episode_0254

“Why didn’t Baek Kyung-ho show up?”

“Why are you asking me that? And where do you call your senior’s name carelessly?”

“You’re a senior to them, but are you a senior to me too?”

“You cheap bastard.”

UG’s new catcher, unlike Baek Kyung-ho, had quite a hit. It would be nice to scratch it like this and get a reaction out of it.

‘It’s a slider.’

It was a slider from the first pitch… . Could it be outside this time? For now, I decided to just watch.

“cheek.”

And the pitch goes to the outside without any chance. It seemed like he came out today with the intention of taking a completely outside game. The mindset of giving as many walks as you can. Moreover, with two outs, even if you steal third base, no points are scored unless you get a hit.

‘There are two ways. Either hit a home run somehow, or trust senior Suho.’

I glanced at Kim Su-ho, who was standing by at bat. Kim Su-ho scored 2 RBI today with an infield ground ball and a hit to center field, but his condition did not look very good. All batted balls were turning into ground balls.

‘Should I also aim for a home run?’

It was better to push and hit against a pitcher who only threw outside pitches, but pushing and hitting Jamsil was a burden no matter how much I was. Because the distance is the distance, it was difficult to hit a home run unless it was hit properly.

‘… Still, I have to do it, right?’

2-1, and two outs. It was a perfect situation to turn around without any pressure.

‘It’s a fastball.’

“Surely you won’t throw a fastball after a slider like an amateur?”

First, lightly scratch the catcher.

“cheek.”

“Wow, that’s a real fastball. “How are you catching with that ball combination?”

“Shut up.”

He didn’t swing the bat at a pitch that seemed to have missed two more balls, but it seemed like he was successful in scratching the catcher.

“I really feel sorry for the pitcher. With a lead like this, the only thing that would result is a walk. “There is also a pitcher’s evaluation, so shouldn’t we subsidize it with salary?”

“Does this guy play baseball with his mouth?”

If you see him swearing, it might be time to throw a threat… . Usually, when the catcher is scratched like this, there are many cases where a threatening ball flies, but it seemed like UG decided not to give a good ball today, so it was a bit ambiguous.

‘Fastball.’

‘Could it be your body?’

Rossby didn’t answer, but it didn’t really matter. The average speed of the opposing pitcher is around the mid-140s. It was a restraint that was easy to see and hit.

‘For now, let’s slip to the outside a little bit.’

I moved my feet away from home plate, praying that it would come to my body. In this case, there was a high chance of getting a strike on a crowded course on the outside, but since the catch was scraped to this extent, if the catcher had any pride, he would throw it toward his body. If it was closer to the strike zone than my body, I waited for the pitcher to pitch, thinking about forcing the hit.

“cheek.”

And the following outside ball.

‘What on earth have these motherfuckers prepared? Still throwing an outside ball like this?’

If he had been the catcher of a weak team, it would have been the right time for a threatening ball to fly to his body, but perhaps because he was the catcher of a strong team, UG, he seemed not at all bothered by my provocation.

At this point, the double in my first at-bat became even more disappointing. He should have passed that ball over, but it was quite disappointing to see him throw it out more thoroughly after hitting a double.

‘Well, there’s no way there would be a crazy catcher who would compete with me in a situation where there are no runners with two outs. If this happens, it will be a change in strategy.’

I think it was wrong to receive good credit during this series. In that case, we have no choice but to move on to the next operation.

“Base on balls.”

I trusted Kim Su-ho and got on base with a walk.

‘If your condition is bad, I can make it better.’

He tells Soo-ho Kim the type of pitch at second base. Looking at the situation, it seemed like there would be many opportunities to steal bases throughout this series. So, I didn’t think it would matter if I gave up at least one stolen base and stopped at second base.

“Are you going to run again? under… . “Even if you have a good stolen base success rate, you didn’t get this far during the season, right?”

“They keep giving me walks to steal bases, what should I do? I have to run. “If we keep fighting to the outside, we’ll keep running.”

After talking with first baseman Koo Jin-mo and measuring my timing, I ran toward second base in a one-strike, two-ball situation. The result is, of course, safe. I even felt like they had given up on catching me.

‘Once we reach second base.’

And at second base, I made eye contact with Kim Su-ho. UG is a club famous for changing the catcher’s autograph every series, so the autograph has never been exposed, but that doesn’t concern me.

‘Mr. Rossby, old man.’

‘Tsk, if someone sees it, they’ll think I left it to you. It’s a curve.’

Rossby tells the pitch while grumbling.

‘okay. curve.’

So that his feelings were not in vain, he conveyed his signature to Kim Su-ho using hand signals. Looking at Kim Su-ho’s expression, he seemed to recognize the sign I had delivered.

‘Senior Suho, please hit just one! ‘I can’t skip it!’

All that remains is for Kim Su-ho to trust me and swing the bat. However, the one strike, two ball situation changed to two strikes, two balls when I stole base. In this situation, can Kim Soo-ho trust me and swing the bat?

Since UG’s cause of death has never been revealed, I know it won’t be easy to trust me. But I hope you trust me this time… .

Ta – evil!

And my prayers seemed to have worked as Kim Su-ho skillfully took the downward curve. A batted ball flying between center field and right field. As soon as the ball hit the bat, I ran toward home.

Since UG is famous for its good outfield defense, this is a ball that would normally be watched at second base. But now two outs. A situation where you have to run at all costs. He ran all the way to home, hoping that Kim Su-ho’s batted ball would fall in a position where the outfielder could not catch it.

