Chapter 245 – Chapter 243. A Guide for Fans Traveling Through the Dark Ages. (2)

“Chae Jae-hyeon, he’s not joking around these days. It’s going to be pretty tough today.”

“I know. If you look at the month of August, you’re almost a saint.”

Before the game started, I heard the seniors gathering and whispering. The seniors seemed to be conscious of Chae Jae-hyun, the hot pitcher in the current league. Jae-hyun Chae won the MVP award in August with an ERA of 0 points and 5 wins.

‘Can’t I help it? I’ll have to step in.’

I couldn’t stand the atmosphere because I wanted to leave a painful memory for the fans of Hwasan who came to watch today’s match.

“Seniors.”

“Oh, maengho.”

“What are you so worried about? I am on my team.”

Baseball is a battle of momentum. Originally, I wasn’t the type to act like this, but since it’s the maknae’s role to boost morale, it can’t be helped.

“Ha, this bastard is like this again.”

“When do you think I did this again?”

“Yumma! If we hit well like you, we hit without worrying too much.”

“Ah, you just have to look and type. Is that difficult?”

“This bastard is a right-handed hitter, so he doesn’t know what ball Chae Jae-hyun is throwing. Sangju hyung, right? Brother, tell me something.”

“Certainly, Chae Jae-hyun’s ball is difficult to hit. When he throws, he comes out with the ball completely hidden.”

Hmm… It seemed that the left-handed batters were really having a hard time because even the weatherman said this. Somehow, almost all left-handed hitters were left out of the lineup today.

“Even in the US, there are few pitchers with such good deception.”

“Hey, who talked to Sangju hyung? That brother is starting again.”

“Bastard. This advice will turn into blood and flesh, so listen to it.”

Despite the words of the weather warning, the gathered players began to leave their seats.

If it was the beginning of the season, the players would have listened to the advice of the weatherman, but since it was revealed that once the weatherman started talking about baseball, the basic 10 minutes should be held, the players tended to avoid the weatherman like today.

“Eh, because of that, I can’t play baseball. Tsk. Anyway, it’s a maengho. You know how important this deception is in baseball, right?”

“… Yes.”

Of course, as the youngest, I couldn’t leave the place.

‘Fuck, I just talked to you. That’s why I shouldn’t do things that people wouldn’t do.’

“Do you know why Chae Jae-hyeon has good grades in August?”

“You haven’t met me?”

“Ahh, you motherfucker. What have you heard so far? I was talking about Deception. Stay focused. Fierce tiger When I was younger, I tried to listen to a word of advice from seniors. Kids these days… Anyway, if you look at why Chae Jae-hyun’s grades improved from August, his deception became perfect. I don’t know who taught it to me, but now I’m almost turning my back when I throw the ball. Did you watch the video at the meeting too?”

“… Yes.”

“This is something right-handed hitters don’t know, but from a left-handed hitter’s point of view, the ball is barely visible. In addition, the velocity is in the mid-150s, so how difficult it must be to hit. There was Bumgarner in the major leagues. That bastard couldn’t even see the ball at all. But there was a time when I hit Bumgarner’s ball. How did you hit it then…”

Shit, I started talking about my major days again. Should I go to America soon? At that time, the image of Yoon Seong-tae, who entered the dugout, caught my eye.

‘That’s it!’

“Seniors.”

“Huh?”

“But I’m Utazan… Does what I hear mean anything?”

Then, he quietly turned his eyes and glanced at Yoon Seong-tae. And the first-class hitter’s body vision caught the movement of my eyeballs and turned his head to Yoon Seong-tae.

“Well, even if you listen, it will be useless. Hey! Kim Joo-yeop! Seongtae Yoon! Aren’t you coming to work?”

The weatherman called out the left-handers included in the lineup. Kim Joo-yeop, who had been avoiding his seat at the loud voice, and Yoon Seong-tae, who had just entered the dugout, walked in front of Ki Sang-joo.

‘Phew. It’s finally over.’

I quickly evacuated the seat before the wake-up notice’s mouth started to fire.

‘But if Sangju sunbae says that, then Chae Jae-hyun is throwing well these days.’

Ki Sang-joo was originally a talkative person, but that doesn’t mean he wasn’t the one to pamper the pitcher. In other words, Chae Jae-hyeon is a pitcher with skills that the weatherman would be aware of.

‘Well, that’s why he beat me and got MVP in August.’

Of course, I would have received it even if I hadn’t had enough at-bats due to the discipline, but it’s true that I won the monthly MVP award by beating prominent players.

‘It must be fun.’

