[外電] 灰色地帶：從曹錦輝事件看台灣的假球文化

這是一篇我在PTT棒球版上分享過的文章，現在在這裡再po一次，希望有更多人可以看到來自VICE Sports記者Jorge Arangure Jr.對於曹錦輝事件、中職現況、乃至於台灣棒球環境的精彩見解。

我本身是VICE的忠實讀者，這是一個相當有趣的美國獨立媒體，關注的議題也都比較特殊（毒品、社會敏感議題、以及社會邊緣人之類的）。VICE Sports是他們的體育板塊，報導的切入點與一般的體育媒體有所不同，比較喜歡以多重角度以及文化背景來分析體育事件以及人物，是一個很有趣的體育媒體。這次竟然出現有關於中職的文章，讓我非常的有感觸，所以決定來翻譯一下。                                                           

原文報導：Jorge Arangure Jr. / VICE Sports

原文鏈接

發表時間：1/2/2015

莫約十年前，台灣投手曹錦輝是棒球界的全美前25新秀，他有著充滿力量的速球，並被廣泛認為擁有王牌投手的潛質。2000年是他在美國的第一個球季，當年年僅19歲的曹錦輝在145局內三振了187名打者，2003年他便代表科羅拉多落磯升上了大聯盟。

Nearly 10 years ago, Taiwanese pitcher Chin-hui Tsao was considered a top 25 baseball prospect. He had a powerful fastball and was deemed a future ace. In his first professional season in the United States in 2000, a 19-year-old Tsao struck out 187 batters in 145 innings. By 2003, Tsao was pitching for the Colorado Rockies.

但是好景不長，幾次嚴重的手肘傷勢斷送了他在美國的職業生涯。身為自由人的曹錦輝於2009回到了故鄉台灣，並加入中華職棒（CPBL），從此再也沒有回到美國球界。

But several arm and shoulder injuries derailed his career, and in 2009 he returned to Taiwan to play in the Chinese Professional Baseball League (CPBL). He has not pitched in the U.S. since.

上週，一則報導指出洛杉磯道奇即將以一紙小聯盟合約簽下33歲的曹錦輝。如果不是因為該球員因2009年發生在台灣的假球事件而被禁賽，這樣的新聞也不會引起這麼多人的關注。法庭並沒有向他提出告訴，但曹錦輝還是被中華職棒處以了終身禁賽的處分。

Last week, reports surfaced that the Los Angeles Dodgers were close to signing Tsao, now 33, to a minor league contract—a transaction that would hardly be notable if not for the fact that Tsao hasn't pitched professionally since that 2009 season in Taiwan, a result of having been named in a match-fixing scandal in his home country. Tsao was banned for life from the CPBL despite a Taiwanese court having acquitted him of any charges.

雖然他沒有被起訴，但是檢方約談的記錄卻顯示曹錦輝有“意圖”協助兩場假球：其中一場因為下雨延賽而沒有成功，另一場則因為其他答應要打假球的球員臨陣退出而也以失敗告終。即使這兩場比賽都沒有真正的假球產生，但是檢方的資料卻足以斷送曹錦輝在台灣的棒球生涯。

Although he was not convicted, the acquittal papers alleged that Tsao had conspired to fix two games; one of which never occurred because of a rain-out and the second of which was allegedly not fixed after several players backed out. Still, the accusations were enough to kill Tsao's career in his home country.

作為第一個在大聯盟出賽的台灣人，家喻戶曉的曹錦輝代表了中華職棒對抗假球的零容忍政策的一個象徵。