episode_0126

[In the top of the 9th inning, Hyunseong’s closer, Ko Young-hwan, is now on the mound. He is a closing pitcher who has appeared in two games this season, recording 2 saves and an ERA of 0.]

[As expected, Ko Young-hwan comes to the mound in the prescribed order. He also performed well in the WBC with 3 saves, right?]

[Kwon Yul, who was also drafted to the WBC, showed poor condition during his first appearance of the season today, but Ko Young-hwan has nothing like that, right? You appeared in two games and struck out five in two innings, leading Hyunseong to two consecutive wins, right?]

[you’re right. Ko Young-hwan has a heavy fastball in the mid-150s and a high-speed slider in the mid-140s based on precise ball control. With just these two balls, he is a player who gives batters nightmares. An interesting record is that while using Madcats Park, a hitter-friendly stadium, as their home stadium, there was no record of hitting a home run in 160.1 innings.]

[okay. According to data, the last game in which Ko Young-hwan hit a home run was on September 11, 2020, when it was hit by Lee Jin-hong.]

[Yes. It’s 2020, I can’t even remember it anymore. haha.]

[Go Young-hwan, the best finisher in Korea who doesn’t need any rhetoric. All the spectators at Mad Cats Park are waiting for his pitch to see what kind of pitching he will show today. The opposing batter was Choi Jin-cheol, the home run king who transferred to the AT Thunders this season. The opponent’s batting average was 0.197. And he hit two home runs.]

[There is a home run record, but those home runs were hit by Choi Jin-cheol before he entered the major leagues, right? He has not hit a home run since returning from the majors.]

[What will be the result of today’s match? . Go Young-hwan and Choi Jin-cheol, Choi Jin-cheol and Go Young-hwan. Throws the first pitch.]

*

Pa – Ang!

‘Wow, look at the sound of the mitt.’

Go Young-hwan’s first pitch hit the mitt and pierced my ear through the cheers of the crowd.

“… Was Go Young-hwan like this?”

When I saw it from the national team, it wasn’t this much pressure… . The pitch I saw from Ko Young-hwan at second base or when he occasionally threw practice pitches and the pitch I saw from Ko Young-hwan now in the dugout seemed on a completely different level.

“Why don’t you join me, senior?”

“What a senior. “I’m not even listening.”

“Try to be cheap.”

“Have you also dealt with Seongtae?”

“Once before going to the military? I think things have gotten better since then. “Well, it was bloody in the WBC as well.”

“is it so? But why didn’t I feel that way?”

“Is it because there are more monsters?”

What Seongtae Yoon said also made sense. The pitchers I watched on video every day were all major leaguers. If I think about it, it would have been obvious right away if Ko Young-hwan’s pitch had been poor at that time. In other words, Ko Young-hwan’s pitch was not much different from the pitches of major leaguers he had seen or met in the video.

“Younghwan, when is that bastard a free agent? “Aren’t you going to America?”

“They say we’re leaving after this season ends.”

Listening to what the seniors are saying behind my back, it seems like they are going to challenge for the majors after this season.

‘Then is the current game between former major leaguers and future major leaguers?’

Choi Jin-cheol coolly swiveled the bat at Ko Young-hwan’s second ball. The count is already two strikes. Both balls were fastballs, and the velocity shown on the electronic display board was 156 and 155. Unlike others, he seemed to be maintaining his form during the WBC.

“Choi Jin-cheol, blow it away!”

The cries of fans who had come all the way to Daegu rang out loudly during a brief moment of silence at the baseball stadium. And Choi Jin-cheol must have heard the fan’s cheers as he swung his bat loudly.

widely!

From the sound of the hit, it was obvious that the ball wouldn’t go far. Choi Jin-cheol’s batted ball was trapped in the infield.

‘Is it difficult for a hitter as good as Choi Jin-cheol to play against Go Young-hwan?’

Go Young-hwan… Since this was a pitcher I would have to face at some point, I approached Jin-cheol Choi as he walked into the dugout to get a feel for the match, and received a helmet and gear.

“Thank you for your hard work. Seniors.”

“Ha, okay.”

“What do you think, Go Young-hwan?”

“There’s definitely something different about him.”

“What’s different?”

“The heaviness of the ball is different. As you probably know, the same velocity does not mean the same ball.”

