Chapter 258 – Chapter 256. Last Game of the Season (3)
[Bottom of the third inning, two outs. Maeng-Ho Ji comes to the plate.]
[Austin Webb looks pretty good today, right? Only one batter was allowed to get on base through the third inning. Maeng-ho Ji also hit the first ball in the previous at-bat and retired, right?]
[You’re right. In fact, isn’t it rare for Maeng-Ho Ji to hit the first ball and then step back with a ground ball?]
[Yes. First of all, Maeng-Ho Ji is famous for being the least grounded hitter in the league. Ji Maeng-ho’s infield batting ratio is 23.7%, and he is a hitter who sends more than 75% of his batted balls to the outfield. Did such a hitter make a ground ball, and even hit the first pitch? This is a rare phenomenon.]
[Is there something wrong with Ji Maeng-ho’s batting sense to make an infield ground ball? Throughout this series, UG is playing an outside match against Ji Maeng-ho.]
[Perhaps there is such an effect? No matter how great a hitter is, game sense is important. Anyway, even in the middle of the season, the opponent method of sticking to the outside match against Maeng-Ho Ji was popular, but it disappeared shortly after Maeng-Ho Ji’s stealing ability. However, UG is not paying attention to Ji Maeng-ho stealing bases.]
[You mean you showed off your main power by stealing five bases in the previous two games alone?]
[You’re right. But now it’s a two-out situation. Even if you give up a walk, you can go through the inning without conceding as long as you block the next hitter, Kim Su-ho. There is a high possibility that he will prepare for a walk and play outside in this at-bat.]
[Austin’s first ball! It is the outside ball.]
*
“Nice pitching! Good pitch!”
“That’s throwing balls and making a lot of noise.”
“I was almost in the strike zone, but what?”
“Uh? Are you dissatisfied with the referee’s decision?”
“Oh, no. Seniors. I don’t mean that. That’s why I came into a precarious position.”
The UG catcher who is startled by my gensei and makes excuses to the referee. I think I heard that he is the third catcher on the team, but the reaction was quite interesting.
‘It must be difficult to run long runs when I see the hitter telling me like this.’
In the first at-bat, there was no time to step back and talk after hitting the first pitch, but there was only one thing left to bother the catcher’s style.
‘It’s a curve.’
‘Curve?’
His curves are pretty angular, but there’s no way I’m getting his curves into the zone. Maybe a curve that hits the ground… I decided to wait for the second ball as well. And the second ball thrown.
“Cheek.”
Jaw-dropping curves. Hmm… Shall I scrape some?
“Didn’t the team teach you? Don’t throw curveballs against me? Are you being bullied by your team?”
“What bullshit? To the coach… , Huh.”
The catcher who shuts up while talking about getting an autograph from the battery coach. It was quite funny to see the catcher keep his mouth shut as if he had told a great secret, even though he was not a veteran and could not sign an autograph by himself.
“Oh, I see you’re getting an autograph from the battery coach? Are you a catcher? Do you get autographs at Two Out?”
“… Shut up.”
‘It tastes like scratching. I wish I was a little more excited.’
“Aren’t you sorry to receive a salary when the catcher can’t even sign an autograph by himself? Oh, is that the minimum wage?”
“… You get 3000 too.”
Did you hit the mark? The catcher’s voice trembles. I was a bit sorry to talk about this with my annual salary, but among the catchers who were trash-talking, there were even worse bastards, so I didn’t stop and opened my mouth.
“I’m a rookie, so how old are you?”
“… Shut up I can see why the coach told me not to talk to you.”
“Wow, did the coach talk about that too?”
Somehow the other catchers ignored it.
‘It’s a fastball.’
“But can I talk like this? When this is over, I have to tell Jinmo sunbaenim. It’s 3000 per year, but isn’t it fine?”
‘Outside slider, fastball after low curve? It was two balls there, so it should be in the zone?’
