Taiwan shuts out Netherlands 5-0

For those staying in Taiwan, baseball fans used various ways to lend spiritual support for the players.

Tsai Ing-wen, chairwoman of the opposition Democratic Progressive Party, and DPP Legislator Ker Chien-min led colleagues to eat "hebaodan" -- or poached eggs -- while watching the live broadcast of the game against the Netherlands.

The Chinese pronunciation of "hebaodan" sounds and implies "Holland posting a zero" for the game.

Several hundreds of fans gathered at the Xinyi Commercial District to watch the game at a giant screen set up by the Taipei City Government and Chunghwa Telecom.

Aside from waving national flags and slogans, quite a number of fans held banners bearing the Chinese name of Cheng Cheng-kung (Koxinga) to lend their support.

Eating 'sun cakes'

Cheng was a great general who led troops mainly from the neighboring Fujian Province to drive Dutch colonists and troops out of Taiwan more than two centuries ago.

Next up for Taiwan, however, is Japan, one of the tournament's favorites and a perennial sport nemesis for Taiwan teams.

For the game set for 7:00 p.m. today, local fans have conjured up other creative ways to lend spiritual support for the Taiwan baseball team.

Taichung Mayor Jason Hu has encouraged people in his city and tourists to eat as much "sun cakes" as they can. "Sun cakes" -- called "taiyangbien" in Chinese -- have been one of most popular delicacies in the central Taiwan city and "sun" is the emblem in Japan's national flag.

Store owners said their "sun cakes" have been selling like hot cakes since yesterday afternoon.

In other baseball games held yesterday in Beijing, Canada blanked China 10-0, South Korea edged the U.S. 8-7, and Cuba defeated Japan 4-2.

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