episode_0358

1st base, 3rd base. At 3rd base is Kim Suho, at 1st base is Kisangju, and on the mound is UG’s new mercenary pitcher Jeffrey, sweating since the 1st inning.

…And at bat is me, Ji Maengho.

It seemed like the cries of UG’s fans could already be heard. The thrill of disappointing the fans filling the home stadium… The only regret being that there were fewer fans this year compared to last year due to UG’s poor performance?

“Last year at Kosh Stadium, it was packed and really great.”

“First pitch, curveball.”

“Huh? First pitch curveball? Is this guy crazy…?”

Throwing a curveball from the first pitch against me. Plunging to 7th place and throwing such a solid pitch from the start was undoubtedly wrong. Why do foreign players always try to boost their ego like this when facing me for the first time?

“Kyung Ho senior, have you gone mad?”

“…I’m not Kyung Ho senior.”

Of course, I knew it wasn’t Baek Kyungho. That gentleman had been avoiding me since the Korean Series ended, not even putting my name in the lineup for today’s game. Well, there were rumors about using a dedicated catcher, but from what I saw, he was definitely avoiding me.

Why would someone who knows that ask such a question?

“No, because if I go crazy and don’t play, the ball mix-up will be a mess.”

“What? You say it as if you know everything.”

“I can predict what you’re going to throw.”

Seeing him throw a curveball against me annoyed me. I was expecting a tense battle like a showdown with a volcano, but starting with such a weak pitch from the first pitch was disappointing. The catcher seemed fidgety, as if wondering if the runner was giving signals, which I could even sense.

“Ugh, it’ll be boring if I hit a home run in the 1st inning.”

“Just hit it and see.”

And the pitcher’s thrown first pitch. However, the feeling when the ball left his hand was somewhat strange.

“Huh?”

The pitch was coming faster than I had anticipated.

Thud!

“Darn, got a piece of it!”

Luckily, aiming for a curveball, I managed to touch the fastball aimed lower, but upon hitting it, a suffocating sensation rushed through my hand. It felt like I hit it from too far back.

“Oh, shoot!”

Dropping the bat, I walked slowly towards 1st base. The hit ball was slowly flying high towards the right field, just like how I pushed it.

“Still, judging by the distance, it seems catchable for the outfield.”

Glancing at the runners, I noticed that Kim Suho, the 3rd base runner, was preparing for a tag-up, while 1st base runner Kisangju was observing the hit between 1st and 2nd base. Following Kisangju’s gaze, UG’s right fielder Choi Jaehyun was stepping back, getting ready to catch the hit.

“Look at the speed of the hit. Hah, been a while since I hit one like this. Still, if it’s a lead-off point, it’s not bad. But why did a fastball come in? Rosby! What’s going on?”

“You changed the sign while I was talking, didn’t you?”

“In that short time?”

In professional baseball, where complex signs are given, changing them so quickly isn’t something you’d expect from elementary school baseball.

“Huh?”

At that moment, Rosby suddenly shouted in alarm.

“Ball, ball!”

Urgently calling out for the ball, Rosby. Worried that Choi Jaehyun might have missed the ball, I glanced towards the fence to see Choi Jaehyun leaning against it, jumping up and down. And as the ball brushed against his glove, it went over the fence.

“…Huh? This went over?”

-Wow!!

-Ji Maengho! Ji Maengho! Ji Maengho! Ji Maengho!

“This went over?”

In disbelief, I looked at the 1st base umpire, who was spinning his hands around. The hit, delayed and pushed, had indeed gone over the fence. Glancing at the pitcher, he wore an expression of disbelief, laughing ruefully.

“He didn’t expect to clear it. But Hwichul said the ball was heavy, yet seeing him clear it doesn’t seem like it… Jung Hwichul, I guess we need to make this guy exercise a bit.”

“Ha….”

Passing by Gu Jinmo who let out a deep sigh with his head bowed, I jogged slowly down Diamond Street where Kim Suho and Kisangju, who were runners at home, greeted me.

“How did you clear it?”

“Just like that.”

“Nice home run.”

“Thank you.”

Responding nonchalantly to Kisangju and Kim Suho’s words, Kisangju looked at me strangely as if something was off.

“What’s up? Why aren’t you going crazy about hitting a home run today?”

“If someone hears, they might think I’m really going crazy.”

“Wasn’t it?”

“Well, I was just lucky. Didn’t expect to clear it…”

If it weren’t for literature, it would have been a hit catchable in any outfield. It was slow and had a wide launch angle. It was a hit that made me feel sorry for the opposing team for hitting such an easy home run.

Of course, unlike me feeling apologetic, the dugout was festive from the three-run homer since the first inning. After receiving enthusiastic cheers from teammates all over my body, I finally had time to talk to Rosby.

“Rosby, why did the pitch fly at me?”

“Tsk, maybe the catcher changed the sign because you were talking nonsense with the catcher. The last time I checked, it was a curve grip.”

“Is that so?”

I did get a bit annoyed and talked to the catcher, but changing the sign in that short time. I had been complacent because there hadn’t been a catcher like that until now.

“But thanks to the quick change of signs, the pitch was dull and seemed to be thrown right down the middle.”

“It did seem low but also like it went down the middle.”

No wonder the ball felt light, then got caught on the pitch clock, making the pitcher hurry. A hurried pitcher and the fantastic collaboration of a small literary field.

“Seems like our luck is running out because we’re a failing team. Well, it’s good for me though.”

