A major league dream 大聯盟的夢想

By Jack Millikin, Herald staff writer

There’s a reason that the “stranger in a strange land” motif is applied often in literature, stage and film.

It works.

The theme carries weight because, at one time or another, we’ve all gone to unfamiliar places and found ourselves in the middle of an environment we knew little about. But the risk is often worth taking. There’s usually a motivating factor.

到新的地方追尋夢想的危險是值得的，也是動力的來源．

Take Sheng-An Kuo, whose dream of playing baseball began as a 10-year-old in Tainan, Taiwan. It’s a dream that has taken him thousands of miles away from the comforts of home after the Colorado Rockies signed him to a free agent contract in January that included a bonus reported to be between $150,000-$200,000.

從十歲開始打棒球的郭勝安和落磯簽了15萬到20萬的合約，離家千哩只為了要追尋夢想．

In his eyes, the journey will be well worth it.

從他的眼中可以看出這個旅程是值得的．

“I was very interested in baseball. Growing up I would watch Taiwanese Professionals on television. I wanted to be like that,” Kuo said through his translator, Martin Chen, who will accompany Kuo and travel with the team this season. “If you play baseball, the major leagues are the highest level. That would be my dream.”

透過今年球季全程跟著郭勝安的翻譯馬丁陳，他說：從小我就很愛棒球，常常看中華職棒，如果要打棒球, 大聯盟是最高的殿堂，也是我的夢想．

Every dream begins with one step, and Kuo took a big one in his professional debut Tuesday in a 10-4 win at Nat Bailey Stadium in Vancouver, British Columbia. Armed with a low-90s fastball, a solid curve and an effective changeup, he made it through the first two innings throwing strikes and keeping the ball down in the zone.

每個夢想都有開始的第一步，郭勝安在星期二的初登板中跨出第一步很成功的贏得比賽．

比賽內容(略)

The 6-foot-2 right-hander struggled a bit through the next three innings, however, losing command of his offspeed pitches as Vancouver took a 4-2 lead in the fifth inning. “Early in the game he wasn’t intimidated. It was his first start in the Northwest League and he went out there and threw strikes,” said Dust Devils manager Freddie Ocasio. “Then he lost it. He stopped using his fastball, and the game plan got away from him and the catcher (Lars Davis), but it was the first time they worked together.”

總教練說：郭勝安不畏懼初登板，第一次的先發在剛開始丟了很多好球，但是，慢慢的他失去控制，不再丟快速球，所以，比賽不再郭勝安和捕手的掌握下，但是，這只是他們第一次的配合而已．

Kuo left after five innings, but because Tri-Cities scored four runs in the top of the sixth, Kuo picked up his first pro win. He’s hoping to collect a few more of those this year but mostly wants to improve his overall strength as a pitcher.

郭勝安雖然只投完五局在落後時下場，但是，六局隊友的四分支援，郭拿下職業生涯首勝，不過，郭勝安希望今年能再進步．

“It’s not about just physical numbers,” said Kuo, who has two no-hitters to his credit — including one for Taiwan in the 2000 Pony League World Series semifinals against Puerto Rico. “I want to get used to the environment and move up to the next level.”

郭勝安說：不只是那些數字而已，我想習慣這樣的環境然後進到下個階段．郭勝安在 2000 年小馬聯盟對上波多黎各的半準決賽中有過兩場無安打的記錄．

Kuo was also a high-school teammate of former Dust Devil Ching-Lung Lo, who now plays at Double-A Tulsa. Kuo said he and Lo got a chance to connect during spring training, but doesn’t get to talk to him much during the season.

郭勝安說他和羅錦龍在春訓的時候有機會接觸，不過，球季開打後就沒聊過天了．

All in all, Ocasio has been impressed with Kuo’s ability to find the strike zone with all his pitches, but it’s his efforts in another realm that have endeared him to his coaches and teammates.

總教練對郭勝安的投球很滿意，但是，郭勝安另一個很重要的事情是跟教練和隊友打成一片．

“I applaud Kuo for learning English and his ability to communicate. I’ve been there, not knowing the language,” said Doug Linton, who pitched in Taiwan for six months in 2005 with the Uni-President Lions.

前統一獅的投手現在是投手教練的林登說：我對於郭勝安學習英文和溝通的能力給予肯定，因為我能了解在語言不通地方的感覺．

Kuo admits the language barrier can be a big one, but he has made every attempt to forge ahead and use the skills he has to communicate with teammates and coaches.

郭勝安承認語言是一個溝通障礙，但是，他嘗試用各樣的方法和教練，隊友溝通．

The barrier is there,” he said. “Sometimes it works to use your hands to show something. Sometimes I get by with poor English. Both ways still work, sometimes.”

郭勝安說：確實是有溝通障礙，有時候我用手勢來表示，有時候用簡單的英文字來表示，兩種方法有時候可以溝通．

Linton said that Kuo has an even temperament that never wavers even when he’s in trouble on the mound.

投手教練說：郭勝安的性情很平穩，就算是他在投手丘上遇到問題，也不會動搖他．

“You think nothing is going to faze him. That’s what he showed all through extended (spring training),” Linton said.

投手教練又說：不用去擔心他什麼，他從延長春訓時到現在就是有這麼好的表現．Davis, a friendly but vocal catcher, got a taste of the difficulties Kuo will face this year.

捕手 Davis 很友善但是很直接的說郭勝安今年會遇到的問題．

“The first time I went out to the mound I was nervous because I didn’t know how to talk to him,” Davis said. “He was smiling about it, but he knew what I was trying to say. We had to use some body language.

他說：當第一次我走上投手丘我很緊張, 因為我不知道要怎麼和他溝通，他笑笑的看著我，他知道我要說的是什麼意思，我們必需使用一些肢體語言來溝通．

“He’s a great teammate and a great control pitcher.” 他繼續說：他是很棒的隊友也是控制力很好的投手．

Kuo, a gentle, quiet sort, manages to keep in touch with his family in Taiwan on a regular basis. In between e-mails, though, he has been a model teammate and so far appears to be a fan of the Pacific Northwest.

郭勝安的人格特質和他常常透過 emails 和家人聯絡的種種，已經成為隊友間的樣，呈現在西北聯盟的球迷之中．

“It’s a very nice environment,” he said.

郭勝安說：這是很好的一個環境．

It’s not much of a coincidence to find out, either, that Kuo is a big fan of the “007” movie series. Because Kuo, like James Bond, intends to bring his best when it counts.

很巧合的，郭很愛看 007 系列電影，他就像 James Bond 一樣，當在需要他的時候，他能把他最好的拿出來表現一下．

原文出處：TriCities.com

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