Jiangsu Huge Horses triumph in 2024 Chinese Baseball Championship

TIANJIN - The Jiangsu Huge Horses edged out the Beijing Tigers 8-7 in a thrilling ten-inning instant-classic on July 27 to complete a 2-0 series sweep and take home the 2024 Chinese Baseball Association Championship trophy.

The Guangdong Leopards beat out the 2023 champion Shanghai Golden Eagles in the previous morning's third-place game, rounding out this year's top three.

Jiangsu last won China's most prestigious baseball tournament nearly a decade ago, in 2015, finally winning it all this time around after coming up just short in last year's finals against Shanghai.

Speaking about moving forward from the team's second place finish a year ago, Game 1 hero and Finals MVP Li Ningji said, "We really didn't want to leave this year's tournament as the runners up again. We were out to make a name for ourselves this time."

Li certainly did make a name for himself during Jiangsu's July 26, 3-2 victory at the Tianjin Vocational College of Sports Baseball and Softball Stadium, giving an unforgettable marathon starting pitching performance across eight and one-third innings.

With the normal Chinese Baseball Association 95-pitch limit lifted for the final series, the lefty used 124 pitches to strike out nine batters, holding the power-hitting Tigers scoreless into the bottom of the ninth before finally running out of gas and allowing two runs on a clutch double by Beijing left fielder Zhao Guandi.

Jiangsu was able to hold on and close out the first match on a line drive caught by first baseman Cao Jie, who then threw to second to catch the stunned Zhao off guard before he was able to get back to the base.

In contrast to the low-scoring Game 1, Game 2 saw runs in eight of the ten innings, with several lead changes. The first of which came on the final series' lone home run—a solo shot to left field by Beijing shortstop Lu Yun in the fourth.

Jiangsu center fielder Zhu Xudong later scored on a throwing error in the seventh before teammate Jing Hui laid down a perfect sacrifice bunt to give the Huge Horses the lead back in the eighth. Determined not to go down quietly, Beijing willed the game back into a tie in the ninth, aided by its raucous fan section and a key wild pitch and ensuing error at first.

As per Chinese Baseball Association rules, each team started with runners on first and second base in extra inning play.

The Tigers first advanced their allowed runners with a sacrifice bunt, riding their momentum from the previous inning to produce a "small ball" run and go up 7-6 in the top of the tenth.

Jiangsu came out on top, however, with some "small ball" of their own, capped off by the second clutch RBI of the night from Jing—a no-doubt-about-it single to right center that saw his teammates begin charging out of the dugout in jubilation as soon as contact was made.

Jing, who had come on as a substitute for designated hitter Chen Chen in the eighth, described his state walking up to the plate as "zeroed in".

"I was focused on the first pitch and nothing else," he recalled during postgame celebrations.

When asked what he said to his team during a huddle moments later, after the reality of the moment set in, Jiangsu Huge Horse manager Chen Biao said he told them: "You guys gave it your all. I'm sure everyone is exhausted, and hey, we ended up with the best possible result. And now...it's time to rest and enjoy this."

Chen clarified that the approved rest is, of course, only temporary. With this year's championship, and the good fortune of having traveled to South Korea for a month of training and exchanges, the manager feels he and his team carry "a mantle of responsibility" which calls for them to boost the baseball culture and increase the confidence of young players throughout the country.

With his signature air of quiet confidence, the dedicated leader reflected, "As long as we're willing to take it up, I believe we have the ability to influence the entire future of baseball in China."