Chapter 296 – Episode 294. The Ride Comfort Is Good. (1)

‘What, why are you guys like this today?’

When I heard that I was going to face Choi Jung-hoon, Hyunsung’s ace and the best left-handed pitcher in Korea, in the first round of the playoffs after beating Hancheol, I thought it would be a difficult game today. Except for Radette, there was no pitcher better than Choi Jung-hoon in Hancheol.

But, now. The game was developing in a completely different direction than I expected. After scoring 4 runs in the first inning thanks to leadoff hitter Kim Joo-yeop’s home run and Choi Jin-cheol’s three runs, we added 2 more runs in the second inning against Choi Jung-hoon. Even though I retired to the outfield fly.

‘How long has it been since we won a game by such a score even if I couldn’t do it? It feels like it’s been a really long time.’

In addition, today’s starting pitcher, Crongs, was blocking Hyunseong’s hitters with no runs until the third inning. It’s the 4th inning with a new pitcher, and the score is now 6:0. In fact, it was safe to say that today’s game was over.

“Meng Hao, Park Jae-hoon, you’ve dealt with a lot, right?”

“Yes.”

“Then let’s just play as usual. “Forget my last at-bat, okay?”

Hyunseong’s new pitcher, who replaced Choi Jung-hoon, who pitched 1.2 innings and was rejected, is Park Jae-hoon, Hyunseong’s fifth starter. After getting one out count left in the second inning, he showed good pitching in the third inning, ending with a three-way out of the 8th, 9th, and 1st batters, but he was shaky from the 4th inning.

‘Looking at the walk he gave to senior Suho, it looks like his control is not at its usual level.’

Jaehoon Park is a pitcher whose strength lies in his pitch control and various breaking balls rather than his pitch position. Considering that such a pitcher gave up a straight walk to Kim Su-ho, his current situation did not look that good. Perhaps the sudden appearance on the mound and the all-out effort to put out the fire in the previous inning led to the handshake.

Perfect!

– Weather warning! Weather warning! Weather warning!

Today, Ki Ki-joo, who had no hits in two at-bats, hit a hit, leaving 1st and 2nd base with no outs.

‘Good. Let’s take it easy with a 10-point lead.’

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

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

I can hear the voices of fans calling me. Even though they came all the way to Daegu, they shouted like this. For the sake of those fans, I really wanted to score a score in this at-bat.

‘The average velocity was around 143, right? With this level of restraint, you can react no matter where you come.’

“Hoya, have you come to get out again?”

“What if you caught it once?”

“My big. Even talk back.”

“I surpassed your height when I was in middle school.”

As I entered the batter’s box, Park Joong-hyun greeted me warmly. He must have been in a good mood because he caught me in a hit earlier.

‘Why do you like it so much when you’re applying it? Well, I guess I was a bit of a bright person to begin with.’

‘It’s a slider.’

‘Oh, slider from the first pitch. It’s not particularly new.’

In fact, the slider was one of the pitches that came to me the most. I’m afraid to throw a fastball, but I can’t throw a curveball or changeup, so the only pitch left is the national breaking ball, the slider.

Second base runner Kim Soo-ho and first base runner Ki Ki-joo were almost stuck on the base, conscious of an unexpected line drive out. The defensive position was shifted to the left, and the outfielders were moving back and preparing to catch my long ball.

This was almost always the scene when I went to bat, so it wasn’t anything new, but I was a little concerned about the game with Hyunsung. Because center fielder Yang Ji-hyeok’s defensive range was at a level that made no sense. Because it was Yang Ji-hyuk who stole my hit in my second at-bat.

‘I’m a little worried.’

‘I just need to get over this small stadium, so why worry?’

‘I hope so too.’

After answering Rossby bluntly, I waited for the pitcher’s ball.

“Ball.”

The first ball is a ball that flows outward. If it had come into the zone, I would have swung, but I caught his first pitch to check today’s trajectory. The slider I checked at the plate didn’t seem much different from the trajectory I had faced before.

‘Okay. Check the trajectory.’

After that, I kept watching his balls and aimed for balls in the zone, but the second and third balls also went outside the zone, and the count soon became three balls.

‘It’s a slider.’

‘It was a slider…’

After hitting a three ball with no outs on first and second base, the next batter is Choi Jin-cheol, who is showing off his best batting ability today by hitting a home run and a double.

