episode_0177

“Is that ball that hard to hit?”

“I want to ask, how did he hit the ball?”

“I just hit it. But is it difficult for you, even though you made it to the major level?”

“Hey, even major leaguers have a hard time hitting fast balls. “It seems like you think it’s 100 miles away for no reason.”

“hmm… . “Is that tidy?”

As the bottom of the 5th inning progresses, the score is 1:0. After Jang Woo-joo hit a home run against me, he led the game well, unlike a rookie, and was blocking our batting lineup by allowing no runs. There were a lot of walks, but Jang Woo-ju looked different as he allowed no runs except for the home run hit by me.

“But today it’s a little better because it’s Yoongi hyung. “I’m not anxious even though I only got 1 point.”

Fortunately, today’s starting pitcher is Jang Yoon. The future batting lineup without Lee Jin-hong was easily prepared. Still, if the 1-point gap continues like this, pressure is bound to be felt. As the inning went by, I felt we were becoming more and more urgent.

Players who were trying to see a lot of balls in the first inning gradually started to miss out on the first pitch.

Perfect!

Today, 9th batter Lee In-hyuk, who played in center field, kicks Jang Woo-joo’s ball and is called for a foul. A foul that was pushed back a long way. He came on as the starting pitcher today because the coaches judged him to have an advantage in fast balls compared to starting center fielder Kim Joo-yeop, but even Lee In-hyuk didn’t seem to have an easy time hitting Jang Woo-joo’s balls.

‘I guess Jang Woo-joo is bigger than I thought? Well, in terms of speed, there wasn’t much difference from the guys I saw at WBC.’

But Jang Woo-joo’s balls were not scary at all. Would you say there is no pressure? When I was in high school, I personally felt that just by hitting a ball, it flew far.

‘Okay, that’s it.’

‘yes?’

‘That’s confidence. Confidence that you can hit any ball. Even in scoring range. No, even if you are not in the scoring range, be confident and don’t be scared. Any hesitation in your mind will come out in your swing.’

‘What is this nonsense all of a sudden?’

‘therefore! When swinging, no. done.’

Rossby said something triumphantly, so I tackled him, but I felt like I knew what he was talking about. The answer to what I had been worrying about for so long was that I had already experienced it with my own body.

The advice I received from Rossby and Choi Jin-cheol was a verbal expression of what I had just thought about Jang Woo-joo’s merit.

Always swing with confidence. The mindset that you can hit any ball.

I certainly didn’t worry about anything when I hit Jang Woo-joo’s ball. Because I had the confidence that I could pass the ball over at any time.

In other words, when dealing with all balls, if you swing them as if you were dealing with Jang Woo-ju… .

‘Tsk, it’s easy to say, but it’s not as easy as you want.’

‘So that means you’re a kid.’

‘So did Mr. Rossby always hit with that confidence?’

‘Hey, have you ever pitched?’

‘Well, when I was young, it was a little… .’

Is there any baseball player who didn’t pitch as a child? Additionally, I have experience as a batting ball pitcher.

‘What do pitchers think when they throw a ball?’

‘Well, where should I throw the ball to catch the batter? Or, wouldn’t you throw it while paying a little more attention to control and velocity?’

‘Those bastards are all shit. A good pitcher doesn’t think like that.’

‘Then?’

‘If you want to hit it, hit it. Can something like you hit my balls? I’m throwing it with this in mind.’

‘That’s negligence, isn’t it?’

‘But you can’t be the best with a ball that doesn’t even have that kind of pride.’

‘Umm… . It somehow sounds like an old man. ‘Is mental strength important, fighting spirit important, things like that?’

Is it because he is from 100 years ago?

‘… Mr. Rossby, it’s not like you look at the players’ eyes when you look at them, right?’

‘Keuhm… . ‘Eyes are also important.’

‘ah… , yes.’

As expected, it sounded like an old guy.

‘Anyway, the batters are the same. Throw it, I’ll hand it over to you wherever you throw it. This kind of mindset is needed.’