Choi Jin-cheol was right about this. The 150 thrown by a high school student and the 150 thrown by a KBA player were of different ball levels, and the 150 thrown by the KBA player and the 150 thrown by a major leaguer were also of different levels.

The feeling that is generally expressed as good at the tip of the cheek.

“Probably, in terms of ranking alone, it is the best in Korea. “Seeing as how you joined SY Agency, I guess you’re thinking about going to the major leagues, right?”

That’s right, this guy was also from SY Agency. Now that I think about it, I seemed to remember that when I saw him at spring training, someone told him to lead me better.

“To succeed in the major leagues, you have to be able to hit a ball like that.”

“Senior, you couldn’t hit it, right?”

“… So I returned it. But this guy is funny, isn’t he? To my senior.”

“Ugh.”

Choi Jin-cheol playfully kicked my thigh.

“Well, Ohtani also hit a home run, but Younghwan is the same. Hey, but how did you hit Otani? “When I met him at national university, I couldn’t even touch him.”

“Well, nothing happened?”

“It’s good to see your confidence. boy.”

“Senior, if you accept everything from this child, he will climb up. Hooey, hooi.”

Before I knew it, Seongtae Yoon was approaching me and motioned for me to go away. Choi Jin-cheol, who was looking at Yoon Seong-tae, opened his mouth again.

“Seongtae. “Do you know what is more annoying than a rude junior?”

“… yes?”

“I’m a junior who can’t play baseball. bastard.”

Choi Jin-cheol, who spoke in a playful voice, kicked Yoon Seong-tae this time.

“Ugh, senior!”

“Be good at baseball. “How long are you going to just sit on the bench and be pushed around by senior Haeul?”

“That’s true.”

Certainly, as I heard from Yoon Seong-tae before, Choi Jin-cheol seemed to have a good personality. I see him hanging out with a guy like Yoon Seong-tae who can’t even play baseball.

hmm… . If you think about it that way, do I also have a good personality? Because I was the closest person to Seongtae Yoon on the team.

“Ma, what are your eyes?”

“My brother is a truly blessed person. “Because there is a good person like me next to me.”

“What are you talking about all of a sudden?”

Seongtae Yoon looked at me as if he didn’t understand what was happening. But I could tolerate this stupidity. Because he is one of the world’s top five saints recognized by Rossby.

‘When did this idiot admit it?’

‘are you okay. Mr. Rossby. I’ll save you from hell too, Mr. Rossby.’

‘under… , this guy is starting again. Shut up and watch the game. ‘Because I might deal with you tomorrow.’

And as soon as Rossby finished speaking, the sound of a batted ball was heard.

“Left!”

And the voices of Hyunseong players ring loudly. The left fielder comfortably caught the 6th batter, Woo Kwan-hyung, without moving a few steps. Two outs in the top of the 9th inning. And Go Young-hwan even struck out left-handed pinch hitter Han Sang-gyu.

Less than five minutes after Ko Young-hwan came on, three batters were out one after another.

‘I understand that the mood was bad earlier. ‘Why not go to the 9th inning against them?’

‘So you’re scared?’

‘I’m scared. I just want to stick around for once.’

Even if he threw the best pitch in Korea, I wasn’t scared because I already had experience dealing with the best thrower in the United States.

“Thank you for your effort.”

“Thank you for your effort.”

“[Let’s prepare well for tomorrow’s game. Let’s go in.]”

Director Sands’ expression looked a bit dark as he gave his final greeting.

‘Is it because it’s 1 win and 2 losses?’

‘The season is long anyway and it’s just one game. Don’t worry about that and just mind your own business, you can’t even get past 140. ‘Tsk, tsk.’

Well, since I was not a pitcher and could only have a small part in the team’s victory, as Rossby said, it was important for me to do my job well. No matter how unexpected the ball was, I should have passed on Kwon Yul’s ball today.

… Should I stay and give a special hit?

“Hey, youngest.”

“yes?”

When I made that decision, the weatherman called me. After all, we lost today, so are we going to make a special hit?

“Is this your first time visiting Daegu? Follow me. “I’ll introduce you to a good restaurant.”

What’s wrong with this human? It’s not a baseball story. Are you out of your mind from the shock of defeat?

“There are players who eat at hotels, but you can’t always eat at hotels, right? “We are people too.”

“All right.”

Yes, it’s something you do to make a living, but you have to eat and do it.

