A's getting long look at prospect so good you forget he's just 20 MESA, Ariz. -- Wei-En Lin didn’t know much about baseball as a kid growing up in Taiwan. In fact, his first time trying out for a team in elementary school , it took him a while just to realize what type of glove he actually needed to play. “I played catch with my left hand because I only had a righty glove,” Lin said through translator Danny Sung. “I would catch the ball with my left hand , then take off the glove and use my left hand to throw.” Coaches at the park where tryouts were being held eventually noticed Lin’s bizarre antics and advised him to buy a left-handed glove. After that, it didn ’t take long for Lin to take off. Lin quickly ascended as an elite pitcher in his native territory. By his sophomore year at Ping-Zhen High School, scouts were flying in to catch a glimpse of the talented teenage lefty. In 2023, he represented Taiwan in the WBSC U-18 Baseball World Cup, playing a key role in helping his team win a silver medal at the tournament. One year later, the Athletics signed him in June 2024, rewarding him with a bonus of $1.13 million. You can say that money was well spent. Making his professional debut in 2025, Lin dominated hitters with both Single-A Stockton and High-A Lansing, earning a promotion to Double-A Midland after just 24 games. He ended the year by helping the Rockhounds in a playoff run. Between the three levels, Lin posted a 3.72 ERA in 26 games (13 starts) with 117 strikeouts and 22 walks across 87 innings, all as a 19-year-old. “He throws strikes,” A’s director of player development Ed Sprague said of Lin. “He’s got good stuff. It’s a loose arm. It’s a good body. … The strikes and the command of the zone have been pretty impressive. He’s a fun kid who loves to compete. Given what he’s been able to do at his age in his first full year of pro ball was fun to watch. You had to remind yourself he’s only 19.” Lin handled himself like anything but a 19-year-old. He showed superb control of all his pitches, a five-pitch arsenal that includes a fastball, a cutter, a sweeper and a knuckle-curve. Lin’s most impressive pitch, however, might be his Vulcan changeup. What exactly is a “Vulcan changeup,” you ask? It’s a modification of a changeup with a V-shaped grip that has become much more popular in recent years, offering more downward movement than a traditional changeup. After noticing his regular changeup started to lose effectiveness last May, Lin sought to teach himself the Vulcan grip by watching YouTube videos. “The first video I saw was of Trevor Bauer when he played in Cleveland,” Lin said. “It was a slow-motion video, and I found the grip he used to throw his changeup. I learned from that. After that, I saw videos of Tarik Skubal and Jonah Tong’s changeup, and that’s how I learned.” Armed with an improved pitch, Lin began using it with Lansing to massive success. He kept using it in his two starts for Midland, where he got a taste of what is required at a higher level. “The hitters are totally different there,” Lin said. “Double-A hitters are more patient. They know their strengths and look for their