How upset would the volcano fans be if they smashed a pitcher like that? Even before the match started, his heart started pounding.

“… So that’s it. When facing a pitcher with good deception, I can’t see the ball, so I catch the timing faster than usual…”

And the meteorological strike lecture continued until the national anthem rang.

*

[The season is almost over. Each team has about 20 games remaining. However, the ranking competition is not over yet.]

[You’re right. 1st place UG Overlords has a win rate of 0.583. Hyeonseong Madcats, who are in second place, are fighting fiercely for first place with a win rate of 0.582, and below that, AT Thunders with a win rate of 0.564, Hancheol Grizzlies with a win rate of 0.558, and Shinra Triggers with a win rate of 0.551. Since UG Overlords, who are in first place, and Shinra Triggers, who are in fifth place, are only 4.5 games apart, the remaining matches are important.]

[That’s right. In particular, matches against lower-tier teams are important. If you get hit by a low-ranking team, your ranking may drop.]

[Yes. Do you say that you sprinkle red pepper powder in a vulgar language? And the Volcano Falcons are a team that knows how to sprinkle red pepper powder, so the AT Thunders should be careful.]

[Especially, today’s starting matchup may be burdensome for AT. Kronx, a foreign pitcher who came in as a substitute and has won 7 wins so far, is the starting pitcher, and Hwasan has August MVP Chae Jae-hyun on the mound. If you lose in an ace confrontation, AT will take a bigger hit.]

[And Volcano Falcons shouldn’t miss this opportunity. The Volcano Falcons have a lot of young and promising players, so the season experience of not giving up will be of great help. Ha, personally, it’s a pity that Hwasan’s players are players who can achieve good grades if they have a certain opportunity…]

[Commissioner, Commissioner.]

[Oh, sorry.]

[Kuhm, big. Now, let’s introduce the lineup of both teams. At the beginning of the 1st inning, the attack of the AT was 1st batter Kim Joo-yeop, 2nd batter Kim Su-ho, 3rd batter Ki Sang-joo, 4th batter Ji Maeng-ho, 5th batter Choi Jin-cheol, 6th batter Kim Sang-min…]

“What? Did they leave Woo Kwan hyung out?”

“It’s Chae Jae-hyun, but it’s worth dropping. Jaehyun can’t even touch the ball unless it’s Kim Soo-ho or Ki Sang-joo.”

“Honestly, with Jaehyun Shin’s form these days, I can’t even touch Kim Suho or Ki Sangju.”

“Isn’t there anything wrong with Uta? Change it one hundred days, will Chae Jae-hyun get robbed?”

Fans of Hwasan laughed while examining the lineup of the AT Thunders, who changed their batting line to a right-handed hitter to deal with Chae Jae-hyun. The reason for the ridicule is Chae Jae-hyun’s form.

Chae Jae-hyeon, who corrected his pitching form from the beginning of the second half and got the most out of reception, called Seong-hyeon, a legend of the team that had advanced to the majors since August, so it seemed natural for volcano fans to think.

Even though the Hwasan Falcons are the 10th team, the reason why they can gather home crowds on Tuesday, the start of the midweek series, is because it was Chae Jae-hyeon’s pitching day. Volcano fans were enthusiastic about the appearance of another super ace.

As baseball is a sport played by nine people, the impact of one person on the game was not that great. But if that one was a pitcher, the story was different. A player who can change the game on his own. Chae Jae-hyun’s performance these days was enough to become one who can change the game.

That’s why Hwasan’s fans had high expectations for Chae Jae-hyun.

‘Next year, if Jaehyun is in this level of form, he will be able to escape from the dark period, right?’

Chae Jae-hyun’s helmet was attractive enough to give volcano fans a sweet dream of escaping the dark ages, and Chae Jae-hyun was also enough to revive such fans’ expectations.

[Strike out with a swing! Turn Kim Joo-yeop into three strikeouts!]

[Looking strikeout! Kim Soo-ho shaking his head at the end of the full count match! 2 strikeouts in a row!]

[Perfect circle changeup! It’s a circle changeup that fools the weatherman perfectly! 3 strikeouts in a row! Chae Jae-hyun finishes the first round lightly! It’s a helmet that reminds me of Seong-hyeon, the team’s senior!]

“Jaehyun! Nice!”

“This is it!”

A circle changeup that perfectly deceives hitters with the nation’s best deception and speed in the early to mid-150s. Seeing Chae Jae-hyun catch three batters in a row, Hwasan fans clenched their fists from the beginning of the first inning.

“Jaehyun Shin is in a bad condition today?”

“If Chae Jae-hyun blocks 8 innings and Shin Su-ho blocks 9 innings, I will win with just one point. Really.”

