episode_0302

“He’s definitely pitching well.”

Watching from the on-deck circle, Austin Webb’s pitches were undoubtedly sharp. The kind of pitching that befits an MVP candidate. If it weren’t for me, his performance this season was impressive enough to have earned him the MVP title, just like Sung-hyun in 2012.

With 192.1 innings pitched, a 2.48 ERA, 19 wins, and 209 strikeouts, Austin Webb secured his fourth pitching crown since Sung-hyun in 2012, excelling in wins, innings, strikeouts, and ERA. Although his stats didn’t overwhelmingly surpass mine, they were still quite remarkable.

And today, he was living up to those stats with a solid performance. From Kim Ju-yeop to Ki Sang-joo, he only threw seven pitches to get three outs. Even from my spot in the on-deck circle, the ball seemed better than usual, perhaps due to the Korean Series vibe.

“Today won’t be easy, will it?”

“Yeah, his last pitch was at 156. He’s really throwing the hell out of it.”

It seemed like other teammates shared similar thoughts. Fortunately, in this literary world, even if a pitcher throws exceptionally well, a stroke of bad luck could send a hit over the fence, characteristic of this literary realm.

“[So, watch out. Okay?]”

“[It’s those guys who need to watch out. I hope they don’t get too intimidated by my pitches.]”

I warned Crongs about the dangers of this literary world, but judging by his response, he didn’t seem to grasp my words.

“It’s nerve-wracking, but I have to trust.”

Given Crongs’ track record of bringing victories in autumn baseball games, there was some trust in him.

And Crongs, in response to my trust,

“Out!”

“Strikeout!”

“Out!”

Managed to fend off UG’s attack in the first inning by striking out three batters in a row. Would you call this a showdown between the two foreign aces? Austin Webb and Crongs were both delivering quality pitches.

I enjoyed this situation. The feeling of hitting Goyeong-hwan’s pitch over the fence still lingered within me.

“Mang-ho! Swing hard and come on.”

“Okay.”

Encouraged by the seniors, I walked towards the batter’s box.

“Ross B, let’s give it a go.”

“Don’t be too pushy.”

Perhaps worried that I might get too excited, Ross B’s affectionate teasing was evident. As I stepped into the batter’s box, I felt Webb’s gaze on me. Well, I had been striking out every time we met, so I understood his expression.

“Hello. Long time no see.”

“….”

Although I greeted UG’s starting catcher, Baek Kyung-ho, with a warm heart, it was clear he had no intention of conversing with me.

“It’s a fastball.”

“Okay.”

Having trained extensively with Ross B against this pitcher’s style, I wasn’t concerned. While his pitch was slightly faster than in the regular season, the speed difference wouldn’t significantly alter the outcome, especially in this literary realm.

“If it’s a similar pitch, I’ll swing.”

And as the first pitch came.

“Ball.”

His first pitch veered far outside, probably testing the waters.

“Fastball.”

“Will the second one be inside since he showed it outside?”

“Ball.”

“Aren’t you running away too much? It’s boring.”

“….”

“He doesn’t plan on saying a word, does he?”

Whether Baek Kyung-ho thought that way or not didn’t matter much to me, but as a player who enjoyed a challenge, it was slightly disappointing.

“Fastball.”

“Again?”

Three consecutive fastballs? Is he really aiming for my body this time? I waited for his pitch, thinking it would come towards my body. However, this pitch also ended up outside. …And by this point, the anxiety I felt before the game seemed to be becoming more and more real.

“Could he possibly walk me when there’s no count?”

“It’s a fastball.”

“…Could he be aiming outside again this time?”

“Yeah. Seems like he’s thinking about walking you.”

Refusing to swing with no counts against me. Is he crazy? Or does he have a way to stop my steal? If there is a way to stop my steal, it’s a bit risky…

As I pondered, his fourth pitch found the bat. The result: a ball.

“Bases on balls.”

“Is his condition deteriorating? Four balls outside? No matter how intimidating I am, this is a bit…”

“…Not gonna walk?”

“Oh, are you speaking now? Caught a cold? You should be careful even though you’re getting older.”

“Huh?”

Suddenly, Baek Gyeong-ho was visibly startled by my words, leaving me even more flustered. However, that moment of confusion was brief, and under the coach’s gaze, I quietly walked to first base.

“Surely they must have found a way to deal with runners in scoring position.”

“Yeah. Looks like they have a way to stop you.”

“Since it’s the Korean Series, they probably haven’t been slacking off during the preparation period. But how do they plan to stop it?”

