episode_0346

“Sangju senior! Just one hit!”

-Ki Sang-ju! Ki Sang-ju! Ki Sang-ju!

In the 7th inning, trailing 2-0. Quietly on the mound with a scoreless performance through 6 innings, Jo Yong-joo was still standing strong. This showdown between Ki Sang-ju and Jo Yong-joo marked their third encounter of the day. With Ki Sang-ju’s performance today at 2 at-bats and 1 hit, there was a feeling that he might just get on base.

“If only Sangju senior goes out, we could tie the game…”

Thwack!

Ki Sang-ju’s first pitch against Jo Yong-joo goes foul. Considering the direction towards first base, Ki Sang-ju’s condition seemed promising today.

“Alright, just one hit, please.”

As if answering my prayer, Ki Sang-ju confidently swung his bat after fouling the previous pitch.

Thwack!

“It’s done!”

“Run! Run!”

-Ki Sang-ju! Ki Sang-ju! Ki Sang-ju!

Ki Sang-ju’s hit forms a beautiful arc, splitting the center fielder and right fielder.

“As expected of Ki Sang-ju!”

An exquisite hit that elicits admiration from the spectators. Showing off a splendid hit, Ki Sang-ju rounds first base and sprints to second… what?

“Huh? Damn, if this happens…”

A double by the leadoff hitter in a no-out situation. And I’m up next. The outcome seemed more predictable than 1+1.

“Um…, I haven’t hit at all today… …Are we going to fight?”

Stepping into the batter’s box, I timidly speak to the catcher, but…

“It’s an intentional walk.”

“…Damn.”

The result remained unchanged.

“What are you doing? Aren’t you walking?”

“Yes. I’m going.”

Showing reluctance at the plate, I was urged by the umpire to walk quickly.

‘Damn, I wanted to hit properly for once, and now Sangju senior hits a double.’

Wanting to regain my hitting sense as soon as possible, it wasn’t helping. Nevertheless, with a runner in scoring position and two outs, they wouldn’t pass me up, which was a silver lining, but still slightly disappointing. Next up was Choi Jin-cheol.

“Ball.”

“Ball.”

“Strike!”

“Ball.”

Perhaps due to having put the previous two batters on base, Jo Yong-joo, who had pitched six scoreless innings, began to falter. And here comes the fifth pitch.

“Bases loaded walk!”

Choi Jin-cheol draws a walk, reaching base successfully.

‘Is Jin-cheol senior also at 1 hit and 1 walk in 2 at-bats? Is he starting to come alive?’

No matter how much a pitcher falters, drawing a walk is a batter’s skill. If Choi Jin-cheol starts to pick up alongside my contribution, it would be quite meaningful.

A month since the season started, our current record stands at 15 wins, 16 losses, and 1 tie, placing us in 6th position. In reality, before the season began, we were considered contenders for the championship, but we plummeted to 6th place for various reasons. Firstly, we had too many injured players.

The team’s emotional pillars, Woo Gwan-hyung and starting catcher Jung Yoon-cheol, were injured. Additionally, foreign player Don Williams, who led the early-season lineup with a .400 average, got injured, adding weight to our lineup without me, and with the 5th starter Jun-hu being demoted to the minors, misfortune piled up.

Of course, my suspension was the biggest blow.

Nevertheless, Jin-cheol’s improved performance amidst these adversities was a positive sign. Moreover, today’s opponents, the Charlotte Blue Mariners, stand at 16 wins, 15 losses, and 1 tie, ranking 4th. Sweeping this three-game series starting today could swiftly propel us into the upper ranks, not a far-fetched idea.

Especially considering that our next opponent is the Volcanoes, leading with a record of 19 wins and 13 losses, carrying a good momentum from this series was crucial.

“The problem is that damn spy from Charlotte…”

Batting sixth, Yoon Sung-tae stretches with his bat before stepping into the batter’s box.

“Why does that damn spy get caught here with bases loaded and no outs?”

Yoon Sung-tae’s hitting record currently stands at 0.287/0.374/0.416/0.790, which is quite decent for a shortstop. Although in my eyes, it seemed like a lackluster performance, considering his role as a shortstop, he might be playing his part.

However, the real issue was his performance in the Charlotte game. Whenever it came to Charlotte, there were major errors leading to double plays and strikeouts as if it were routine, so I had no expectations even with bases loaded.

Even in today’s game, when Choi Jin-cheol hit a single in the second inning and reached base, it was Yoon Sung-tae who interrupted the flow with a double play. Furthermore, in the fifth inning, a strikeout.

“Ugh, damn. Is this going to end in a strikeout? Who’s the next batter?”

Looking towards the on-deck circle, I saw Han Sang-gyu swinging his bat.

“Damn, one problem after another.”