Maybe because there was no starting catcher, it definitely seemed easier than last year. If the starting catcher Baek Gyeong-ho had been there, he wouldn’t have rushed to change the sign like that. If the catcher gets impatient, it tends to make the pitcher anxious too.

My hastiness in speaking made the catcher take a risk, which backfired on those guys.

Thwack—crash!

And whether it was due to that aftermath, Choi Jincheol’s hit disappeared at a rapid pace.

“Wow!!!!”

“Choi Jincheol! Choi Jincheol! Choi Jincheol!”

Choi Jincheol’s back-to-back home run. 4-0 from the first inning. I felt like today’s game would be quite easy.

[Jeemangho’s hit! Soars high! A hit flying towards the right fielder! Third base runner Kim Suho getting ready to tag up. Choi Jaehyun preparing to catch the hit. Back, back, back, oh! There’s nowhere else to retreat! The hit crosses the wall, brushing against Choi Jaehyun’s glove! This hit becomes a home run! Jeemangho’s three-run homer!]

“Wow, this hit goes over. Player Jeemangho, truly tremendous power, isn’t it? If you watch the replay, the bat came out a little late and hit from behind, causing the hit to shift. Yet it goes over the wall.”

“Tremendous power! Player Jeemangho, truly remarkable!”

“Jeffrey’s ball was slightly centered, a bit low in the center, right? Indeed, if it’s a low pitch for Jeemangho, it will undoubtedly go over. Oh, even upon reviewing, it’s an incredible home run. The launch angle was high, the hit speed was slow, but no matter how narrow the outfield in the literary field, it’s truly immense power.”

“Now, at bat is Choi Jincheol…. …He hits it! Choi Jincheol! Left field! Over it goes! Solo home run! Following Jeemangho’s back-to-back home run, Choi Jincheol sends one out!”

“Player Choi Jincheol is showing off his formidable hit this time. Slow hit once, fast hit once. With Jeemangho’s return, Choi Jincheol seems to be gradually coming alive, isn’t it?”

[Now the score is 4:0. In the first inning, AT Thunders widen the gap against home team UG Over Roses!]

[Yoon Sung-tae hits a single! Jeffrey, are you hesitating?]

[In times like this, you need to focus even more.]

[Han Sang-kyu’s hit! It’s caught in the infield! Second baseman! Shortstop! And first baseman! Jeffrey ends the long inning with a double play. Now the game moves to the bottom of the fourth.]

As the lengthy first-inning attack by AT Thunders comes to an end, Park Seung-jun, UG’s backup catcher and promising military athlete, removes his catcher’s mask and is pulled into the tunnel behind the dugout.

“Hey! Park Seung-jun! Get your act together!”

“I’m sorry.”

“What’s wrong with you? Why are you changing signs on your own?”

“Well, that’s…”

Park Seung-jun tried to make excuses to the battery coach, but the words wouldn’t come out.

“Let’s talk after the game. Hey, Seung-jun. The club is pushing for you. The security guard will retire in a few years, and you should seize this opportunity.”

Whether he had vented his anger or offered comfort, the battery coach’s words seemed reassuring. However, Park Seung-jun was angrier now than before. It felt like he was being pushed despite his lack of skill.

“Darn it, it seems like Jimang-ho can read your signs!”

Last year, when he met Jimang-ho, the young man called him out and teased him, but what irritated him more was the battery coach’s signs that seemed to be easily deciphered. No matter how much he thought about it, Jimang-ho seemed to be above the battery coach’s head.

No, it was clear he was above his head. Even if he had demanded a fastball from the start, if they had fought at Jamsil, he might not have given up a home run.

“The analytics team also said never to throw a curveball, so why did you send the curveball sign? Of course, I changed the sign and gave up a home run, but if it were a different ballpark, it would never have been a home run. Besides, this guy even demanded a home run from Choi Jin-cheol. Acting like he did nothing wrong… How can someone be so disgusting?”

With these thoughts, Park Seung-jun began to curse the incompetent battery coach, attributing last year’s runner-up finish and the dismissal of Director Moon Gi-taek, who was like family to him, to the ineptitude of the battery coach.

“Why didn’t this guy leave with the director when he left? This incompetent guy caused us to lose to Jimang-ho in last year’s Korean Series. He should have left with the team, and Director Moon should have stayed…”

Moreover, as rumors of the battery coach’s connections to the owner circulated, his disgust deepened. Thus, Park Seung-jun began to forget completely that he had changed the sign and given up a home run to Jimang-ho during last year’s showdown, and started cursing the battery coach.

The distrust between the catcher and battery coach, who had lost faith in each other, made the game stutter, and this anxiety spread even to the pitcher, who had the most sensitive senses on the field. With the team in this state, there was no way the game could go well.

[Jin-mo Gu’s hit goes high! Shortstop Yoon Sung-tae approaches slowly. Out. The final out count is recorded in the bottom of the 9th inning! 14:5! Game over. Today, thanks to the batting lineup that scored double digits when the Mega Thunders bullpen was activated, AT easily secures the victory!]

“Ji Mang-ho’s home run in the first inning was decisive, wasn’t it? 3 at-bats, 3 hits, 1 home run, 2 walks. Truly an impressive performance. Ji Mang-ho. I wonder how long this momentum will last.”

“Ji Mang-ho really shined. Stay tuned for interviews with Su-hoon and Ji Mang-ho coming up next. Thank you for your interest. That’s all for the broadcast…”]

The day after the game ended with UG’s defeat, Baek Gyeong-ho, who had skipped yesterday’s match to avoid facing Ji Maeng-ho, the starting catcher of UG Overlords, was summoned by the battery coach.

“What? You want me to start?”