The 2023 World Baseball Classic (WBC) Pool A was grandly held at Taichung Intercontinental Baseball Stadium in March. This event not only attracted the attention of worldwide baseball fans but also made Taichung the focal point of the international sports community. To express gratitude for the support and contributions from all sectors and the American Baseball Hall of Fame star Mariano Rivera who travelled to Taichung to serve as the first pitch, Mayor Lu Shiow-yen has launched the “I got the ball! Taichung thank you” ball-gifting campaign. The campaign calls for graphic and written works themed around the theme of “Thank you” and is open for participation from everyone who wishes to extend the glory of WBC.

Only four cities in the world are qualified to host the WBC and Taichung Intercontinental Baseball Stadium, which has Taiwan’s top-ranked baseball field that complies with international standards, is one of them. Upholding the spirit of being “determined and sincere”, Taichung City made every effort to welcome baseball fans around the world to watch the WBC in Taichung and successfully enhanced Taiwan’s visibility on the world stage with the radiance and passion of sports.

Mayor Lu also thanked WBC for choosing Taichung, the Chinese Taipei team for their passionate performance, professional players from around the world for showcasing their skills in Taiwan, and the people of the nation for their support and encouragement, which helped Taichung to conclude this event successfully and splendidly. Mayor Lu further expressed her gratitude to the legendary MLB star Mariano Rivera for fully participating in a three-day schedule during his visit to Taiwan. In addition to attending the Baseball Junior Training Camp and Taichung City Government’s welcoming banquet, Rivera also served as the first-pitch guest of the WBC, successfully created a climax for the opening game of the WBC.

To express gratitude to the people of the nation for their support and cooperation during the WBC in Taichung, Mayor Lu invited Rivera to sign his name on a baseball before returning to his country, so that this “commentative ball signed by Rivera” could be gifted to a passionate, warm, and cute Taiwanese citizen, Mayor Lu called on all citizens to submit a graphic or written work themed on “thank you” between April 10 and April 20. Regardless of his/her identity and format of work, the poster who receives most thumbs up will receive Rivera’s signed ball and Mayor Lu welcomes all people of the nation to join this activity.

Mayor Lu elaborated that Rivera’s records during his baseball career were conserved milestones in MLB, while hosting WBC was also an important milestone for Taichung’s urban sports development. She expressed her hope that the signed ball from Rivera would convey a message of “gratitude” and attract more attention to and support for Taiwan’s baseball development (Link to the website for gifting Rivera’s signed ball: https://fb.me/e/2MTrIdr9t)