Sapporo: Taiwanese pitcher Gu Lin Ruei-yang achieved a milestone in his Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB) career by earning his second win with a complete game shutout, leading the Nippon Ham Fighters to a 4-0 victory over the Rakuten Eagles.

According to Focus Taiwan, Gu Lin became only the third Taiwan-born player to record a complete-game victory in NPB with fewer than 100 pitches, a feat last accomplished by Chen Wei-yin in 2011. In his third NPB start, Gu Lin retired 17 consecutive batters before allowing his first hit in the sixth inning at Es Con Field Hokkaido.

Offensively, Kengo Yoshida and Kazunari Ishii provided early support, with Yoshida hitting a home run in the first inning and Ishii adding a two-run homer in the second. Gu Lin, 24, delivered a nearly flawless performance, striking out seven while allowing only two hits and no walks over 98 pitches. This victory propelled the Fighters to their fourth consecutive win and the top spot in the Pacific League.

Gu Lin now boasts a 2-1 record with a 2.91 ERA. During a postgame interview, he expressed gratitude to his teammates and catcher Yua Tamiya, who guided him through the game. Fighters manager Tsuyoshi Shinjo praised Gu Lin's command and decided to let him finish the game, highlighting his impressive slider performance.

Gu Lin joined the Nippon Ham Fighters during the offseason after a successful tenure with the Uni-Lions in Taiwan's Chinese Professional Baseball League (CPBL), where he was named the 2024 MVP. Despite leading his team to the Taiwan Series, they fell short to the CTBC Brothers.