episode_0341

Thud!

“Ah… Did I miss it?”

“Missed it, missed it.”

“Ah….”

“Kabi! Jung Jin-ah! What a pity!”

Starting at 2-0 with Ju Seung-cheol’s two-run homer in the first inning, leadoff batter Baek Jeong-jin hit Na Seung-yoon’s pitch towards the outfield, caught by the right fielder, adding a red out count on the scoreboard.

‘Na Seung-yoon… I did see him in the Asian Games, his pitches are quite impressive.’

The pitcher currently on the mound, Han Cheol, faced Na Seung-yoon, who played a significant role in last year’s Asian Games. A traditional right-handed pitcher with a fastball averaging in the mid-140s, along with a slider, curveball, changeup, and splitter. Since last year, his fastball had gained more movement, taking on the role of an ace pitcher for Han Cheol domestically.

While there was a memory of a dusty performance in the rain during last year’s playoffs, it seemed like he awakened from that moment, showing a step up this season as seen in videos and records.

‘Well, I’ll know once I face him myself.’

“Strikeout!”

Confirming my intuition, Na Seung-yoon struck out Kim Soo-ho with a good splitter, creating two outs.

“Senior, how was the pitch?”

“The splitter has a good break and considerable speed. Be cautious of the splitter following the high fastball.”

“Got it.”

A falling pitch after a high fastball. A classic combination but effective. Considering Kim Soo-ho fell victim to such a traditional mix, Na Seung-yoon’s condition seemed notably strong today.

‘It’s going to be interesting. Let’s go, Mr. Rosby.’

Heading out as the leadoff batter in the second inning wasn’t bad, but if that happened, it felt like the game’s excitement might dwindle. Hoping fervently for Gisangju to get on base, I waited a few minutes in the on-deck circle.

Thud!

“Wow!!!”

“Gisangju! Gisangju! Gisangju!”

Gisangju’s hit pierced through the second baseman, rolling all the way to the right fielder.

‘As expected, Senior Sangju. Still got it.’

While Na Seung-yoon’s current form was praised, Gisangju’s form was equally formidable. With a batting average of .387, he ranked second in the league in hitting. Despite facing intense scrutiny due to Choi Jin-cheol’s poor form, resulting in a slightly disappointing three home runs, his average showcased Gisangju’s class.

Seeing Gisangju walking out of the on-deck circle, he exchanged a glance with me.

‘I’m counting on you. Mr. Maengho.’

Responding with a smile to Gisangju’s gaze, I stepped into the batter’s box. The scent of the batter’s box, a feeling I hadn’t experienced in a while. While I adjusted my condition in a minor league game yesterday, the atmosphere of the batter’s box in the major league still excited me.

With Children’s Day filling Jamsil Stadium with ten thousand spectators cheering me on, it felt like a stage set just for me.

‘Phew, calm down. Not yet.’

Biting my tongue to suppress the rising excitement, I took off my helmet, greeted the home fans, and looked towards where they were seated.

“Maengho! Maengho! Maengho!”

“I missed you!”

“Wow!!!!”

Responding with cheers from the fans,

“Maengho~! Maengho~! Oh oh oh! Thunder’s Maengho! Fly me to the sky!”

Followed by my own cheer song. While my fan club visited me and sang for me during the minor league game yesterday, hearing my cheer song in the packed Jamsil Stadium was exceptional. Just as I was enjoying the feeling of soaring into the sky, a familiar voice interrupted.

“Ugh… Hurry up. I’m tired. Don’t you have to give a warning?”

He was a catcher named Hanchul.

“Damn, this no-name punk is getting on my nerves.”

“Why? Are you upset because there’s no cheer song?”

“…I have one too, punk.”

“Sorry. I thought a no-name like you wouldn’t have a cheer song, naturally.”

“Why are you using informal speech?”

“Then why are you using it?”

“Because I’m your senior, punk.”

“Senior my ass. Stop calling everyone ‘senior.’ Don’t run into me on the street.”

“Both of you, stop it. If you curse again, you’re both out.”

“Yes.”

“…Yes.”

Under the umpire’s warning, we stopped cursing at each other, but it didn’t improve my mood. As it was a comeback game, I wanted to show the fans a great performance with a good mood, but this unknown catcher ruined it all.

“You’re done. Rossby, what’s the pitch?”

“It’s a fastball.”

As soon as I heard the pitch from Rossby, I prepared myself again.

“You wouldn’t throw a fastball outside on the first pitch, would you?”

I usually didn’t mentally attack catchers unless they were really thick-skinned, but this guy seemed like he needed a lesson. Well, even if I teased him occasionally for fun, now I genuinely wanted to get under his skin.

“…”

And it seemed to work, as the catcher’s blabbering mouth immediately shut.

“Once more here.”

“Oh, if you were Hyogi, you wouldn’t ask for such an obvious pitch. I’ll just step back and watch.”