*

“hello!”

As I entered the restaurant recommended by the weather forecaster, I saw familiar faces.

“Yes, you played well today. Am I right.”

Today’s starting pitcher was Hyun-seong’s ace, Choi Jung-hoon.

“Well, that’s the average.”

“This bastard knows no humility. Ugh… .”

And Park Jung-hyun, who was a catcher.

“Hey, I thought I was going to skip today. “I’m bored.”

“ah. Senior Kwon Yul. “Are you feeling okay?”

“I went to the hospital and they said there was nothing wrong? But it must be sore.”

Kwon Yul, who had an out count against me today,

“Hey, sit down quickly. “It was difficult here because I was the youngest.”

“Ah yes.”

He showed a fantastic pitch today, but even Go Young-hwan, the youngest of Hyun-seong’s national team four players, is here. Except for outfielder Yang Ji-hyuk, all players who were selected to the national team were gathered here.

“I heard you’re introducing a good restaurant.”

“Hey, it’s been a few years since I came back from the US. How do I know about good restaurants in Daegu? I came because my brothers called me. “It’s good to have this opportunity to see the guys from National University as well.”

I guess Ki Ki-joo was planning on doing this from the beginning.

“Hey, but Suho isn’t coming?”

“Suho hyung, you don’t usually like this kind of position. “What about Jihyuk?”

“It’s still going. Jihyeok couldn’t come today because he had work to do. Just sit down. “Let’s talk while eating.”

“yes.”

under… . Having to eat with men without a woman… . I felt cheated, but I thought it would be hard to meet women at away games anyway. Because I couldn’t attract a woman to my dorm.

“Take a look at the ribs. “It’s really delicious here.”

“Ah yes.”

As soon as I sit down, Choi Joong-hoon, sitting next to me, puts some steamed ribs on the plate in front of me. The visual wasn’t that great, but when I tried it, it was pretty good.

‘They say cod food isn’t delicious, but this place is good.’

“Aunt, please give me some here.”

“True?”

“Don’t you know soju?”

“… “I know.”

And the spirit of ordering soju right away. Well, since it’s a selection, I’ll take a few days off now.

“Junghun, why are you ordering soju like that?”

“Originally, starters have to disinfect themselves after throwing like this, kid. Are you guys going to cry?”

“Well, just a light drink.”

As we shared a drink or two, starting with Choi Jung-hoon, the faces of some of the players began to turn red.

“Senior Junghyun, can I drink like that? “Aren’t you going to be selected tomorrow?”

“Okay. Jjapi is my starter tomorrow. “I’m a mercenary, and G and I have very similar personalities, so he said he wouldn’t work with me just because I signed.”

Oh, it looks like Park Joong-hyun won’t be showing up tomorrow. High-quality authentic copy? … So if they don’t know this much, coaches are incompetent. Anyway, Park Joong-hyeon and Choi Joong-hoon, who were confirmed to have a break tomorrow, drank as if they were pouring it into their stomachs, and the rest of us slowly matched their pace with accompaniment.

“Hoya, how was my ball today? “What do you think?”

“Wow, I never imagined I’d hit 140 there.”

“I felt like I was being hit and fucked by you, so I immediately lowered my head.”

Was it like that? under… . I should have passed on that.

“Wow, but Younghwan senior. Did you miss the ball today? “I didn’t know it when I was at the national team, but when I saw it here, it seemed like I was almost untouchable.”

“Didn’t you know when you were at national university? This guy is funny, this one. So, what do you think?”

“It’s not so bad that I can’t hit it.”

“This guy is really hitting the mark. In that case, at least pay lip service, dude.”

“Hey, how can you make up words that don’t exist?”

“Young-hwan, if this bastard was like that, would he have gotten into trouble with Jin-mo?”

“Well, this guy seems like a bit of a jerk.”

“Still, my child was good at baseball and took second place? “I’m grateful to Maengho for paying.”

Park Joong-hyun must have been drinking too much and started telling a cringy story. And starting with those words, memories of WBC began to come up one by one as snacks at the drinking party.

“So the American son…” .”

“… At that time, Hoya hit a home run… .”

“So, Hwan, are you going to go to America after this season?”

“yes. “After seeing it at WBC, I thought I could succeed if I just put in a little more effort.”

We were able to leave the restaurant only after two or three hours of talking dull baseball among the big guys.