Uni-President Lions
Encyclopedia
The Uni-President 7-Eleven Lions are a professional baseball team based in Tainan City, Taiwan
Taiwan
Taiwan , also known, especially in the past, as Formosa , is the largest island of the same-named island group of East Asia in the western Pacific Ocean and located off the southeastern coast of mainland China. The island forms over 99% of the current territory of the Republic of China following...

. The organization is named after the Uni-President Corporation, one of Taiwan's largest conglomerate whose sub-company Uni-President Baseball Team Company oversees operations of the team. The Lions play their home games at Tainan Municipal Baseball Stadium in Tainan City, where they enjoy a large fan base.

Amateur era

The team was first established as amateur Uni-President Baseball Team in 1989 for the purpose of training and preparation for eventual professionalization in the next year. The corporation originally intended to recruit players from Taipower Baseball Team
Taiwan Power Company baseball team
The Taiwan Power Company Baseball Team , also known as Taipower Baseball Team , is one of the two amateur baseball teams in Taiwan's First Division amateur baseball league that are owned by government sponsored corporation...

, an amateur baseball team based in nearby Kaohsiung
Kaohsiung
Kaohsiung is a city located in southwestern Taiwan, facing the Taiwan Strait on the west. Kaohsiung, officially named Kaohsiung City, is divided into thirty-eight districts. The city is one of five special municipalities of the Republic of China...

, but faced many difficulties in the process.

Uni-President originally offered Lin Chia-hsiang the position of team manager, hoping that his status as Taipower's head coach would ensure players' willingness to join the new team. Lin accepted at first, and agreed to aid the effort of recruiting players. However, due to uncertainties in a professional career, players were reluctant to leave Taipower for the new team, and Lin could only secure a few players and was far below the 15 players minimum requirement of the amateur league. Lin then turned down the offer, leaving Uni-President searching for a replacement for the manager position. Uni-President eventually contacted Cheng Kuen-chi and offered him the position. Cheng, a former coach of Taipower who was respected by many players, accepted the offer and became the first manager for Uni-President. Cheng then used his connection to convince players to join the team, and Uni-President barely met the minimum requirement after Brother baseball team
Brother Elephants
The Brother Elephants are a professional baseball team in Taiwan. It was originally established as an amateur team in 1984 by the Brother Hotel located in Taipei City, and later joined the Chinese Professional Baseball League in 1989...

 lent players to Uni-President. The team then participated and performed modestly in two amateur series in 1989.

Early years

The team was professionalized on January 1, 1990, following the establishment of CPBL. Uni-President chose Lions as its mascot, and hence the team was renamed Uni-President Lions. The Lions played the opening game of CPBL on March 17, 1990 with Brother Elephants
Brother Elephants
The Brother Elephants are a professional baseball team in Taiwan. It was originally established as an amateur team in 1984 by the Brother Hotel located in Taipei City, and later joined the Chinese Professional Baseball League in 1989...

 in the now demolished Taipei Municipal Baseball Stadium
Taipei Municipal Baseball Stadium
Taipei Municipal Baseball Stadium was a baseball park located in the Songshan District of Taipei, Taiwan. It was opened in 1959, and hosted numerous major baseball games over the years, including the CPBL's first game in 1990 between Uni-President Lions and Brother Elephants...

, defeated the Elephants, and scored their first victory in professional baseball. However, the Lions performed poorly in their first professional season, placed third and only saved by Brother Elephants
Brother Elephants
The Brother Elephants are a professional baseball team in Taiwan. It was originally established as an amateur team in 1984 by the Brother Hotel located in Taipei City, and later joined the Chinese Professional Baseball League in 1989...

's even poorer performance.

The season of 1991 saw significant improvements in the Lions' performance. The Lions were able to advance into the playoffs and play Wei Chuan Dragons
Wei Chuan Dragons
The Wei Chuan Dragons were a professional baseball team in Taiwan's CPBL that existed between 1990 and 1999.- Brief history :This team had a long amateur history when its parent company, the Wei-Chuan Food Corporation, started sponsoring Chinese Culture University's baseball team in late 1970s...

