episode_0101

After the last humiliating defeat against Japan. I sharpened my knife for this day. The training partner that Rossby helps with is always Otani. For about a week, I practiced only by watching Otani.

And now. Otani was standing in front of me.

The fastball that Ohtani threw to Kang Han-beom and Joo Seung-cheol was around 100 mph. It was a restraint that showed the full power of Ohtani, who was responsible for two innings, or only one inning.

Yang Ji-hyuk at third base and Kim Jeong-hyun at first base. The pinch runners of the two players who missed out due to injury can be seen at a glance. Both seniors were focused on the match between me and Otani. And the crowd seemed to have somehow become quiet. I feel like I and Otani are the only ones left in the world.

Oh, and one more person.

‘It’s a splitter. ‘Body side.’

Even Rossby.

Splitter from the first pitch. The falling trajectory matched my swing well, but I didn’t want to miss this great opportunity by hitting a breaking ball from the first pitch.

‘I’ll skip it.’

And Ohtani’s splitter comes flying in. A ball that flies along the same trajectory as a fastball and falls down in an instant. If I had seen this ball without knowing it, it would have been obvious that the bat would have gone out as if it was an easy ball to hit.

“cheek!”

I didn’t think it would be strange if it was a strike, but it was a ball. Are you lucky?

‘It was a good thing I skipped it. Even if I tried, I wouldn’t have gotten a good hit.’

It was a ball that hit the corner of my knee sharply. As Rossby said, there probably wasn’t a good batted ball. But even after hitting Joo Seung-cheol, he stabs him in the body like this. Does that guy have no feelings?

‘Fastball, thrown far outside. There’s a possibility of a pitch out.’

‘All right.’

Pitch out to catch a runner. The catcher’s strategy was to take the ball far outside to make it easier to throw the ball and snipe at the moving runner. Since both Ji-hyuk Yang and Jung-hyun Kim were capable of stealing bases, the Japanese bench probably thought that we would use a strategy to shake up Ohtani.

But we had no such thing as a strategy.

-“Meng Hao. Have you ever practiced bunting?”

-“no. And what kind of bunt is this with one out?”

-“But just in case.”

-“Just trust me.”

-“The young guy just has confidence. I get it. Come and swing as much as you want. “No one will blame you.”

A conversation I had with my hitting coach before going to bat. The hitting coach gave me full authority. Push it and hit it, fly it to the outfield. Without any request for such team betting.

In other words, Ohtani’s current ball is simply an action that puts the ball count at a disadvantage. I quietly waited for Otani’s ball. But the trajectory… !

“strike!”

what? Wasn’t it pitched out? I glanced at the catcher and saw that he had fallen. So, now… .

‘It looks like they ignored the sign and threw it in the center.’

‘yes?’

‘This means that they ignored the pitch out sign and put it in the center. ‘Paktong!’

Ignoring the catcher’s signs? It was a situation where the ball could have fallen if I had made a mistake. How did they make that decision with 1 out and 1st and 3rd bases? Of course, I wasn’t throwing a breaking ball at the fastball sign, but it was still too risky.

Does this mean that you trust the catcher’s blocking that much? The Japanese catcher was a master catcher who was recognized for his defensive skills even in NPB, which considers defense as its top priority. I think I can feel the trust between the pitcher, catcher, and battery.

‘Well, I’ve heard of pitchers like that. Just by looking at the batter’s posture, you can tell whether this cub is a bastard to hit or a cub to wait for.’

‘I was in the same posture as usual?’

My batting form hasn’t changed.

‘Then it must be momentum. The look in your eyes will make this bastard stop swinging the bat. Well, didn’t you make that decision?’

Is that possible… ? Anyway, I don’t know why Ohtani threw it in the middle, but he lost a valuable strike count. That’s the only truth. Otani’s thoughts weren’t important right now.

‘Split?’

Otani’s smiling face is visible. The look in your eyes that tells you to make me more interesting. And somehow it’s like laughing.

-‘I threw you a ball that was easy to hit, but you didn’t hit it? ‘Are you scared?’

