Taipei: Taiwan's Chinese Professional Baseball League (CPBL) drew a record crowd for its 2025 season opener, as 40,000 fans filled the Taipei Dome to watch the Uni-President 7-Eleven Lions shut out the defending champion CTBC Brothers 8-0 on Saturday. According to Focus Taiwan, the attendance surpassed the previous record of 28,618, set in 2024 when the Wei Chuan Dragons hosted the Rakuten Monkeys in the league's first-ever season opener at Taiwan's first indoor baseball stadium. The turnout also matched the peak crowd numbers for the retirement series of former Brothers star Chou Szu-chi on Sept. 21-22 last year, as well as Game 1 of the 2024 Taiwan Series. "The CPBL has overcome many difficulties to come this far, step by step. I want to thank all the franchises, coaches, players, and most importantly, the fans. Thank you, everyone. You've all come back," CPBL commissioner Tsai Chi-chang said before the game. The game was a rematch of the 2024 Taiwan Series, with the Uni-Lions gaining a small measure of r evenge in a blowout. The game's MVP honors went to Uni-Lions starter Brock Dykxhoorn, who struck out five and gave up just three hits over 5 2/3 scoreless innings. The turning point came in the top of the sixth inning, with the Uni-Lions holding a narrow 1-0 lead. After leadoff batter Chiu Chih-cheng struck out, the Uni-Lions loaded the bases with three consecutive singles. Pan Chieh-kai, batting fifth, then blooped a two-run single to right field, prompting the Brothers to pull starter José de Paula from the mound. The Uni-Lions' offense kept rolling, however. Another bloop RBI single to left field followed an error by Brothers shortstop Chiang Kun-yu, a five-time Golden Glove winner. Pinch hitter Hu Chin-lung then drove in three more runs on a bases-clearing double. De Paula took the loss, allowing four earned runs on 10 hits over 5 1/3 innings while striking out two. The Uni-Lions capped the scoring in the seventh inning when designated hitter Lin An-ko launched a solo homer to deep right field. On Sund ay, the Brothers will host the Fubon Guardians at Taipei Dome, while the Uni-Lions will welcome the TSG Hawks in Tainan, and the Rakuten Monkeys will face the Dragons in Taoyuan. A total of 360 games are scheduled for the 2025 regular season.
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