episode_0413

I’ve heard about it, but this is the first time I’m actually seeing it. In the Olympic finals, trailing 3-1 and pulling a stunt like that? If he failed to hit a home run, it would undoubtedly be a huge embarrassment. Yet, despite knowing this fact, Ji Maeng-ho… predicted a home run. To boost the morale of the team that was being dragged down and to demonstrate his will.

That’s why Shohei Ohtani smiled.

“Don’t see me as someone who should give you a lesson, right?”

Perhaps he was having arrogant thoughts. No, he seemed arrogant. Once in the game, once on the mound or at bat, regardless of age and experience, they were on equal footing. Ji Maeng-ho’s predicted home run felt like a blow to him.

“Yeah, let’s give it a shot.”

[Shohei Ohtani’s first pitch! Strike! Registers at 102.1 miles per hour. That’s 164.3 km/h!]

“Wow… Can anyone hit that kind of pitch? Ohtani is truly an exceptional player.”

“Ji Maeng-ho’s expression, seemingly incredulous, was captured on screen as he smiled.”

“…If I had seen that kind of pitch during my active years, I would have surely felt the same as Ji Maeng-ho.”

What is the best pitch a pitcher can throw? There have been many great pitches in Major League Baseball, but from the beginning of baseball until now, the fastball has consistently been thrown by pitchers trying to strike out batters. The effectiveness of the fastball was proven by the fact that pitchers threw it the most and for the longest time to catch hitters off guard.

A pitch exceeding 100 miles per hour was akin to using a violence beyond human cognition. A pitch that couldn’t be seen and reacted to. A pitch that could only be hit based on experience and prediction.

Once again, Shohei Ohtani throws his fastball.

However, this time Ji Maeng-ho’s bat reacts.

Crack!

A foul ball going towards the third base stands.

“Ji Maeng-ho fouls off this pitch. Clocks in at 102.3 miles per hour! That’s 164.6 km/h!”

“Ohtani’s highest recorded speed was 103.1 miles per hour during the WBC, which is 165.8 km/h. So, this speed was against Ji Maeng-ho.”

“I see. Ohtani seems to get pumped up when facing Ji Maeng-ho. It would be nice if he toned down that power a bit.”

“Still, a good foul. It was a high fastball coming in one ball higher than the zone, so fouling it off means Ji Maeng-ho isn’t backing down from Ohtani!”

“With two strikes after just two pitches, Ji Maeng-ho is under pressure.”

“Now he needs to be careful. Ohtani’s finishing pitch, the ‘Swiper,’ could come at any moment. Ji Maeng-ho managed to handle Ohtani’s Swiper in the previous at-bat, but since it was the top-ranked pitch in the Major Leagues, it shouldn’t be taken lightly.”

“What should I do now?”

Ohtani asks with his eyes. A batter with two strikes has only two options. React to every pitch near the zone or anticipate one pitch and swing.

Typically, batters chose the former option. Anticipating a pitch and swinging could lead to a futile swing if another pitch came. If this were an ordinary game, that might have been the case, but this was the Olympic finals, where the batter’s team was even losing. In this situation, trusting your instincts and predicting a pitch? No one had the guts to do that.

Furthermore, Ohtani, besides his fastball, could throw six other pitches… Ohtani’s choice here was his finishing pitch, the Swiper. A Swiper that drifted just outside the zone. The Swiper that led numerous Major League right-handed batters to futile swings was thrown in a two-strike situation.

Crack!

And the resounding impact rings out again. This time, it was directed towards the stands.

“Yeah, I can handle this much.”

Reacting to the outside slider that flew in amidst the situation of being pierced on the inside by a fastball. In fact, if he hadn’t reacted here, he would have been disappointed. Ohtani was glad he got that ball. Regardless of victory or defeat, the joy of baseball itself.

The thrill that players could only get in the showdown between pitcher and batter was a kind of thrill that surpassed any other thrill in the world for baseball players.

“How about this?”

This time, a sinker.

Thud!

Once again, Ji Maeng-ho’s hit goes beyond the foul line.

Thud!

Fastball, once again Ji Maeng-ho’s hit goes beyond the foul line.

Thud!

Splitter, once again Ji Maeng-ho’s hit goes beyond the foul line.

“…What’s going on?”

After four consecutive foul balls following two strikes, even Ohtani felt something was off. And even after throwing three more pitches, Ji Maeng-ho seemed to know as if he anticipated his pitches and successfully fouled them off.

“This can’t be happening….”

Balls curving left and right, along with balls dropping down. When you add a 100 mph fastball in between, this was something that shouldn’t be happening.

“…Does he really know every pitch?”

The fear when faced with something incomprehensible. You couldn’t possibly foul off every pitch without knowing every type of pitch. Even while maintaining his own swing.

