Chapter 372 – Episode 364. Slump?

Ta – Aak!

The batted ball flies while making a cheerful sound. However, as the person who sent the batted ball, I could feel it. That this batted ball will not pass. The feeling left in my hand told me that.

‘Ugh, it was too fast again this time.’

And as I expected, the center fielder who was taking a step back eventually catches the ball.

-Wow!!!

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

And when third base runner Jeong Hwi-cheol hits home, the crowd erupts in cheers.

“Hyung, nice bet!”

“What, it’s a nice bet. “I should have passed it on.”

“Still, it’s an extra point…”

“It’s done. Let’s go in.”

I didn’t feel comfortable hearing those cheers from fans. Even though the team was doing well with 5 wins and 2 losses after the match with Jang Woo-joo, it was still sluggish with 7 hits in 24 at-bats and 3 home runs in 7 games.

-“Hey, is that a slump? “This guy is really full.”

When I told him about my concerns, Ki Ki-joo criticized me, asking if that was a slump, but from my perspective, it was no different from a slump. The three home runs that came out during this period were all home runs that barely cleared the fence without being hit by a correct hit.

I added more points and looked like I was going to win today, but I wasn’t in a good mood either.

“Meng Hao. Do you want to rest for the rest of the inning?”

“Yes, director.”

“Joohyun. Prepare for major defense.”

“I understand.”

Since the game was going down anyway, the coach suggested I take a break, so I accepted.

“Hey, why does the kid who scored an RBI look so upset?”

“I didn’t feel the impact.”

“I don’t feel the impact, is that it? “Can you show me what a real slump is?”

As I sat on the bench and watched blankly as my teammates played defense, Choi Jin-cheol, who played as a designated hitter today, approached me and started talking to me.

“Senior, aren’t you in a slump right now?”

“… “I don’t think you’re in a slump?”

“Try to hit it well. “Senior, I won’t be able to make it to the national team if I keep doing this.”

These days, the league is hot with the list of players participating in the Los Angeles Olympics. It seemed like the list would probably come out after the season ended this weekend, but it seemed difficult for Choi Jin-cheol to get on board.

Usually, there are about two positions for first baseman, including the designated hitter, and Kang Han-beom, who won the Golden Glove in the designated hitter category last year, and Koo Jin-mo, who is supporting the failing UG, were Choi Jin-cheol’s competitors. I wish Choi Jin-cheol, who was on the same team, would be selected for the national team, but it didn’t seem easy.

Choi Jin-cheol is said to have hit 44 home runs last year and ranked second in home runs, but this season’s performance was so-so, and designated hitter Kang Han-beom is almost guaranteed a spot, boasting the advantage of being a left-handed hitter and the best first base defense in the league. Public opinion was that it would not be easy to beat Koo Jin-mo in the competition.

“Hey, what kind of national team player are you at my age? Now I have to pass it on to my juniors.”

Choi Jin-cheol’s expression when he said that didn’t look that bad, perhaps because he meant it.

‘Well, Jinmo is playing well too.’

“And at this age, should I go all the way there and take care of you?”

“Hey, I’m looking after you. “I’m changing the diaper.”

“… “Do you really want me to wear a diaper?”

“… “I’m sorry.”

“That’s it. Don’t worry too much. The season is long and the player’s career is even longer. Honestly, your grades have been strange since last year, but this is normal.”

“Well, that should be true, but…”

“So do you know what the problem is? Well, it looks good to me.”

“I know.”

There are usually several reasons why hitters fall into a slump. His balance was ruined due to an injury, or he suffered a mental blow as all the right hits went straight to the fielder, or his weakness was exploited, and he was unable to overcome it.

But I was not in those cases.

“Then what is the problem?”

“… “The pitchers’ balls are too slow.”

“Huh? “What?”

“The ball is too slow.”

As I practiced timing my batting according to the 100 mph fastball in preparation for Jang Woo-joo’s pitch, the problem was that my timing for the fastball became too fast. The breaking ball tended to be a true hit, but it didn’t mean much because there were no pitchers who threw breaking balls in the zone against me.