Those eyes that seem to say that.

‘hey! Don’t be swayed! It’s just your imagination.’

Yes, as Rossby said, it’s just my imagination. Maybe he was scared of Otani. The more I trained with Rossby, the more I realized the power of Ohtani’s balls.

‘All right. I’ll come to my senses.’

In fact, it was a difficult ball to hit with the first pitch, but if it were my usual self, I would have swung it. With confidence.

… But I avoided it. Victory.

I’m afraid it will end on the first pitch. It wasn’t like me. A complacent attitude of trying to pick and hit the best ball possible. To me, who knew what pitch to throw in the first place, all pitches were good pitches.

‘You have nice eyes. The next ball is a fastball. High in the middle.’

High fastball. What are you thinking? Are you throwing it high to induce a missed swing? Or are you trying to stab the very top of the zone? … No, there is no need to think like this.

There is no way Ohtani, who ignored the sign and put it in the strike zone, would play so lightly. This ball comes into the zone.

Otani’s windup. A pitching form that doesn’t care about the runner on first base. Kim Jeong-hyun, who saw the windup, immediately started running… .

Dang!

My palm cries. A foul that goes far to the left. The number on the electronic display board is 103.1 miles (166 km/h).

‘103 miles… . The world is going crazy.’

A ball with speed that even Rossby has never seen before. It was perhaps the first time Rossby had actually seen such restraint.

‘Splitter. low.’

I long ago abandoned the carefree idea of filtering. Just swing the bat.

widely!

The top of the ball, which comes lower than expected, brushes the bat, resulting in a foul. I feel like Otani’s expression is hardening. Splitter after a high fastball. An unbeatable combination that led Ohtani to reign in the major leagues. I bet you never expected to hit this.

‘Baby, it’s nice to see your expression.’

A perplexed expression. It was a much more eye-catching expression than the smiling expression from before.

widely! Perfect! Dang! Ta – ah! Perfect!

And five fouls followed. All of the balls that Otani throws are balls that he has faced at least once. Through training with Rossby. No matter what type of pitch I throw or where I throw it, I have touched it at least once. After making five fouls in a row, I started to gain confidence.

And Otani’s expression distorted. The expression that was looking down at me solemnly was completely gone, a human-like expression.

‘Yes, even if people around you think you’re a genius who comes along once every 100 years, in the end, you’re still human.’

At that thought, a smile spread across my face without me knowing. And Otani must have seen my smile, so his brows furrowed even more.

‘Don’t think about other things and focus!’

‘yes!’

‘It’s a sinker. ‘Body side.’

Sigh! And the bat that was holding up Ohtani’s fastball ended up breaking. The result is a foul.

‘Ha, after WBC, I’ll have to get some sponsorship from a good place. Lawyer Jeong and Soyoung said they would take care of it.’

“[I’ll get some bats.]”

After speaking politely to the umpire, I went back to the dugout to get my bat, and the tense atmosphere in the dugout was conveyed to me.

“Why is it so frozen? Please feel free to watch.”

“… … .”

However, all my seniors did not say a word to me for fear of having a negative influence on me. To be honest, I acted a little rudely, but I can’t believe you showed such consideration. I was slightly grateful. While I was looking for the bat, someone handed me a bat.

“ruler.”

It was Gu Jin-mo. He uses a bat of the same size as me. And since we had a falling out during the practice match, he hasn’t lent me any equipment or anything… . Plus, I was so upset at the beginning of today’s game that I didn’t even think they would lend me a bat.

“Seniors… .”

“… request.”

The bat handed to me by Gu Jin-mo was hard and somehow warm. Of course, I couldn’t feel the temperature because I was wearing batting gloves, but it still felt warm.

Looking around the dugout again, I saw Lee Jin-hong and Joo Seung-cheol, who had been replaced due to injuries, frowning without even going to the hospital. Not only them, but Jang Woo-joo and Cheol-young. And I saw all the other seniors and coaches looking at me.

“… Please believe me.”

