Chapter 195 – Episode 193. 4 Batsman Ji Maeng-Ho. (4)

“Cheek.”

Shit, this shit again.

“Senior, let’s clean up. Cleanly.”

“What are you talking about? I’m doing it clean. If anyone sees it, they’ll think it’s throwing a threat.”

He had been anticipating this future as he suffered a three-way offense in the bottom of the first inning. A situation where a good ball doesn’t come to me when first base is empty.

“Base on Balls!”

“Yes yes.”

But even so, it still hurt my heart to walk away without swinging a bat like this. As I was so heartbroken, the first base coach put a hand on my shoulder.

“It’s a fierce tiger.”

“Yes?”

“You know?”

“What?”

“One more stolen base makes it 20-20.”

“20-20?”

“Okay. You have 19 stolen bases now. If you do it now, there is also a minimum match record. Well, there are still a lot of records left in the minimum game.”

Minimum match 20-20 clubs… ! The youngest record was a record that could not be achieved because of pay, but the minimum game 20-20 is a different story. The annoyed mind disappears at once.

‘I can’t stand records.’

If you hit, you might not have reached base, but it’s not polite to refuse to give you a chance to set a record like this.

‘Hey.’

‘Yes. Why are you calling me all of a sudden?’

‘Shall I teach you how to prevent pitchers from skipping?’

‘Suddenly? But if there is such a thing, I’ll tell you in advance.’

‘It’s a method I couldn’t do.’

‘Is there a method Mr. Rossby couldn’t do?’

‘Okay.’

‘What is it?’

‘It’s like running all the way home. Even if you can’t, at least up to 3rd base. To the point where I think it’s better to just give him a double.’

… ! Hearing Rossby’s words seemed to clear his head. If you skip me, you just have to create a situation like hitting at least a triple.

‘Yes, teenagers. Keep taking it I’ll take you to third base!’

And with Rossby, it was possible to steal in any situation.

‘Of course stealing bases isn’t necessarily a good thing. There is a risk of injury and it consumes a lot of stamina. But if you plant such an image, it won’t be easy to filter it out.’

Rossby was right. What matters is the image. In fact, my batting average, which was well over 40% in April, was falling in May. Same with OPS. However, since there was already an image that filtering was beneficial, the image is quite important, as if I didn’t get a good ball in this situation.

Currently, my number of stolen bases is 19, and my base count is 1. In addition, I was ranked first in the stealing ranking, but my image was a home run hitter. So even at the risk of stealing, opposing teams let me on base. However, it was clear that this kind of situation would be less if I planted the perception that my feet were also sufficiently threatening.

Moreover, the opposing catchers are veteran catchers of UG Overlords, Baek Kyung-ho and Benjamin. Baek Kyung-ho was an exceptional player for stealing bases. It was to the point where I was told to be careful during meetings. Besides, Benjamin, like a left-handed pitcher, was good at keeping things in check. If you turn this battery on here… !

‘It’s a fastball grip. Be careful of restraints.’

“Safe!”

He looks satisfied as he watches me sweep Benjamin’s floor. It was obvious why he was making such a face.

‘It must mean he didn’t like the fact that he let me on base for free. Anyway, the pitcher cubs…’

But it was better that way. It was a great pleasure to see those arrogant pitchers despairing or lowering their heads after being hit. Just like when you’re fucking an arrogant bitch. I looked for an opportunity like that, and the opportunity came in a one-strike, one-ball situation.

‘It’s a curve.’

As soon as Benjamin got his grip, he ran to second base.

“First base! First base!”

UG’s first baseman, Jin-mo Koo, calls out urgently. By widening the lead, we are already halfway there.

‘Benjamin threw to first base!’

I want to see what’s going on, but if I turn my head here, I’ll get caught… ! I could see the UG’s second baseman taking up his position in front of second base and poised with his gloves open. And I slid between the gaping legs.

The feel of the hard dirt floor and the bouncing dirt that touches your face. And after feeling the touch of the base in my hand, I feel the touch of the glove on my back.

“Safe!”

“Yes!”

After stepping on the base and getting up, I brushed off the dirt on my uniform. It was quite thrilling to see Benjamin, the opposing pitcher, glaring at him.

‘But what happened?’

I should have run after seeing his feet, but I got a little excited and ran early. It was a mistake that came out of greed to distort Benjamin’s expression, so I wanted to properly understand the situation and how I was able to live on second base.

‘I think he was able to live because it took time to change his grip? I threw it hastily. That’s why the checks went awry.’

‘It’s a pity that no mistake came out. Tsk, I hope this breaks the balance.’

Tolerable pitchers were not in such a hurry to check. The most important thing in pitching is balance. Even so, the fact that I threw the ball so urgently meant that UG’s battery was also aware of my stealing base.

‘Be conscious of the hundred days. Can you stop my feet?’

Anyway, the match against the battery was an unconditional win. You only need to play with the grip of the breaking ball.

2nd now. Normally, I would have stopped at second base and told Choi Jin-cheol the type of pitch. Stealing bases was more important now. Well, UG’s sign security was so tight that there was no excuse.

‘Are you going to play third base?’

‘Yes.’

No mistakes this time. My mistake hurt Benjamin more, but being out here was a real catastrophe.

‘I won’t let you miss it again.’

*

[Player Ji Maeng-ho! Got caught! Ah! Benjamin’s throw goes high! Goo Jin-mo catches high throws! 2nd base thrown! At second base! Three leaves!!!!]

[Wow, Ji Maeng-ho. It’s really fast.]

