episode_0424

“What’s this? Weren’t you doing it alone?”

“I can always do it alone, but right now it’s a battle for first place.”

Training was good, but I’m a professional who gets paid. Currently, I am 2.5 games behind in the match against Hwasan. To proceed more comfortably from here on, winning this showdown was crucial. There was nothing to gain by asserting my pride.

“Tsk.”

Rossby, showing signs of annoyance, settled into his familiar position.

“It’s a changeup.”

“Oh! A changeup!”

Throwing a changeup in this situation means throwing it outside to induce a fake swing!

“Damn, just knowing the pitch types makes it this easy.”

I hadn’t known much until now, but not receiving Rossby’s help and then receiving it made me realize how comfortably I had been playing baseball all this time. After Seonghyun wound up, he threw the ball.

The ball, initially heading towards the middle and outside of the strike zone, suddenly changed trajectory midway and veered outside.

“Ball.”

“Wow… If I didn’t know, I would’ve swung for sure.”

“Sigh….”

Yonggi’s sigh could be heard. Well, a sigh was warranted. Seonghyun’s changeup was perfect. If I couldn’t even hit with this kind of pitch, I wouldn’t know what to throw next.

“Hey, the changeup isn’t working.”

“….”

After scratching Yonggi once, I waited for Seonghyun’s next pitch… along with Rossby.

“It’s a two-seamer.”

“Oh, a two-seamer?”

As a right-handed hitter, the two-seamer looked like a pitch flowing outside. This time, it seemed like an attempt to deceive me with a similar speed. Seonghyun wound up again. This time, Seonghyun’s two-seamer heading outside.

“Ball.”

Resisting the tempting pitch, the count became one strike, two balls.

“It’s a fastball.”

Hmm… So far, attacking the outside had been successful, so this time, it seemed like the plan was to jam the outside with an unbreaking fastball. Considering Seonghyun’s pitching strength, the probability of aiming low on the outside was high.

Setting my sights on the outside low corner, I awaited Seonghyun’s fourth pitch. Finally, Seonghyun wound up once more. And as Seonghyun’s pitch came flying from the outside, swiftly approaching the inside…?

“Huh?”

Thwack!

The bat hit the ball, sending it flying towards the third-base stands. Foul.

“Wow, trying to jam me inside here.”

It was completely unexpected. Since I was waiting to hit, I couldn’t even stop the bat. It was fortunate that it turned foul. Seonghyun and Yonggi… the favorable count quickly turned into a two-strike, two-ball count.

“It’s a cutter.”

“Damn, he has quite a variety of pitches.”

Indeed, Seonghyun. He was a pitcher who enjoyed playing tricks. Constantly targeting the outside was all for this pitch, right? Patiently, I awaited Seonghyun’s pitch. And as the ball left his hand…!

“It’s outside!”

The ball, initially heading towards the border line in right-center field, gradually curved back towards the middle and dove down. And my bat was already flying towards that spot.

Thwack!

A fast and powerful hit towards left-center field! But the launch angle was low.

“Run! Run!”

-Jimaengho! Jimaengho! Jimaengho!

Running towards second base, fueled by the coach and spectators’ cheers.

“Stop! He caught the ball!”

“Sigh.”

I wanted to run to third base, but unfortunately, it was a single to left-center field. Even I couldn’t run to third on such a fast hit, so I had to settle for second base.

“Ah…, a pity. I should have pressed for a triple right away.”

Perhaps because it was my first time seeing a cutter today, I was disappointed that I couldn’t hit it more solidly on the inside of the bat. Still, a leadoff double. Not a bad start at all.

“Are you going to run?”

“I have to run.”

Because he was a warrior, the probability of scoring by stealing third base was higher than revealing his intentions by signaling. Seizing the opportunity with Sung Hyun’s changeup, he sprinted towards third base.

“Safe!”

“Nice!”

Although Kim Suho struck out disappointingly, the ball flew to the outfield as Gisangju deftly touched it.

“Go!”

“Run!”

Simultaneously, the voices of the third base coach and Rosby echoed. Gisangju’s hit to the outfield was more than enough to bring him home.

Thud! As Williams watched the home plate touch and lightly high-fived, Gisangju, returning from hitting an outfield fly, approached the dugout.