I took the bat I received from Koo Jin-mo and headed back to the plate. The bat’s dimensions match what I’m used to, so it feels comfortable in my hand.

‘Fastball. ‘Body side.’

Ohtani chose to fight strength against strength. Or maybe you want to trick me in reverse. Well, since he was timing every breaking ball, he might have thought he wasn’t aiming for a fastball.

Anyway, my chance came.

I remember my last match with Ohtani, who killed a runner at home because he couldn’t get the timing right. Since then, I have also trained hard.

… Hit me hard this time!

And the ball left Ohtani’s hand.

Ta – evil!

The feeling of being hit exactly in the center of the bat, the feeling that the batted ball will fly forever, and the cheers that seem to say that these feelings are not lies. I slowly walked to first base while holding the bat that Koo Jin-mo gave me.

“… … .”

“… … .”

match! Without saying a word, I high-five the first base coach and hand him the bat. From the time I step on second base to the time I pass through third base and hit home, it feels like the world is not real.

“… … ! … … !! … !”

“… ! … … … … !”

Ji-hyuk Yang and Jeong-hyeon Kim, who were pinch runners, shouted something, but it was as if they were underwater. As I walked to the dugout, not knowing whether I was walking on land or water, someone was there to meet me.

“Good job.”

It was Koo Jin-mo who lent me the bat.

“… “Thank you for the bat.”

And I didn’t need much conversation with Koo Jin-mo. It felt like we shared a common mind for the team’s victory. After that brief hug, I entered the dugout and felt a strong impact on my helmet.

“Ji Maeng-ho! Ji Maeng-ho!”

“Aaaah!”

“I hit a home run! Shiba, are you crazy?!”

puck! puck! The fists and kicks mixed with affection made me realize that this was reality again. At the end of this hospitality, he appointed me as a starter and trusted and watched over me even when I couldn’t tell the difference and was mean to Seonghyeon. There was director Lee Geum-hyun.

“Thank you for trusting and choosing me. “Director.”

“Good job.”

A calm word. I had dreamed of a moment like this all through high school. The stage I dreamed of at the time was the high school stage, not the WBC, but it was a dream where I would hit an important home run and the coach would say thank you for your hard work.

And now, on a stage called the WBC, which is more important than the high school stage, I did it against no one else but Ohtani.

I did it. I did it. Fuck!

“done! Fuck!!”

“Baby, the director is there too.”

“Well, it’s good to see fighting. “Leave it alone.”

“mind! Is the gang over? “Why don’t you come and cheer for me?!”

Kang Han-beom’s words lift my spirits. Okay, the game isn’t over yet. It’s the end of the 8th episode now. Plus, 1 point difference. It’s a difference you can’t let your guard down on. I leaned against the railing of the dugout and began cheering loudly for the next batter, Lee Yong-gi.

*

[Game over! The national team finishes off the out count with a strikeout! Go Younghwan! It was a long game! This is how it ends! korea! Advance to the finals! Let’s release the resentment of WBC! Korea advances to the finals!]

[Wow. It was a game that made you sweat until the end! Citizens! You can be proud! These players are the national team of Korea!]

[Now in a moment! Today’s come-from-behind three-run hero! There will be an interview with Ji Maeng-ho, a decorated player.]

And after some time, Ji Maeng-ho wearing a headset appeared on the screen. And then the interview began.

“hello! Ji Maeng-ho! Congratulations to the distinguished player!”

“thank you.”

“Is there anything you want to say first?”

“hmm… . Parents in heaven. I believe you will be watching. And the teacher who taught me. Thank you always. And the people who love me and who I love are watching on TV. “It’s been a while since I haven’t seen you, so I’d like to see you.”

“yes. Then, would you please say my name and say something?”

“Oh, there are too many. If I sing here, I guess I’ll stay up all night. haha.”

“Okay, now let’s talk about the game. You hit a home run against Ohtani today, right? “You lost by decision in the last match. How did you prepare?”

“I just prepared as usual. Anyway, Otani is also human, and I thought there was no ball I couldn’t hit as long as someone threw it.”