Scratching the catcher, I quickly shook my head and finished preparing to hit.
‘That bastard’s velocity was around 153 today, so I think he’ll be able to react?’
The pitcher guy winds up and swings his arm. The small ball quickly grew and came toward me.
‘Body side!’
Ta-evil!
A batted ball that goes far. The timing was a bit early, perhaps because it had been a long time since I hit the ball to the body. The ball went over the foul pole and disappeared. A large foul home run that goes over the fence. But the feeling in his hands wasn’t bad.
‘Okay, I got the hang of it.’
“Wow, I thought it was fastball timing, but it’s a real fastball. Shouldn’t the battery coach be changed? Is it too obvious? Brother, oh brother, right? Can I be your brother? Isn’t hyung more good at signing autographs?”
“Don’t call me brother.”
“Ah, the style of being friends with younger siblings? Then I’ll say you Are you fine? Hey, I’d rather have you sign it. Do you think you will do better?”
“Mouth! Fuck!”
“Okay, kid. Why are you swearing, ah, but what is your name?”
“Look at the display board, it’s 20 years old.”
‘It’s a curve.’
“I don’t like my eyes. Oh, but you’re not thinking of dropping the curve in a one-strike-to-ball situation and leading to a missed swing, right? When a curve mismatch comes out, I immediately jump over the fence.”
“…”
The fourth ball that followed was a curve that fell as I expected. Unfortunately, there was no mismatch. That’s how it became a one strike three ball.
“How did you know?”
And the catcher’s mentality seems to have been shaken a bit.
“Because it’s obvious. Battery coach level. Honestly, don’t you like the coach too? Just tell your friends mind! A friend child!”
“Shut up, little. Please.”
The next ball is the slider. After preparing for a walk, he forcibly followed the trajectory of three balls missing from the strike zone and hit the ball.
Widely!
It was a ball that would have been a ball if I let it go, but now it’s a full count as it became a foul.
‘Now, do you want to compete? Aren’t you proud?’
As he looked at the pitcher and gave him a fishy smile, his expression began to rot. It seemed that my will was clearly conveyed.
“Oh, where did the thrower go?”
Austin Webb continues to shake his head at the autograph. It seemed to burn properly. Eventually, the boy nodded.
‘It’s a fastball.’
‘A fastball here? Bastard, he’s a real man.’
Where will you come? I waited for his windup. And the ball being thrown.
‘Come!’
Ta-evil!
The moment of impact, the feeling of the ball resonating.
‘It was right.’
A taste I haven’t felt in a long time. I watched the bat while holding the bat. The left fielder chases the ball flying towards him. And soon the footsteps stop.
– Ji Maeng-ho! Ji Maeng-ho! Ji Maeng-ho! Ji Maeng-ho!
I lightly raise my fist in response to the fans who chant my name.
-Waaaaa!!!!
Listening to the cheers of the crowd, he threw his bat and slowly turned around the bases, looking at the expression on the pitcher’s face.
‘Looking at his condition, he’ll fight again next time?’
In a situation where it is okay to walk out because it is two outs, the guy who wins the match hits a home run like this and misses it in the next at-bat? It was impossible.
‘Today is going to be fun. Hehe. Let’s go Mr. Rossby.’
‘I don’t like hitting a home run.’
I feel alive when I step on home plate while hearing Rossby’s grunting voice.
‘Fuck, this is baseball.’
“Hey, what was your name? So, change the mix a bit. Obvious, obvious.”
“This bastard is…”
Finally, after scratching the catcher and entering the dugout, the team members cheered fiercely again. After the intense congratulations of the team members, Lim Jun-hu approached wearing gloves.
“Brother! You hit a home run to make your brother a winning pitcher again, right? As expected, Ji Maeng-ho!”
“Where are you calling the name of a heavenly older brother? You stupid bastard.”
“Really, there is no other old man like this.”
“Okay, throw the ball well.”
“Hyung, I’m Im Joon-hoo.”