The problem is dealing with fastballs. The fastballs thrown by the pitchers were too slow. Can’t someone just delay the betting timing then? You may ask, but if you are conscious of that, your betting timing will be slow, and you will hit too far behind. The difference between 140 and 160 seems to be only 20 km/h, but the difference between the actual moment it arrives in the catcher’s mitt is 0.1 to 2 seconds, so if you think about it before hitting, you will be late.

Should I say that there are no correct hits? Controlling those subtle differences was quite difficult. In particular, it was more difficult to consciously delay the betting timing. You could say that I could just push, but I couldn’t do that because I was afraid that if I kept pushing because I couldn’t get used to the restraints, I would have a bigger slump later. Moreover, even if I tried to push the ball towards the body, it was difficult to hit a good ball.

‘If I knew it would be like this, I wouldn’t have trained so hard.’

In that respect, I felt grateful to Williams. If Williams hadn’t done that shit that day, he probably wouldn’t have had sex and just practiced, and there’s a good chance he would still be clueless.

“… Is that so?”

Choi Jin-cheol reacted to my words as if they were absurd, but there was nothing he could do because it was true.

“What about pushing?”

“You know. “If hitters like us push like that, our form will die.”

Pushing is a temporary solution. The only way to solve the slump is to swing the bat honestly like you have done so far.

“Hehe, that’s true. Honestly, look at the kids on our team. “If not us, who will hit the home run?”

Choi Jin-cheol knows that too, so he answers my words with a satisfied smile.

“As expected, right? But don’t worry, we’re getting the timing right now.”

“I wasn’t even worried in the first place. “Who would look at your grades now and think you’re in a slump?”

As I was talking with Choi Jin-cheol, the game was quickly approaching its end, and with the final out count, today’s game ended in victory.

“Thank you for your hard work!”

“Good! Let’s sweep the whole season with this momentum!”

“Good job, guys.”

‘Phew, I’m glad I won a lot during the period where I couldn’t play.’

Although they lost 1 win and 2 losses in the series against Silla last weekend, the result was not bad in this series against Hyunseong, with 3 consecutive wins and a sweep.

‘Tsk, I’ll have to do well before the season tomorrow.’

Hancheol, whose performance was expected to drop due to Lee Yong-gi’s absence, suddenly rose to 3rd place, and since his momentum was unusual, it seemed like it would be a good idea to step on it now, but it was a bit disappointing because his hitting was not good.

‘Well, it would be okay if other seniors just played like they are now…’

The team’s batting was good, but would I really want to be the main character in a match like the Jamsil rivalry? To do that, all it took was training. I feel sorry for Soyoung, but I started packing, thinking that I should go home and train more today instead of having sex.

*

-Leah: Oppa! You know that I’m going to throw the first pitch today, right?

Joo Seung-cheol, who entered the locker room after training, smiled broadly when he received a call from his girlfriend, Leah.

“What? Joo Seung-cheol, why are you smiling like that?”

“Leave it alone. It looks like he’s in touch with his girlfriend.”

“Hey, Seungcheol. But when are you going to introduce me to your girlfriend?”

“I’ll introduce you later, later.”

Because Leah was still an active idol, Joo Seung-cheol couldn’t let her colleagues know that they were dating, but his love for his girlfriend was greater than anyone else’s. Therefore, Joo Seung-cheol roughly accepted what his colleagues said and sent a message back to his girlfriend, Leah.

-Seungcheol: Of course I know. Are you coming with Joohee?

-Leah: Yes!!! Joohee sings the poem, and I sing the poem. Do you need to teach me the form?

-Seungcheol: Of course. Do you have a schedule after finishing?

-Leah: No? The preparation for the album is almost finished, and they say you can take a break until this weekend. We’re not rookies, and should take a break like this. Hehe.

-Seungcheol: Really? Okay. Then, shall we have something to eat after?

-Leah: Good!!!

-Seungcheol: Then shall we eat together with Maengho? I wanted to buy you a meal, but I didn’t have time. Are you okay today?