, who they defeated four games to two and won their first title. The next three years saw the dominance of the Elephants, who won three consecutive seasonal titles from 1992 to 1994, and defeated the Lions in the 1993 playoffs. It was during these years that the Lions and Elephants developed a long-lasting rivalry. The Lions again won the titles in 1995 and 1996.

Black Eagles scandal and the 1997 season

The 1997 season was not a smooth sails as many has expected, the Lions started out losing some prominent players to Taiwan Major League
Taiwan Major League
The Taiwan Major League was a professional baseball league in Taiwan that operated from 1996 to 2003. It was established by TV tycoon Chiu Fu-sheng after a row over CPBL broadcasting rights...

. Also, the game-fixing scandal in mid-season of 1997, known as the Black Eagles scandal, was a major blow to the CPBL in general in that the average attendance dropped significantly, and teams were either forced out of the market or had to scale back on the budget and shut down some expansion projects over the next few years.

Furthermore, at the end of 1997 season, the Lions led the league with 58-7-31, while the Dragons
Wei Chuan Dragons
The Wei Chuan Dragons were a professional baseball team in Taiwan's CPBL that existed between 1990 and 1999.- Brief history :This team had a long amateur history when its parent company, the Wei-Chuan Food Corporation, started sponsoring Chinese Culture University's baseball team in late 1970s...

 (46-4-46) and the Eagles
China Times Eagles
The China Times Eagles was a defunct professional baseball team belonging to the Chinese Professional Baseball League that existed between 1993 and 1997.-History:...

 (41-4-51) were placed third and fourth respectively. However, the regulation dictated that the playoffs should be played by the team that led the league in the first half-season and the team in the second half-season. It was assumed that if a team leads the league in the whole year, it should have placed first in both half-seasons, and thus allowed to participate in the championship series. The loophole became obvious when the Dragons, placed seventh in the first half but first in the second half, and the Eagles, placed first in the first half and seventh in the second half, got a berth in the playoffs. The loophole was fixed in the following year.

Present

The team was officially renamed Uni-President 7-Eleven Lions in 2008. 7-Eleven
7-Eleven
7-Eleven is part of an international chain of convenience stores, operating under Seven-Eleven Japan Co. Ltd, which in turn is owned by Seven & I Holdings Co...

 in Taiwan is franchised by Uni-President Convenient Stores Chain, a subsidiary of Uni-President Corporation; each of the entities now owns roughly half of the shares of the Lions.

Minor league

The Lions were credited as the first organization to form a minor league team. As early as 1990, when CPBL was still in its early years, the Lions were making preparation for establishment of a second team by hiring coaches and scouting talented players for the project. The reserve team, however, was disbanded due to lack of opponent and players. In 1997, the Lions again formed a reserve team, but it met the same fate as its predecessor due to the game-fixing scandal and the decline in attendance. No further expansion was made until after the CPBL-TML merger took place.

In late 2003, after the merger of the two competing league, the Chinese Taipei Baseball Association
Chinese Taipei Baseball Association
The Chinese Taipei Baseball Association, or CTBA was established on February 28, 1973. The Chinese translation of the English name is: traditional chinese: 中華台北棒球協會, hanyu pinyin: Zhōnghuá Táiběi bàngqiú xiéhuì...

 assisted CPBL in forming a minor league by sending alternative service
Alternative service
Alternative service is a form of national service performed in lieu of conscription for various reasons, such as conscientious objection, inadequate health, or political reasons. See "labour battalion" for examples of the latter case...

 players to be trained by and filled the roster of member organizations of CPBL. The Lions were supportive of this project initially, but later backed out due to financial reasons. However, in early 2006, the Lions announced the revival of the minor league project, and began the expansion of the team. The roster consists of reserve players, alternative service players, and non-contract players. Alternative service players and non-contract players are restricted to play exclusively on the second team.

