Difficulty Level ★★☆

6
2 11
3
E
8
7
1

10
13
D C

14
4 12
9

A
16

15

1. shortstop 2. left fielder 3. outfield 4. third base 5. baseball diamond/baseball field 6. center fielder
7. second base 8. second baseman 9. infield 10. third baseman 11. right fielder 12. pitcher’s mound
13. first baseman 14. first base 15. home plate 16. umpire

1. Look at the above picture. Do you know what role each player plays in a baseball
game? Fill in each blank with the right word.
catcher outfielder pitcher batter infielder

A. B. C. D. E.
2. How many baseball terms do you know?
□ home run □ strike □ hit-and-run □ bases loaded
□ pitcher’s mound □ double play □ shortstop □ ball
6 - 8 : Excellent. You must be a baseball buff.
3 - 5 : Good. Watching baseball games once in a while has surely done you good.
164 1 - 2 : OK, but baseball is clearly not your favorite sport.
 LESSON 8 Chien-ming Wang: The Prince of Baseball

1 1
After Chien-ming Wang had pitched for eight
2 3 2 4
innings , Yankees pitching coach Ron Guidry came

to talk to him. Wang was told that he had only one more
3 4
inning to prove his worth. Under great pressure ,
5
Wang gave it his best shot on the mound . That night, 5

5 6 7
he tossed a two-hit shutout to beat the Tampa Bay
8 6
Devil Rays 6-0. It seems that extra stress always fuels

him. In 2006, at the age of twenty-six, he was one of the

9
best young pitchers in the Major League Baseball .
10
Back in 2000, Atlanta 10

offered Wang more money than the

Yankees. Instead of signing

with Atlanta, however,

8
Wang chose to sign with

the Yankees. His reason 15

was simple. He just

1. Chien-ming Wang 3. prove [pruv] 8. the Tampa Bay Devil Rays

[1dZEn1mIµ 1wAµ]
1. pitched [pItSt]
2. innings [1InIµz]
3. Yankees [1j{µkIz]
2. coach [kot?]
4. Ron Guidry [%rAn 1©IdrI]
4. pressure [1prE?_] [D@ 1t{mp@ be 1dEv¬ rez]
5. mound [ma¨nd] 6. fuels [1fju@lz]
5. tossed [tOst] 9. Major League Baseball
6. hit [hIt] [1medZ_ li© 1bes%bOl]
7. shutout [1?yt%a¨t] 10. Atlanta [@t1l{nt@]
165
 wanted to be close to his childhood
Critical Thinkin
7 11 g
idol , Roger Clemens , a Yankees D o y o u th in k it
is u n w is e
8 9 of Wang to refuse
pitcher. Another episode also reveals Atlanta’s
m o n e y o ff e r o
10
n ly to g e t
20 Wang’s simple personality . Once c lo se to h is id
o l, R o g e r
12 11 Clemens?
John Cox , the scout for the

8
Yankees, paid Wang a visit, and asked what he could do for Wang.

To John’s surprise, Wang only asked for a rice cooker.

13
Wang is a man of few words. Mike Mussina , another
12
25 superb Yankees pitcher, once said, “I’ve never seen him get excited

or upset about anything. But being a pitcher, that’s a good way to be.”

Though he is quiet, he never loses a chance to make people around

7. idol [1aId¬] 9. reveals [rI1vilz] 13. Mike Mussina

11. Roger Clemens 10. personality [%p^s§1{l@tI] [%maIk m¨1sIn@]
[%rAdZ_ 1klEm@nz] 12. John Cox [%dZAn 1kAks] 12. superb [s¨1p^b]
8. episode [1Ep@%sod] 11. scout [ska¨t]
166
 LESSON 8 Chien-ming Wang: The Prince of Baseball

13 14
him laugh. Sometimes he parrots the slang words he has learned

from his teammates and uses them on his coaches or friends. Most of
15 14 16 15
the time, he has good comic timing . His humor therefore has 30

17
won him many friends on foreign soil .
16
With more and more calluses on his fingers, he seems to be

8
pitching better and better. Now he is a national hero in Taiwan.
18
Whenever he shows up, fans stop him and ask for an autograph .