“Siwoo, give me one point. It’s not a joke with Jaehyun’s form today.”

And earnestly prayed for a miraculous point in Ace’s good fighting. Was it because the prayer worked?

[Hitter 3, Choi Si-woo’s solo home run! The 27th home run of the season hits with two outs in the bottom of the first inning. Home team Volcano Falcons to take 1 point first! Ah! Jaehyun Chae is smiling brightly!]

Choi Si-woo, another player that Hwasan fans are looking forward to, began to lead with a solo home run.

Volcano fans were on the verge of having an erection due to the performance of the two promising players who began to show their talents this season.

In the last 10 years, Hwasan has recorded last in all but three seasons. Excluding 2018, when he finished 5th and took the last train of fall baseball, he finished 9th in the remaining two seasons, so the pain of volcano fans was indescribable. It was in the midst of being ridiculed as the graveyard of promising players along with the AT Thunders, as many prominent amateur players joined the team and all went bankrupt.

In the meantime, promising players have grown and performed like this. The satisfaction that fans of Hwasan feel these days is at the highest level.

“At those bastards, no matter how much money they spend, it’s over when they get old. After all, we have to nurture promising players.”

Seeing the performance of the promising players who will be responsible for the team’s 10 years was the greatest joy for fans of the volcano who endured the dark times.

… But,

[In the beginning of the second inning, lead batter Ji Maeng-ho steps in.]

Volcano fans’ joy at the match was short-lived.

[With 52 home runs, the home run ranks first in the league. In addition, the current batting average is 0.409, a player that baseball fans who are recording a new 40% batting average can not know, right?]

[You’re right. In addition, Ji Maeng-ho, who left only two steals in the history of 50 home runs and 50 steals, which no baseball player has ever achieved.]

“Ha, fuck. It’s Ji Maeng-ho.”

“That bastard is a bit scary.”

The intimidating feeling of hitting a home run just by standing at the plate. In just one year, Maeng-Ho Ji has grown into a player who can give fans a sense of intimidation.

Ta-evil!

[Going over! Ji Maeng-ho makes a tie at once!]

The sad premonitions of baseball fans were always inconsistent.

“Ah, Shivaal! Is it Ji Maeng-ho again?!”

The expressions of the volcano fans, who watched the promising players perform with fatherly smiles at Ji Maeng-ho’s home run, rapidly rotted away. However, the sorrow of the volcano fans did not end there.

[Uh? Ji Maeng-ho, what are you doing now after hitting a home run?]

It was because Ji Maeng-ho, who had hit a cool home run, stood still at the plate and watched the batted ball. Daejeon Stadium was tinged with silence.

And Ji Maeng-ho put the next move into action. Ji Meng-ho tilted his head slightly and put his hand to his ear, disregarding the silence in the arena.

[Player Ji Maeng-ho puts his hand to his ear. Are you asking for a shout?]

At Ji Maeng-ho’s gesture to shout, the third base cheerleaders went into a crucible of enthusiasm, and loud cheers rang through the Daejeon Stadium.

-Wow!

– Ji Maeng-ho! Ji Maeng-ho! Ji Maeng-ho! Ji Maeng-ho!

Only then did Ji Maeng-ho move to first base. It was natural for Hwasan fans to burn their stomachs watching Maeng-Ho Ji.

“Ha, fuck. It’s disgusting to see that motherfucking ceremony.”

“… It took us years to raise Siwoo Choi, but why do they…”

It took 5 years for Choi Si-woo, whom fans of Hwasan cherished for hitting 27 homers and saying that he is the greatest hitter of all time, to perform this kind of thing. However, it took only 6 months for Ji Maeng-ho, who performed twice as well, to achieve such results.

In addition, the frustration was even greater when the team’s hope, Chae Jae-hyun, collapsed in front of Ji Maeng-ho’s bat.

“Under… Even if we only did FA properly…”

“In front, Kisangju, behind Choi Jin-cheol. Shit, because of that, players have no choice but to grow.”

“We should have bought… What are these motherfuckers doing at the front?”

The move of AT Thunders, which is showing a perfect movement to end the dark period by advancing into fall baseball thanks to the recruitment of a large free agent and the great success of a super newcomer, was enough to set fire to the hearts of volcano fans who dreamed of romance.

“Fuck, even on this stove, if 0 mouth is shit, I really go to the front desk.”

And the spread of such a fire is a bit later.

“Ji Maeng-ho you son of a bitch! Don’t go to base soon!”

Right now, he was just scolding Ji Maeng-ho, who was walking slowly on the base.