Taipei, March 3 (CNA) Six cheerleaders with a Taiwanese professional baseball team, the Rakuten Monkeys, will be heading to New York in August to perform at the annual Taiwan Day put on by the New York Mets.
Known as the Rakuten Girls, the Taiwanese cheerleaders will appear at the Mets' home park, Citi Field, on Aug. 27 to highlight Taiwan's unique baseball cheerleading culture during the 18th annual "Mets Taiwan Day."
The ceremonial first pitch of the 2023 celebration will be thrown by Taiwan baseball commentator Tseng Wen-cheng (曾文誠) before the game between the Mets and the Los Angeles Angels.
Speaking with CNA, Mets Asian Development and Services account executive Wayne Wang (王偉成) said having cheerleaders drive up audience engagement through constant chants and other activities and props is one of the unique elements of Taiwan's baseball scene.
Major League Baseball teams, on the other hand, tend to use mascots and stadium light and sound effects to get their fans going, he said.
In recent years, Taiwan's Chinese Professional Baseball League has expanded the scale and engagement of its cheerleaders, with President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) introducing Taiwan's cheerleading culture at last year's Mets Taiwan Day.
The Mets Taiwan Day has been held every year since 2005 except for 2020, when it was canceled because of the COVID-19 pandemic, and ticket sales for this year's event have been brisk since becoming available on March 1, Wang said.
As has been the case since the 16th Taiwan Day in 2021, fans who buy a ticket to the game will receive a commemorative jersey with the word "Taiwan" sewn on.
Last month, the Mets also released a new logo for the Taiwan-specific celebration incorporating the silhouette of the island into the words "Taiwan" alongside various other Taiwan-defining elements, such as mountain ranges and plum blossoms.