Foreign cooperation

The Lions have been working with other organization in Asia
Asia
Asia is the world's largest and most populous continent, located primarily in the eastern and northern hemispheres. It covers 8.7% of the Earth's total surface area and with approximately 3.879 billion people, it hosts 60% of the world's current human population...

 and North America
North America
North America is a continent wholly within the Northern Hemisphere and almost wholly within the Western Hemisphere. It is also considered a northern subcontinent of the Americas...

 to improve the performance of the organization; collaborators includes Yomiuri Giants
Yomiuri Giants
The are a professional baseball team based in Bunkyo, Tokyo, Japan. The team competes in the Central League in Nippon Professional Baseball, the top level of professional play in Japan. They play their home games in the Tokyo Dome, opened in 1988. The English-language press occasionally calls the...

 of NPB's Central League
Central League
The or is one the two professional baseball leagues that constitute Nippon Professional Baseball in Japan. The winner of the league championship plays against the winner of the Pacific League in the annual Japan Series. It currently consists of six teams from around the country,The Central League...

 and Red Sox organization of MLB. Also, the Lions have participated in many friendly exhibition games with teams from other professional organizations.

Notable achievements

The Lions are the holders of many CPBL records. The most well-known is the winning streak of 17 games in the 2006 season. The Lions are currently holding the records as the team with the most wins, home runs, and Taiwan Series
Taiwan Series
Taiwan Series is the championship series of the Chinese Professional Baseball League. It is usually played in October, after the regular season. It was formerly known as the CPBL Seasonal Championship Series , and was renamed the Taiwan Series after the merger of the Chinese Professional Baseball...

 titles throughout its history.

Records

Qualified for Playoffs Taiwan Series
Taiwan Series
Taiwan Series is the championship series of the Chinese Professional Baseball League. It is usually played in October, after the regular season. It was formerly known as the CPBL Seasonal Championship Series , and was renamed the Taiwan Series after the merger of the Chinese Professional Baseball...

 Championship
Asia Series
Asia Series
The Asia Series is an international baseball tournament in East Asia that was first held between November 10 and November 13, 2005, in Tokyo. The tournament was sponsored by Konami corporation from 2005 to 2007 and was known as the Konami Cup in that period.It is played among the annual champions...

 Championship

Regular seasons

Season Wins Losses Ties Pct. Place
Uni-President Lions
1990 37 (16/21) 49 (29/20) 4 (0/4) .430 (.356/.512) 3 (4/2)
1991 46 (21/25) 34 (20/14) 10 (4/6) .575 (.512/.641) 1 (2/1)
1992 41 (20/21) 45 (23/22) 4 (2/2) .477 (.465/.488) 3 (3/2)
1993 54 (25/29) 34 (20/14) 2 (0/2) .614 (.556/.674) 1 (3/1)
1994 48 (22/26) 38 (20/18) 4 (3/1) .558 (.524/.591) 2 (3/2)
1995 62 (32/30) 36 (17/19) 2 (1/1) .633 (.653/.612) 1 (1/1)
1996 60 (34/26) 37 (15/22) 4 (1/3) .619 (.694/.542) 1 (1/3)
1997 58 (28/30) 31 (16/15) 7 (4/3) .652 (.636/.667) 1 (2/2)
1998 57 45 3 .563 2
1999 56 37 0 .602 2
2000 44 (17/27) 43 (27/16) 3 (1/2) .506 (.386/.659) 2 (4/1)
2001 49 (27/22) 37 (14/23) 4 (4/0) .570 (.659/.489) 1 (1/3)
2002 32 (18/14) 54 (24/30) 4 (3/1) .372 (.429/.318) 4 (4/4)
2003 54 (24/30) 39 (23/16) 7 (3/4) .581 (.511/.652) 3 (4/2)
2004 54 (28/26) 40 (18/22) 6 (4/2) .574 (.543/.542) 1 (1/3)
2005 48 (24/24) 49 (26/23) 3 (0/3) .495 (.480/.511) 3 (5/3)
2006 48 (28/20) 45 (18/27) 7 (4/3) .516 (.609/.426) 2 (2/5)
2007
2007 Uni-President Lions season
The Uni-President Lions began their 2007 season by playing against La New Bears at Chengching Lake Baseball Field on March 17. The season concluded in late October, with the Lions winning Taiwan Series and participate in Asia Series.-Regular season:...

