La New Bears
Encyclopedia
The Lamigo Monkeys formerly First Financial Holdings Agan (第一金控金剛, abbreviated 第一金剛) and then the La New Bears (La New 熊), are a professional baseball team in the Chinese Professional Baseball League
in Taiwan
. Owned and administered by the Kaohsiung
-based shoe-producing La New Corporation
, the Bears qualified for the playoffs in 2006 for the first time in team history, and by finishing with the best record for the whole season, gained an automatic berth in the Taiwan Series.
The Bears played their home games at Chengching Lake Baseball Field
in Kaohsiung County
(now part of Kaohsiung City) from 2004 to 2010. In the 2011 season, their home stadium was moved to Taoyuan International Baseball Stadium
. Accordingly, the team's name was changed to the Lamigo Monkeys.
, and, upon the president's request, immediately agreed to take over one of the two former TML
teams after TML was merged into CPBL in January 2003. Since Macoto Bank had already decided to take-over the Macoto Gida, Chen Chien-lung took-over the Agan as promised. interestingly, the bulk of Agan's player came from Taipei Gida
and Kaohsiung-Pingtung Fala, and not the Taichung Agan
which carried the same mascot
. Agan played its home games at Chengching Lake Baseball Field
.
Without a strong roster plus the management's inexperience and unprofessionalism in running a professional sports club, the Agan performed poorly right from the start of the 2003 season. After Chen Chien-lung's sudden resignation due to allegation of insider trading
in August 2003, the First Financial Holding Corporation no longer showed willingness in running the team. The Agan finished its the 2003 season placing fifth overall, and did not win any of the 20 games against Brother Elephants
, the Taiwan Series
champion of that season.
Magistrate Yang Chiu-hsing invited La New Corporation, a footwear manufacture to sponsor the then-vacant Chengching Lake Baseball Field
, which was under the management of Kaohsiung County after the disbandment of Taiwan Major League
. La New Corporation eventually agreed and, in addition, offered to buy First Financial Holdings Agan, whose management has been struggling in the past season. On December 16, 2003, La New completed the process with First Financial Holdings and renamed the team La New Bears. In the first two years of their existence, the Bears did not perform well. But after several addition to the roster through drafts and the minor league, the Bears turned the team around, eventually winning the 2006 Taiwan Series
title. The Bears did not win any title since then.
and changed its name to the Lamigo Monkeys in January 2011. The Monkeys play their home games at Taoyuan International Baseball Stadium
, and their name in Chinese, taoyuan (桃猿), is a homophone to their new home county
. Despite the name change, La New Corporation retained its ownership of the team.
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...
in 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...
. Owned and administered by the 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...
-based shoe-producing La New Corporation
La New Corporation
La New Corporation is a footwear manufacturing company that is based in Taiwan. La New was founded in 1996 by Liu Baoyou, , a Taiwanese businessman...
, the Bears qualified for the playoffs in 2006 for the first time in team history, and by finishing with the best record for the whole season, gained an automatic berth in the Taiwan Series.
The Bears played their home games at Chengching Lake Baseball Field
Chengching Lake Baseball Field
Chengcing Lake Baseball Field , officially the Kaohsiung County Municipal Chengcing Lake Baseball Field , is a multi-use stadium located in Niaosong District, Kaohsiung City, Taiwan, on the lakeside of Chengcing Lake. The stadium was opened in 1999...
in Kaohsiung County
Kaohsiung County
Kaohsiung County was a county in southern Taiwan that enclosed but did not include Kaohsiung City. On December 25, 2010, the county merged with Kaohsiung City to form a single special municipality.- Administration :-External links:*...
(now part of Kaohsiung City) from 2004 to 2010. In the 2011 season, their home stadium was moved to Taoyuan International Baseball Stadium
Taoyuan International Baseball Stadium
Taoyuan International Baseball Stadium is a multi-use stadium located in Taoyuan County, Taiwan. The stadium was opened in 2010 and has a capacity of 12,000 spectators...