-Wow!

And the shout that comes. The sound was quite loud.

‘done!’

If they shout this much in Jamsil, they must be our fans. When I had some free time, I took a quick look toward right field. And as I expected, the batted ball fell in the middle of center field and right field and could not be caught by any fielder.

“nice!”

match! After hitting home, I gave a high five to Ki Ki-joo, who was waiting at the standby, and when I looked back toward the ground, I saw Kim Soo-ho running all the way to second base. And Kim Su-ho arrives at second base, and the outfielder’s throw arrives before Kim Su-ho.

“out!”

“and… . I apologize to Jaehyun Choi.”

The end of the 5th inning ended with the lament of the weather warning being heard. It was a good hit to try for second base, but UG’s right fielder Choi Jae-hyun’s throw was too good.

‘Is this because it’s UG? Now that I think about it, I heard that that guy was also selected for the Asian Games, right? ‘I guess I became a national player through Go-Stop.’

It was disappointing that the inning ended like this, but since adding one point was the only benefit, I had no choice but to be satisfied. Kim Soo-ho’s expression as he walked to the dugout after being out from second base looked quite dark, perhaps because he was out.

“Kabi, kabi. “I thought it would be a double hit.”

“I’m sorry, Sangju. “I was trying to get to second base and create a chance, but maybe I should have waited?”

“No, it was worth a try, bro.”

“Tsk. I miss you. And Meng Hao.”

“yes?”

“How did you know it was curved?”

“It was just a throw, so it seemed like the right time to throw a curveball. You know. “You see me well.”

“Well, I’m a crazy person for trusting you in that situation, but you’re also a crazy person for telling me with confidence.”

“Just trust me.”

“Brother, I’ve also tried hitting behind Meng Hao a few times, but I heard this guy is like a ghost to figure out pitches. I feel like I’m looking into the catcher’s head. very.”

‘It’s not in the catcher’s head, but in the pitcher’s glove.’

I mentally answered the weather warning and walked to the dugout. Now we need to focus on defense as well. I wasn’t too worried because Bellingham was in good condition, but it was more important to focus. A 2-point difference was not a reassuring score, and as the score difference increased, the game was often decided by mistakes.

‘And first of all, if we win today, those bastards will never be able to use this method again.’

I played the game with heightened concentration. There was a bit of a crisis in the top of the 6th inning as Bellingham allowed 1 run, but Bellingham, who was in good shape, finished the game with 2 runs in 7 innings, and UG also replaced the starting pitcher in the 6th inning, competing for the top spot in the league. The bullpen was activated.

The tight score gap of 3:2 remained until my at-bat came back in the bottom of the 8th inning, and I took my fourth at-bat as the leadoff hitter.

The pitcher is Yoon Jung-hwan, who took over as setup man at UG. This guy usually comes out in a winning situation, but seeing him come out in a situation where he was losing by 1 point like this, I could feel the UG dugout’s desire to win today’s game.

‘Well, I guess I’m greedy since I’ve been compared to Bellingham as a replacement starter to this extent. By the way, it’s Yoon Jung-hwan… .’

Yoon Jung-Hwan, that guy was a pitcher I had a close relationship with. Since he earned a spot in the first team by capturing me, it would be safe to say that he is actually the child I raised.

‘And I am strict with my children’s education. Let’s meet again today, Jung-hwan!’

Of course, he was an infinitely kind father to my own son.

‘You crazy bastard. ‘I have never raised a child.’

‘Why, Hyejin’s sister is raising my son. ‘Isn’t this enough to be considered a father of two children?’

For reference, these days, Hyejin’s older sister is sending me messages about Hojin growing up, and seeing them makes me want to have another child. Every time I have sex with Hyejin, I feel free to cum without any pain, but I was a little disappointed that there was no news yet.

“I guess I should give Dad some good balls, right?”

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

“Did you hear?”

“What kind of father is a 21-year-old? “Are you really out of your mind?”

“Suddenly a personal attack? “Let’s play the game with real manners.”

“… “You crazy bastard.”

What kind of ball will Yoon Jung-hwan throw? We haven’t seen each other at bat since the last sniping ceremony, so what kind of pitch will he throw this time?

‘A pitcher wouldn’t avoid a game even after receiving such a ceremony, right? Son, Dad never raised you like that. Mr. Rossby! ‘What about the ball?’

‘It’s a fastball.’

Is it also a fastball? His fastball is of two types: a fastball that flies with a bend like a two-seamer, and a fastball that comes straight with a rising fastball feel. In addition, his speed was quite fast, so it was difficult to deal with him. Last time, I was able to hit a home run easily against a guy who had control of the ball because Rossby showed me the location of the ball, but this time I didn’t have that help, so I needed to approach it cautiously.

And his ball was thrown.

“strike!”

The first pitch is a fastball that bends like a snake. I thought it was going to the outside, but it bent and hit the border line of the strike zone exactly.

‘When I saw it in the video, my control wasn’t like this… . Mr. Rossby, did you throw it with intention?’

‘no. I tried to pull it all the way out.’

In other words, his first pitch is sharp. After all, people don’t develop that easily.

Although I allowed a strike on an unexpected ball, I didn’t feel bad. Because I could feel the strong will that only the batter he was facing could feel from his ball.

‘I think this guy is planning on competing with me? ‘After all, my son!’

I licked my lips and loaded the bat.