‘If you only thought about it, they would all be in the major leagues and in the Hall of Fame.’

‘bastard! I became the best player that way, so what do you know… ! I’m going to kill the pitcher. Next time I see you at bat, I won’t let you make eye contact with me. ‘Go to bat with this in mind!’

It seemed a bit old-fashioned, but it made sense because Rossby said it. Anyway, during his active years, Rossby was the best player in the league with no rivals. … Babe Ruth was in the American League, so he had no enemies within the league… Right?

‘Anyway, the skills and physical abilities of the guys playing in the first team are all similar. Ah, well, there is no player with as much power as you. Anyway, what matters is your mindset.’

Fortunately, he didn’t seem to notice that I was thinking about Babe Ruth. Because I kept getting excited and explaining this and that.

If I had been caught thinking about Babe Ruth, it was clear that I would have been filled with inferiority complex and trembled. Rossby went so far as to prevent me from wearing eye black during daytime games.

I Black is a culture with no roots that was started by Babe Ruth or something.

‘… So I’m telling you this. Baseball is war. Killing means killing not only physically but also mentally. Never again a pitcher… .’

Perfect!

“oh! “I hit it!”

As Rossby’s nagging continued, Lee In-hyuk, who was at bat, hit Jang Woo-joo’s ball and sent it into the outfield.

“what? Should I pass over?”

As expected from Jang Woo-joo, who is not very good at pitching, the ball flies farther than expected. And the sighs and cheers of the audience. Sighs came from the first base side, and cheers came from the third base side.

“Inhyuk, it was a waste!”

Lee In-hyuk’s ball went farther than expected, but this is Jamsil. Lee In-hyuk’s batted ball in front of the warning track was caught. Lee In-hyuk trudges out of the dugout with a regretful expression on his face. It seemed very disappointing.

“Batterers! “Let’s all gather together.”

After the end of the 5th inning, it was cleaning time to clean up the field. Hitting coach Lee Ki-cheol called all the hitters together.

“now! Yuni is showing good pitching right now, right? Right. But shouldn’t the hitters give up a little more strength? If I keep being chased like this, I’m worried about the end. “Everyone knows.”

“But the ball is too fast.”

“We want to hit it too.”

“Definitely that kind of speed is not common even in the major leagues.”

“Yes, yes. I know everything too. “When I was active, there was no player who threw a ball like that.”

Lee Ki-cheol nodded as if he understood all of the players’ complaints.

“But you guys are better than me too, right?”

Fuck you… . I always tell you this story when I was in high school. I felt like I wanted to throw a punch at Lee Ki-cheol, who boosts the players’ morale with his smiling face. What was even more damning was that the players laughed at Lee Ki-cheol’s words and it had some effect.

‘It’s annoying…’ . ‘Hyejin said you were coming for Children’s Day, right?’

I guess I’ll have to bother Hyejin a lot that day.

“Meng Hao!”

“yes yes?”

They suddenly call me and it’s fucking crazy. While thinking about Hyejin, I was a little surprised when Lee Ki-cheol called me.

“Please give a lecture to the seniors on how to attack. “You’ve been the Jang Woo-ju killer since high school.”

“Oh, well, that’s true.”

“So, how do you hit that guy’s ball?”

“Are you just going to search and hit me? Has anyone ever hit Jang Woo-joo’s ball?”

It was clear that if I told him I was hitting him because a ghost told me about it, I would be treated as a mental patient, so I hid that fact and opened my mouth.

“me.”

“Oh, you hit Inhyuk earlier too, right?”

Everyone knew that the standard for hitting here was not a clumsy infield ground ball or a missed hit. Because we are professionals. And the only people who hit a ball that meets that standard are me and Lee In-hyuk, who just hit the ball to the warning track.

“okay.”

“How was it?”

“It flew farther than I thought? If it weren’t for Jamsil… .”

Since we were caught in front of the warning track, there would have been quite a few stadiums that didn’t pass even if it wasn’t Jamsil, but that wasn’t important right now.

