Chapter 31 – Episode 31. Blue Dragon (6)

If Jang Woo-joo is evaluated as a talent that comes out about once every 30 years, there is an evaluation that Kim Won-ho is a talent that comes out once every 10 years. What do you mean? Kim Won-ho also meant that he had enough talent to cook for high school players.

At the end of the first inning, Wonho also made light of Gwangju Mirae High School’s attack and finished it off with a beom, and at the beginning of the second inning, it was my turn as the leading hitter.

‘Looking at it from the waiting at-bat, it’s faster than I thought.’

‘That’s the power of a 100 mile pitcher’s dream.’

‘Did Mr. Rossby get 100 miles?’

‘No, it’s not up to 100 miles, but it seemed to be around 98 miles (156.8 km/h).’

‘Even if it’s not, it’s fast enough. How did Mr. Rossby deal with it?’

‘How many pitchers do you think can throw 100 miles? It is better not to aim for such a pitcher’s ball, as it can break your balance. Because there are a lot of games anyway. Instead, I tended to go for the breaking ball.’

A ball I had never seen before. Besides, it was a rare ball even in Rossby’s experience.

‘There’s nothing we can do. I have no choice but to match the timing while watching.’

‘Okay. Your bat speed is good enough. And if you know you’re only throwing fastballs, there’s nothing you can’t hit.’

As Mr. Ross B said, unless he had a fastball that reached 160, he did not have a type of pitch that could be called a winning shot. He was said to throw a curveball, but he wasn’t that dangerous and he didn’t throw very well. It was Jang Woo-joo’s strength that four-seam and curveball came out in the same form, but it wasn’t very important to me.

“Hello.”

After greeting the umpire and standing at the plate, he quickly swung the bat a few times. When Jang Woo-joo met my eyes, he gave a fishy smile.

‘Why do these fucking pitchers laugh every time I see them?’

Are you him Doesn’t it seem like a big deal? A mockery that seemed to have that meaning. And most of the pitchers who smiled like that were hit with home runs by me and their faces turned red.

‘Let’s see if that expression will remain until the end.’

The battery quickly exchanged opinions and came to throw the first ball.

‘Four seams. The meat is in the middle.’

Phut! There was the sound of the catcher’s mitt exploding.

‘It’s fast.’

“Cheek!”

But the ball bounced slightly upwards. He didn’t even swing the bat because I checked it the moment the pitcher threw the ball. And when I stood at the bat and saw Jang Woo-joo’s ball directly, I felt a little different from what I saw from the outside.

‘What? The ball is rather clean, isn’t it?’

It’s fast, but it’s a fastball that flies like a stick. In addition, the pitching form is clean, so it feels like you can see the ball well? I just felt the ball rise. The ball wouldn’t actually float, but it seemed like it was because the ball was so fast.

‘Yes, so turn it without fear.’

‘Yep!’

Rossby’s words fill her with confidence. Yes, they say that the best second baseman in major league history can do it, but that kid’s ball is nothing.

I controlled my mind and waited for the ball from him again at the plate.

‘Four seams. Middle.’

Middle? Wasn’t it in the middle before? You bastard, you want to do it with me?

After seeing his windup posture, I immediately prepared to release the bat. You can hit the guy’s ball only when you swing it almost the same way the ball leaves your hand. Fortunately, the pitching form was clean, so it was easy to get the timing right. And the moment the ball leaves his hand!

Fuck!

I matched the timing and swung the bat. The ball floated high and flew toward the right foul line before falling into the stands. However, I felt something strange.

‘My hand doesn’t hurt more than I thought?’

Even though Wonho’s ball was 150, there was a feeling of hitting that made his hands ring. The same goes for other pitchers. But even though his ball is fast, his hands didn’t hurt more than I thought.

‘It must have been a feather.’

‘I’m guessing that’s the case?’

Although it was fast, the power of the ball was not good. Come to think of it, when the director explained, he said that he was the type to get hit with a surprisingly large one, right?

‘I thought it was because I was careless, but in fact it was just my poor pitch.’

Since there was no hitter who could hit the ball with the ball of Jang Woo-joo, he would have maintained good grades until now, but not now. I am an orangutan recognized by Rossby! I was confident in my bat speed.

Hehe, he finally admitted he was an orangutan.’

‘I’ll be climbing up to the gorillas soon. Jang Woo-joo, you’re behind me.’

Knowing that his pitch was not good, there was nothing to be afraid of with Jang Woo-joo’s ball. He was confident enough to pass even if he didn’t hit the sweet spot exactly. It’s hard to hit the center of the bat, but if you just hit the bat, any baseball player who has gone through an elite course can do it.

Right!

Right!

Right!

The more I hit the ball, the more the ball flew to the right and got closer and closer to the inside of the ground. It meant that I was getting used to his ball, and it also meant that my bat speed was adjusting to his velocity.

“Are you going to keep throwing fastballs? It’s boring.”

“Two strike one ball indie, are you confident?”

“Do you keep throwing?”

The catcher seemed to be slightly scared as well, and his dialect mixed voice seemed to tremble. Do you want to come right into the curve?

‘Four seams. Middle.’

I lived only with my own pride. Well, the pitcher is a creature with a girlish side. It wasn’t strange to play Gao in such a situation where the ball was hit.

Fuck!

This time the ball flew to the left foul line instead of the right. Usually, unless the bat is forcibly pulled, if the bat is behind the ball, it will fly to the right for a right-handed hitter, and if the timing is fast, it will fly to the left. And the batted ball, which had been heading to the right all along, flew to the left this time. It’s pretty big too!

“Foul.”