Due to Woo Gwan-hyung’s injury, Han Sang-gyu had been playing as a designated hitter since the beginning of the season, with a batting average of .260 and 2 home runs in 25 games. Although he had a record of hitting 10 home runs as a pinch hitter last year, the coach seemed to trust him, but in my opinion, he seemed hopeless.

Especially problematic was that he was a type of hitter prone to double plays due to extreme pull hitting tendencies.

“I miss last year.”

Last year was sorely missed. Ju Yeop-senior may have been a bit slow, but batting .300, he fulfilled the leadoff role well, and we had a reliable cleanup hitter in Gwan-hyung at number six. It was frustrating to see why our team was stuck in sixth place.

“This is the worst. Absolutely the worst.”

But just as I thought it couldn’t get any worse, Charlotte’s pitching coach approached the mound. Ball in hand. And the pitcher coming from the bullpen was Charlotte’s left-handed ace, Kim Ji-hwan. It was a natural choice to bring in a left-handed pitcher like Kim Ji-hwan instead of the right-handed starter, Jo Yong-joo, in a situation where left-handed hitters were coming up continuously, but it was still annoying.

All I could do was signal to Yoon Sung-tae at second base.

“It’s a slider.”

“Sung-tae, first pitch changeup.”

After a long time, I signaled to Yoon Sung-tae, who stood at the plate with his hands on his knees. As our eyes met, Yoon Sung-tae nodded slightly.

“If you can’t hit this, I’m reporting you to the Clean Baseball Center. Damn.”

Whooosh!

Yoon Sung-tae’s bat sliced beautifully through the air.

“Strike!”

“Oh! Damn.”

“What the hell, out of nowhere.”

As insults spilled out due to Yoon Sung-tae’s jaw-dropping swing, the Charlotte shortstop, standing nearby, looked at me as if I were a strange person.

“No, I told you the pitch, and that guy swung and missed!”

…I wanted to tell the truth, but if I did, it would have led to a bench-clearing brawl, so I held my tongue.

“Argh, I’m about to explode.”

“Now do you understand how I feel watching you not hit, despite knowing the pitch and location?”

“…”

While Rossby rambled on unnecessarily, Kim Ji-hwan threw the ball, hitting the outside corner impressively, adding two strikes to the count in one breath.

“Ugh, this is going to be a strikeout. Ugh. At least it’s not a double play, so I should be thankful. Useless guy. Didn’t expect much from the start.”

“It’s another slider this time.”

… But I had to do what needed to be done.

“Sung-tae, it’s another changeup. Please hit it this time. Well, don’t hit it if you don’t want to, just don’t ground out, damn it!”

I relayed the pitch I heard from Rossby to Yoon Sung-tae as a casual gesture. Even if he’s an incompetent teammate, trusting them is a leader’s quality. If the team’s key player like me doesn’t trust them, who will? Of course, I didn’t have high hopes. I just hoped that by touching the unplayable changeup, disaster in the form of a groundout wouldn’t occur.

Thud – Crack!

“Huh?”

Yoon Sung-tae’s hit flies. Farther, even farther. High, higher. The right fielder of Charlotte glances back and runs. A hit not too high to be caught. Whether it’s caught or goes over.

-Whoa!!!

“Damn it! Sung-tae hyung! I trusted you!!”

Is this the power of belief? Yoon Sung-tae hitting a grand slam home run before Charlotte.

“Hey! Hurry up.”

Unlike me, who was watching the hit while assessing the situation as the runner on first base, Choi Jin-cheol had already reached second base and shouted at me.

“Yeah!”

I replied cheerfully, stepped on home plate, exchanged high-fives with the on-deck batter, and as Sung-tae, the hero of the comeback grand slam, successively stepped on home plate after Choi Jin-cheol, the runner on first base.

-Sung-tae! Sung-tae! Sung-tae!

And the cheers of the fans echoing through Jamsil Stadium.

“It’s Tuesday, yet so many have come. Ah, this feeling.”

Feeling the enthusiastic cheers of the fans that filled Jamsil to about 70% on a Tuesday, I returned to the dugout, which was a cauldron of excitement.

“Nice! Sung-tae, well done!”

“Yoon Sung-tae, what was that?!”

And teammates congratulating Sung-tae by tapping his helmet. Seeing them, I felt a tinge of regret that that spot should have been mine, but still, a comeback is a comeback, so I joined in the celebration by also tapping Sung-tae’s helmet.

“Hey, did you see that?”

After all the celebrations were over, Sung-tae sat next to me and struck up a conversation.

“What’s up?”

“I hit a grand slam.”

“Yeah?”

“You’re my lucky charm.”

“Hyung, the more you deny it, the more suspicious it gets, you know? Aren’t you the lucky charm I received orders to hit a home run from?”

