Wei Chuan Dragons vs Chinatrust Brothers

Taipei Dome — Jose De Paula tossed seven scoreless innings and the Chinatrust Brothers built an early four-run cushion before holding off a late Wei Chuan Dragons rally to escape with a 4-3 win on Thursday, snapping a three-game losing streak.

The Brothers jumped on Dragons starter Marcelo Martinez immediately. In the top of the first, three hits, a walk and tactical baserunning produced three runs before the Dragons could record the third out. Chang Shih-lun and Chang Jen-wei set the table, and Chen Chun-hsiu drove in a run as the Brothers batted around.

De Paula made that lead stand up. The veteran left-hander retired the first 10 Dragons he faced and faced only one serious threat — a two-out double in the fourth — before cruising through seven innings on 89 pitches. He allowed three hits, walked none and struck out four.

The Brothers added an insurance run in the sixth. Kao Yu-chieh singled and came around to score on a fielder's choice and a sacrifice fly, stretching the lead to 4-0.

Wei Chuan finally broke through in the eighth against relievers Wu Chun-wei and Tsai Chi-che. Two walks and two hits, including an RBI single from Kuo Tien-hsin, produced two runs and cut the deficit to 4-2.

In the ninth, Lee Chen-chang — closing for the Brothers — surrendered a leadoff single and a run-scoring groundout that made it 4-3. But Lee induced a game-ending flyout with the tying run on second to earn the save.

De Paula's seven-inning shutout performance. After the Brothers had lost three straight, the 37-year-old Dominican provided exactly what his team needed: length, efficiency and dominance. He threw first-pitch strikes to 19 of 26 batters and never allowed a Dragon past second base after the fourth inning. His outing allowed the Brothers' bullpen to deploy fresh arms in a lower-leverage context.

• Jose De Paula (Chinatrust Brothers) — Player of the Match: 7 IP, 3 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 0 BB, 4 K, 89 pitches. The veteran lefty lowered his ERA to 3.15 and earned his sixth win of the season.
• Kao Yu-chieh (Chinatrust Brothers): 2-for-4 with a run scored from the No. 8 spot, providing crucial bottom-of-the-order production.
• Kuo Tien-hsin (Wei Chuan Dragons): 1-for-5 with an RBI, sparking the eighth-inning rally that nearly brought the Dragons all the way back.
• Lee Chen-chang (Chinatrust Brothers): 1 IP, 1 H, 1 R, 1 ER but closed the door with the tying run in scoring position.

The Brothers out-hit the Dragons 10-6 but the raw numbers undersell De Paula's control. Wei Chuan managed only three hits in the first seven innings — none for extra bases — and didn't draw a single walk off De Paula. The Dragons' two errors contributed to two unearned runs, a decisive margin in a one-run game.

Wei Chuan's late surge was real: they put five of their six total hits on the board after the seventh inning, collecting three hits and drawing two walks in the final two frames. But the 4-0 hole proved too deep.

The Brothers (14-14-0) climbed back to .500 and kept pace in the tightly bunched CPBL standings. The Dragons (16-12-0) missed a chance to extend their lead atop the table but remain in first place by a narrow margin.

Next fixtures: Wei Chuan Dragons host the Fubon Guardians on 21 August at Taipei Dome (18:35 local). Chinatrust Brothers travel to face the Uni-President 7-Eleven Lions on the same date.

De Paula was the decisive difference — a vintage performance from a veteran who gave the Brothers exactly the start they needed after three straight losses. Wei Chuan's late fight shows their resilience, but spotting a pitcher of De Paula's calibre a four-run lead was always going to be a steep ask.