Representing  Chinese Taipei
Men's baseball
Asian Games
Silver medal – second place 2014 Incheon Team

Chih-Wei Hu (Chinese: 胡智爲; born November 4, 1993) is a Taiwanese professional baseball pitcher for the Uni-President Lions of the Chinese Professional Baseball League (CPBL). He has previously played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Tampa Bay Rays.

Career

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Minnesota Twins

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Hu pitching for the Minnesota Twins in 2015

Hu was signed by the Minnesota Twins organization as an international free agent on August 3, 2012. He made his professional debut in 2013 with the Gulf Coast Twins, posting a 2.45 ERA in 12 appearances. In 2014, he pitched with the rookie-level Elizabethton Twins and Single-A Cedar Rapids Kernels, logging a cumulative 8–2 record and 2.15 ERA in 13 games, 12 of them starts.[1] Hu began the 2015 season with the High-A Fort Myers Miracle, and also pitched in 1 game for the Triple-A Rochester Red Wings.[2]

Tampa Bay Rays

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Hu pitching for the Durham Bulls in 2017

On July 31, 2015, the Twins traded Hu and Alexis Tapia to the Tampa Bay Rays in exchange for Kevin Jepsen.[3] He finished the year with the High-A Charlotte Stone Crabs, but struggled to an 0–3 record and 7.36 ERA in 5 games. In 2016, Hu split the season between the Double-A Montgomery Biscuits and the Triple-A Durham Bulls, recording a 7–9 record and 2.75 ERA with 114 strikeouts in 147.1 innings of work.[4] Hu was named to the roster of the World team for the 2016 All-Star Futures Game.[5] The Rays added him to their 40-man roster after the season.[6]

Hu began the 2017 season with Durham before being promoted to the major leagues for the first time on April 23. He made his MLB debut the following day, pitching a scoreless innings of relief against the Baltimore Orioles. He finished his rookie season with a 1–1 record and 2.70 ERA with 9 strikeouts in 10.0 innings of work across 6 appearances. In 2018, Hu spent the majority of the year in Durham, but recorded a 4.15 ERA in 5 appearances with the Rays.[7]

Cleveland Indians

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On November 19, 2018, Hu was traded to the Cleveland Indians in exchange for minor league infielder Gionti Turner.[8] Hu was assigned to the Triple-A Columbus Clippers to begin the 2019 season. On July 3, 2019, he was designated for assignment by the Indians without having appeared in a game for the team.[9] He was outrighted to Columbus, and later demoted to the Double-A Akron RubberDucks before being released by the Indians on July 30.

Chicago Cubs

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On August 8, 2019, Hu signed a minor league contract with the Chicago Cubs organization.[10] He finished the year in Chicago's minor league system, posting a 2–2 record between the Triple–A Iowa Cubs and the Double–A Tennessee Smokies. Hu elected free agency following the season on November 4.[11]

San Diego Padres

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On December 19, 2019, Hu signed a minor league contract with the San Diego Padres organization.[12] Hu did not play in a game in 2020 due to the cancellation of the minor league season because of the COVID-19 pandemic.[13] On November 2, 2020, he elected free agency.[14]

In June 2021, an unnamed team in Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB) made an offer to sign Hu, but the amount was not enough to convince Hu to go overseas and he did not sign with the team.[15]

Uni-President Lions

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On July 1, 2021, Hu announced that he would enter the mid-season draft in the Chinese Professional Baseball League (CPBL).[16] He was selected fourth overall by the Uni-President Lions.[17] He made 12 appearances down the stretch, logging a 4–4 record and 4.74 ERA.

In 2022, Hu made 27 appearances (26 starts) for the Lions, registering a 9–13 record and 3.35 ERA with 84 strikeouts across 150+2⁄3 innings of work. The following season, he started 15 games (out of 18 appearances) for the club, and posted a 4–8 record and 4.70 ERA with 42 strikeouts across 84+1⁄3 innings pitched.

On February 14, 2024, it was announced that Hu would miss the first half of the season after undergoing surgery to remove bone spurs from his elbow.[18]

International career

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He played for Chinese Taipei at the 2014 Asian Games.

See also

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References

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  1. ^ "Minnesota Twins prospect Chih-Wei Hu continues his winning ways with the Class A Cedar Rapids Kernels — MiLB.com News — The Official Site of Minor League Baseball". MiLB.com. Retrieved July 4, 2015.
  2. ^ "Tom Powers: Twins' 'Mr. Hu' has created a major buzz". TwinCities.com. March 15, 2015. Retrieved July 4, 2015.
  3. ^ "Twins trade for Rays reliever Kevin Jepsen — HardballTalk". nbcsports.com. July 31, 2015. Retrieved July 31, 2015.
  4. ^ "Chih-Wei Hu Minor, Winter & Fall Leagues Statistics & History".
  5. ^ "2016 Futures Game Rosters". Baseball America. June 28, 2016. Retrieved June 28, 2016.
  6. ^ "Rays trade Motter and Shaffer to Mariners, add 8 prospects to roster". www.tampabay.com. Archived from the original on November 19, 2016.
  7. ^ "Chih-Wei Hu Stats, Fantasy & News". MLB.com.
  8. ^ "Cleveland Indians trade for Tampa Bay right-hander Chih-Wei Hu". November 19, 2018.
  9. ^ RotoWire Staff (July 3, 2019). "Indians' Chih-Wei Hu: Designated for assignment". CBS Sports. Retrieved July 3, 2019.
  10. ^ Polishuk, Mark (August 8, 2019). "Cubs Sign Chih-Wei Hu To Minors Deal". MLB Trade Rumors.
  11. ^ "Minor League Free Agents 2019". baseballamerica.com. November 7, 2019. Retrieved August 20, 2024.
  12. ^ "Padres Sign Chih-Wei Hu". December 19, 2019.
  13. ^ "2020 Minor League Season Canceled". June 30, 2020.
  14. ^ "Full List of 2020-2021 MiLB Free Agents". baseballamerica.com. Retrieved September 21, 2024.
  15. ^ @GOCPBL (July 6, 2021). "According to ETtoday, an unnamed NPB team made an offer to sign 胡智為 (Hu Chih-Wei) back in June. However, the amount…" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
  16. ^ @GOCPBL (July 1, 2021). "Former MLB right-hander 胡智為 (Hu Chih-Wei) announced he will enter the 2021 mid-season draft. Hu is very likely to b…" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
  17. ^ Hsieh, Ching-wen; Yeh, Joseph (July 12, 2021). "Ex-minor league fireballer No. 1 pick in Taiwan baseball draft". Central News Agency. Retrieved July 12, 2021.
  18. ^ https://x.com/gocpbl/status/1757886478074761250?s=46&t=UN5XGiNzRq3-vt33N7zCTw [bare URL]
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