“Alright. Shut up now.”

“How do you plan to repay me for hitting a grand slam now? Huh? Answer me!”

Whether they heard my voice or not, seniors gathered around.

“Look at that, Maeng-ho is acting up again.”

“Why are you doing that to Sung-tae?”

“Maeng-ho seems like a Charlotte spy to Sung-tae.”

“Oh, now that you mention it, when Sung-tae first joined, didn’t he only know the Charlotte players?”

“Oh, senior! Why are you bringing that up now!”

Seemingly empathizing with my story, seniors also added their two cents.

“As expected, I wasn’t the only one feeling that way.”

“That’s just a joke, kid!”

“Hyung, don’t forget that I’m always watching.”

“Oh, this is driving me crazy.”

“Why? Can’t handle being a spy?”

“Ah, damn it.”

Sung-tae couldn’t take it anymore and clenched his fist. Startled by his actions, I moved away, and perhaps because the camera was rolling, Sung-tae didn’t approach further.

“Hyung. I’m watching.”

“Shut up.”

Fortunately, perhaps because I was watching, Sung-tae couldn’t spy any longer, and the game ended with a 6-3 victory for us.

“Indeed, as long as I keep watching, he can’t do it anymore. I’ll have to keep watching throughout this series.”

*

“Player Yoon Sung-tae, please congratulate Player So-hoon today. Please share a few words.”

“Thank you. I think I was able to hit a home run thanks to the fans’ support. Thank you to all the fans for always cheering us on.”

“Please explain today’s game.”

“Yes, first of all, Senior Jo Yong-joo’s pitching was excellent today…”

In the corridor between the dugout and the locker room after the game. Yoon Sung-tae, who had finished an interview with the broadcasting company, was having an interview with the YouTube staff operated by the team. The content of selecting one or two players to interview after a victory was a regular and fundamental content of AT YouTube, so Sung-tae was earnestly answering the questions.

At that moment,

“Hyung, I’ll keep watching tomorrow too. Just let me catch you once.”

Ji Maeng-ho, who had come out to retrieve the bat left in the dugout, looked at Sung-tae and made a request.

“Ma, I’m in the middle of an interview. Stop it. Sorry. I’ll edit here and come back.”

“Oh, …okay.”

“Ah, I’m sorry. Thank you for your hard work. Uh, this spot was supposed to be mine.”

“Mengho played on Sunday, remember? Haha.”

“Well, it’s good to play every day. Win every day.”

“We wish Mengho could join us too…”

“Oh, today I’m the main character though…”

“Oh, I’m sorry. In that case, we’ll finish the interview. Mengho, have a good rest after work.”

“Yes, thank you.”

As Jimaengho left, the staff at AT YouTube watched him go, feeling a sense of loss.

“If only Mengho appeared, the views would be guaranteed.”

Last year, Mengho was the star of this interview content. Whenever he won a game, Mengho was almost always selected as the MVP. And last year, Mengho was also the player who carried the views in victory interviews.

With his handsome face, dominating skills in the league, and a personality that didn’t often appear in the media, Mengho could only be seen by AT Thunder’s fans through AT’s YouTube channel. Among those appearances, he only showed up in interview content, so it was natural for the views of winning interviews featuring Mengho to skyrocket.

Last year, the staff running AT’s YouTube channel tried to get Mengho to appear in various contents for views, but they were all rejected due to orders from higher-ups. Mengho was a rookie who needed special care, and the club wanted to avoid exposing him to the media unnecessarily to protect his condition.

Even when shooting training vlogs, the editing often avoided focusing too much on Mengho.

“If Mengho appeared more often, our subscribers and views would skyrocket.”

This was a common thought among the staff running AT’s YouTube channel. And now, as Mengho passed by making jokes, that regret deepened even more.

“Thank you for the interview.”

“Yes, thank you for your hard work.”

After Yoon Sungtae finished the victory interview and left, the corridor fell silent. Someone spoke up.

“Shall we go film some content on the way home?”

“Yes, let’s go. This time, Mengho shouldn’t be filmed, right?”

“That’s right, isn’t that prohibited like last year?”

“Hmm… Last year, it was because he was a rookie. Wouldn’t it be different this year?”

“Do you think so?”

“To be honest, it’s a shame about Mengho. Views double when he appears. Think about the incentives.”

“That’s true. But will the head of operations allow it? It would be great if it works out. Sometimes he jokes around in the dugout, showing a sense of humor. It seems really promising.”

“Oh, it won’t work. I’ll ask when I come in tomorrow. For now, let’s prepare for the content on the way home. The players will be out of the shower soon.”

“Understood.”

And with that, Choi Seongcheol, the team leader of the YouTube team operating AT’s YouTube channel, walked away with determination.