“Hey, how did you hit that? Hyun seemed off today.”

“Why are you asking me that? I’m Ji Maengho.”

“You asked for no reason. Ha, sigh. He didn’t seem in good condition last game, but he’s flying today. He was averaging around 148. It won’t be easy.”

“But we scored a run. We’re also Krongs.”

Certainly, seeing an average speed of around 148, Sung Hyun’s condition seemed good. However, we weren’t going to be fooled. We were Krongs, maintaining a lead in the standings with our starting pitcher allowing only late two-run runs.

Thunk!

“Out!”

As Williams’ hit got caught in the infield, the first inning ended.

“[Sorry. I tried to hit well….]”

“[It’s okay, kid. If you hit Sung Hyun’s pitch, you’d be in the Major Leagues.]”

“[Thank you for understanding.]”

Thus began the bottom of the first inning, with Williams’ apology.

“Out!”

“Strike! Out!”

“Strike! Out!”

Krongs ended the inning with a three-up, three-down as expected, maintaining a one-run lead. Good condition for Sung Hyun and Krongs. A feeling crept in that this game wasn’t going to be easy.

“I smell a pitching duel.”

“Sigh… I should’ve hit more yesterday. My batting average will plummet.”

That sentiment was shared by other seniors as well. Unlike the excited atmosphere of yesterday, a slightly tense atmosphere pervaded the dugout.

And so, the second inning began. Sung Hyun cleanly shut down the batting lineup following his performance against the United States in the Olympics, facing Choi Jincheol-Woo Kwanhyeong-Yoon Seongtae.

“[It’s okay, it’s okay. I’ll stop them.]”

Fortunately, Krongs also showed the form they displayed in the first inning. The second inning ended with another three-up, three-down. Sung Hyun’s strength fueled Krongs, creating a back-and-forth dynamic. In the top of the third inning, my turn at bat came again, but after walking, Kim Suho retreated on a bunt, failing to score additional runs.

“Nice! Well defended!”

“Siwoo! Great pitch.”

Though trailing by one run, the volcanic Falcons’ momentum was gradually building with continued bunts.

“We need to score more runs quickly…”

Amidst the chasing atmosphere, the game swiftly progressed.

[Swing! Strike! Out! Sung Hyun catches Jung Yoonchul with a strikeout! Three pitches, three strikeouts!]

“That last pitch was a changeup, right? It’s tough for right-handed batters to handle a changeup that comes inside and then moves outside.”

“Player Jung Yoonchul also smiles wryly. The bottom of the fifth inning ends like this.”

“In the bottom of the fifth, the volcanic Falcons’ attack. Yun Joongil steps up to bat. First-pitch swing! Yun Joongil makes a hit! … Bunt motion! He’s tagged out by Jung Yoonchul at second base! Out! … The sixth batter, player Yun Joongil, successfully reached base as the leadoff hitter, but Krongs finishes the fifth inning by consecutively handling three bunts!”

“A failed bunt can be fatal, right? In such a pitching-focused game, basic skills like bunting are crucial, making this inning slightly disappointing in detail.”

“That’s right. The disappointing bottom of the fifth for the volcanic Falcons, now moving on to the top of the sixth inning.”

The game had been underway for less than an hour, but the baseball match in Daejeon was already heading towards the 6th inning. The pace of the game revealed what kind of pitches the pitchers from both teams were throwing.

After a ten-minute cleaning break, the game resumed. Seonghyun continued to throw powerful pitches.

[Top of the 6th inning, now up to bat is Baek Jeongjin. …Swing! Strikeout swinging! Baek Jeongjin struck out on a fastball inside.]

[That’s already the 8th strikeout… Although AT Thunders are leading by one run, they might feel like they’re being chased.]

[Every time, the player who resolves it is this player, right? Today, with one double, one walk, and one run scored, Jimaengho, who scored the only run of the game so far, steps up to the plate.]

In a showdown between Seonghyun and Jimaengho, key players in the Olympic gold medal-winning team,

– Jimaengho~! Jimaengho~! Oh oh oh! Thunders’ Jimaengho! Send it flying~ all the way to the sky!

As Jimaengho’s cheer echoed through the stadium, the atmosphere intensified. Even the fans who came to watch the game at the baseball field seemed to understand that this match would be the most crucial one today.

