episode_0163

[In the top of the 8th inning, Ji Maeng-ho, who had 2 RBIs today, comes to bat. Ji Maeng-ho’s performance today was 1 hit in 3 at-bats and one walk.]

[Hey, Ji Maeng-ho gets another chance like this. In a critical situation with the score tied at 2:2 and the bases loaded with two outs, he is the most destructive hitter at bat so far this season. No matter how strong UG’s bullpen is, this game won’t be easy, right?]

[Here, UG replaces the pitcher. Dong-Hyun Jang, one of the best setup men in the league, is removed from the mound. The pitcher coming up is number 65, Yoon Jung-hwan.]

[UG is making precipitation? Jang Dong-hyeon was removed and Yoon Jung-hwan was appointed… . In yesterday’s game, the match between the two players ended with a throw… . It seems like a certain conclusion has been reached within the team.]

After receiving the ball, Yoon Jung-hwan walked to the mound.

‘under… . I heard the explanation, but can I really stop Ji Maeng-ho?’

Yoon Jung-hwan’s mind was complicated as he walked to the mound. On the day of the game against AT Thunders, Yoon Jung-hwan, who was suddenly called up from Ganghwa, was told by the coaches that he would have to face Ji Maeng-ho as soon as he came up.

When Yoon Jung-hwan first heard those words, he felt embarrassed.

‘I have to go out with one point against the best batsman in the first team right now? That too in an important situation?’

The mound that went up like that. He was able to get two strikes against Ji Maeng-ho, but ended up sending him out with a pitch that hit his body.

-“sorry. “Director”

-“No, good job. Wow, it was a waste. Just throw it like normal. It doesn’t matter if I give him a walk. “Just throw your ball.”

And this was the first praise I heard from the first team coach in 12 years since I joined the team. Yoon Jung-hwan’s heart warmed.

‘Okay, the coach also said, let’s throw my ball. Junghwan Yoon. This is your last chance.’

And aside from the director’s words, there was a lot on Yoon Jung-hwan’s shoulders.

‘Yes, Jinyoung. Dad, I’ll try my best… !’

His wife proposed to him first, as he had been serving in the second army for 12 years, and his son was just starting to walk. I had to endure this pressure for my family as well.

Perhaps this was his last chance as a professional baseball player. Even though he was a pitcher who threw a pitch in the mid-150s, he couldn’t get a zero point, so he was only in the second team. I couldn’t miss this opportunity for my family.

Ji Maeng-ho, who is standing at the plate, glares at himself with passionate eyes. Those eyes… . According to his colleagues, those eyes were glaring at him as if he knew what pitch to throw.

‘still… . It has nothing to do with me. Because for me, it’s just a straight ball… .’

That fastball that you can’t control. That fastball sometimes flies straight and sometimes curves to the right. Because of his unpredictable pitches, he was repeatedly kicked out of the first team for 12 years, but now it was different. Both the manager and the power analysis team were demanding the ball that they could not control.

‘Yes, I could have caught it yesterday if only I had come to my senses. Let’s do it!’

“Ugh!”

As Ji Maeng-ho stood at bat, Yoon Jung-hwan shouted loudly as if trying to relieve the burden on his mind.

“Why is that kid like that?”

“You talk trash to your senior.”

“Oh, you were a senior? sorry. But it’s strange because he suddenly screams from the mound.”

“… “Just focus on the game.”

UG Overlords’ catcher, Baek Kyung-ho, was about to say something to Ji Maeng-ho, who spoke rudely, but closed his mouth. If he had been like his usual personality, he would have waited until the end of the at-bat, but it was because the coaches had strict orders not to talk to Ji Maeng-ho.

‘Is this guy really talking to the catcher to find out the ball mix?’

I couldn’t believe it, but according to the coaches, it was very likely. Therefore, Baek Kyung-ho had no choice but to lose his personality and follow the coaches’ words.

‘Okay, I guess the coaches have something to think about.’

The trust Baek Kyung-ho had in the UG coaches was incredible. To the point where it kills one’s own personality. It was thanks to those coaches that UG, which did not have many MVP-level players, became a strong team.

And Baek Kyung-ho signed the autograph. Same sign as yesterday. Fastball in the middle. I couldn’t believe it when they first asked me to sign like this, but during yesterday’s match between Yoon Jung-hwan and Ji Maeng-ho, Baek Kyung-ho also felt something was strange.

