Chapter 272 – Episode 270. You Play Dirty. (1)

“Be careful in today’s game because your opponent may show up badly. Don’t be swayed by the referee’s decision. With our skills, we can win a cold game even if the opponent plays badly, so we have to control our minds well. Okay?”

“Yes!”

“Especially, Ji Maeng-ho.”

Second match of the group stage against China. The coach who was having a meeting before the game suddenly called my name.

“Yes? Me? Why me?”

“I believe he won’t attack you just because he’s angry. “As you are playing for your country, please act a little more cautiously.”

“Hey, when did I say that? “I’m not that kind of person!”

What do you think of people?

I strongly denied it, but the atmosphere of the team was not like that.

“Well, a fierce tiger is enough.”

“Director, shouldn’t we take him out? Are you anxious?”

“Chinese girls are so rude, I don’t know if I can stand it.”

In particular, players from UG, Hwasan, and Silla had a strong such atmosphere. Especially pitchers. When I saw players who had been training with me for a long time and had been indifferent to me say these things, it seemed like they were sincere.

‘Why are you so worried? What did I do?’

“Meng Hao, can you bear it? How do we get them out of the lineup?”

The coach looks at me and asks.

“Please really believe me. “I’m not the kind of person who attacks just anyone.”

“That kid is anxious.”

“There’s a rumor that Silla, who got hit the other day, still can’t chew rice.”

“Ah! Not really. Hey, Wonho. Please tell me no.”

“Hey, seniors, Meng Hao is nice. “It’s because I get angry sometimes.”

Of course my friend Wonho. He understood me accurately. Wonho, I will take responsibility for finding your girlfriend. To a true year.

“I hate fighting. Really.”

… As long as no one touches me.

“I don’t know if I can trust this guy?”

“… Please trust me.”

“Are you feeling okay? “You said you took three doping tests earlier.”

“… It’s okay.”

I said it was okay, but actually it wasn’t particularly good. Even during the season, I felt bad the day I took a doping test, but today was especially so. Is it because the inspector found some reason and forced himself to urinate three times when he couldn’t come out? It was more difficult.

‘The training was done in a shabby way, and damn, they did dope tests three times and these guys fell behind. ‘Maybe I should hit him with a bat?’

‘If you hit someone with a bat, you won’t be disciplined, right?’

‘Oh my, Mr. Rossby! What are you talking about? Of course, it means hitting the ball. ‘What do you think of people?’

There was Rossby’s joke that didn’t make sense, but anyway, I was in a bad mood today, so my competitive spirit was burning even more.

“What’s wrong with this kid’s face? Uneasy… Under…”

Someone muttered something upon seeing my expression, but since it wasn’t that important, I ignored it and started preparing for the game.

*

[Hello! We will broadcast the second match of the 2023 Asian Games Group A preliminaries between Korea and China and between China and Korea. The home team is China and the away team is Korea Republic.]

[Korea defeated Thailand 21-0 in the last game, and China lost 4-3 against Hong Kong, right? If China loses this game, the likelihood of being eliminated is quite high. Since China is the host country, they will want to advance to the Super Round, but there is a high possibility that they will risk their lives in this match.]

[Haha, there’s no game where you don’t risk your life, but wouldn’t our national team risk their lives too?]

[You’re right. In fact, considering the strength of the Korean baseball team, even one loss would be considered a failure, and the players know that, so they will risk their lives in the game, right?]

[There is good news about gold medals these days, and I hope the baseball team adds another gold medal. Now, let me introduce the Korean lineup. 1st hitter, left fielder Kim Dong-jin, 2nd hitter, shortstop Kim Hwan-young, 3rd hitter, center fielder Joo Seung-cheol, 4th hitter, second baseman Ji Maeng-ho, 5th hitter, catcher Lee Yong-gi, 6th hitter, 1st baseman Choi Si-woo, 7th hitter, 3rd baseman Jin-beom Kim, The 8th hitter is designated hitter Lim Jeong-gyun, and the 9th hitter is right fielder Choi Jae-hyun.]

[Wow, just hearing the name makes me feel confident. You could say they are the future of Korean baseball, right? This Asian Games is the first age-based national team to be attempted in a major tournament, and such outstanding players have gathered. Veteran catcher Lee Yong-gi takes center stage there. Actually, how many athletes will be selected even if they go to the Olympics like this?]

[You’re right. In particular, Ji Maeng-ho, who hit home runs in three consecutive at-bats in Thailand, is a player who could make it to the major leagues right away, right?]

[Yes. I’m sure I’m not the only one looking forward to the day when Ji Maeng-ho plays in the major league.]

[Now, No. 1 hitter Kim Dong-jin comes to bat. He hit .301 with 7 home runs while playing for the Grizzlies. This is the player who won both the 2022 Rookie of the Year and the Steals of the Year awards, right?]

[Kim Dong-jin is a player with very good defense and arm strength that can be trusted to play all outfield positions, and is also quick enough to win the stolen base title. And since his debut season, he has hit .300 for two consecutive years with a sophisticated batting average. He is a player who fully deserves to be the number one hitter.]

A match between Korea and China. The voices of the broadcasters broadcasting the game were calm. The reason is the firm belief in the national team. The belief that they could never lose made the broadcasters’ voices calm even though it was a national game.

There is only one thing the broadcasters worry about. The only question is whether there will be a cold game in the 5th inning or a cold game in the 7th inning.

However, when the Chinese pitcher threw the first pitch, the broadcasters’ voices rose without realizing it.

“Strike!”

[Ah! Does this ball get a strike?]

[Uh! It looked like two balls were missing, but I don’t know. I’ll have to check it with a slow picture first.]

This was because two balls missing from the strike zone were declared strikes. As much as the broadcasters and the public watching the game were bewildered, Kim Dong-jin, who was standing at bat, was equally bewildered.