At that moment, a coach’s words from Korea came to Ohtani’s mind, where some pitchers referred to Ji Maeng-ho as the ‘devil’ in interviews.

“…It’s an unbelievable story. There’s no batter in the world who can do that. It’s over now.”

Clearing his mind of distractions, the pitch Ohtani ultimately chose was a curveball. He had been reducing its usage since 2023, so this was a pitch he hadn’t thrown all day. Predicting this now without peeking into his own mind was impossible.

Moreover, he had something different. While he knew Ji Maeng-ho was strong against curves, his curveball was different.

Because there was a 100 mph fastball. A 100 mph high fastball and a 75 mph (120.6 km/h) curveball.

A speed difference of about 25 mph (40 km/h) was enough to deceive the batter’s eyes. Moreover, all the pitches he had thrown so far were fastballs over 90 mph. Therefore, the pitch he was throwing now was one that could not be predicted or reacted to at all.

He aimed for the lowest point of John. Setting it up as a course where he could strike out if the batter didn’t swing the bat.

Thinking this was the end, Ohtani released the ball. Hoping for Ji Maeng-ho’s refreshing empty swing.

However,

Crack!

Ohtani was unaware. That ball was the one Ji Maeng-ho had been waiting for. With a tremendous sound of contact, Ji Maeng-ho extended his bat high in the air, waiting for the ball’s trajectory. And as the ball cleared the fence, he casually tossed the bat.

[Ah!!! Ji Maeng-ho’s tying two-run homer! In the bottom of the 6th inning, Ji Maeng-ho hits a tying two-run homer against Ohtani! Ji Maeng-ho’s persistent 10-pitch battle! Ties the game!]

[Ji Maeng-ho! Ji Maeng-ho! Ji Maeng-ho! Ji Maeng-ho did it! Ji Maeng-ho! It’s Ji Maeng-ho!]

-Ji Maeng-ho’s home run!!!!!!

┗Damn!!!!!!!!

┗I believed in you!!!!!!!!!

-Ah, are you doing it again, GOAT…

┗Korean baseball’s savior… Maengho ‘THE SEX MACHINE’ Ji…

-Tanikun can’t beat Maengho… Well, that’s obvious.

┗That’s why the Angels couldn’t win.

┗I can hear the Japanese crying from here. Haha.

-From today, I’m just going to cheer for player Ji Maeng-ho. Honestly, there have been many rumors about his character and controversies, but it’s just touching. Player Ji Maeng-ho. Impressive.

┗Honestly, his skills are undeniable.

After the celebration from his teammates subsided and he sat on the bench, a sense of relief rather than joy filled his mind.

“Well, damn, if that curve didn’t come in there, I would’ve been screwed.”

Honestly, if he had thrown a ball that missed the strike zone by about two and a half balls’ width outside, striking out wouldn’t have been surprising at any point. His pitches were so fast that just making contact was challenging. But amidst all that, the slow curveball thrown was like finding an oasis in the desert.

“Anyway, those who think they’re the best have a problem with this. They need to do their basic research.”

The reason Otani threw the curveball? It was obvious. I clearly hadn’t done my research properly. Well, even the mercenaries coming from the KBA sometimes relied on their pride to throw a curveball, so it wasn’t hard to understand.

Plus, there must have been an impact from the warning home run. The better pitchers, when hit with a warning home run, tended to put the ball inside rather than take it away. In the end, Otani was also a pitcher.

Thud!

And a pitcher hit hard is prone to falter. Gisangju aims for Otani’s first pitch and hits a single, reaching base.

“Nice!”

“Gisangju! Gisangju!”

A hit after the home run. The players in the dugout were getting excited about the smell of a big inning coming up. However,

Thud!

“Oh…”

Gisangju’s sharp hit turns into a straight shot to first base, and the unsteady Gisangju gets out. In a flash, two outs are recorded, and stability returns as Otani strikes out the fifth batter Gu Jinmo, ending the sixth inning.

“Otani has thrown 73 pitches. Will he continue in the 7th?”

“Some pitchers throw around 110 pitches even in the league. Considering it’s the Olympic final, unless he struggles, he might not throw more than 120.”

“Sigh…”

Still at 73 pitches? Even after deducting 10 pitches, he’s still at 73… And even when he struck out Gu Jinmo, the ball came in at the high 90s, showing no signs of fatigue.

“Damn, Otani needs to get out soon…”

Although he managed to hit a home run, the thought of other players strategizing against Otani didn’t cross his mind. Even the best hitter, Ju Seungcheol, was struggling today.

Three innings left. One more time at bat for me. Can I score again?

“Well, thinking about it now won’t help. Let’s focus on defense instead.”

With that, he cleared his mind of distractions and tightened his grip on the glove.