The A’s have added another high-upside pitcher to their 2023 international signing class, inking 19-year-old right-hander Tzu-Chen Sha from Taiwan. The signing was officially announced at a press conference in Taiwan on Wednesday afternoon local time. Sha joins an A’s international signing group that includes the highest-ranked pitcher in the class, Cuban right-hander Luis Morales. According to ET Today, Sha signed for a $370,000 bonus with an additional $30,000 in scholarship money.

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The 6-foot-2 right-hander is a “strike thrower, with a sneaky fastball acceleration in the 2700 rpm range, and the breaking ball plays off the fastball angle with an equally high amount of spin,” A’s international scouting director Steven Sharpe said.

“We are thrilled to have (join the organization) such a great person, from a great family, who also happens to be an amazing athlete in the midst of mastering the art of pitching.”

Sharpe also noted that Sha — who turned 19 last October — is just starting to tap into his potential on the mound. He has less mileage on his arm than most pitchers his age due to his unusual athletic background. Sha was originally a soccer player who made the Taiwanese national team in junior high. He came to baseball gradually and didn’t focus on it fully until his last few years at ChangHua Arts High School. He wasn’t selected in the Chinese Professional Baseball League draft out of high school, but he caught the eye of A’s Asia area scout Adam Hislop, who kept close tabs on Sha as he entered college.

“This was an awesome ‘gut feel’, ‘dark horse’ type of scouting job by Adam Hislop, who first identified him as a budding high school pitcher who could really come on strong with one more year of pitching, which is exactly what happened,” Sharpe said.

Sha began his collegiate career last September by throwing four perfect innings, striking out nine. He was named “best pitcher” at the MeiHuaQi College National Tournament last October after not allowing an earned run in the tournament. Sha struck out 10 in 7 2/3 innings and won two games. It was Sha’s first year in collegiate baseball, a year in which he raised his profile considerably.

Sha joins the A’s out of National Taiwan Sport University, the same school that Chen Zhong-Ao Zhuang pitched at before the A’s signed him in November 2021. Like Zhuang, who debuted with Low-A Stockton in 2022, Sha is expected to be ready to compete in the U.S. in his first season as part of the organization. Sharpe indicated the plan was for Sha to come to Arizona for extended spring training, which begins in April.

“Luis Morales and Sha bring an exciting depth to the signing class because both are capable of playing stateside at the start of their young careers,” Sharpe said.

(Photo: Allan Henry / USA Today)