58 (27/31) 41 (23/18) 1 (0/1) .586 (.540/.633) 1 (2/2)
Uni-President 7-Eleven Lions
2008 67 (34/33) 33 (16/17) 0 (0/0) .670 (.680/.660) 1 (1/2)
2009 63 (34/29) 54 (24/30) 3 (2/1) .538 (.586/.492) 1 (1/2)
2010 54 (25/29) 63 (34/29) 3 (1/2) .462 (.424/.500) 3 (4/2)
2011 65 (37/28) 52 (22/30) 3 (1/2) .556 (.627/.483) 2 (1/3)
Totals 1090 884 80 .552 --

Playoffs

Season First Round Taiwan Series
Opponent Wins Losses Opponent Wins Losses
Uni-President Lions
1991 No first round. Wei Chuan Dragons
Wei Chuan Dragons
The Wei Chuan Dragons were a professional baseball team in Taiwan's CPBL that existed between 1990 and 1999.- Brief history :This team had a long amateur history when its parent company, the Wei-Chuan Food Corporation, started sponsoring Chinese Culture University's baseball team in late 1970s...

4 3
1993 No first round. Brother Elephants
Brother Elephants
The Brother Elephants are a professional baseball team in Taiwan. It was originally established as an amateur team in 1984 by the Brother Hotel located in Taipei City, and later joined the Chinese Professional Baseball League in 1989...

2 4
1995 No playoffs. The Lions won the championship by virtue of winning both half-seasons.
1996 No first round. Wei Chuan Dragons
Wei Chuan Dragons
The Wei Chuan Dragons were a professional baseball team in Taiwan's CPBL that existed between 1990 and 1999.- Brief history :This team had a long amateur history when its parent company, the Wei-Chuan Food Corporation, started sponsoring Chinese Culture University's baseball team in late 1970s...

4 2
1998 Wei Chuan Dragons
Wei Chuan Dragons
The Wei Chuan Dragons were a professional baseball team in Taiwan's CPBL that existed between 1990 and 1999.- Brief history :This team had a long amateur history when its parent company, the Wei-Chuan Food Corporation, started sponsoring Chinese Culture University's baseball team in late 1970s...

1 2 Eliminated.
1999 Wei Chuan Dragons
Wei Chuan Dragons
The Wei Chuan Dragons were a professional baseball team in Taiwan's CPBL that existed between 1990 and 1999.- Brief history :This team had a long amateur history when its parent company, the Wei-Chuan Food Corporation, started sponsoring Chinese Culture University's baseball team in late 1970s...

1 2 Eliminated.
2000 No first round. Sinon Bulls
Sinon Bulls
Despite a nice start, this club had been performing poorly throughout its short history, mainly due to the controversial leading styles of Jungo Corporation's then chairman Chen I-ping...

4 3
2001 No first round. Brother Elephants
Brother Elephants
The Brother Elephants are a professional baseball team in Taiwan. It was originally established as an amateur team in 1984 by the Brother Hotel located in Taipei City, and later joined the Chinese Professional Baseball League in 1989...

3 4
2004 No first round. Sinon Bulls
Sinon Bulls
Despite a nice start, this club had been performing poorly throughout its short history, mainly due to the controversial leading styles of Jungo Corporation's then chairman Chen I-ping...

3 4
2005 Macoto Cobras 1 3 Eliminated.
2006
2006 Chinese Professional Baseball League playoffs
The Chinese Professional Baseball League playoffs included the three top teams from the regular season and crowned a champion with the Taiwan Series through the month of October, 2006...

Sinon Bulls
Sinon Bulls
Despite a nice start, this club had been performing poorly throughout its short history, mainly due to the controversial leading styles of Jungo Corporation's then chairman Chen I-ping...