This is because Ji Maeng-ho, who never swung at a ball that deviated from the web, missed swinging at Yoon Jung-hwan’s ball.

‘Okay, let’s go today again.’

2:2, 2 outs, bases loaded. Yoon Jung-hwan did a windup.

“cheek.”

“The ball is good! Be confident, one by one like now!”

“I think the good news is that I was at least 1 meter away from the strike zone.”

Baek Kyung-ho consciously ignored Ji Maeng-ho’s sarcasm.

‘Okay, this doesn’t appear in balls like this, right? But anyway, we only have one ball to throw. ‘Junghwan, stick it in the middle!’

Yoon Jung-hwan did the windup again. Yoon Jung-hwan’s ball seemed to pass out to the outside of the right-handed hitter, but then curved like a snake and went into the low strike zone on the outside. No, actually, it didn’t hit the strike zone. However, Baek Kyung-ho is a veteran catcher.

‘A ball like this… !’

Baek Kyung-ho’s mitt worked magic. Raise the mitt exquisitely using only your wrist.

“… … . strike!”

“yes?! This?! under… .”

“Are you dissatisfied?”

“… no.”

A valuable strike obtained through framing. This ball that Yoon Jung-hwan threw was a ball that no batter in the world could ever hit. And giving a strike to the pitcher who threw such a ball was the greatest reward in Baek Kyung-ho’s catcher’s life.

“good night! good! “Let’s go for one more!”

“… what the. “If anyone sees it, they’ll think it’s the Olympic finals.”

“Have you been to the Olympics?”

“Has your senior been there?”

“I’ve been going since you were a snotty dog, asshole.”

“If that’s the case, would you please hand over the position to your junior?”

“This bitch… .”

I almost stopped him. Be patient, be patient. There is nothing to be gained by talking to this asshole. Are you trying to induce the ball by shaking me, the catcher? There is no way. Moreover, in fact, Baek Kyung-ho did not know where Yoon Jung-hwan’s ball would land. However, the score is still tied. Ji Maeng-ho’s at-bat may come back for one more, so be careful.

‘Let’s go again, Jung-hwan!’

The request was the same as always. Fastball in the middle. And Yoon Jung-hwan, who was used to that lead, threw the ball at a fast tempo.

“uh?”

With Ji Maeng-ho’s embarrassed voice, the ball soars into the sky and enters the zone. A unique trajectory for underhand pitchers. Yoon Jung-hwan’s pitching form changed during the game.

“strike!”

‘this… Does it feel good? ‘What difference did it make?’

Yoon Jung-hwan, who unconsciously lowered his arm angle than usual, did not notice that his arm angle had lowered, but he was able to instinctively know that this ball was a better fit for him.

‘151 km/h? Is it slower than before? ‘What was the difference?’

‘Dude, the octagonal angle has gone down.’

‘is it so? Kid, you’re trying so hard to get a strike.’

There is no way that a sudden change in pitching form during a game can lead to control. Ji Maeng-ho laughed inwardly as he watched Yoon Jung-hwan acting foolishly.

‘He already has bad ball control, so there’s no way he’ll get the next ball. ‘Let’s wait for this at-bat.’

Anyway, there was a strong batting lineup behind him, including Gi Ki-joo and Choi Jin-cheol. I was greedy for RBI, but there was no need to overdo it. Before I came to bat, hitting coach Lee Ki-cheol said something similar.

‘It hurts my pride to listen to that bastard… . Well, he was a person who was good at baseball.’

When I thought about him being benched in high school, I wanted to run over and hit his head with a bat, but hitting coach Lee Ki-cheol was a pretty good coach. In the first place, one of the reasons why Ji Maeng-ho, a shortstop who was quite good in the middle school league, entered Hanche High School with nothing was because Lee Ki-cheol was targeting him.

And now. As Lee Ki-cheol said, there was no reason not to wait. The opponent is a pitcher with high velocity and poor ball control. Even if you were caught with two strikes, there was no need to worry at all.

‘It’s going to be a fastball in the middle anyway, right?’

‘okay. How can a poor pitcher who can’t even hit the center field playing in the first team? ‘You really know the level of this country.’

‘Iknow, right… . I need to go to the majors quickly. Why are there so many bastards who can’t even hit where the catcher asks them to? .’

And without even having to sign, Yoon Jung-hwan takes his stance again. The tempo is much faster than the usual pitching tempo. That tempo led to Ji Maeng-ho’s swing.

widely!