“One out. It must be tough for Hyung to face him, right?”

“I’d rather compete. Rather than that guy messing around on the base.”

And that atmosphere was also understood by the battery of the volcano. Today, Seonghyun allowed only two runners on base. A double and a walk, both against Jimaengho.

“Sigh. Not easy.”

Seonghyun’s changeup against a right-handed batter, breaking away outside. It was a pitch that had induced countless futile swings from batters even in the Major Leagues, but strangely, it didn’t fool Jimaengho at all. Yet putting that changeup into John was not easy either. Since this season, Jimaengho had already crossed the wall with his changeup more than five times.

Considering that league pitchers rarely threw changeups to Jimaengho, getting a changeup into John was almost a guaranteed hit.

However, to catch Jimaengho, this changeup was necessary.

“…Changeup, into John?”

Therefore, Yoo Yong-gi made a decision. AT Thunders could meet in the Korean Series in the future. To solidify their stance in the Korean Series, they needed to confirm it here.

The result of the changeup thrown by Seonghyun to Jimaengho in the first half of the game was a double. But it wasn’t a clean hit. That’s why in this game, it seemed like Jimaengho was avoiding all the changeups. Yoo Yong-gi wanted to see how he managed to dodge all those changeups.

Whether he could hit the changeup coming into John.

Thinking about the upcoming Korean Series, this felt right. Confirming now would prevent mistakes in the Korean Series. And considering Seonghyun’s changeup, acclaimed even in the Major Leagues, received during the Olympics, words like “the best” fell short.

“Yes. Let’s throw it.”

And Seonghyun gave his consent. If he had refused, Yoo Yong-gi would have urged him to throw a different pitch, but the battery’s thoughts aligned.

“Hyung must be thinking the same thing as me, right?”

So, the decided pitch was an outside changeup. Along with Seonghyun’s windup, Jimaengho’s bat was loaded.

“Please! Let it connect!”

Yoo Yong-gi prayed earnestly as he swung the bat.

[Seonghyun! He throws the first pitch!]

And then, Jimaengho’s bat moved like lightning.

Crack!

[A tremendous sound of the hit! The outfielder stops moving! This hit goes over the left fence! It’s a home run for Jimaengho for the third consecutive game! The score widens once again! And the hero is once again Jimaengho!]

[Oh, this score is significant.]

Outside, a mind-blowing hit pulled the changeup over the left fence. The textbook definition of a home run, as the ball cleared the wall upon impact.

Watching from his spot, Lee Yong-gi placed both hands on his hips.

“Ah…, damn.”

A muttered curse escaped Yong-gi’s lips. Nevertheless, it wasn’t without its rewards. There was no way he would put the changeup into John’s zone again.

“Wow, sweet! Thanks for the meal~!”

…However, seeing John chuckling as he stepped on home plate was still irritating.

—

-AT Thunders! Defeating the Volcanic Falcons 2:0!

…The game that drew attention as a battle for first place unfolded as a pitching duel. However, the hero of the day was not Seong Hyeon with an 8-inning, 2-run performance, nor Krong’s who secured the glory of a winning pitcher with 7 scoreless innings. It was Jin Maeng-ho. Maeng-ho took responsibility for all of the team’s runs that day with 4 at-bats, 2 hits, 1 home run, 1 walk, 2 runs, and 1 RBI… Meanwhile, Seong Hyeon pitched 8 innings with 2 runs but faced defeat due to lack of support from the batting lineup.

┗ㅇㅅㅁㅎㅅ

┗ㅇㅅㅁㅎㅅ

┗How are we going to stop Jin Maeng-ho?

┗┗Just walk him, right?

┗Looking ahead, it was intense like the Korean Series, lol

┗┗A team that hasn’t been to the fall baseball in 10 years is already looking ahead to the Korean Series, what a joke, lol

┗┗?? Which team are you talking about? AT hasn’t been to the fall baseball in 10 years either? Oh, is it once every 20 years over there?

┗┗We won, lol Next up ^1999^

┗┗lol boasting about winning last year once, look forward to the fall, lol

┗┗Emchang team went crazy together, lol Maeng-ho’s team won last year vs. Seong Hyeon couldn’t even win, seriously tough luck.