episode_0172

[Two outs, top of the 7th inning. Ji Maeng-ho comes to bat.]

[Wow, the cheering is so hot. Even though he went 0-hitter in 3 at-bats today, the player standing at bat right now deserves a lot of cheers. Ji Maeng-ho is currently ranked first in everything except hits and runs scored.]

[The match between Plank and Ji Maeng-ho. The previous three at-bats ended with one strikeout and two outfield flies, but since Ji Maeng-ho struck out the first time, the distance of the batted ball has been gradually increasing, right?]

[you’re right. Plank, who throws a ball in the mid-150s, and Ji Maeng-ho, who ranks first in home runs in the league. I think it can be seen as a battle of strength versus strength.]

‘Sweet, I think I’ll be able to get over it if I hit it just right.’

‘Can you feel it?’

Meng Hao quietly nodded his head at Rossby’s words. In his first at-bat, he was getting hit by the bat little by little after being struck out by Charlotte’s foreign pitcher Plank, so Meng Hao’s confidence was not particularly strange.

3:2. Top of the 7th inning, down by 1 run. AT needs to get on base more than ever. Meng Hao stepped into the batter’s box while receiving cheers from the fans.

‘Plank, speed is in the mid 150s, today’s highest speed is 156km/h. The pitches to watch out for are sliders and sinkers. The slider is in the mid 130s and the sinker is in the low 140s. I enjoy aggressive competition.’

After Meng Hao stood at bat, he swung into the air and reflected on Plank’s information once again. Of course, it was a meaningless act for Meng Hao, who knew the type of pitch, but the reason for such an act was simple.

-‘Hey, what are you thinking about before you step up to bat?’

-‘I’m just going in? Usually, you want to see the pitcher’s shit-chewing expression? ‘What, this much?’

-‘Boy, don’t go in without thinking, go in thinking about what the pitcher is going to throw.’

-‘… ‘Do you do it sometimes?’

-‘Don’t do it once in a while, just keep doing it.’

-‘Is there really a need for that? Anyway, Mr. Rossby tells me everything.’

-‘Ugh. ‘The reaction speed is different between what I tell you and what you think about.’

-‘Hmm… . is it? I think it will actually get more complicated.’

-‘Ah, fuck. ‘You idiot, just criticize me.’

-‘… yes.’

The reason was because there was advice from Rossby before the game started.

‘Chi, I don’t think there’s much difference.’

Of course, Meng Hao didn’t seem to notice the difference yet.

‘If you want to become a good player, you have to think for yourself.’

‘You just have to keep Mr. Rossby by your side.’

‘… It’s a sinker.’

‘okay.’

Hearing Meng Hao’s sudden words, Rosby quickly changed his mind. In the early 20th century, Rossby, who lived like a macho man, was not immune to such unfamiliar language.

[Plank’s first pitch against Ji Maeng-ho… ! It’s a foul. A foul disappearing toward third base.]

[Plank’s sinker reached 147 km/h. It was a sinker with a high speed and a considerable angle, but Ji Maeng-ho cleared it well.]

‘What’s the next ball?’

‘It’s a fastball.’

After hearing Rossby’s words, Meng Hao once again took a striking stance. Ji Maeng-ho’s unique close stance, crouching down and aiming for a single shot. The pressure of being able to hit at any time was also felt by Charlotte’s catcher, Yang Chan-woo.

‘Ji Maeng-ho… . Dude is dangerous. Fall outward as much as possible.’

Charlotte Blue Mariners. The coaching staff and front office were considered incompetent by fans, but that did not mean they were a team that neglected analysis. Ji Maeng-ho’s strength that Charlotte recognized was his power to hit a home run whenever he entered the strike zone.

‘The weakness was the swing at ridiculous balls.’

Although Ji Maeng-ho achieved monster-like results for a month that were not like a rookie, no, not like a human, he still had some human qualities. The point is that there is a swing at an absurd ball. Before UG, Yang Chan-woo also saw Ji Maeng-ho take an outrageous swing against Yoon Jung-hwan, a second-team pitcher, several times.

It was hard to believe that a player with an on-base percentage like Ji Maeng-ho could swing at a pitch like that, but records don’t lie. In reality, I couldn’t stop Ji Maeng-ho on the first day, but starting yesterday, I was getting good results against Ji Maeng-ho using this method.

Plank windup.

‘Please, even if I swing.’

If you get a strike here, it’s two strikes. We can push Ji Maeng-ho even further! Yang Chan-woo looked at Plank with an earnest heart. And Plank’s fastball flew straight toward the mitt.

phut!

There was a pleasant sound of a baseball hitting a leather mitt, but Yang Chan-woo couldn’t laugh.

“cheek.”

‘So, you’re saying you won’t be dragged out to this level?’

I wasn’t expecting to be full after the first drink. Ji Maeng-ho is currently the best hitter in the league, regardless of his performance over the past month, whether it’s a fluke or something else. Yang Chan-woo delivered his autograph more carefully.

‘Sinker, to the body.’

Inside sinker, outside fastball, and inside sinker. A standard combination that dazzles the eyes of batters. There were some fans who criticized it for being obvious, but there is a reason why a standard is a standard. If it worked, it was a ball combination that could effectively control the batter.

[The third ball is! It’s a ball. Sinker at 147 km/h. Even though it is the top of the 7th inning, Plank’s ball is still alive.]