My method of stealing bases was simple. Rossby would signal the pitch type, and I would run on the changeup timing. The reason the changeup was slow wasn’t just its speed but also because if the pitcher held onto the grip, he couldn’t throw a pickoff. Without a pickoff, I could gain an extra step on the base path, and since stealing bases hinged on a split-second moment of success or failure, this advantage was quite significant.

“Safe!”

With a count of one strike and one ball, the changeup timing arrived. I immediately ran to second base, and my steal was successful, much easier than I had anticipated.

“Could they be trying to prevent a steal to third?”

As Choi Jin-cheol stood at the plate, I wanted to signal him the pitch type from second base, but knowing what the UG guys were thinking was more crucial at the moment.

“I’m going for third.”

“Go ahead.”

If I didn’t attempt a steal to third now, I would surely be dragged around the bases throughout the series.

“If they really have a way to stop a steal to third…”

It would undoubtedly make things tougher throughout the series, so I needed to quickly find a way to uncover that method.

“A curveball.”

“Okay.”

Steel yourself and move further away from second base. Since playing baseball with Rossby, I had never been this nervous while attempting a steal. But I had to run. And as Web began his pitching motion, I started running towards third base.

Ping! The sound of the ball hitting the bat reached my ears, and in front of me, I saw the white base. Sliding towards it from my upper body, I touched the third base. The sensation of the glove after touching the base.

“Safe!”

“Nice!”

Contrary to my concerns, the result was safe. The timing of the glove brushing past me at third base seemed no different from the regular season.

“…But why did he refuse to walk me with no outs? Was my pitching really that erratic?”

I racked my brain hard, but I couldn’t find a plausible reason. The most likely explanation was probably due to the pressure of the Korean Series. Considering his expression and the fact that he’s only in his first year as a mercenary, the probability was high that he tried to throw a better pitch against me but ended up with a straight ball.

“Well, works for me. This should give us the lead.”

Runners on first and third with Choi Jin-cheol. Unless we face two consecutive strikeouts or an infield fly, we’re guaranteed a run. With the aces facing off in the first game, taking the lead was more critical than ever.

Thunk!

Choi Jin-cheol, well aware of the importance of seizing the initiative, skillfully connected with the bat to produce a ground ball while making his way to first base as soon as he heard the sound of contact.

“Senior, that was good.”

“Definitely comfortable since you have quick feet. You did well in running too.”

“When you saw it, how was my pitch?”

“I thought it was good. Why, was something off?”

“It was a straight walk. Just being cautious.”

“Well, I’m not sure. Maybe it wasn’t your fault? Young-ho hit the ball so hard; even I would’ve been intimidated.”

“…I guess that’s true.”

Listening to Choi Jin-cheol’s words, it seemed clear that he was indeed intimidated by me.

“I really didn’t think much about it over there, but I was worrying alone.”

With this, it was 1-0. The game started well. Austin Webb seemed to have regained his focus as he handled the rest of the batters with outs, but the score I had already given up was irreversible. With a lead of 1 point, we entered the bottom of the 2nd inning. Thanks to the score I gave up, Crongs managed to prevent runs in the 2nd inning as well.

“[Crongs, that was a good pitch.]”

“[Ho, thanks to you for giving up the score. Honestly, I missed you so much while you were gone.]”

“[Huh?]”

“[I missed your baseball so much.]”

“Damn, that was unexpected.”

Although I was a bit surprised that the guy missed me suddenly, I quickly calmed myself down.

“This guy sometimes says strange things even though I know he doesn’t like men.”

“[Huh? Why are you looking at me like that?]”

“[…Never mind. Be careful not to injure your shoulder.]”

“[You don’t need to worry. Judging by the state of the hitters today, it looks like my turn will come soon.]”

As predicted by Crongs, the third inning ended quickly. Austin Webb also swiftly returned to the bottom of the 3rd inning after striking out three batters.

“Seems like he got shaken because of me, huh?”

The pitches thrown to other batters seemed well-controlled, and it was almost certain that he was shaken by me. It seemed like the impact of hitting me in our last encounter had worked. Learned fear, perhaps?

“Why are you smiling like that? Aren’t you getting ready for defense?”

“Yes, I’m going.”

Austin Webb was a fairly good pitcher, a rarity in the KBA. While it was somewhat satisfying to have caused such trauma to a pitcher of Webb’s caliber, I quickly wiped away my smile to focus on defense. In this kind of pitching battle, each error could be fatal.

“Alright, let’s keep it up like this today.”