Taiwan Ends 29-Year Drought, Shuts Out Nevada 7-0 to Win Little League World Series.

Taiwan shuts out Nevada 7-0 to win its first Little League World Series title since 1996.

might not have been perfect, but for Taiwan it was still pretty great.

Lin Chin-Tse retired the first 13 batters he faced and allowed just one hit in five innings as Taiwan beat Nevada 7-0 in the Little League World Series championship Sunday, ending a 29-year title drought for the Taiwanese.

Taiwan won its first LLWS since 1996, although its 18 titles are the most of any country beside the United States, including five straight from 1977 to 1981.

When Chen Yi-Reng caught a fly ball in left field to end the game, Taiwan’s gloves went flying into the air as the team piled in front of the mound.

“We’re really happy that we have a chance to recapture the championship,” manager Lai Min-Nan said.

Lin, a 5-foot-8 right hander, also smashed a three-run triple in Taiwan’s five-run fifth. The 12-year-old from Taipei hit more than 80 mph with his fastball multiple times during the tournament; to batters it looks much faster because the plate in this level of baseball is only 46 feet (14 meters) away. His velocity appeared much the same on Sunday.

Lin’s longest start before Sunday was three innings in Taiwan’s opening game against Mexico. He allowed only one hit in a subsequent victory over Venezuela.

“I am very excited,” Lin said through an interpreter. “In the first inning, I was very nervous, but after that it was smooth.”

Min-Nan said Taiwan’s strategy throughout the LLWS was to “leverage the defense as the offense. If the other team cannot get any runs, there’s no way they can win this tournament.”

That plan worked pretty well. The Taiwanese gave up just three runs during their stay in Williamsport, all to Venezuela in a 7-3 victory.