‘It was a waste. For a monkey.’

‘Ah, I can’t get past this.’

But with this shot, it was clear. The fact that this guy just needs to hit the ball and he can make it into a home run. In addition, the catcher’s mitt did not move even though the fastball was hitting. In other words, he is a pitcher who just believes in his fastball and throws it while looking only at the center. There is no rule to hit the border line (the part of the line when creating the strike zone).

Either out or in the middle.

‘The problem is that his control was good until now, but I don’t know what will happen from now on…. So far, we’ve been lucky enough to get into the strike zone, but there’s no guarantee that the next ball will come in as well. If this is the case, is there no choice but to pray in the sky? Please come inside.’

When I was thinking that, it wasn’t the sky that saved me, but Rossby’s voice.

‘Four-seam, a ball that falls outside.’

‘A ball that falls?’

‘Okay.’

Are you saying you’re taking the ball out of here? Don’t you have any pride? While throwing 160. If I were the guy, I wouldn’t want to run away from an opponent on this big stage. Well, then even if you take it out, you’ll try to put it inside the zone as much as possible, right?

Since there are still many at-bats left, I set my body timing to his four-seam with the intention of turning it coolly.

Without knowing what I was thinking, he winded up and threw the ball.

Ta-evil!

‘I don’t know!’

Feels like your hands are resonating. Come!

I instinctively finished the follow swing and threw the bat far along the bat’s grain. And walked slowly to first base. And I met the eyes of Jang Woo-joo, who was glaring at me.

‘What are you trying to do, you bastard.’

After one blow, I stretched out my hand and started spinning around the base again.

“Oh man!”

While savoring the way the guy smashes his glove.

“Hey, is it a home run today?”

“Something unavoidable in life. Death, taxes, and Ji Maeng-ho’s home run.”

“Oh hey, hit it well and watch it.”

After joking with Wonho who was waiting for me, I entered the dugout and all the players were waiting for me. The players congratulated me and gave me high-fives, but it wasn’t as hot as before.

“Wow, hyung, did you hit a home run today?”

“I knew how to play. From now on, I will skip it.”

“How do I get my next score? From now on, senior Meng Ho will skip it.”

It’s just, like no one is surprised to see a fish breathe in water, a natural reaction to seeing something obvious.

“Congratulations, Maeng Ho.”

“What?”

“A home run in five consecutive games from the round of 32 to the final. It’s a new high school baseball record.”

“Okay? What kind of records do you have? It’s nothing.”

“Ugh, no luck.”

“Yes, praise me more, this body will send you to college!”

There was no way the original team spirit or anything like that would remain with me, but I couldn’t bear the stigma of wasting three years being pushed out by guys who couldn’t even go to college. … And I seduce my classmates in college and set them on a blind date.

“Maengho, well done.”

After the commotion was over, the silent director congratulated me. He was a director who strangely softened after Hyejin’s older sister became pregnant.

“Sorry. Even if you’re not good at defense, if you’re as talented as you, I should’ve made room for you.”

“No. How can I play when I can’t even defend? It’s okay.”

Lee Gi-cheol’s apology was too late.

‘You should have apologized to me sooner. You will be punished for that crime, so don’t be shocked if you find out later.’

Hyejin’s older sister has already received all the punishment for Lee Ki-cheol, an idiot who doesn’t recognize Won-seok. Thanks to that, the director’s family is harmonious, and it’s nice that Hyejin noona can taste my big cock.

‘Wait, then am I not too nice? What I gave the director was not a punishment, but a gift. Mr. Rossby! Be sure to put this name of Maeng-Ho Lee in the top 5 saints in the world from now on. And if you go to heaven after attaining Buddhahood, please recommend me to heaven.’

‘I’m sorry. Really. Ugh.’

‘Well, Mr. Rossby can’t go to heaven. It’s just that if I go to Heaven, I’ll get Mr. Rossby out of Hell. I’m a 5 year old adult. Kehehehehe!’

Seeing Rossby shake her head made her laugh. She is the disciple who brings Rossby out of hell. Even Ted Williams can’t do this, so I’m a greater disciple!

“Kehehehehe!”

“Meng Ho-senpai must be in a good mood. She doesn’t usually smile.”

“But the laughter is a bit broken.”

Hmmm, I quickly made a poker face and went back to Ji Maeng-ho, who has cold charisma that my juniors respect.

‘Are you really a jerk? Even just a few months ago, he was a kid who was being ignored by his juniors and dragged on. It looks like he hit a home run and lost his mind.’

Rosby’s slander echoed in my head, but I paid no attention to it and went back to baseball.

*

‘Yeah, what if you like a girl? I just need to be good at baseball.’

So-young, who was watching from the stands holding a speed gun, exclaimed in admiration when she saw Maeng-ho’s home run.

“It is a monster. In the end, you overcame Jang Woo-joo by force, right?”

The velocity of the last ball of the long universe shot by the speed gun is 159 km/h. He definitely hit the ball, which is difficult for most pros to touch. Even in a power-to-power showdown that only happens in high school games, the results were surprising enough.

‘Definitely not a high school level player.’

Anyone can see it immediately.

‘I’m sure Maeng-Ho Ji will be the best rookie chosen by AT. With Ji Maeng-ho, even winning is not a dream.’

For yourself. And for my grandfather who is bedridden.

It was no longer a problem for Ji Maeng-ho to like women.

“… Sorry. How could you not recognize such a player?”

As Soyoung muttered to herself, Hong Hyeoncheol, the head of the AT scout team, who was watching, said in a somber voice.

“It’s okay. Because I already signed a contract.”

‘And I knew about your poor scouting skills.’