Chapter 286 – Episode 284. 2023 Semi-Playoffs. (2)

“Fuck you!”

“Out!”

“Out!”

The attack ended in the bottom of the first inning with two out counts and a harsh curse.

“Kabi.”

Kim Soo-ho, who was a runner on first base, calmly comforted Ki Ki-ju and entered the dugout. Looking at the weatherman’s expression, he looked more upset than usual.

“Fuck, if it weren’t for the shift.”

“Kabiyo.”

“Mianta, I should have taken over.”

“Well, it’s just one at-bat. By the way, how about that little ball?”

I heard about today’s starting pitcher, Patrick, during the power analysis session and from No. 1 hitter Kim Joo-yeop, but since it was also important to know what a hitter like Ki Ki-joo thinks, I asked about Patrick’s condition today.

“Sweet, it’s similar to usual, but the speed is 2-3 km/h faster. I guess they’ll give it their all from the first episode. He felt power when he hit it. “I think I’ve given up on Jegu a little bit?”

“Okay, OK.”

Patrick’s average velocity is around the low 140s. The highest speed recorded today was 154 km/h, so it seems like he sharpened his skills for the stage of fall baseball. Patrick, whom I met during the season, was one of the pitchers who had a good chemistry with Lee Yong-gi, Hancheol’s main catcher, as he had a skillful style of throwing several breaking balls based on his excellent control.

‘I guess I threw a little hard today. ‘This is the postseason, right?’

If he pitched like he did during the season, he was the type of pitcher who would get at least a double, but if he put more effort into his pitch like he did today, the story would be different. He was a little more picky about the power feature type for me. It would have been nice to have faced him from the first inning, but the out count was already up, so I consoled myself and went into the dugout to grab my glove.

“[Hey, Ji. Come out quickly.]”

‘Fortunately, Crongs seems to be in good condition. Do you think today’s game will be easy if I give up just a few points?’

The pitch Crongs showed in the beginning of the first inning was definitely powerful, so it wasn’t particularly disappointing even though our attack ended in vain.

Perfect!

“Out!”

“Strike! Out!”

“Strike! Out!”

And Crongs continued the performance he showed in the beginning of the first inning and blocked Hancheol’s attack.

“Meng Hao! “One please!”

The bottom of the second inning arrived, and I walked to the plate while listening to the cheers of my teammates.

“Hi. “I’m coming.”

“Yeah, it’s been a while. Be gentle, Meng Hao.”

I greeted Lee Yong-gi, who was sitting at home plate, and took a batting stance. Jamsil’s batting experience after a long time.

-Ji Maeng-ho~! Ji Maengho~! Oooooh! Thunders Ji Maeng-ho! Fly it to the sky!

The sound of my cheering song makes me realize that I am back in Jamsil.

“Give me a good ball.”

“Are you crazy? “You walk the whole series.”

“Brother, can you catch me? “It’s a failure, so I’m just running?”

“Let’s see if I can run even with a broken rib.”

Lee Yong-gi declared a dead ball, but he wasn’t particularly scared. Because the Lee Yong-gi I’ve seen so far is not the type of person who would use such dirty tricks. Probably, the intention is to keep him conscious of his body and compete on the outside. Because it is difficult to pass the outside ball in Jamsil.

‘It’s a fastball.’

‘Okay.’

It’s a fastball from the first pitch, so are you saying you’re going to go out strong? I focused on the outside and waited for Patrick’s first pitch. And the first pitch of the guy who was thrown.

‘… ‘Huh?’

Dang!

The moment his ball was thrown, I felt something was wrong, so I controlled the bat and forcibly pulled it back at the moment of impact.

“Fuck…”

A batted ball rolling toward third base. Fortunately, it went off the line and a foul was called. A fastball towards the body at the moment when one is aware of the outside ball.

‘Fuck, were you too conscious? I was completely fooled.’

‘Bastard. Just watch and hit. ‘Why do you think so much when you’re at bat?’

‘I have to think about it before I hit it!’

‘It’s better for you to just watch and hit! Anyway, you stupid bastard. It will take 10 more years for you to defeat that guy in a fight.’

‘Chii…’

And as soon as he saw the foul, Rossby’s reprimand continued.

‘… Still, I’ve been adjusting pretty well these days.’

‘Shut up, watch and hit.’

‘Yes.’

“Meng Hao, were you scared?”

“… It’s scary.”

“Bitch, will your brother hit you? Play comfortably, comfortably.”

Lee Yong-gi also seemed to gain momentum when he got a strike from the first pitch. … Fuck. I wanted to say something, but it was difficult to do so because he was one of the few players I became close with while representing the country from the WBC to the Asian Games. He would have just blown his mouth off if he had done the damn thing…

“… “You think you’re really lucky.”