This big boy from Tainan has finally found his place on the mound. 35

—by Christy Murphy

13. parrots [1p{r@ts] 14. timing [1taImIµ] 17. soil [sOIl]

14. slang [sl{µ] 16. humor [1hjum_] 16. calluses [1k{l@sIz]
15. comic [1kAmIk] 15. therefore [1DEr%for] 18. autograph [1Ot@%©r{f]
167
 I Choose the main idea of this reading.

(A) Roger Clemens has taught Wang how to become a successful player.
(B) Wang’s humor has won him many friends.
(C) Wang’s success has a lot to do with his personality.

According to the reading, choose the best answer to each

II
question below.

1. When Wang was a little boy, he was a big fan of .

(A) Ron Guidry (B) Mike Mussina
(C) Roger Clemens (D) John Cox
2. The scout was very when Wang asked him for a
rice cooker.
(A) surprised (B) jealous

8
(C) sad (D) confused
3. The word “parrot” in the third paragraph is closest in meaning
to .
(A) imitate (B) raise as a pet
(C) live on (D) fly
4. As a newcomer, Wang’s makes it easier for him
to get to know people.
(A) excitement (B) fame
(C) skill (D) humor
5. Whenever Wang appears in Taiwan, people ask him to
.
(A) sign his name (B) play ball
168
(C) tell a joke (D) give them free tickets
 LESSON 8 Chien-ming Wang: The Prince of Baseball

To get a better picture of this reading, go through it again and fill in the
following blanks with the words selected from the text.

Paragraph 1: Introduction

Wang’s way of coping with pressure

→ Extra always makes Wang perform better.

Paragraph 2: Example 1
A revelation about Wang’s personality
→ Wang has a personality.
e.g. He signed with the Yankees so as to get close to his
.

Paragraph 3: Examples 2~3 8

More revelations about Wang’s personality
→ Wang is a man of .
e.g. He never gets excited or upset about anything.
→ Wang has good .
e.g. He often parrots the slang words he has just learned.

Paragraph 4: Conclusion

The way Wang becomes a national hero

→ The calluses Wang gets on his fingers,
the he pitches. 169
 1 Would you rather watch a baseball game in a stadium or on
television? Why?

2 What qualities do you think a good baseball player needs to

have? Why?

3 What are some of the difficulties you might encounter in

America if you were Chien-ming Wang? Which one do you think
is the most serious? Why?

Ranking Difficulties Details

(1~5)

Language
I speak (poor/broken/no) English.
Barrier

Americans eat too much .

8 Food
I don’t eat .

It is too there.
Climate
I don’t like the weather.

Lifestyle The pace of life is too (fast/slow).

Others

170
 LESSON 8 Chien-ming Wang: The Prince of Baseball

Words for Production

1. pitch to throw a baseball or softball to a batter during a game

[pItS] v. [I, T] 投（球）
He has been pitching very well tonight, striking out several
batters.
Let’s practice pitching the ball after school.
pitcher n. [C] 投手
[1pItS_] The team’s new pitcher can throw a baseball a hundred miles
an hour!
2. coach someone who trains a person in a sport
[kot? ] n. [C] 教練
Mr. Jackson is a famous tennis coach in this community.
coach v. [T] 指導
[kot? ] Jenny makes a living by coaching students in English.
3. prove to show that something is true