3 0 La New Bears
La New Bears
The Lamigo Monkeys , formerly First Financial Holdings Agan and then the La New Bears , are a professional baseball team in the Chinese Professional Baseball League in Taiwan...

0 4
2007
2007 Chinese Professional Baseball League playoffs
The Chinese Professional Baseball League playoffs included the three top teams from the regular season and saw Uni-President Lions crowned as the champion with the Taiwan Series through the month of October, 2007...

Macoto Cobras 3 0 La New Bears
La New Bears
The Lamigo Monkeys , formerly First Financial Holdings Agan and then the La New Bears , are a professional baseball team in the Chinese Professional Baseball League in Taiwan...

4 3
Uni-President 7-Eleven Lions
2008
2008 Chinese Professional Baseball League playoffs
The 2008 Taiwan Series was played by the Uni-President 7-Eleven Lions, team that placed first in the all-season standing, and the Brother Elephants, wild card winner who advanced to Taiwan Series by defeating La New Bears in the Playoff Series...

Seeded first. Brother Elephants
Brother Elephants
The Brother Elephants are a professional baseball team in Taiwan. It was originally established as an amateur team in 1984 by the Brother Hotel located in Taipei City, and later joined the Chinese Professional Baseball League in 1989...

4 3
2009
2009 Chinese Professional Baseball League playoffs
The 2009 Taiwan Series was played by Uni-President 7-Eleven Lions and Brother Elephants, winners of the first and second half-seasons. After seven games, the Lions defeated the Elephants four games to three and won the title.-Participants:...

No first round. Brother Elephants
Brother Elephants
The Brother Elephants are a professional baseball team in Taiwan. It was originally established as an amateur team in 1984 by the Brother Hotel located in Taipei City, and later joined the Chinese Professional Baseball League in 1989...

4 3
2011 No first round. Lamigo Monkeys 4 1
Total 41 39

Asia series

Year Round robin Championship round
Wins Losses Standing Opponent Result
Uni-President Lions
2007 1 2 3 Eliminated
Uni-President 7-Eleven Lions
2008
2008 Asia Series
The 2008 Asia Series was contested on November 13–16 by the champions of Nippon Professional Baseball's Japan Series, the Korea Professional Baseball's Korean Series, Chinese Professional Baseball League's Taiwan Series, and the championship of the China Baseball League of the People's Republic of...

2 1 2 Saitama Seibu Lions 0 - 1 (L)
2011
2011 Asia Series
The 2011 Asia Series was the fifth time the Asia Series has been held, and the first after a two-year break. The tournament was held in Taiwan, the first time it has been held outside of Japan...

1 2 3 Eliminated
Total 4 5 -- --

List of managers

Manager # Manager name Years Games Wins Losses Ties Playoffs Champions
1 Cheng Kuen-chi (鄭昆吉) 1990–1993 360 178 162 20 2 1
2 Yataro Oishi (大石弥太郎) 1994–1996 290 170 111 9 2 2
3 Lin Chia-Hsiang (林家祥) 1997–1998 193 110 73 10 1 0
(Acting) Yukihiko Machida (町田行彥) 1997 1 1 0 0 0 0
(Acting) Osamu Inoue (井上 修) 1998 7 4 3 0 0 0
4 Tseng Chih-chen
Tseng Chih-chen
Tseng Chih-chen is a retired Taiwanese professional baseball player and coach. He played for CPBL's Uni-President 7-Eleven Lions for nearly 18 years as a player, a coach, manager, and later assistant general manager.-Career:...

 (曾智偵)
1999–2002 353 178 164 11 3 1
(Acting) Masashi Takenouchi (竹之内雅史) 2000 10 3 7 0 0 0
5 Hsieh Chang-heng (謝長亨) 2003–2005 250 132 105 13 1 0
6 Yutaka Ohashi (大橋 穣) 2005 - 2007 167 76 81 10 1 0
(Acting) Lo Kuo-chang
Lo Kuo-Chong
Lo Kuo-Chong is a retired Taiwanese professional baseball player and currently a baseball coach. He had been well known for his excellent fielding ability, which was demonstrated by setting CPBL's record of did not error in a streak of continuous 153 fielding chances during his rookie 1994 season,...