“Really, I’m lucky. “It’s a blessing to be able to strike out Ji Maeng-ho.”

‘It’s a curve.’

‘Curve? ‘Here?’

There’s no way Lee Yong-gi doesn’t know me, so you’re throwing me a curveball? This was definitely a ball. Of course, even if I came into the strike zone, there was no way I wouldn’t be able to hit a slow curve, so I didn’t feel any pressure.

“Ball.”

And as expected, the ball falls outside the strike zone. With this, the count became one strike, one ball.

“Sseu-eup, I’m not fooled either. “I shouldn’t throw a curveball.”

“Hyung, I’ve seen a few at-bats and I still see the curve. “I’m just throwing away one ball count.”

‘It’s a fastball.’

‘After a falling curveball, a high fastball is the norm… If it’s Lee Yong-gi, it’s a different way…’

‘Hey.’

‘Yes.’

I stopped thinking about where the ball would fly and focused on his pitch, thinking that I would hit it once it was in the zone. The speed of the first pitch recorded on the electronic display board was 153 km/h. Even if you watch and follow, it’s not like you can’t hit it. In times like this, as Rossby said, it would be better to watch and act.

“Huh!”

And Patrick’s third ball is thrown with great enthusiasm. His third ball flew high toward his body. It was slightly higher than the strike zone…,

‘… It’s too late to stop!’

Perfect!

A batted ball flying high to the left.

‘It’s short!’

Hancheol’s left fielder Kim Dong-jin, who had retreated near the fence conscious of my long hit, quickly began running forward.

‘If you miss, you’re on second base!’

The batted ball was high, but Kim Dong-jin was also far behind, so it was worth a shot. I also ran as fast as I could and circled first base.

‘What about batted balls?’

‘I couldn’t catch it.’

‘Okay.’

Judging by the fact that there were no cheers, it was not a dive. That means it’s a close game at second base! As I slide on the bench leg toward the second base, I feel the dirt against my pants and the base touching the spikes. And the tag from the second baseman immediately followed.

“Safe!”

‘Wow, that was fucking dangerous.’

It was dangerous to look at it and think about hitting it. Because I was thinking about swinging the bat, the bat had no choice but to go out when I got near the zone, and I had no choice but to force myself to hit the ball in a position where such bad hits were coming out.

However, I was a little lucky this time. The outfielders stayed far away because they were conscious of my long hit, and the ball fell in a position where even Kim Dong-jin, one of the best basemen in the league, couldn’t catch it. If it had been a normal defense, they would have been caught for sure, right?

“Wow, that’s so fucking fast. “Is this coming to second base?”

Of course, as Hancheol’s second baseman muttered to himself, my fast legs also played a role. Anyway, the process wasn’t smooth, but the result was a double. It was a pretty good result since you can see that if you hit second base with no outs, you are guaranteed to score one point.

‘Run to third base? Or can you tell me the type of pitch?’

After seeing Choi Jin-cheol come to the plate and thinking a little, he decided to run to third base once he was told the type of pitch and there was one out.

‘Senior, the first pitch is a curveball.’

‘Okay.’

Choi Jin-cheol and I are already soul partners who exchanged many autographs during the season. When I told him the type of pitch with eye and hand gestures, Choi Jin-cheol immediately understood my sign.

Ta-ah!

And a large batted ball explodes. It was a hit that would have been a home run because it was a different stadium, but since it was Jamsil, I watched the hit from between second and third base. The batted ball flew toward the fence at a fairly high speed,

-Wow!!!

– Choi Jin-cheol! Choi Jin-cheol!

The batted ball hit the fence and fell. The player who caught the ball was center fielder Joo Seung-cheol, a strong player known in the league, but it was difficult to aim home from that distance, so he leisurely ran home. And the number 1 that goes up on the electronic display board.

-I can’t live without AT~! I can’t live without AT! I can’t live without AT! Furthermore, I really, really can’t live~!

As the first goal came out, the fans’ voices grew louder.

‘Does Choi Jin-cheol have 1 rune?’

Choi Jin-cheol’s hitting was fast, but his legs were slow. There is center fielder Joo Seung-cheol. It was unfortunate that Choi Jin-cheol stopped at first base, but he was somewhat satisfied because it was better than being thrown out after overdoing it.

‘Besides, the next batter is senior Gwanhyeong…’

Woo Kwan-hyung was trustworthy. The next batter, Yoon Seong-tae, was a bit unreliable. At this level, I thought he could have scored at least one more point.

“Meng Hao, thank you for your hard work.”

“This guy, his feet are real. “He should have gone to land.”

“Seniors, I am Ji-Maeng. Hehe.”

When he entered the dugout, exchanged greetings with his teammates, and took out a drink from the refrigerator, the sound of a hit was heard again.

Dang!

