Chapter 363 – Episode 355. A World Line Where AT Picked a Good Mercenary Hitter? (1)

“Strike! Out!”

The pleasant sound the umpire shouts at home plate. But I couldn’t let down my guard. Because the next batter was Ji Maeng-ho.

‘Why do you have to come back now? I’ll just return after my appearance with enough money.’

Even though it was Ji Meng-ho, his close friend, Won-ho couldn’t help thinking like that. Because the form Ji Maeng-ho is showing right now is bloody. A normal batsman would have faltered if he had been out of action for a month, but Ji Meng-ho was showing his form from last year when he bombed the league without any such thing.

A batting average of .4049 and an on-base percentage of .606. He is a fearsome hitter who has a slugging percentage of 1.163, well over 1, and has hit 9 home runs in 15 games. Even though he was my friend, I couldn’t help but dislike him.

‘I thought it would be good, but I thought this was a bit harsh.’

Wonho was just sitting on the bench and occasionally throwing batting balls to Maengho, and he hoped that his friend would do well, but he never thought that he would do well like this. Wonho thought that he had grown considerably as he worked hard since becoming a pro, but when he looked at Ji Maeng-ho’s performance, he couldn’t help but feel shabby about his efforts.

‘Whoa, I can’t see where to throw it.’

It feels like the batting box is full. Wonho’s mind is dominated by the anxious thought that no matter where he throws in the strike zone, he will hit a home run. In fact, when he came out of the bullpen last year, the imagination was quite vivid because it was Wonho who was struggling against Maengho.

‘First pitch splitter. ‘Low on the body.’

‘I understand.’

But he couldn’t think about running away forever. The catcher sent a sign, and Wonho nodded his head. The ball the catcher requested was a splitter. It was a ball that was truly his most improved since becoming a pro.

‘Let’s trust in me and throw. ‘You dealt with a lot of people in high school.’

Wonho thought about when he was in high school, and he would sometimes practice with Maengho when he couldn’t show up for games. At that time, Meng Hao was a batsman who could not even pass his own ball. When he thought about that time, Meng Hao standing at bat seemed a little small.

‘Yes, the guy in front of me is Ji Maeng-ho, who couldn’t even get on the bench. He has confidence. Wonho Kim,’

Wonho, who finished mind control while thinking about those days, confidently threw out the first pitch.

“Ball.”

However, when I saw Meng Hao just watching two balls fall out of the zone without even flinching, I felt like my mind control was broken. If you throw a ball like this, which usually falls about two balls from the body, most batters would at least flinch.

Even Kang Han-beom, who played in the major league, couldn’t hold back the bat, but just watching this ball seemed like a lack of human patience. Or maybe they expected a splitter from the beginning.

‘Did you really expect it?’

I asked a question in my mind, but Meng Hao had no answer. And the sight of Meng Hao as if reading his thoughts sent a shiver down his spine. Just as Wonho’s mind was turning blank, he and Maengho made eye contact.

‘Aren’t you going to throw it into the zone?’

As they had been together for four years, Wonho was able to read Mengho’s eyes at once. And Meng Hao seems to have realized that he understood and smiles.

‘Wow, that’s unlucky.’

When I see a familiar figure, I feel slightly relaxed.

‘Slider. Let’s take it out.’

‘Yes.’

A slider is a slider that the catcher calls for, and then the ball goes out. Although he understood Meng Hao’s provocation, he couldn’t just throw it into the zone. Because now is not a situation where you risk your pride and compete like in high school, but a situation where you have to do your best to win the game.

[Kim Won-ho’s second ball also goes out of the zone. Slider of 143.]

[Kim Won-ho throws two good balls in a row, but he doesn’t move. Ji Maeng-ho’s biggest advantage is his ability to filter the ball like this. There is no player who throws a ball that usually falls inside the zone against Ji Maeng-ho. However, the reason he is able to hit so many home runs is because he has this kind of pioneering plan.]

Two balls. A situation that is disadvantageous to the pitcher.

‘… But it’s not a meaningless ball count.’

The ball count became unfavorable, but Wonho, relaxed, judged the situation calmly.