‘This comes in unconditionally.’

I waited for his slider with great confidence. And the guy’s fourth ball was thrown.

‘In this location… !’

The trajectory of the slider is toward the body. I swung the bat to match the timing of his slider.

‘… ‘Huh?’

However, contrary to expectations, this guy’s slider doesn’t bend.

Dang!

‘Fuck!’

An ominous hitting sound was heard, and the ball rolled toward third base. If thrown properly, the slider, which should have gone into the zone, turned into a 130 poop ball that went towards the body without bending. And my bat, which was preparing for the slider’s trajectory, missed at that shit ball.

“Run!”

There were many situations like this during the season, so I didn’t panic and ran to first base with all my might.

“Out!”

‘The third baseman hit third base!’

Kim Soo-ho, who was the runner on second base, was forced out. Five steps to first base.

‘Throw it!’

Rossby informs us of the third baseman’s throw. As I do my best to stretch my feet, a cheerful sound is heard from the first baseman’s mitt.

“It’s safe, right?”

“Safe!”

“Out!”

Me, the first base coach, and Hyunseong’s first baseman shouted at the same time. When I checked the feeling of my feet and the sound I heard, it was almost the same timing. We looked at the first base umpire.

“… “

The first base umpire’s worries persist. And the first base umpire’s mouth opened.

“… Out!”

“Yes? Is this an out?”

“Video! Video!”

The first base coach immediately sent a video review sign to the manager, and when manager Lee Soo-hyun came out, he applied for a video review.

“Wow, shit. This won’t break.”

I’ve seen pitches like this a few times during the season, but I wasn’t expecting it at all to see a starter throw a shit ball like this in fall baseball without being able to pitch even 2 innings.

“What? What kind of ball did you hit?”

“I said I was going to hit a slider…”

“Was it a slider? Tsk, Maengho, you shouldn’t hit like that in a three-ball.”

“I will take care of that.”

“… Huh? Uh, okay. You have to figure that out. Because you have your own batting style.”

Since he was trying to give batting advice, which is not appropriate for a first base coach, I skipped it right away and waited for the decision. After a few dozen seconds, the referee wearing his headset spreads his arms wide and shouts.

“Safe!”

‘After… Still, it’s not the worst.’

If I had stopped even a little after hitting the ball or if my legs were slow, it would have definitely been a double play. Just when I was wondering whether I should be unfortunate that the ball didn’t break, or fortunate that it didn’t result in a double play, Choi Jin-cheol, who was showing off his best batting ability today, came into the batter’s box.

‘But Jincheol’s batting skills are good today.’

Now all that’s left is to trust Choi Jin-cheol.

– Choi Jin-cheol! Choi Jin-cheol! Choi Jin-cheol!

For now, just like the fans who are chanting Choi Jin-cheol’s name, I secretly pray that he will make up for my mistakes. And the first pitch was thrown.

Ta – Aak!

As the sound of the ball splitting was heard, Choi Jin-cheol’s hit disappeared far away.

“Wow, what the fuck?”

A tremendous batted ball that will naturally make you burst out in exclamation. The batted ball passed over the fence quickly, and cheers erupted from the stands.

– Choi Jin-cheol! Choi Jin-cheol! Choi Jin-cheol!

“Jincheol, what happened today?”

“I see. Wow, I thought I was screwed when I made a mistake.”

He looked quite surprised when he saw Choi Jin-cheol, the leader of the team, hit the ball that hit home first. Well, Choi Jin-cheol’s performance today was two three-runs and a double. He had only 7 RBIs.

“Was the most RBIs in a postseason game 9?”

“If Jincheol is in good condition today, I’ll pass on it.”

“Sweet, I also need to hit a home run quickly. “The magic hook doesn’t explode.”

“Please exert yourself.”

“What are you saying? “The bastard got no hits today.”

“…”

“What are you talking about so interestingly?”

While he was chatting with Ki Ki-ju, Choi Jin-cheol leisurely walked around the field and stepped on home plate. He looked like a triumphant general. He was someone who didn’t like to lose the spotlight in games, but Choi Jin-cheol’s performance today clearly deserved it.

“Senior, congratulations on your multi-home run.”

“Okay, Junple, you worked hard, so get some rest. “I’ll take care of the playoffs.”