-Leah: Yes. I’m fine. Maybe Joohee will say it’s okay? See you later then. Because I am a shop.

-Seungcheol: Okioki.

Seungcheol finished his brief chat with his girlfriend and put his cell phone in his locker room. And he picked up the bat.

“Wow, Seungcheol hyung. “I just finished training, are you picking up the bat again?”

“It’s disgusting. Punishment. Well, that’s why he’s number one in home runs now.”

“If I want to continue to be number one in home runs, I need to practice more. You know. Meng Hao is following.”

The reason Joo Seung-cheol held up the bat even after training was over was simple. This was because he did not want to show Meng Hao changing his number one home run ranking in front of his girlfriend. His own number of home runs was 19, currently leading the league, but right below him was Ji Maeng-ho, who hit 18 home runs.

Of course, Joo Seung-cheol also knew that Ji Maeng-ho would one day surpass his number of home runs. He himself played in 63 games, while Ji Maeng-ho played in only 32 games, which is half the number of games he played, and hit such a number of home runs.

But even if he overtakes him someday, not today is when his girlfriend comes to see him in person.

‘Honestly, I feel sorry for asking Seungyoon to stop me. If I hit just one more thing, I can maintain it for today.’

Ji Maeng-ho has hit three home runs in the last seven games. He was hitting a home run roughly once every two games, so there was a good chance he would hit a home run today as well. In the end, he had no choice but to hit a home run to keep his position.

As Joo Seung-cheol left the locker room with such determination, he saw a familiar face.

“Uh? Brother. Hi.”

“You can’t be a noble either.”

“Huh? What are you talking about? Suddenly.”

It was Meng Hao that he was thinking about just now. Perhaps because Hancheol’s practice time was over, the AT players along with Mengho were coming out to the ground to train. Joo Seung-cheol greeted the AT players who came out with Meng Ho and caught Meng Ho as he was about to leave.

“Why? “Do you have something to say?”

“Are you free today?”

“Hour? Of course there is.”

“Okay? Then, would you like to eat together with Younghee?”

“With Leah? Hey, what kind of glory do I want to see by being caught between the two of them?”

“Bastard. Please speak quietly. “Because I haven’t told anyone yet.”

“Really?”

“And it’s not just the two of us. There’s also Joohee.”

“Ji-hee?”

“Member of Younghee’s group. “Didn’t you know we were throwing the first pitch today?”

“Ah? Okay? Joohee, Joohee. Hmm. “I think I’ve heard of it.”

“Uh. Let’s eat like that for four people.”

“Okay? Hehe. Okay. But what is the style of men she likes?”

“Did I say he was a sexy person when I was doing my day job? A bit professional? I’m not sure because I heard it from Younghee… Ai, why are you asking that?”

“You don’t know what will happen to people. But if he’s a sexy guy at his day job, does that mean he’s good at his job? Hmm… Under… I didn’t want to do this. Brother. “Look forward to today.”

“To look forward to it? What? What makes you not want to do this? Hey! Hey! Ji Maengho! “This bastard just says something and leaves.”

Joo Seung-cheol called Meng Hao, but Meng Hao ignored his words and just walked away.

“Ha, Mr. That kid is anxious. “What do you expect?”

That smile and the words to look forward to. Joo Seung-cheol became anxious for some reason. However, he entered the game without knowing what the cause of his anxiety was, and was soon able to realize the true nature of his anxiety.

[With Jeong Hwi-cheol being caught with an infield ground ball, second hitter Ji Maeng-ho now comes in. … Ji Maeng-ho hits the first pitch! Hit this ball high and far! It passed! A home run over the right field fence! Jamsil rivalry! Ji Maeng-ho’s start-suppressing solo shot announces the start!]

[I passed Jamsil by pushing it? This is truly incredible power. Ji Maengho!]

‘Fuck, is this what you were expecting? Hehe, I still hit a home run. ‘Tied for first place.’

But Joo Seung-cheol didn’t know. Ji Maeng-ho, who heard Joo-hee’s ideal type, will be more focused than usual when he comes to the plate to show that kind of image.