8
[pruv] v. [T] 證明
He tried to prove he was innocent, but no one believed him.
4. pressure feelings of anxiety caused by the need to achieve something in
[1prE?_] a limited time; a physical force pressing down
n. [U] 壓力
She was under a lot of pressure because her boss was very
demanding.
The nurse will soon come to take your blood pressure.
5. toss to throw something carelessly
[tOs] v. [T] 丟擲
He tossed the ball high into the air.
6. fuel to increase; to make something stronger
[1fju@l] v. [T] 增強
The mayor’s speech fueled fears among the residents.
171
 fuel n. [C, U] 能源；燃料
[1fju@l] To protect the environment, scientists are trying to find a
more eco-friendly fuel for cars.
Wood, coal, oil, and gas are different kinds of fuel.
7. idol a person or thing that is loved very much
[1aId¬] n. [C] 偶像
Michael Jordan is a basketball idol, adored by countless
fans.
8. episode an event in one’s life; one part of a story
[1Ep@%sod] n. [C] 插曲
One of the most interesting episodes in the movie
happened at the end.
9. reveal to show; to make something known
[rI1vil] v. [T] 顯現
It was revealed that the famous pop singer had been
murdered.
10. personality the different characteristics (features, qualities) of a person
[%p^s§1{l@tI] that make him or her unique, different from all others

8 n. [C] 個性；人格
The twin sisters have very different personalities.
11. scout a person whose job is to find good athletes, actors, or musicians
[ska¨t] n. [C] 球探；星探
James worked as a scout for the Chicago Bulls.
scout v. [I, T] 偵查；尋找
[ska¨t] They scouted around for somewhere to stay the night.
The boys scouted the area for a good place to hide their
treasure.
12. superb excellent; very great
[s¨1p^b] adj. 卓越的
The orchestra gave a superb performance.
superbly adv. 優秀地
[s¨1p^blI] A superbly illustrated book always attracts children.
172
 LESSON 8 Chien-ming Wang: The Prince of Baseball

13. parrot to imitate; to repeat what someone has said without thinking
[1p{r@t] about the meaning
v. [T] 模仿
Kids made fun of Joe because he parroted what he heard
people say.
parrot n. [C] 鸚鵡
[1p{r@t] Henry asked his parents if they would let him get a parrot.
14. slang informal words or expressions that are used in spoken
[sl{µ] language
n. [U] 俚語
“Chicken” is slang for someone who is not brave.
15. comic amusing; making someone laugh
[1kAmIk] adj. 滑稽的
He made everyone in the audience laugh with his comic
speech.
16. humor a quality which makes someone happy or amused
[1hjum_] n. [U] 幽默
Mr. Smith has a sense of humor; that’s why his students like
his class very much.
humorous adj. 幽默的
[1hjum@r@s] Mark Twain is known for his witty and humorous stories.
8
17. soil an area of land; a country; dirt
[sOIl] n. [U, C] 土地；國家；土壤
He was very excited when he set foot on his native soil after
being away for many years.
Dr. Smith is an expert in the study of rocks and soils.
18. autograph a famous person’s signature
[1Ot@%©r{f] n. [C]（名人的）簽名
Can I have your autograph?
autograph v. [T] 簽名於……
[1Ot@%©r{f] After the concert, the singer spent three hours autographing
his photos for fans.

173
 Words for Recognition

1. Chien-ming Wang [1dZEn1mIµ 1wAµ] n.（台灣旅美投手）王建民

（2000~2009 年為洋基球員，於 2010 年 2 月 16 日轉入華盛頓國民隊）
2. inning [1InIµ] n. [C] one of the nine periods of play in a baseball game
（棒球的）局
3. Yankees [1j{µkIz] n. the New York Yankees, one of the MLB teams 洋基隊
4. Ron Guidry [%rAn 1©IdrI] n. Ronald Ames Guidry, a former MLB left-handed
pitcher and the pitching coach for Yankees from 2006 to 2007 朗古瑞
5. mound [ma¨nd] n. [C] the small hill where the pitcher stands and throws
the ball 投手丘
6. hit [hIt] n. [C] when a batter gets on base safely after hitting the baseball
安打
7. shutout [1?yt%a¨t] n. [C] a game in which one team scores no points (or
runs) 完封比賽（輸的一方一分未得）
8. the Tampa Bay Devil Rays [D@ 1t{mp@ be 1dEv¬ rez] n. one of the MLB