[#1 stealer Ji Maeng-ho succeeds in stealing again! And with this steal, he succeeds in joining the 20 home run 20 steal club. And this record was achieved in 44 games, 24 games ahead of the previous 68 games!]

[There is also the debut season 20-20. Joo Seung-chul also achieved 30-30 in his first season, but Ji Maeng-ho’s current momentum is not only 30-30, but also 40-40. Going further, it is poised to achieve a 50-50 unprecedented in world history. He is a really great player.]

[In addition, the success rate of stealing is also different. 20 stolen bases, 1 miss. 95% stealing success rate! He is a really great player.]

[In modern baseball, the importance of stealing is declining, but it is an established theory that stealing is a loss unless the success rate is 75%, right? In addition, there is a tendency to rarely steal bases due to low physical strength and risk of injury, but personally, I hope Maeng-Ho Ji will continue to steal bases. As a baseball player, I want to see a great record.]

The moment the caster and the commentator were praising Ji Maeng-ho, the caster was startled and continued to speak.

[Uh, Ji Maeng-ho, the lead width is quite long this time too, right?]

Long lead width that cannot be considered as normal lead width. Although Ji Maeng-ho was often a player who stole third base, his opponent was Baek Kyung-ho, a veteran of UG. A catcher who boasts two Golden Gloves and defensive skills. In addition, he boasted a fast pop time (the time it takes a catcher’s throw to reach second base) even though he was in his mid-30s, so everyone watching the game thought he was unreasonable to steal third base.

[No way, will you run again?]

When people’s suspicious eyes were focused on Ji Maeng-ho, Benjamin’s third ball was thrown to Choi Jin-cheol. And Ji Maeng-ho started running again.

[I jump! I jump! Ji Maeng-ho caught the timing perfectly! Baek Kyung-ho throws the ball! At third base… !]

As Ji Maeng-ho slid, dust rose to the floor. And after the dust stopped, what I could see was Maeng-Ho Ji with his hand on the third base base and a third baseman with his glove on that Maeng-Ho Ji.

[What is the result?]

And the referee spread his hands wide open.

[Three leaves! Three leaves! Ji Maeng-ho succeeds in stealing base again! Season 21 steal!]

[And. It’s an admirable speed. Has there ever been a player in Korea with this kind of athletic ability? And… What is this player?]

[Covering his mouth with his glove, Benjamin screams.]

[I’m angry. Of course I can’t help but be angry. Allows consecutive steals after a batter reaches base on a walk. Any pitcher is bound to be annoyed.]

[Has there ever been a player who ran like this for batter 4?]

[Well? I don’t remember? Of course, in the case of Shinra Triggers, sometimes fast and accurate hitters came out as the number 4 hitter, but like Ji Maeng-ho, he had power and speed. There was no player who perfectly performed both.]

[Perhaps we are now witnessing the birth of a new type of No. 4 hitter.]

[In addition, the scary thing about this player is that he has a very high intelligence.]

[What is it like?]

[I just stole a base at curve timing? If you think about it in relation to Ji Maeng-ho’s batting style, it seems that the pitcher knew what to throw and hit the right time to throw a breaking ball. Power, speed, and even intelligence. Great.]

– It’s fucking scary to see batter number 4 running like that haha
ㄴWhat kind of a dump truck is that bastard running around haha
ㄴㄹㅇ As for the athletic ability, it is true that it is non-Asian.

– Ji Maeng-ho… You were called the devil’s eye in high school… It looks like you put a real pitcher on the palm of your hand.
I think I’ve seen that article before. I think it was a high school baseball special article last year…
No that’s right. Even back then, he said that pitchers seem to know what kind of pitches they throw, but he still does that even after he became a pro.
I’m sure you have a good head. Seeing how good he is at fighting.
Even if I had studied, I would have succeeded. Players like Ji Maeng-ho…
ㄴㄴ Certainly, people who ignore people who exercise are stupid, but it’s not like that again when you see kids these days haha ​​Now, it seems that people with good brains are good at sports.

-Wow, but what should I do if batter number 4 runs like that? If it’s 4 times, shouldn’t you be prepared for a walk and fight as hard as possible?
ㄴWhat are you doing?
ㄴㅇㅋㅋ It’s a relief that it’s our team. Please raise the salary of the scout who picked that bastard.
No kid? Is Ji Maeng-ho your friend?

[Benjamin continues to check third base.]

Benjamin’s ball continued to go toward third base, as if he was angry with the series of stolen bases.

[Are you venting your anger? In fact, there aren’t many situations where you can do a solo homesteel. Benjamin should stop taking out unnecessary anger and start batting. Choi Jin-cheol, who is standing at bat, is absolutely not an easy hitter who can pay attention to runners and catch them.]

As the commentator said, Choi Jin-cheol was not a batter that could be dealt with with such a soft mindset… ,

[Benjamin’s fourth ball is… !]

Ta-evil!

Choi Jin-cheol, who had been smiling confidently even before the game started, exploded at the end of the second inning.

[Now 3:2! At the end of the 2nd inning, the AT Thunders follow by one point! Jung Jin-hong smiles brightly! Choi Jin-cheol’s 16th home run of the season! These are the AT Thunders, who have completely transformed into giant artillery corps!!]

[Player Benjamin, the eyes were too focused on player Ji Maeng-ho. To deal with a hitter like Choi Jin-cheol, I had to focus perfectly on the hitter. It was unfortunate from the point of view of UG.]

The match between substitute starter Jeong Jin-hong and foreign pitcher Benjamin was going on in such a fierce way.