After finishing speaking, I taunted the catcher as I stepped away from the plate. And as Seungyoon saw me stepping back, he tried to force the ball into the strike zone, but the catcher managed to block it awkwardly as it bounced off the ground.

“You look good crouching on the ground.”

“You son of a…”

Signaling a pause to the batter, I scratched the catcher a bit, and his reaction was quite satisfying. His blocking while crouching on the ground looked quite fitting.

“Now it’s a curveball.”

“A curveball? A team that’s about Hancheol’s level won’t throw a curveball inside, so it’ll definitely hit low. Okay.”

“Are you asking for a curveball after a fastball to induce a swing-and-miss against me? Seriously? If you’re calling the signs yourself, might as well quit baseball, right? Seems like you don’t even do basic scouting. By the way, if it comes into the zone, I’ll send it flying over the outfield wall.”

“…Shut up, punk.”

Judging by the response, directly calling pitches was the right move.

“Well, from the first inning, the manager or battery coach probably isn’t involved in calling pitches.”

Seungyoon’s curveball ranged between 110-120, a slow curve forming. Prepared to send it flying if it came into the zone, I waited for his curve,

“Ball.”

His second pitch was also called a ball.

“With two balls, will he throw outside to force a walk? Hmm… I don’t want a walk in a comeback game.”

While getting on base was a priority for the team, I also wanted to show the fans a great performance. A home run at best, or at least a timely hit. To do that, I needed to draw the catcher in as much as possible.

“I’ll wait for this pitch. If it’s unreasonable, I’ll swing.”

“It’s a slider.”

“A slider? It’s better to swing and miss if that’s the case.”

If he had thrown a fastball, it meant he intended to avoid me clearly, but throwing a slider indicated a willingness to compete if a situation arose. If he wanted me to swing, there was no need to throw an off-speed pitch.

I swung big at the catcher’s slider that was going outside.

Whooosh!

“Strike!”

“Hey, didn’t expect that? Huh? You seem pleased.”

‘Enjoy it.’

The catcher was happily celebrating, unaware that I had intentionally thrown the ball for him. If it were Yong-gi, he would have found it odd that I threw such a pitch and would have been more suspicious and cautious, but there was no longer Yong-gi around.

“It’s a fastball.”

“Okay, fastball.”

“You’re not saying anything? Getting a bit flustered after one strike? Why so quiet?”

“This guy is really thrilled.”

Somehow, he seemed to know what kind of pitch the batter wanted. Probably an inside pitch. After throwing three consecutive strikes and setting up a one-strike two-ball count, it was glaringly obvious that he wanted to compete with an inside pitch.

While Rossby always emphasized not to predict without knowing the location, with such an obvious lead, I had no choice but to guess.

“If I throw inside…”

And as expected, Naseung-yoon’s pitch flew towards the inside.

“…I’ll hit it well!”

Thunk!

The feeling of the bat connecting with the ball and the sound of the ball splitting in the air, sensations I hadn’t felt in a long time on the first-team stage. The hit swiftly flew towards the left fence.

A home run with nothing more to see.

“That was easy.”

After casually tossing the bat, I added a word towards the catcher and walked towards first base. From the cheering section near first base, deafening cheers could be heard.

– Ji Maeng-ho! Ji Maeng-ho! Ji Maeng-ho!

“Damn, this is it!”

“Hmm… You’ve definitely improved a lot. Did you just perfectly anticipate and hit that?”

“Yes. How did you know?”

“I’ve spent years with you; how could I not know?”

“Hehe, I’ve definitely improved a lot, right? Now that I’m at the level of that guy, who seems to think effortlessly like that? I’ve had my share of experience now.”

Debuting in the pros for a year, unless it was someone like Yong-gi or a veteran who had played in the league for a long time, it was now at a level where catchers’ thoughts were clearly visible.

“Just need to guess inside or outside knowing the pitch, but acting all high and mighty.”

“…Just praising when something impressive happens should suffice, why add nasty comments.”

“Shut up.”

Before Rossby could curse more, I immediately changed the subject.

“More importantly, do you know why that guy is like that? Normally, wouldn’t they wait a bit in these situations?”

Actually, I was curious even when I was at bat. In my case, when I see players facing their first game against their former team, I tend to wait a bit for catchers to say something before swinging, but why couldn’t that guy wait a little and instead provoke me?

“Do you really not know?”

“No.”

“That guy. It’s him. That guy who said he didn’t even remember your name during the practice game a month ago.”

“Oh! So that’s why.”

No wonder the reaction was strange. But it was a month ago, and he still held onto it, ruining the game. It made me doubt his professionalism.

“Tsk. Can’t even remember that. What a stupid guy.”

“…Do you also not know that guy’s name, Rossby?”

…”

Rossby didn’t answer my question until he stepped on home plate, and our uncomfortable silence continued until we entered the dugout and received congratulations from our teammates.