TAIPEI (TVBS News) — Hokkaido Nippon-Ham Fighters welcomed Taiwanese catcher Lyle Lin (林家正) to their fall training camp Friday (Oct. 31) as a trainee. Lin gained international fame helping Taiwan win the WBSC Premier12 championship last year. The former MLB player will spend one week observing and learning from the Japanese professional team.
Lin's agency stated his camp participation primarily serves as a learning experience with no confirmed future career plans. Earlier this season, Lin played in the Athletics' minor leagues but was released midseason. Lin subsequently joined the Southern Maryland Blue Crabs after his MLB organization departure.
The Fighters shared Lin's photo on social media, announcing his participation in first-team fall training at ES CON Field. The team also has two Taiwanese pitchers, Gu Lin Ruei-yang (古林睿煬) and Sun Yi-lei (孫易磊), participating in training sessions. Taiwan's Fubon Guardians (富邦悍將隊) recently sent Lin Che-hsuan (林哲瑄) to the Fighters' Okinawa training camp as trainee coach. ◼