8 teams 坦帕灣魔鬼魚隊（坦帕灣光芒隊前身）
9. Major League Baseball [1medZ_ li© 1bes%bOl] n. 美國職棒大聯盟（簡稱
MLB）
10. Atlanta [@t1l{nt@] n. the Atlanta Braves, one of the MLB teams 亞特蘭大
勇士隊
11. Roger Clemens [ %rAdZ_ 1klEm@nz ] n. William Roger Clemens, a
right-handed MLB pitcher 羅傑．克萊門斯
12. John Cox [%dZAn 1kAks] n. a coordinator of Pacific Rim scouting for the
Yankees 約翰．考克斯
13. Mike Mussina [%maIk m¨1sIn@] n. Michael Cole Mussina, a former Major
League Baseball starting pitcher 邁克．穆西納

174
 LESSON 8 Chien-ming Wang: The Prince of Baseball

14. timing [1taImIµ] n. [U] the skill or luck involved in doing something at the
best possible time 時機（掌握）
15. therefore [1DEr%for] adv. for that reason 因此
16. callus [1k{l@s] n. [C] an area of thick hard skin on one’s hand or foot 老繭

1. give something one’s best shot to do something as well as one can 盡

某人全力
No matter what, just give it your best shot.

2. instead of rather than (doing) something else, as a substitute for something

else 代替
He just ordered a cup of coffee instead of a full meal.

3. pay ... a visit to visit; to drop by 拜訪

8
The teacher paid Eric’s parents a visit to discuss his schoolwork with
them.

4. to one’s surprise to make someone feel something unexpected happening

令（某人）驚訝
To our surprise, Jack left without saying goodbye.

5. show up to appear 出現
She finally showed up after keeping us waiting for twenty minutes.

175
 Sports Areas

baseball field 棒球場 volleyball court 排球場

football field 足球場 golf course 高爾夫球場
basketball court 籃球場 skating rink 溜冰場
tennis court 網球場 bowling alley 保齡球館

Match the following actions with the sports areas (places) where they happen.

1 hit-and-run A basketball court

2 touchdown B baseball field
3 slam dunk C tennis court
4 deuce D football field
5 jump and spin E skating rink

watch/hear/see/feel + O + V/V-ing
I watch/hear/see/feel + O + p.p.

Examples
1. I’ve never seen him get excited or upset about anything.
2. Jane heard a boy singing in the room.
3. I watched Susan’s purse get stolen on the bus.
4. Mike felt his feelings hurt by his best friend.
176
 LESSON 8 Chien-ming Wang: The Prince of Baseball

Practice

Rewrite each sentence using the pattern above.

1. The house was shaking.

→ I felt the house shaking .

2. Birds are singing in the woods.

→ He listens to .

3. Someone patted me on the head.

→ I felt .

4. The building fell down.

→ We saw .

5. A child was knocked down by a car.

→ I saw .

6. A man was walking to and fro upstairs.

→ Mrs. Wang heard . 8

II past tense vs. present perfect

Examples
1. Wang was told that he had only one more inning to prove himself.
2. He parrots the slang words he has learned from his teammates.

Practice A

Circle the correct verb form in each sentence below.

1. Mary (studied, has studied ) painting since she was young.

2. A fire (burned, has burned) down this building years ago.
177
 3. We (visited, have visited) London last summer.
4. Jack (played, has played) the video game after he finished his homework.
5. Helen (was, has been) a nurse for over twenty years.
6. It (was, has been) twenty years since Jack left home.

Practice B

Every year, the Cy Young Memorial

Award is awarded to the best-
performing MLB pitcher. Do you
know the origin of this award? Read
the following passage and write the
correct form of the given verb in each
blank.

