Wei-Cheng Huang

From BR Bullpen

Wei-Cheng Huang (黃偉晟)

  • Bats Right, Throws Right
  • Height 6' 0", Weight 180 lb.

BR Register page

Biographical Information[edit]

Wei-Cheng Huang played in the minor leagues and the CPBL.

Huang was signed by the Atlanta Braves in 2008 (the scout was Jeremy Chou), and he had a 3.18 ERA in 12 games with the GCL Braves in 2009. He underwent Tommy John surgery and missed the entire 2010 season, and he had a 3.54 ERA in 9 games in 2011. The Braves then released him, and Huang returned to Taiwan. The EDA Rhinos selected him in the third round of the 2013 CPBL Draft, but he struggled with them. After allowing 8 runs in 3 1/3 innings in 2014, the Rhinos released him, and the Lamigo Monkeys picked him up.

The Penghu native pitched well in 2014, collecting 13 holds with a solid 2.35 ERA in 52 appearances. He was 5th in games (tied with Jung-Hao Hsieh) and 6th in holds (17 behind Yu-Hsun Chen). Huang collected 2 holds with 3 2/3 shutout innings in the 2014 Taiwan Series, and he won his first title as the Monkeys beat the CTBC Brothers in 5 games. Huang slumped to a 5.44 ERA in 54 games with 15 holds in 2015, and he was 3rd in appearances (6 behind Yi-Hao Lin) and 3rd in holds (4 behind Ta-Yuan Kuan). He pitched 3 2/3 shutout innings again in 3 games in the 2015 Taiwan Series, and the Monkeys beat the Brothers in 7 games.

Huang still couldn't find his old level of performance, and his ERA was 6.61 in 39 games in 2016. He pitched 20 games with a 5.40 ERA in 2017, and his ERA even rose to 7.16 in 20 games in 2018. Huang recorded a 4.94 ERA in 20 games in 2019, then he only pitched 21 games with a horrible 7.16 ERA in 2020. He finally bounced back in 2021 as his ERA was 3.42 in 26 games, and he had a 4.22 ERA in 17 games in 2022. After struggling on the mound for most of the prior 8 years, Huang miraculously broke out and became one of the most efficient relievers in 2023. His ERA was an elite 1.15 in 38 games, and he also notched 9 holds. In the 2023 Taiwan Series, he relieved Chun-Hsiang Chu in the 13th inning of Game 1, but he surrendered a walk-off solo shot to Chi-Hung Liu and got the loss. He then pitched 1 2/3 shutout innings in Game 4, but the Monkeys were beaten by the Wei Chuan Dragons in 7 games.

Huang's repertoire includes a fastball (peak 94.4 mph), slider, changeup, knuckle curve and forkball.

Sources[edit]