“It is strike?”

Kim Dong-jin protested to the referee using broken English. However, Kim Dong-jin’s poor English made the referee sound like he was accepting, saying, ‘This is a strike.’

“[I know very well.]”

‘What are you saying? I don’t think he’s angry. Usually referees get angry when people protest, but this guy doesn’t get angry? So you’re saying it wasn’t intentional?’

Kim Dong-jin, who had been focusing on baseball since elementary school and neglected his studies, became even more confused without even noticing that his English was wrong.

‘Okay, then I guess I made a mistake. ‘Ah, can you really do something low-level at an international competition?’

Kim Dong-jin trusted the referee’s calm response and waited for the second ball. And the second ball thrown. Kim Dong-jin did not swing the bat when the ball went down by one and a half,

“Strike!”

The second strike count has been filled.

“How is this a strike?”

“[What? Don’t say it in Korean, say it in English, say it in English.]”

“It is strike?!”

Still, Kim Dong-jin, who was able to understand some English thanks to public education, protested again.

“[Yes, that’s a strike. Wait, are you really protesting? If you protest one more time, I will give you a warning, so be careful.]”

And the referee understood Kim Dong-jin’s words with nuance. Thanks to the referee raising his voice, Kim Dong-jin was also able to notice the situation.

‘Fuck, you bastards are playing games like shit.’

And Kim Dong-jin, who realized that it was meaningless to expect a hit on the third ball that came in, swung the bat, but had no choice but to hit a grounder to the shortstop on a ball that was further away than before.

“Oh, fuck!”

“Dongjin, how are you?”

“Those bastards are fucking playing around? The ball looks like shit, but I think we need to pay more attention to the count fight.”

“Is that really the case? Even when I saw it from the stand-by batting box, it was ridiculous.”

“I should have hit the first pitch. “I could have made that a hit.”

“Once I figured it out.”

Kim Dong-jin told the next batter, Kim Hwan-young, what he felt at the plate and quickly returned to the dugout. The referee’s prank was so important that he had to inform the coaches.

“Coach, the referees are playing around, I think you need to be careful.”

“Is that really the case? I got it.”

Director Lee Geum-hyun frowned after hearing Kim Dong-jin’s words. I was expecting it, but it came out so blatantly.

‘If this goes on, the 5th cold round will be difficult, right?’

Of course, I didn’t think I would lose even in that situation, but it was actually uncomfortable. Kim Dong-jin’s report was quickly conveyed to the players through the coaches.

“Hey! It’s space! “Today, just hit it inside the strike zone, the umpires said they were playing a joke.”

Starting pitcher Jang Woo-joo was one of those targets.

“Don’t worry, coach.”

Jang Woo-joo reacted calmly to the coach’s words. Because they already expected that China would play a trick, the starting pitcher chosen by Korea was Jang Woo-joo, who throws 100 mph. Jang Woo-ju, who had a ball that most players could not touch even if he threw it to the middle, was the best pitcher for this situation, and he did not waver because he was anticipating it.

“Still, I wish I had some points…”

“It’s space. “I only trust you.”

After the coach left, Meng Hao came next to Jang Woo-ju, who was muttering to himself.

“Huh?”

“I’ll help you again.”

“Also? “When did you help me?”

“Wow, this bastard shuts up? Rio in the room at that time…”

“Ah! Okay! Okay! Shut up! What kind of talk was going on in the dugout… !”

“Baby, wait until you feel embarrassed.”

Meng Hao said a word to Jang Woo-ju and began to pack his bat.

‘If it were Seungcheol, he would go out, right?’

Meng Hao trusted Joo Seung-cheol. He believes that since Joo Seung-cheol is the best hitter in the national team besides himself, he will be able to bat in the first inning.

Ta – Aak!

In addition, Kim Hwan-young, the starting shortstop of the Shilla Triggers, was not an easy player. In a situation where he was already aware of the referee’s prank, he amazingly cleared a stray ball that entered the zone.

[Kim Hwan-young’s hit! A ball can be a strike, but a hit cannot be an out. Haha.]

[Um, Commissioner…]

[Oh, sorry. I was so excited that I made a mistake. I apologize.]

-Joo Seung-cheol! Joo Seung-cheol! Joo Seung-cheol!

[Now Joo Seung-cheol comes to bat. Although he was unable to achieve the record of 30-30 for the third consecutive year due to injuries this season, Joo Seung-cheol set a record of 20-20 with a batting average of .303 and 23 steals with 27 home runs and 23 stolen bases.]

[As everyone knows, Joo Seung-cheol is the son of national hero Joo Hyung-jin, right? I wish I had a son like that. Just as his father, Joo Hyung-jin, has good memories from China, I hope that his son, Joo Seung-cheol, will also have good memories this time.]

If Joo Seung-cheol heard it, he would have been stressed about being compared to his father, Joo Hyeong-jin, but the broadcaster’s voice was not heard by Joo Seung-cheol at the plate, and Joo Seung-cheol hit the pitcher’s ball as usual.

[It’s big! It’s big!]

Joo Seung-cheol’s batted ball hits the wall directly. However, because the batted ball was quite fast, first base runner Kim Hwan-young stopped at third base, and Joo Seung-cheol, who hit the ball quickly, had no choice but to return to first base on his way to second base.

‘Tch, were you too conscious of the strike zone? Phew, it was a ball, but I was impatient. Should I say I’m glad I hit the fence?’

As Joo Seung-cheol was giving feedback on his own hitting, the cheering squad that came to support his game made the loudest noise in today’s game.

-Ji Maeng-ho! Ji Maengho! Ji Maengho!

In less than the first season of his debut, Ji Maeng-ho set a record that will remain in history.