Batting is about timing, and pitching takes away that timing. In order to steal that timing, I had to confuse the batter’s eyes as much as possible. This was especially true when facing a batter like Ji Maeng-ho. Ji Maeng-ho was the batter who had to throw a few similar trajectories before being able to throw it into the zone.

There were many pitchers in the league who believed in their own ball and went into a match with Ji Maeng-ho from the beginning, but ended up hitting a home run. This was especially true for mercenary pitchers with strong pride.

‘This time, let’s go to the outside splitter. This time, we have to put it in the zone.’

‘I understand.’

And the ball the catcher requested was a splitter that hit the outside strike zone. Wonho’s slider was a slider with a large vertical movement, so it was a combination of throwing a slider and a splitter with similar bending movements in succession and hitting them into the zone when the batter thought it was a ball.

And, as a player who has recently been mentioned as a candidate for selection to the Olympics, Wonho put the ball perfectly where the catcher wanted.

“Strike!”

The result is a strike. This time, Ji Maeng-ho did not move.

‘Did you think you were going to go out? But damn, is it this hard to get even one strike?’

One strike that I barely caught. From now on, it was a real game.

‘Fastball deep to the body.’

‘Wouldn’t it be too obvious?’

I shake my head at the catcher who asks for a deep fastball. The catcher followed the pitcher’s wishes and received a new sign from the battery coach and moved his fingers again.

‘Outside fastball?’

‘No.’

‘Body slider?’

‘No.’

‘… Outer splitter.’

‘Okay.’

The fourth ball that Wonho allowed was a splitter thrown in a similar position as before. But lower than before.

‘No matter how fierce he is, he wouldn’t expect the ball to hit the same spot twice in a row. Just give me one missed swing. Please.’

Wonho prayed earnestly and threw the fourth ball,

Ta – Aak!

Ji Maeng-ho’s bat flashed. And Ji Maeng-ho’s bat flies beautifully.

‘Fuck! ‘You were expecting this?!’

Wonho cursed inwardly and followed his hit with his eyes. The sound of being hit by a bat was unusual, but this is Jamsil. There was a glimmer of hope as he forced the ball outside.

‘Please, please!’

[Ji Maeng-ho’s batted ball! Left fence! Left fence! It hits and falls! Ji Maeng-ho reaches second base! Ji Maeng-ho arrives at second base while standing! Ji Maeng-ho’s double hit the top of the fence and fell! However, Ji Maeng-ho’s expression is full of regret.]

[If it wasn’t Jamsil, it would have been a ball that would have been passed over at any other stadium, right? He pulled the outside ball hard and hit it, but the launch angle was a bit low. It would be unfortunate for Ji Maeng-ho.]

[And starting pitcher Kim Won-ho must have sighed, right? Now, the weatherman is at bat.]

As Caster said, Wonho, standing on the mound, breathed a sigh of relief that his batted ball did not go over the fence, but his crisis had just begun. One out, second base, batter Ki Ki-joo. And Ji Maeng-ho, the runner on second base.

[Ji Maeng-ho steals a base! Ji Maeng-ho steals third base!]

It was an instant for the runner on second base to change into a runner on third base. And right-handed pitcher Kim Won-ho and third base runner Ji Maeng-ho make eye contact.

‘Do we have to do it like this?’

‘Did you think I would consider you a friend?’

‘… ‘Fucking bastard.’

Won-ho, who ended the conversation with just his eyes without saying a word, left Ji Maeng-ho, who was smiling unhappily, behind and focused on typing. Ji Maeng-ho tended to be buried due to his great performance, but Ki Ki-joo was also a hitter who had to do his best to be able to face him.

‘Jimaengho and Gigiju. Ha, even if you catch the resident senior, it’s Williams. Why should I return today? Moreover, after that, Choi Jin-cheol and Kim Su-ho. I wonder if this is too much.’

Ji Maeng-ho, a former KBA-level hitter, and Gi Ki-joo and Choi Jin-cheol, who advanced to the major league. And Kim Su-ho, a goal-level hitter, and Williams, an aaaaa-level hitter who went back and forth between the Major League and Triple A until last year. It was a batting lineup that made you feel nauseous.