Im Joon-hoo’s confident smile.
‘Fuck, why is this bastard so anxious?’
– Wow!
Just as the anxiety was rising, Jamsil Stadium began to vibrate again. Kim Soo-ho hit a double and reached base.
‘That bastard, I think he’s mentally shaken a lot?’
My home run probably hurt Austin’s mentality a lot.
“Meteorologist! Gaza!”
“With a 10-year gap in losing, even calling out senior names.”
“Bitch, are you and me the same? And did I call you face to face? This kid is really funny. If it wasn’t for the selection today, he would have fallen behind me.”
“Are you bullying the youngest again?”
“Ah, I’m the youngest too!”
“Only when it’s like this is the youngest. Really.”
“Don’t bother with the selection.”
Just as Yoon Seong-tae approached and started to argue with him, Jamsil Stadium shook once again as if he were about to leave.
“What is a weatherman?!”
“Sangju hyung! Nice!”
Ki Sang-joo hit the first pitch and succeeded in bringing Kim Soo-ho home, and now the score gap is two points. He gave up two runs first against a pitcher with the league’s first earned run average, and it felt good.
“Good! Let’s eat the winning pitcher today!”
Except for the needlessly excited selection.
… And my insecurities were not wrong.
“… Sorry.”
In the end, Lim Jun-hoo gave up 4 runs in the beginning of the 5th inning and gave UG a big inning.
“Baby, you messed around.”
Im Joon-hoo, who finished the 5th inning and came down, felt his shoulders droop. It was to the point where I couldn’t believe he was the kind of guy he was so excited about earlier.
‘Bastard, that’s a bit pitiful.’
As the only younger brother on the team, his shoulders were drooping like this, as his older brother, I wasn’t happy.
“… When did I fool you…”
“Hey. A man is confident. His brother will score.”
“Brother Maengho…”
He looked at me with clear eyes, probably because he had only been out of high school for a year.
“Fuck, don’t look at me with those eyes.”
Of course, it was disgusting to see a man looking at me like that.
‘The score is 4:2. The lead batter is Baek Jeong-jin.’
At the end of the 5th inning, our lead batter is the 9th hitter, Baek Jeong-jin. It was the guy So-yeong traded and brought in, and he took turns playing with right fielder Lee In-hyeok, appearing in 30 games and hitting 30% of his own.
“Senior, just go on base.”
“It’s easy to say.”
Today, this guy’s record is 2 at-bats, no hits.
‘I mentioned that So-young has talent, but to my eyes, I don’t know. Well, it’s because my sister has a good eye for players.’
“Senior, be confident. Okay? Fuck that bastard.”
“… I get it.”
The guy nodding his head with a firm expression. I followed him to the waiting table. That’s when I met Austin Webb’s eyes.
“High?”
A pitcher with a rotten expression when I waved my hand with a happy heart. It seems that the afterimage from earlier is still in my head.
“Fucking!”
‘Even if I cover it with a glove and curse, I can hear it, you bastard.’
Just one home run, that’s what it looks like. I hope this shaking has some effect… I wonder if God heard my wish,
“Hit bye pitch!”
Baek Jeong-jin got hit after the fifth pitch and succeeded in getting on base.
“High? See you again Haven’t you been replaced yet?”
“… Stop talking.”
The voice of the catcher, whose face and name were unknown, was slightly friendly.
‘Didn’t you see he was at bat?’
‘I don’t have a hobby of memorizing men’s faces.’
‘Well, you don’t have to memorize the boy’s face. It’s a slider.’
“Are you sitting down to hit another home run? You suck too punish ask for a quick replacement ah! And surely you wouldn’t throw a slider just because you hit a home run on a fastball? If it fits, suggest to the coach to cut the battery coach.”
“… Shut up.”
‘Because it has a scratchy taste.’
While we were talking, the pitcher who finished the third position threw the ball. … Towards my body.
Ta-evil!