. Accordingly, the team's name was changed to the Lamigo Monkeys.
First Financial Holdings Agan
Sometimes known as the First Securities Agan, the Agan was owned and administered by the First Financial Holding Corporation, a government-funded financial holding service. Its then-chairman Chen Chien-lung (陳建隆) was a keen political supporter of President Chen Shui-bianChen Shui-bian
Chen Shui-bian is a former Taiwanese politician who was the 10th and 11th-term President of the Republic of China from 2000 to 2008. Chen, whose Democratic Progressive Party has traditionally been supportive of Taiwan independence, ended more than fifty years of Kuomintang rule in Taiwan...
, and, upon the president's request, immediately agreed to take over one of the two former TML
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...
teams after TML was merged into CPBL in January 2003. Since Macoto Bank had already decided to take-over the Macoto Gida, Chen Chien-lung took-over the Agan as promised. interestingly, the bulk of Agan's player came from Taipei Gida
Taipei Gida
Taipei Gida was a Taiwanese professional baseball team that existed from 1997 to 2002. It was one of the four Taiwan Major League teams and was based in Taipei, Taiwan...
and Kaohsiung-Pingtung Fala, and not the Taichung Agan
Taichung Agan
The Taichung Agan , literally the Taichung Robots was a Taiwanese professional baseball team belonging to the Taiwan Major League . It was based in Taichung and took the Taichung Baseball Field as its home throughout its history...
which carried the same mascot
Mascot
The term mascot – defined as a term for any person, animal, or object thought to bring luck – colloquially includes anything used to represent a group with a common public identity, such as a school, professional sports team, society, military unit, or brand name...
. Agan played its home games at Chengching Lake Baseball Field
Chengching Lake Baseball Field
Chengcing Lake Baseball Field , officially the Kaohsiung County Municipal Chengcing Lake Baseball Field , is a multi-use stadium located in Niaosong District, Kaohsiung City, Taiwan, on the lakeside of Chengcing Lake. The stadium was opened in 1999...
.
Without a strong roster plus the management's inexperience and unprofessionalism in running a professional sports club, the Agan performed poorly right from the start of the 2003 season. After Chen Chien-lung's sudden resignation due to allegation of insider trading
Insider trading
Insider trading is the trading of a corporation's stock or other securities by individuals with potential access to non-public information about the company...
in August 2003, the First Financial Holding Corporation no longer showed willingness in running the team. The Agan finished its the 2003 season placing fifth overall, and did not win any of the 20 games against 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...
, the 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...
champion of that season.
La New Bears
Just before the 2004 season, Kaohsiung CountyKaohsiung County
Kaohsiung County was a county in southern Taiwan that enclosed but did not include Kaohsiung City. On December 25, 2010, the county merged with Kaohsiung City to form a single special municipality.- Administration :-External links:*...
Magistrate Yang Chiu-hsing invited La New Corporation, a footwear manufacture to sponsor the then-vacant Chengching Lake Baseball Field
Chengching Lake Baseball Field
Chengcing Lake Baseball Field , officially the Kaohsiung County Municipal Chengcing Lake Baseball Field , is a multi-use stadium located in Niaosong District, Kaohsiung City, Taiwan, on the lakeside of Chengcing Lake. The stadium was opened in 1999...
, which was under the management of Kaohsiung County after the disbandment of 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...
. La New Corporation eventually agreed and, in addition, offered to buy First Financial Holdings Agan, whose management has been struggling in the past season. On December 16, 2003, La New completed the process with First Financial Holdings and renamed the team La New Bears. In the first two years of their existence, the Bears did not perform well. But after several addition to the roster through drafts and the minor league, the Bears turned the team around, eventually winning the 2006 Taiwan Series
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...
title. The Bears did not win any title since then.