… Sounds pretty ominous. When I put down the drink I was drinking and looked around the field, Woo Kwan-hyung’s batted ball was amazingly sucked into the second baseman’s glove. As a second baseman, it’s the kind of hit that feels the best. Hancheol’s second baseman, An Si-Hwon, like a veteran, threw the ball to second base, and the ball that arrived at second base was thrown back to first base.

“Out!”

“Out!”

A picturesque 4-6-3 double play. It was a double play that would have made him applaud if he had been watching it on TV. And Yoon Seong-tae’s next at-bat was out without even looking at it.

“[Haha! Still, I got 1 point. Just trust this body. Haha.]”

Crongs smiled and grabbed his glove, but there were already two double plays in the second inning alone. And that too from reliable batters Ki Ki-joo and Woo Kwan-hyung.

‘Today won’t be easy, right? As expected, I…’

Overall, does it feel like the batters are somehow frozen? As expected, in this situation, I had no choice but to solve it.

*

[Kronx’s mighty helmet! He put the batter on base with a walk, but struck out No. 1 batter Kim Dong-jin with three pitches! With this, 3 scoreless innings!]

[There is a fierce pitching battle typical of fall baseball, right?]

[Patrick! This inning ends with a three-way strike! Conceding runs in the last inning is no problem.]

[Patrick is perfect at hitting the ball, isn’t he? It’s pitching that feels like you’re putting everything into one game!]

Just as Meng Hao thought it would not be easy, the game was tight between both teams with only one point difference.

[Kim Su-ho’s leadoff hitter gets on base! Today, I am on base for two consecutive at-bats!]

[Ah! Weather warning, the batting ball is flying high! This hit goes far! Far! Oh, and the right fielder catches it in front of the fence. Kim Su-ho reached second base. Now Ji Maeng-ho comes to bat.]

Meng Hao’s second at bat in such a tense situation. Meng Ho went to bat thinking he was going to hit a home run, but with one out and second base on base, there was no team in the KBA that would throw the ball to Meng Ho, and Meng Ho walked to first base with an intentional throw.

[Patrick! We will prevent this crisis!]

And that chance was blocked by Patrick, who was showing off his might. Patrick was showing a pitch that pitchers only show about once a year on an important stage, the first game of the semi-playoffs.

4th and 5th times. 6 times. The starting pitchers of both teams showed no signs of deterioration, and while the feast of zeros continued, Joo Seung-cheol, who came out as the lead hitter in the top of the 7th inning, hit a ball.

[Joo Seung-cheol’s batted ball is big! Left, left, left! It passed! Joo Seung-cheol balances the game! The score is now 1:1! It becomes the origin!]

Crongs’ missed throw went into the center. However, Crongs finished the 7th episode without paying any heed to the loss.

“[Hey, Chronx, are you okay?]”

Jeong Yun-cheol was worried about Crongs, who has a fiery personality, so he spoke to him in short English.

“[It’s okay. I’m still cheerful.]”

‘Oh, why are you so calm? In the last game, they said they went on a rampage because they lost the victory.’

Crongs answered more calmly than usual.

‘Whoa, Ji will make me win again.’

There was only one reason why Crongs answered so calmly. At the bottom of the 7th inning, he was counting on Maeng-ho to go out as the leadoff hitter. He said that Ji Maeng-ho was the most genius batsman he had ever seen.

[Now, Ji Maeng-ho, the number 4 hitter, comes to bat. Today’s performance is 1 hit in 1 at-bat, 1 walk, and 1 run scored.]

[Patrick’s pitches exceed 80, but he’s still on the mound. That’s why they judged Patrick’s condition to be good today, right? However, having to deal with Ji Maeng-ho is an element of anxiety.]

Also, the commentary broadcasting the game gave me a strong feeling that something was going to happen.

“Please, Meng Tiger God, please!”

Likewise, AT fans wearing striped uniforms were also praying with their hands folded in unison. Hoping that Ji Maeng-ho would deliver an exciting strike. Because it was Ji Maeng-ho who gave us a blow every time we had such expectations.

The belief of AT fans was a source of anxiety to Hancheol fans,

“Ji Maeng-ho, that bastard always hits me when things like this happen…” . Ah, I’m screwed.”

Hancheol’s starting catcher Lee Yong-gi also felt that kind of anxiety.

“Coach, the leadoff hitter in the next inning is Jiminhon, what should I do?”

“If I skip it, it will definitely be considered 1 point, right?”

“… Sorry. “I don’t think even my shoulders can stop it.”

“Ji Maeng-ho’s batting average is .400. If you hit it 10 times, you are out 6 times. Then I’ll bet on those six. And I believe in you. Courage.”

‘… Write, I’m not confident either.’

Lee Yong-gi, who had received permission from the coach to compete, also faced Ji Maeng-ho with a feeling of anxiety running down his spine, as if something was going to happen.