pitch. There’s a lot of top prospects at the Double-A level, so I just want to see them as much as I can to get ready for the next level.” Before the season begins, Lin, who ended last season ranked by MLB Pipeline as the A’s No. 19 prospect, is soaking in as much as he can from his first Major League Spring Training, picking the brains of veterans on the staff like Luis Severino and Jeffrey Springs, as well as A’s pitching coach Scott Emerson. “First day, I talked to Luis Severino and Jeff Springs,” Lin said. “They were talking about how to hide your hand, your grip, from the second-base runner. That’s important, because the runner can see your grip and see what pitch is coming.” Next week, Lin will leave camp to join Team Chinese Taipei in the World Baseball Classic, where he, along with fellow A’s prospects Chen Zhong-Ao Zhuang (No. 28) and Tzu-Chen Sha (No. 29), will represent their home territory . Group stage will not be easy, as Chinese Taipei is in a pool that also includes Australia, Czechia, Korea and Japan. That means Lin could be in for a potential matchup with Japanese stars Shohei Ohtani and Yoshinobu Yamamoto, two of his favorite players to watch. “I want to face Ohtani, for sure,” Lin said with a smile. “And go up against Yamamoto. Then, after the game, maybe ask Yamamoto how to throw his curveball, because his curve is very good, and then ask both of them to sign a jersey.” 以下为AI机翻 梅萨，亚利桑那州—— 林维恩在台湾长大时，其实对棒球并不熟悉。事实上，他在国小 第一次去球队试训时，花了一段时间才搞清楚自己应该用哪一种手套。 「因为我只有右手手套，所以我用左手接球。」林维恩透过翻译 Danny Sung 说道，「我会用左手接球，然後把手套摘下来，再用左手把球丢出去。」 後来，试训场地的教练们注意到林维恩奇怪的动作，建议他买一个左手手套。之後，他的棒球之路便迅速起飞。 林维恩很快就在台湾成为顶尖投手。到他高二时，已有球探飞来观察这位天赋异禀的左投。2023 年，他代表台湾参加 WBSC U-18 世界盃棒球赛，并在球队夺得银牌的过程中扮演关键角色。一年後，也就是 2024 年 6 月，运动家队与他签约，给予 113 万美元签约金。 你可以说，这笔投资十分值得。2025 年职业生涯首次亮相时，林维恩在 1A Stockton 与高阶 1A Lansing都展现压制力，只打了 24 场比赛就升上 2A Midland。他在季後赛也帮助 RockHounds 做出贡献。整季横跨三个层级，他在 26 场比赛（13 次先发）中投出 3.72 ERA，87 局送出 117 次三振、22 次保送——而他那时才 19 岁。 「他能投进好球带。」运动家球员发展部门总监 Ed Sprague 说，「他的球质很好，手臂动作流畅，身材条件佳……能控好好球带、掌握投球区域，真的令人印象深刻。他是一个热爱竞争的开朗孩子。以他这个年纪，在第一个完整职棒球季就做到这些，真的很好看。你必须时刻提醒自己，他才 19 岁。」 林维恩的表现完全不像 19 岁的新秀。他展现了对所有球种的优秀控球力，目前拥有五种武器：四缝线速球、卡特球、横扫球（sweeper）与指节曲球（knuckle-curve）。 然而，他最令人印象深刻的球种，也许是 Vulcan 变速球（Vulcan changeup）。 如果你想问，「什麽是 Vulcan 变速球？」那是一种变速球的改良版，握法呈现 V 字型，近年来愈来愈受欢迎，能比传统变速球产生更多向下位移。 去年五月，林维恩注意到他的原本变速球效果下降後，便透过 YouTube 自行学习 Vulcan 握法。 「我看的第一部影片是 Trevor Bauer 在克里夫兰时期的。」林说，「那是一段慢动作影片，我看到他丢变速球时的握法，我就是从那里开始学的。之後我又看了 Tarik Skubal 和 Jonah Tong 的变速球影片，才慢慢掌握。」 在掌握新球种後，林维恩在 Lansing 开始大量使用，并获得巨大成功。他在 Midland 的两次先发也持续使用，并首次感受到更高层级打者的差异。 「那边的打者完全不一样。」林说，「2A 打者更有耐心。他们了解自己的强项，也会等到想要的球种再挥棒。2A 有很多顶尖的新秀，所以我想尽可能多面对他们，为下一层级做好准备。」 在球季开始前，林维恩（去年季末在 MLB Pipeline 的运动家新秀排名为第 19 名）正把握第一次大联盟春训的机会，向队上老将如 Luis Severino、Jeffrey Springs，以及投手教练 Scott Emerson 学习。 「第一天，我就和 Luis Severino、Jeff Springs 聊天。」林说，「他们告诉我如何在有二垒跑者时隐藏自己的手势与握球方式。这很重要，因为跑者能看到你的握法，就能知道你要投什麽球。」 下周，林维恩将离队，加入中华队参加经典赛，与运动家其他新秀 —— 庄陈仲敖（排名第 28）、沙子宸（排名第 29）—— 一同代表家乡出赛。 小组赛绝对不会轻松，因为中华队被分在与澳洲、捷克、南韩以及日本同组的分组中。这也意味着林维恩很可能有机会对上日本明星球员大谷翔平与山本由伸——两位他最喜欢观察的球员。 「我当然想面对大谷。」林维恩笑着说。「还有对上山本。然後比赛结束後，也许可以问 山本他是怎麽丢曲球的，因为他的曲球真的很好，接着再请他们两位帮我签球衣。」 https://reurl.cc/2l5m0E --

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