“But you didn’t feel like you were hit with a real hit, right?”

“uh. Even though it hit slightly below, it flew like that. “I guess lifting a lot of weight during the off-season had an effect.”

“No, No. “That’s not it.”

“what?”

“If you’re a senior, you’re an anchovy. No, that’s not important. What’s important is that the universe’s structure is such that even if Inhyuk senior hits it, it flies all the way to the warning track.”

“what?”

“Inhyuk, please be quiet. “I think Meng Hao is talking about something important.”

“… “Tch.”

“Jang Woo-joo, that’s a feather. Do you really think it will pass by?”

“… really?”

“yes. Of course, it could be because of me, but the ball is definitely lighter than other pitchers. Would it be much lighter than the heavy 145? So, you can hit with a little less force, or swing faster than usual. “No matter how you swing it, it goes to the outfield.”

“Hmm. “Jinmo said in an interview that he accidentally hit the ball.”

Jang Woo-joo has only hit one home run so far. In literature, it was a home run hit by Koo Jin-mo.

“I think I know what you mean. When I hit his ball with a straight hit, I feel like I can’t feel anything in my hand. “Is there no heaviness?”

“But why are you talking about that now? “Not during power analysis time.”

“Did I tell you?”

“Meng Hao did say that. They say that if you hit me, I will get over it. Is that what you meant? “I thought you were bluffing as usual.”

“Are you okay? “I have never bluffed in my life.”

“It’s like that again, again. “Doesn’t that mean that your seniors don’t believe you?”

Tsk, it’s all true, so what can I do?

“Then we can go a little easier. I swing it in such a way that I just time it and hit the fastball. how is it?”

“I think it’s okay. “What about Coach?”

“I think it would be good for me too, right? If what Meng Hao said is true, it means that even if you hit just one hit, there is a high possibility that it will be a home run.”

“The way I see it, I think everyone will pass over except Inhyuk.”

Not to mention Choi Jin-cheol, Ki Ki-joo, and Boer, it seemed like Woo Gwan-hyeong, Kim Su-ho, and Jeong Yun-cheol, who hit around 10 home runs, could easily be surpassed. As for Yoon Seong-tae, he has some punching power, so I thought he would be able to overcome it.

“Then, from the next inning, let’s try to swing without fail. Don’t worry about batting average, just hit it. Do you understand?”

“yes!”

“Okay, in the top of the 6th inning, let’s block well and give it a try.”

*

[Kim Su-ho’s swing strikeout! Umm, Kim Soo-ho is not a player who will swing three times in a row like this, but it seems like AT Thunders’ batting strategy has changed a bit, right?]

[That’s right. It was caught on screen for a moment, but I could see hitting coach Lee Ki-cheol calling the players together during cleaning time. Maybe I’ve got a good idea. Coach Lee Ki-cheol was also famous as a smart catcher when he was a player.]

[That’s right. Kim Su-ho retires with a three-ball strikeout, and Ji Maeng-ho comes to the plate. One home run and one walk today. Ji Maeng-ho is on base in every at-bat.]

[Can you see that Jang Woo-joo is a little shaken when he faces Ji Maeng-ho? As far as I know, the two fighters are quite close as they competed in the WBC together. Is that why? It seems that Ji Maeng-ho knows Jang Woo-joo’s strategy.]

[Ooh, the ball is falling out a lot. Jang Woo-joo is having a hard time competing this time.]

[We were doing well until the 6th inning, allowing only 1 run, but putting Ji Maeng-ho on base here is a different story, right? As everyone knows, Ji Maeng-ho is a player with very fast feet despite his large body. So far, 11 stolen bases and 1 lost base. Yesterday, you added one stolen base and ranked first in the league in stolen bases? Ji Maeng-ho is scary as a batter, but he is also scary as a runner, so we have to catch Ji Maeng-ho here and go.]

[ah! But he ends up giving up a straight walk again. Let’s go with 1 out like this.]