A New Starting Point: The Factors That Made Taiwanese Professional Baseball Players Migrate to Mainland China After the 1997 Match-Fixing Scandal. Issue 12 (26th March 2021)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Lee, Ping-Chao; Ko, Ling-Mei; Huang, Jheng-Han
• Is Part Of: International journal of the history of sport. Volume 37:Issue 12(2020)
• Page Start: 1125
• Page End: 1138
• Publication Date: 2021-03-26
• Subjects: Taiwan -- China -- globalization -- sport migration -- baseball; Sports -- History -- Periodicals; Sports -- Social aspects -- Periodicals; Games -- Social aspects -- Periodicals; 306.483
• DOI: 10.1080/09523367.2020.1842366
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 0952-3367

Abstract

Abstract: This study aims to identify and analyze the factors of the migration of Taiwanese professional baseball players after the 1997 match-fixing scandal. It focuses on the case of the migration of the ex-China Times Eagles players implicated in the scandal who represented the first wave of China-bound Taiwanese baseball players (2000–2005). Interviews and a document review were conducted to collect data for analysis and verification. The results show the juxtaposition of 'pull' factors, such as financial benefits, employment opportunities, similarities in language and culture, and self-actualization, and 'push' factors, including institutional regulations, a salary gap, and a lack of opportunity for career development, that characterized this specific China-bound migration context.