[As he is a South American player with strong physical strength, the power of the ball does not appear to be decreasing even though he has passed over 100 pitches. Of course, Ji Maeng-ho also chose a good ball.]

‘Inside the body, outside and inside the body? No matter how I look at this, it seems like they’re making fun of me.’

‘Why didn’t you swing just now?’

Rossby, who maintained a poker face but confirmed that he was annoyed because he had been watching for a long time, asked Ji Maeng-ho a question.

‘I heard it was a sinker, but the trajectory was towards the body. So, if it’s a sinker, it means it comes closer to the body, so I thought it would be a ball.’

‘okay. That’s what I mean when you strike while thinking like that. ‘Not only do pitchers have to think about how to design their pitches, but batters also have to think about how to design their batting at the plate.’

And upon hearing that answer, Rossby was a little surprised. I can’t believe this guy who only heard about sex in his head can think like this. Although it was only the third day since the special training, I could see him thinking while at bat.

‘The next ball is a fastball.’

‘It’s a fastball in two balls and one strike… . All right.’

You mean you want to put it in the strike zone, right? The corner of Meng Hao’s mouth rises slightly.

[Plank windup. this time!]

Ta – evil!

Ji Maeng-ho’s lightning-like swing makes the home fans at Sajik Stadium quiet. All fans can do is pray that the batted ball doesn’t go over the fence.

[This batted ball… !]

But unfortunately, God did not listen to the prayers of Charlotte’s fans.

[…] Let’s go! Ji Maeng-ho’s tying solo shot over the left wall! This is the 13th home run of the season! Ji Maengho! Now the score is 3:3! The game is back to square one! Plank lowers his head!]

[You were completely aiming for it, right? The battery entered the game very easily. When dealing with a heavy hitter like Ji Maeng-ho, we should have been careful of such an easy match, but the battery’s ball combination was complacent.]

Ji Maeng-ho’s batted ball went well over the left wall.

“This is it!”

Rossby also smiled slightly as he looked at Ji Maeng-ho, who returned home and pumped his fist.

‘Baby, if you do it, you’ll do it well. As expected, one strength… .’

In fact, Rossby didn’t want to go this far either. I thought that if Ji Maeng-ho had basic skills, he could become a top player in the league in any era by using the pitches and locations that he taught me, and Ji Maeng-ho had basic skills.

Well, considering the low level of ball control of the players in this country, sometimes they might not be able to hit it, but it didn’t matter if they had the ball control of the major league level. Because I confirmed that I can hit the pitches of top pitchers in the WBC. Therefore, Rossby intended to continue like this.

But is it because I stayed with Meng Hao for too long? Or is it because he was also a baseball player? As I saw Ji Maeng-ho’s sparkling talent, my desire to raise him arose.

Of course, Ji Maeng-ho’s talent as a batsman was not the best. Rossby has seen talent that shines even brighter than Ji Maeng-ho through his experience as a coach and manager. Rather, if you look at it only as a hitter, there were many players of Ji Maeng-ho’s level.

However, while looking at so many players, there was a sparkling talent that only Ji Maeng-ho had that we had never seen before.

That’s power. His ability to apply force to a batted ball was at the top level compared to any other hitter. That kind of power was not something that could be achieved through hard work from coaches or the batter himself, so Rossby became greedy.

Rossby also tried to become a home run hitter, but due to his physical limitations, he could only hit 40 home runs and could not overcome the 60 home runs that Ruth achieved. Ji Maeng-ho, who was close to 190 cm tall and had power to match, but was agile enough to play second base, was a great talent.

In order to do that, the current process was necessary even if the batting average or results did not improve right now. If the batter thinks for himself and hits, and the process is mastered, it becomes ingrained in him as if it were a routine without even thinking about it.

If that happens, there will be synergy when informing the pitch type or location!

The desire as a baseball player to craft sparkling gemstones and

‘Maybe I can get to rest sooner.’

I have a passion for baseball for over 50 years and want to end this miserable life.

It was clear that if this training was completed successfully, one’s rest would come sooner.

Even so, Rossby knew that the path was not easy. Because Rossby knew how difficult it was to embody that. Maybe the batter could not get it even if he tried his whole life. However, while ordinary batters have to think about pitch type and location, Ji Maeng-ho only has to think about location. If so, it was clear that the time would be shortened.

Of course, it was clear that even that would take a long time, but fortunately Rossby still had a lot of time left. Up to 6 years to get to a major.

During that time, Ji Maeng Ho is slowly processed!

‘There’s no way I can’t do this when I’m stuck with this body 24 hours a day.’

How long will it take for Ji Maeng-ho, who has become so accomplished, to surpass his own record and become the best second baseman in history? 2 years? 3 years? Rossby burst out laughing again at the thought that maybe he could surpass himself with just one year of records.

‘Well, the sooner the better. And you will have to brush up on the basics so that you can continue your career as a player even after I am gone. ‘If I hear that the disciple of this body was a sparkle for a year, I’ll feel like shit even if I close my eyes.’

‘Mr Rossby! Are you muttering something and then laughing to yourself? Has dementia already arrived? Ah, I was long past the age of dementia. Still, it’s ugly to mutter to yourself like that! Oh, does muttering prevent dementia? Then I’m sorry.’

‘… ‘Fuck, how pretty is this bastard?’

‘yes? I beg your pardon?’

‘Shut up and watch the game, you orangutan!’