1
Denton True Young was (be) born on March 29, 1867, in Gilmore, Ohio.
2
He was given the Cy Young Award in 1956. The award (be) given to
3
the best pitcher every year since then. Young (get) the nickname “Cy”

8 because of his cyclone-like fastball. He set a career record of 511 wins, which
4
(be) a record that has not yet been broken. He also set the major league

record of 749 complete games. Young tried to win every game with every team he
5
(play) for. The most unforgettable game came on May 5, 1904, when

Young’s team, the Boston Red Sox, was playing against Philadelphia. That day,

he set a record for the most no-hit, scoreless innings in a row. So far, no pitcher
6 7
(break) his record. He (be) the most popular baseball

player in the American baseball history. Cy Young died peacefully on November

4, 1955, in Ohio.
178
 LESSON 8 Chien-ming Wang: The Prince of Baseball

1 2

Mimi and her boyfriend, Roger, are at a baseball game. The game is going to
begin in ten minutes.
Mimi : It’s always fun to watch a baseball game at the ballpark on such a beautiful
day.
Roger : Yeah. It finally cleared up after raining for a whole week.
Mimi : I

Roger : I’ve
can barely remember the last time we were here.
missed my favorite pitcher, Chien-ming Wang, and my favorite
8
stadium food—hot dogs, popcorn, and peanuts.
Mimi : But today I came especially to watch Daisuke Matsuzaka pitch.
Roger : What? I thought we both hated Boston! If the Yankees win today, they will
go to the World Series. Then I’ll be able to see V ocabulary
● stadium [1stedi@m] n.
Wang’s sinker again, and maybe even A-Rod’s grand
體育館
slam. ● sinker [1sIµk_] 下沉球
（現在俗稱伸卡球）
Mimi : Well, you never know. Just like people say, “It ain’t
U seful Expressions
over ’til it’s over.” ● clear up 放晴
the World Series
Roger : I’m sure the Yankees will win today.
●

世界大賽
Mimi : Fine. If the Red Sox lose today, then we’ll break up. ● grand slam 滿貫全壘打
break up 分手
Roger : What?
●
179
 Listen to the ball game broadcast twice, look at the following two tables,
and fill in the missing information about David Jordan.

Part I. Listen to the ball game broadcast and fill in the correct information in
the scoreboard.

Innings 1 234567 89 Final

Score

8
Part II. Listen again and fill in the missing information about the pitcher.

Wins So Far
Pitcher Innings Pitches Strikes Hits Runs
in Season

David
Jordan

180
 LESSON 8 Chien-ming Wang: The Prince of Baseball

Baseball is the most popular sport in the United States. Some even call it
America’s national sport. As a result, many English idioms are derived from
baseball.

Part I. Read the original (O) and derived (D) meanings for the following idioms.

strike out
(O) To swing and miss or not swing at a good pitch
▼

three times, losing one’s turn at bat

(D) To fail completely

throw a curve (ball)

(O) To throw the ball in a way that fools the batter
▼

(D) To do something completely unexpected to totally

surprise someone

play hardball
(O) To play baseball rather than the easier softball 8
▼

(D) To act boldly and without pity, only trying to win

bat a thousand
(O) To have a perfect hitting percentage (by getting a
hit or a walk each time at bat)
▼

(D) To be doing extremely well (sometimes as a joke

to make fun of oneself)

touch base
(O) To be safe on a base (no danger of being out)
▼

(D) To make contact with someone

181
 Part II. Choose the proper baseball idioms to complete the following dialogue.

(A) struck out (B) threw a curve (C) play hardball

(D) batting a thousand (E) touch base

1. A: Hey, Li Po number two. When will I see your new book of poems?
B: Oh. I think I again this time. No editors have written
back to me.
2. A: Why didn’t you go to Jane’s party?
B: Jane really when she asked everyone to bring a
partner. I just broke up with Ken yesterday!
3. A: Mom, can I go to Helen’s to study tonight?
B: OK. But if you are going to be home late, remember to
and let me know.
4. A: Did you hand in your homework to Professor Wang today?
B: Of course. He is very nice, but he can when he needs
to.
5. A: You look terrible. What’s wrong?
B: First, I forgot my lunchbox, then I missed my bus, and then I failed my

8 math test. I am really today.

