Yu Chang Likely Joining CPBL’s Fubon Guardians

Infielder Yu Chang announced on his social media that he is planning to enter the 2024 draft for the Chinese Professional Baseball League of Taiwan, relayed by CPBL Stats on X. Per a report from Kayleigh Madjar at the Taipei Times, the Fubon Guardians have the top pick in the draft, which is scheduled for Friday next week. It seems the Guardians plan to select Chang as the club released a statement saying that they have been in contact with Chang for some time, adding that the “look forward to [Chang] wearing a Fubon Guardians jersey in the second half of the season.” Per CPBL Stats on X, the Guardians will likely offer Chang a contract of 3.5 years worth between $2.34MM and $2.67MM USD. The Guardians are also expected to give the Rays $100K to buy Chang out of his minor league deal with that club.

“It’s been ten years working away from home, I miss home very much,” Chang said on his social media. “Therefore I’ve decided to enter the 2024 CPBL draft. I really appreciate that the Rays organization has been very understanding and supportive of my decision. I’m currently in Florida playing rehab games, will be 100% healthy and get back to the game soon!”

Chang, now 28, was born in Taiwan and signed with Cleveland as an international free agent in 2013. On his way up the minor league ladder, he was generally considered one of that club’s top prospects. Baseball America had him on the Cleveland top 30 for seven straight years starting in 2015.

Broadly speaking, he hit well in the upper levels of the minors but was never able to do much at the major league level. His Triple-A production was usually solid, as he hit .264/.339/.436 at that level over multiple seasons. He was also a good defender around the infield. Both Defensive Runs Saved and Outs Above Average considered him an above-average fielder at all four spots on the dirt.

But multiple call-ups with Cleveland saw him struggle at the plate and get sent back down. He exhausted his final option year in 2021, which kicked off a nomadic period of his career. He was designated for assignment by the Cleveland Guardians in May of 2022 but got plenty of interest from other clubs, hoping that he could bring some of that Triple-A production up to the majors and combine it with his strong glovework. He would go to the Pirates, Rays and Red Sox on cash deals or waiver claims throughout the 2022 season, failing to stick with any of them.

Boston non-tendered him after that season and then re-signed him for 2023. He played for Chinese Taipei in that year’s World Baseball Classic, putting up a huge line of .438/.500/.938. But he suffered a hamate fracture early in the MLB season which sent him to the injured list for a few months. His offensive struggles continued when he returned and he was designated for assignment in August. Over the five big league seasons from 2019 to 2023, he hit .204/.265/.359 in his 650 major league plate appearances.

Chang signed a minor league deal with the Rays coming into 2024 but hasn’t been able to play much this year. An oblique strain suffered in late February came with a six to eight week recovery timeline. Per his MLB.com transactions tracker, he was activated off the minor league injured list on April 26 but was sent back there on May 22. He had appeared in just 14 games in the interim.

If all goes as reported, it’s possible Chang’s time in North American ball is over. If he signs a deal that covers the remainder of this season and three more, he will be 32 years old by the time that pact runs out.