 (羅國璋)
2007 33 23 10 0 0 0
7 Lu Wen-sheng
Lu Wen-sheng
Lu Wen-sheng, , Taiwan), is a retired Taiwanese professional baseball player and the current manager of Uni-President Lions. He has also represented Chinese Taipei on many occasions before entering professional career, and is sometimes named the best second baseman of his time.-Baseball career:Lu...

 (呂文生)
2007 - Present 383 215 168 4 4 4

Notable former players

- famous for video footage in which he kicked the catcher after being thrown at.

- on the forty-men roster of Canadian national team for 2006 WBC
2006 World Baseball Classic
---------Pool B:-------------Pool C:-------------Pool D:-------------Pool 1:-----------------Pool 2:-------------Finals:-Semifinals:-Final:-Final standings:...

 and represented Canada in 2008 Olympic Games.

- current commentator for San Diego Padres
San Diego Padres
The San Diego Padres are a Major League Baseball team based in San Diego, California. They play in the National League Western Division. Founded in 1969, the Padres have won the National League Pennant twice, in 1984 and 1998, losing in the World Series both times...

.

- former manager of the Lions.

- famous Taiwanese baseball player whose jersey number 33 is a retired number for Taiwanese national team.

- shared the Professional Baseball in Taiwan
Professional baseball in Taiwan
Professional baseball in Taiwan started with the founding of the Chinese Professional Baseball League in 1989. At its 1997 peak, Taiwan had two leagues and 11 professional teams...

's record of winning most games in a single season (22 wins in 1993) with Brother Elephants
Brother Elephants
The Brother Elephants are a professional baseball team in Taiwan. It was originally established as an amateur team in 1984 by the Brother Hotel located in Taipei City, and later joined the Chinese Professional Baseball League in 1989...

's Chen Yi-Hsin.

- current pitcher for the Houston Astros
Houston Astros
The Houston Astros are a Major League Baseball team located in Houston, Texas. They are a member of the National League Central division. The Astros are expected to join the American League West division in 2013. Since , they have played their home games at Minute Maid Park, known as Enron Field...

.

- former pitcher for the Houston Astros
Houston Astros
The Houston Astros are a Major League Baseball team located in Houston, Texas. They are a member of the National League Central division. The Astros are expected to join the American League West division in 2013. Since , they have played their home games at Minute Maid Park, known as Enron Field...

 and Toronto Blue Jays
Toronto Blue Jays
The Toronto Blue Jays are a professional baseball team located in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. The Blue Jays are a member of the Eastern Division of Major League Baseball 's American League ....

; was a CPBL All-Star in 2007.

- former manager and assistant general manager. His jersey number was retired when Tseng announced his first retirement, and subsequently un-retired when he made a comeback.

- Current pitcher for the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim
Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim
The Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim are a professional baseball team based in Anaheim, California, United States. The Angels are a member of the Western Division of Major League Baseball's American League. The "Angels" name originates from the city in which the team started, Los Angeles...


See also

  • Chinese Professional Baseball League
    Chinese Professional Baseball League
    The Chinese Professional Baseball League , or CPBL, is the top-tier professional baseball league in Taiwan. The league was established in 1989. CPBL eventually absorbed the competing Taiwan Major League in 2003...

  • Professional baseball in Taiwan
    Professional baseball in Taiwan
    Professional baseball in Taiwan started with the founding of the Chinese Professional Baseball League in 1989. At its 1997 peak, Taiwan had two leagues and 11 professional teams...

  • Taiwan Series
    Taiwan Series
    Taiwan Series is the championship series of the Chinese Professional Baseball League. It is usually played in October, after the regular season. It was formerly known as the CPBL Seasonal Championship Series , and was renamed the Taiwan Series after the merger of the Chinese Professional Baseball...


External links

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