‘Fuck, I don’t know.’

Since it was not a situation to worry about speed control, Kim Won-ho threw a fastball with all his might.

Perfect!

The weather warning batting ball flew high in the sky.

[Watch out for the weather! High infield! Shortstop, send the call. Out. Now the situation is 2 outs and 3rd base!]

[The velocity just came out to 155, but Ki-joo Ki didn’t seem to get the timing right.]

[It was a ball that clearly showed why Kim Won-ho is being mentioned as a candidate for the Olympic team.]

But even though he caught the weather note, he couldn’t feel relieved. Williams, who came to bat, was also a hitter who was hitting .400 right before his injury.

‘Under…, It’s a mountain beyond a mountain.’

It feels like it’s harder to face AT’s batting lineup in the top of the first inning than last year when we did our best with the bullpen. But there was still a long way to go, so Kim Won-ho used mind control and threw the first pitch.

But…,

Perfect!

[Williams’ batted ball! It passes between the second and first basemen! Ji Maeng-ho returns home comfortably! AT Thunders score first! The score is 1:0! Mercenary hitter Williams, who returned from injury, creates an RBI in his first at-bat!]

[AT has had a lot of mercenary hitters, but is it because they won last year? We brought in a perfect player.]

‘… Fuck. Isn’t it a foul to have such a mercenary hitter in the AT lineup? Just like last year, no, just like usual, they’ll pick out some weird guy. Why, a guy like that came in as a mercenary… !’

And with a walk given to Choi Jin-cheol and Kim Su-ho’s hit to center field, the score quickly increased to 2:0.

[Kim Won-ho sets Yoon Seong-tae back with a strikeout! AT’s attack ends at the end of the long first inning!]

He struck out 7th batter Yoon Seong-tae, but Wonho’s uniform, facing AT’s powerful batting line, could not help but become wet with sweat from the first inning.

*

“Oh, the mercenary is a bit hit?”

Although I saw him batting during spring training and exhibition games, I never thought he would adapt so well, but when I saw Williams batting, I could definitely feel it. Although he is a bit lacking in home runs, his simple and compact swing is perfect for staying behind Nana and Meteor Ju who have a high on-base percentage.

“Yes? Kwan said it reminds me of my younger days.”

“After listening to it, I can see that the styles are somewhat similar.”

He has the power to hit double-digit home runs and a batting swing that can hit over .300. He was definitely a similar type of hitter to Woo Gwan-hyeong. And being a type of hitter similar to Woo Gwan-hyeong means being a hitter suited to Jamsil.

I’ve only seen one at-bat in an actual game, but it definitely seemed like he was on a different level from the mercenary handler I saw last year. And it seemed like my feelings were not wrong.

“Base on balls!”

In the top of the third inning, Junhu allowed a two-run home run to Kim Hwan-young, tying the game at 2:2. When I, who was the leadoff hitter of the inning, got on base with a walk and took advantage of a weather warning to get to second base, Williams’ timely hit came again.

“Nice!”

“Let’s go easy!”

“Good bet! Williams! Good bet!”

‘At this rate, there won’t be any room even if senior Gwan Hyeong returns?’

As he returned to the dugout and was sharing his joy with his teammates, Williams, who had hit a double, began to signal to the dugout.

‘Huh? ‘What is it?’

No matter how you look at it, it appears to be a hand gesture indicating a replacement. The coach walks to second base with an interpreter. And after being replaced by Lee In-hyuk, Williams limps back to the dugout.

“[Director, pain comes from the injured area.]”

Then he grabbed her thigh and started complaining of pain.

“Yes, you shouldn’t overdo it from the first day of your return. Thank you for your hard work.”

“[I’m sorry. Still, I scored 2 points, so I guess I can say I did my part, right?]”

Depending on what you hear, it may have been because he was truly sorry, but the nuance seemed strange.

‘Mr. Rossby, am I mistaken?’

‘Hehe, looks like an interesting guy has come in.’

Williams, a mercenary hitter whom Rossby considers fun. … For some reason, I didn’t feel good.