How could I feel so reassured? Moreover, Jaehoon Park was also preparing to come off the mound. Already the third pitcher in the 4th inning. And by 9 points. Today’s game was completely tilted. I expected it to be a difficult game because the opponent’s record was weak, and the pitchers were strong, but when I looked at it, I was slightly embarrassed to see a completely different result.

‘Yes, there are days like this. ‘How can I play well all the time?’

Choi Jin-cheol’s performance was also good news for me because it was clear that if Choi Jin-cheol continued to show this kind of performance, the checks on me would weaken.

“Good! Let’s grab one game and go!”

“I’m excited. I’m excited.”

“Hyung, did you eat something good today? Let’s eat together.”

“Is it because I’m a hawk? It goes well.”

When I entered the dugout with my seniors and received enthusiastic congratulations from my teammates, I looked at the stands and saw that the number of spectators wearing blue uniforms had significantly decreased compared to when the game started. Several Hyunsung fans left the stadium due to the score difference after 4 innings.

‘Well, since it’s Choi Joong-hoon, you probably thought you would win, but that’s not unreasonable.’

Compared to Hyunseong, who is already his third pitcher, Crongs, our starting pitcher, has been showing solid pitching so far, so there was no need to worry. In the bottom of the 4th inning, where the newly pitched pitcher had blocked the top of the 4th inning, Crongs continued to pitch without losing concentration despite our long offensive inning, and the pitching continued into the 6th inning.

The score at the end of the 6th inning was 12:1.

“Cronx is used up to here. “I think it would be better for him to save his stamina, just in case.”

“Is Junhu ready?”

“Yes. “I’ve been warming up since the last inning.”

The pitcher who took the mound after dropping Crongs, who was pitching well, was Lim Jun-hoo.

‘No way, this guy won’t be scared and ruin the game, right?’

In the semi-playoffs, I appeared in two games and gave up 2 runs in 2 innings, so I felt a little anxious for a while.

“Strike! Out!”

“Out!”

“Out!”

Lim Jun-hoo was unusually clean in the 7th inning.

“Is the ball good today?”

“Girlfriend, come. Hehe. “I have to show my good side.”

“girlfriend? Have you got a girlfriend?”

I can’t believe I even had a girlfriend without me knowing. She was a little annoyed that she didn’t speak up sooner. How many girls have we banged at clubs together over the years? Well, I didn’t have time to talk about that because I was preparing for fall baseball.

“Huh. When my brother went to the Asian Games. I’m a Daegu girl. “I met this girl at the bar that my brother introduced me to.”

Is it the bar I introduced you to? Well, whenever I come to Daegu, I always hang out there. There, misunderstandings about Crongs were resolved.

“Pretty and kind.”

“I’m not really curious about that.”

Somehow he pitched well today. Actually, I gained a lot of points and my girlfriend came too. It was an environment where I couldn’t throw the ball.

“Meng Hao, there are two innings left, what do you want to do?”

At that time, the head coach asked my intention. Since the score gap has widened significantly, they are probably trying to give the starting players a break to manage their stamina. Hyunseong was also using pinch hitters and substitute defenders to help with the widening score gap, so it didn’t seem like there would be a problem if he left out.

“Yes, I will rest.”

“I get it. Junhu, are you ready to pitch 3 innings today? Okay?”

“I understand! Just leave it to me!”

Lim Jun-hoo responded with a confident expression when asked to pitch three innings, perhaps because he wanted to show off his cool side in front of his girlfriend.

‘I don’t like the look of it. Should I tell this bastard’s girlfriend the story of how I went to this bastard’s club and got into trouble? … No, it’s done. Ha, I’m weak-hearted, so it’s okay.’

I was a little annoyed by that, but being generous, I decided to bear with it and sat on the bench to watch the game. And the game, which was already tilted, went smoothly.

“Thank you for your hard work!”

“Shut it down and let’s go to Kosi!”

“Thank you for your hard work!”

“Senior Jincheol! Today’s interview!”

“Okay.”

The score at the end of the game was 13:1. The first game ended with a comfortable victory for the first time in a long time, as the batting lineup exploded and Crongs and Lim Jun-hoo, who were on the mound, combined for 1 run in 9 innings. During the semi-playoffs, I had to do something to win, so it felt strange to win so easily, but I was also happy.

‘Yes, there should be days like this too. Wow, the bus is nice. Please enjoy the remaining matches! Seniors!’