Basics of writing: Adverbs

Adverbs are words that convey a sense of how, when, where, or why. An
adverb can be used to modify a verb, an adjective, another adverb or a clause.
Now read the following summary of the reading to see how the adverbs work:

Wang finally chose to sign with the Yankees instead of Atlanta, simply
because he wanted to be close to his childhood idol, Roger Clemens. Wang’s
182
 LESSON 8 Chien-ming Wang: The Prince of Baseball

simple personality deeply impressed the people around him and quickly won
him many friends. John Cox used to visit Wang and kindly asked what he
could do for Wang. But Wang only asked for a rice cooker.

Practice

Read the following passage about Wang Chen-chih and insert the adverb in
the right position in each underlined sentence.

1 2
Though Wang grew up in Japan, he will be a Taiwanese (always). He
3
thinks of giving up his identity as Taiwanese (never). For this, he is admired by
people in Taiwan (deeply). Wang became a first baseman after he joined the
4
Giants in 1959. His excellent performance on the field won him a position as
captain of the Giants (soon). His fans named him “Oh,” which means “King” in
5
Japanese. His many home runs made him one of the greatest hitters in the world
(also). His home run record and unique hitting stance impressed his Japanese fans,
6
so people voted him the best player in Japan nine times. He is famous (very), but
7
he is always humble about his success. Though he is over sixty now, he is active 8
in the field of baseball in Japan (still).

1. Though Wang grew up in Japan, .

2.

3. For this, .

4.

5.

6. , but he is always humble about his success.

7. Though he is over sixty now, .

183
 The story started in 1918 when the Red
Sox won their fifth World Series title; the team
was led to victory by their greatest pitcher, Babe
Ruth, also known as “the Bambino” (“babe” in
Italian). A couple of years later, because the Red Sox
boss needed money to invest in the Broadway show business, he decided
to sell the Bambino to the New York Yankees, who at that time had never
won a championship.
This kind of trade occurs frequently in baseball, but after trading
Babe Ruth the Red Sox were not able to win the championship again until
2004; however, the Yankees have won an amazing twenty-six World
Series titles since getting the Bambino in 1918. Before 2004, the Red Sox
had played in four World Series but lost each of them in the seventh and

8
final game. The Yankees on the other hand became one of the most
successful teams in American sports history. It has been said that the Red
Sox failed because some sort of “curse” was at work.
After eighty-six years, in late October of 2004, the curse was
finally broken in a surprising turn of events. The Red Sox were behind the
Yankees three games to zero, but they came back to win the seven-game
series with four straight victories! Some Red Sox fans said that Babe
Ruth’s ghost had winked at them in the ballpark because the Red Sox had
had enough suffering through those long years of repeated
disappointment. And then they won the World Series again in 2007.
—by Christy Murphy

184
 LESSON 8 Chien-ming Wang: The Prince of Baseball

Comprehension Check

1. Which is the best title for the passage?

(A) Babe Ruth’s Childhood (B) Baseball Superstitions
(C) History of the Red Sox (D) The Curse of the Bambino

2. In which year did the Red Sox break the curse and win the
championship again?
(A) 2004 (B) 2005
(C) 2006 (D) 2007

3. Which one of the following statements is true?

(A) Babe Ruth was sold to the Yankees because he was fired
by the Red Sox.
(B) Babe Ruth’s spirit appeared and helped the Red Sox win in
1918.
(C) Since Babe Ruth was traded, the Yankees have won more
than twenty championships.
(D) With many fans’ prayers, the Red Sox won the 2004 World
Series easily.
8
Thinking More

Do you believe there are unknown powers at work behind sports games?
Why or why not? Make sure you give at least one example to prove your
point.

185