The 14th Xu Sheng-ming International Baseball Tournament will open in Meinong, Kaohsiung, running from November 14 to 17 with 32 domestic and international teams competing. Hsieh Jung-yao has maintained the event for 14 years to fulfill her late husband’s dream of offering international competition and character education to rural youth, despite pandemic disruptions, fundraising hurdles, and recent health challenges.
Tournament Field and Opening Schedule in Meinong
Thirty-two teams from Taiwan and abroad will gather in Kaohsiung’s Meinong district for the four-day competition scheduled from November 14 to 17. Operating under the theme “14 Heroes, Splendid Strike,” the 14th tournament features international entrants including Japan’s Musashi Fuchu and South Korea’s Suncheon Namsan Elementary School. Several institutions are set to make their tournament debuts or travel across water to participate, including Changhua Tianzhong Elementary School, Hsinchu Zhongshan Elementary School, Kinmen Jining Elementary School, and Kinmen Zhongzheng Elementary School.
Fulfilling a Late Coach’s Vision for Rural Youth
The tournament traces its roots to the unfulfilled ambitions of the late baseball manager Xu Sheng-ming, who passed away suddenly. Hsieh Jung-yao noted that her husband left too quickly before he could establish a planned platform for rural children. During his lifetime, Xu observed that players from remote townships rarely secured roster spots on national representative teams. He envisioned a tournament funded through private donations that would invite clubs from Japan and South Korea to Taiwan. Through these exchanges, Xu sought to expose local players to South Korea’s aggressive hitting styles alongside Japanese standards of discipline and respect on the diamond.
Xu Launches Youth Program Based on Meinong 10-Year Plan
Xu frequently compared youth baseball development to growing tree saplings, arguing that failure to establish deep roots during little league years leaves players vulnerable later in life. Hsieh rejected characterizations of student-athletes as lacking intellect, maintaining that baseball demands focus, judgment, and thinking ability. The tournament’s underlying structure stems from the Meinong Baseball 10-Year Plan, which Xu launched after returning home to aid his recovering father and noticing local children lacked supervision after school. That initial outreach relied on childhood friends and volunteer coaches to provide guidance through sport.
Professional Players Support Meinong Youth Program Financially
Four athletes who came through the Meinong youth program have advanced to Taiwan’s professional ranks: Liu Kuei-yuan, Liu Chun-hao, Chen Ying-yu, and Wu Tung-lin. Hsieh expressed pride not merely in their athletic advancement, but in their continued engagement with the association, noting that several players make voluntary financial contributions once they have the ability. Corporate backing has sustained the operation through difficult periods, including the COVID-19 pandemic and recent fundraising deficits caused by Hsieh’s health limitations. Taiwan Wolf General Manager Chen Jung-chi, whose company has supported the tournament for four consecutive editions, noted that grassroots competitors require institutional platforms just as much as professional franchises do. Alongside tournament games, this year’s schedule incorporates local Meinong cultural excursions and a baseball clinic hosted in coordination with TSG Hawks players.
Worth a look