“Oh, great confidence. “Then what kind of ball were you targeting for the home run?”

“I just saw it and hit it. “There is no such thing as targeting.”

“and. “The speed of the ball that hit the home run was 163km/h, so you saw it and hit it?”

“yes. Well, you can’t say you can’t see what you can see. haha.”

“Incredible. “Then Ji Maeng-ho, who usually shows great celebrations, hit a come-from-behind three-run home run against Ohtani today and didn’t show any celebrations. What is the reason?”

“When I hit a home run, it felt like a dream, so I held a ceremony and never even thought about it.”

“It’s a shame. “I also wanted to see Meng Hao’s exciting ceremony.”

“Haha, I’ll give it a try if I hit a home run next game.”

“So now we have one game left until the next game, the championship. “Please tell us your resolution for the finals.”

“Maybe America will come up, right? They say the world is big, so I’ll come back and see how big it is.”

*

-Japan falls!!!! Scream!!!!!!!!

Haha, it looks good. If you look at the fact that there aren’t any bastards in sight.

-Wow, Ji Maeng-ho. I’m looking forward to this season.

A player like that should have gone to the majors, but it’s a shame.

A home run like this against Ohtani. I have to play on a real world stage.

-Wow, it’s a three-run clearing. It should be included in the national anthem, really.

ㄴBut I don’t think it’s a good idea to walk away a little too calmly.

ㄴㄴㅉㅉ That’s it, but I don’t know what to do.

-Ha… the season is ruined. Lee Jin-hong got dragged to National University and is in trouble again.

ㄴI would like to express my condolences to future fans.

Haha…

ㄴI devoted myself to my country, but… I guess there is no such thing as patriotism.

Well, how many people from that team were taken to the national team? Mark looks like a volcano fan. Don’t scratch and go on your way.

-Are you sure Seungcheol is okay? It looked like it hurt a lot…

Haha… you shouldn’t get hurt…

-Wow, look at Kim Hee-yeon’s eyes, is that the life of an alpha male?

ㄴAlpha males just turn the tables and look at me lol.

People suffer because of idiots like you.

ㄴㄴㅋㅋㅋ I think we had a hundred percent sex after the interview.

No, I got the PDF. I’ll send it to my agency.

-and! We found it too! For those of you who are looking forward to the season, thank you!

Yes, no matter how excited you are, you’ll fail anyway, right?

ㄴ^1994^ Their own unofficial legend has come out again hahaha Now they’re a rookie and damn it hahaha

ㄴIf you look at the interview, it looks really cheap. Is that okay?

You guys just have to be good at baseball.

-Tanikun… As expected, Chesano’s dark spirit was Tanikun. A fastball to the body there.

ㄴKwakhyeon, Tanikun, Darvish… simultaneous destruction, this must be the limit of the two people.

no??? Korea and Japan are tied, but why does a shitty person come out?

ㄴㄴㄴI can’t resist this and swing it haha.

-I worship you. GOAT. Your passion led to the victory in the Korea-Japan war. The best GOAT of all time. Ji Maeng-ho.

Aren’t you going to pay ‘GOA’T instead of GOAT? I ruined my personality.

ㄴㄴYou’re going to hit the pad lip right away on the next shaky one, right?

ㄴJi Maeng-ho, my light. Ji Maeng-ho, my darkness. Ji Maeng-ho, my life. Ji Maeng-ho, my joy. Ji Maeng-ho, my sadness. Ji Maeng-ho, my pain. Ji Maeng-ho, my rest.

ㄴCharles III “I want to make Ji Meng-ho my knight.”

-I think it will stick with the United States. What do you think?

ㄴIt’s comfortable if you don’t have any expectations. Finishing in second place was also good.

-Are there any exemptions from military service for this year’s national team players? There was a WBC in 2006.

ㄴIt must be difficult because public opinion is not good. There is also talk of the Asian Games.

ㄴIf you say this, you will be criticized.

-and. The fighting spirit of the players today was really cool. It’s been a while since I watched a national game, and my heart raced.