A batted ball flies behind the catcher and hits the net.

‘Fuck, that was dangerous. ‘Are you suddenly hitting me in the middle?’

‘Hehe, he looked embarrassed. It’s a fastball again.’

‘Uh, the speed… !’

The ball flies at a fast tempo once again. This time it’s in the strike zone! It was a bit late to put out the bat, but at least to clear it… !

Meng Hao swung according to the trajectory of the ball bending toward his body. Whoa! Just by listening to it, you can hear the sound of the fierce wind cutting through it. And the fact that the bat split the wind… .

“Swing strike~! out!”

“Aaaah!”

The bending ball that Jung-hwan Yoon had thrown so far did not bend this time and came straight into the zone. Exactly in the middle of where the catcher requested.

‘Yes, Eun! Jinyoung! Dad… ! Dad did it!’

Yoon Jung-hwan’s cry contained the resentment he had harbored for 12 years.

[Swing strikeout! Yoon Jung-hwan saves the day with bases loaded and 2 outs with a stunning strikeout! Yoon Jung-hwan is roaring! Yoon Jung-hwan, who has always raised fans’ expectations as an unfinished prospect, proves his potential by blocking Ji Maeng-ho, the best hitter in the league at the moment!]

[It took a really long time, Junghwan Yoon. If he continues to show the same performance he has now, he could possibly become the best pitcher in the league. The ball that Junghwan Yoon throws has that much potential.]

“ah! “Fuck!”

Damn it, the bat that hit Meng Hao’s thigh cracked like Styrofoam.

‘Hehehe, you stupid bastard, can’t you even hit the ball in the middle now?’

‘ah! This is against the rules! That bastard, the next time I see him… !’

‘It’s ugly, it’s ugly.’

‘Useup…’ !’

[Player Ji Maeng-ho breaks the bat in two.]

[Oh, it would be difficult to break it like that with any amount of force, but it really is very powerful. Well, Ji Maeng-ho will also gain a lot from this strikeout. [He is still a young player.]

[The score remains tied at 2:2, and the game continues in the bottom of the 8th inning with the UG Overlords attacking.]

As the baseball world says, after a crisis is an opportunity, UG’s attack was fierce in the bottom of the 8th inning. The AT Thunders’ pitcher also managed to get two outs, but eventually sent out two runners and it was Koo Jin-mo’s turn to bat at number three.

[Uh, uh. Koo Jin-mo’s batted ball, batted ball! Let’s go! Comeback three runs!!! The sound of the boat horn announcing UG’s victory fills Munhak Stadium!]

[As expected of Gu Jin-mo! And it can also be called UG Overlord. It seems like the players’ will to not suffer consecutive losses to AT is being conveyed to this point.]

In the bottom of the 8th inning, the AT Thunders, who faced a three-run comeback, shared a 1-1 lead with the UG Overlords, and the series was heading towards the final game.

*

“Coach, I don’t think Meng Hao’s timing is right at all, right?”

“yes.”

“Hmm, it’s Yoon Jung-hwan… . I saw it a lot in the 2nd group, but I don’t think it was to that extent. Are you sure you received the energy of the first team stadium?”

“It looks like UG has come prepared for Ji Maeng-ho.”

“Well, that doesn’t mean we can’t use Yoon Jung-hwan as the starter. Meng Hao’s condition is not bad.”

In fact, today, Ji Maeng-ho had 1 hit and 2 RBI in 4 at-bats. And with one walk, it wasn’t too bad. Except for the at-bat in which Yoon Jung-hwan struck out, all of the at-bats in which he retired due to a base hit were hits in front of the fence. If UG were a team like Charlotte or Volcanoes that had weaknesses in defense, 4 hits in 4 at-bats would not be unusual.

“Yes. Well, Maengho’s batting skills have been good since high school.”

“Oh, this coach was the coach of Mengho High School, right? “What did you do when the timing wasn’t right like this?”

“well. “This is the first time I’ve seen something like this in all the time I’ve been watching Meng Tiger.”

“Then there is only one answer. There is no need to ruin a player’s hitting ability by pairing him with a pitcher with poor timing. “I think it’s only used against Ji Maeng-ho anyway, so maybe I can pinch-hit tomorrow.”

There was no need to ruin the hitting feel of a player who was bombing the league. One at-bat anyway. Director Lee Soo-hyun’s idea of Yoon Jung-hwan’s destruction was simple.