Lamigo Monkeys
After several years of futile effort to manage the Kaohsiung market, the team relocated to Taoyuan CountyTaoyuan County
"Taoyuan County" may refer to:*Taoyuan County, Taiwan, a county in northern Taiwan Province, *Taoyuan County, Hunan, a county in Hunan Province,...
and changed its name to the Lamigo Monkeys in January 2011. The Monkeys play their home games at Taoyuan International Baseball Stadium
Taoyuan International Baseball Stadium
Taoyuan International Baseball Stadium is a multi-use stadium located in Taoyuan County, Taiwan. The stadium was opened in 2010 and has a capacity of 12,000 spectators...
, and their name in Chinese, taoyuan (桃猿), is a homophone to their new home county
Taoyuan County
"Taoyuan County" may refer to:*Taoyuan County, Taiwan, a county in northern Taiwan Province, *Taoyuan County, Hunan, a county in Hunan Province,...
. Despite the name change, La New Corporation retained its ownership of the team.
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| First Financial Holdings Agan | |||||
| 2003 | 20 (9/11) | 71 (37/34) | 9 (4/5) | .220 (.196/.244) | 5 (6/5) |
| La New Bears | |||||
| 2004 | 40 (18/22) | 56 (30/26) | 4 (2/2) | .417 (.375/.458) | 6 (6/5) |
| 2005 | 42 (16/26) | 55 (32/23) | 3 (2/1) | .433 (.333/.531) | 6 (6/2) |
| 2006 | 62 (30/32) | 34 (19/15) | 4 (2/2) | .646 (.612/.681) | 1 (1/1) |
| 2007 | 58 (26/32) | 42 (24/18) | 0 (0/0) | .580 (.520/.640) | 2 (2/1) |
| 2008 | 61 (28/33) | 35 (19/16) | 4 (3/1) | .610 (.596/.673) | 2 (2/1) |
| 2009 | 61 (33/28) | 58 (26/32) | 1 (1/0) | .513 (.559/.467) | 2 (2/4) |
| 2010 | 55 (31/24) | 62 (27/35) | 3 (2/1) | .470 (.534/.407) | 3 (2/4) |
| Lamigo Monkeys | |||||
| 2011 | 66 (33/33) | 52 (26/26) | 2 (1/1) | .559 (.559/.559) | 1 (2/1) |
| Total | 465 | 465 | 30 | .500 | -- |
Playoffs
| Season | First Round | Taiwan Series | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Opponent | Wins | Losses | Opponent | Wins | Losses | |
| La New Bears | ||||||
| 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... |
Seeded first | Uni-President Lions Uni-President Lions The Uni-President 7-Eleven Lions are a professional baseball team based in Tainan City, Taiwan. 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... |
4 | 0 | ||
| 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... |
Seeded first | Uni-President Lions Uni-President Lions The Uni-President 7-Eleven Lions are a professional baseball team based in Tainan City, Taiwan. 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... |
3 | 4 | ||
| 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... |
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... |
0 | 3 | Eliminated | ||
| Lamigo Monkeys | ||||||
| 2011 | No first round. | Uni-President Lions | 1 | 4 | ||
| Total | 8 | 12 | ||||
Asia Series
| Year | Round Robin | Championship Round | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wins | Losses | Standing | Opponent | Result | ||
| La New Bears | ||||||
| 2006 | 2 | 1 | 2 | Hokkaido Nippon Ham Fighters Hokkaido Nippon Ham Fighters The are a Japanese professional baseball team based in Sapporo, Hokkaidō. They compete in the Pacific League of Nippon Professional Baseball, playing the majority of their home games at the Sapporo Dome. The Fighters also host a select number of regional home games in cities across Hokkaidō,... |
0 - 1 (L) | |
| Total | 2 | 1 | -- | 0W - 1L | ||
See also
- Chinese Professional Baseball LeagueChinese Professional Baseball LeagueThe 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...
- First Financial Holdings Agan
- 2006 Chinese Professional Baseball League Playoffs2006 Chinese Professional Baseball League playoffsThe 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...
- 2007 CPBL season