Chapters 437 – 429. 1st Place Match. (2)

“Coach! “I can go out!”

“Junhoo, you know that you have to be a starter on Sunday too, right? Let’s leave it at that for today. The number of pitches exceeded 100.”

“… Yes.”

Fortunately, it seemed like I wouldn’t have to go to the club with Lim Jun-hoo at such a golden time. Because the pitching coach decided to drop Lim Jun-hoo after the 6th inning.

‘A club with Junhoo in Seoul, not even in the countryside? ‘It doesn’t make sense.’

Fortunately, my words must have motivated Lim Jun-hoo, who showed off scoreless pitching by shutting down the Hwasan batting lineup until the 6th inning. The problem was the blow.

‘I need to score points slowly…’

My score today was 2 at-bats and no hits. Perhaps because it was a head-to-head game in a tight situation for the first time in a long time, I scooped up all the balls and ended up getting out twice in a row.

‘Let’s skip the ball this time. Don’t get hurt just because you’re in the zone.’

The leadoff batter in the bottom of the 6th inning is me. I felt like I needed to get on base and give some relief to the team’s batting lineup.

“Meng Hao, just get on base! “Let’s just get on base!”

This is something I usually try to ask my seniors, but I felt a little strange when they asked me this. I nod to my seniors and leave the dugout. Kim Min-jun is still on the mound.

Judging from the fact that other players’ batted balls were hitting straight, it didn’t seem like they were in good condition, but strangely, they weren’t conceding any runs. If it had happened before the batting order had changed, it could have been seen as a prank, but even now that the batting order had changed twice, I still felt like it was inducing something.

It was clear that Lee Yong-gi had used some kind of magic.

‘As expected, it’s picky.’

‘It’s a fastball.’

‘Yes.’

Minjun Kim’s first pitch was a fastball. Since he wanted to observe the situation for now, he waited for the guy’s ball.

“Strike!”

“You’re not hitting the first pitch these days, are you? Then, I’ll put them all on the first pitch~.”

“What is your tone?”

… Now that I think about it, it seems like I hit the first pitch as a strike in three consecutive at-bats. But why are you telling me this?

‘Are you stupid? There is a next at-bat and a game tomorrow, so that’s right.’

‘Ah… Okay.’

After listening to Rossby’s words, he realized that it was just fodder for psychological warfare in his next at-bat. He was also a man like a snake.

‘Hehe, let’s not be swayed by this trick. For now, focus on this at-bat.’

‘It’s a fastball this time too.’

Two consecutive fastballs… There was a high possibility of not putting it in the zone. But the catcher wearing the catcher’s mask behind me is Lee Yong-gi. I couldn’t let down my guard. So, I loaded the bat and waited for his second ball.

Perfect!

“Fuck!”

“Foul!”

I tried the bat on his second ball, but it was a foul. It was a ball that went deeper into the body than expected. To play borderline like this… I’m not normally a pitcher who shows this level of control…

I felt like I knew why all of Jeongta went straight to the field. The pitch didn’t look that good, but the guy’s pitch control was quite sharp today.

Moreover, the pitcher’s battle aspect. In this case, the referee’s zone becomes considerably wider. When I saw it from second base, Junhu’s ball was also caught quite wide. If this happens, he will have to go out on a similar ball.

‘Slider.’

‘Okay.’

This time a slider. When it left my hand, I tried to put the bat down because the trajectory seemed to be entering the zone, but when the guy’s slider dropped, I braced my wrist and held back the swing.

“Swing?”

After Lee Yong-gi’s words, the umpire waits for the first base umpire’s decision.

“No swing!”

And with the first base umpire’s dynamic gesture, the north wing was recognized.

“Meng Hao, are you lucky?”

“Luck was blocked by force. Hyung, please do some exercise too. “I saw earlier that he struck out on a pitch.”

“I’ll take care of it, dude.”

With this, two strikes, one ball.

‘Slider.’

Seeing how my bat reacted, Lee Yong-gi seemed to be thinking of pulling my bat out with a slider once again.

‘I know who will be fooled again. … ‘Wait.’

This time he tried not to swing the bat, but he wondered if Yonggi Lee would do such a simple ball combination. I thought that Lee Yong-gi could conversely put it in the zone here. Even though there were many left in the count, Lee Yong-gi’s strength was his catchy ball combination.

‘Gotcha, you guy.’

I have a feeling that it will be put into the zone… With that premonition in mind, I waited for his fourth ball. And his slider flies toward the outside and low. It feels like I’m in the zone!

Perfect!

However, contrary to what I thought, the ball hit under the bat heads toward the shortstop.

‘Fuck! Was it a ball?’

After a moment of regret, I quickly threw the bat and ran toward first base.

‘Mr. Rossby! What about the ball?’

‘It slipped away. Don’t bother getting to second base and just step on first base.’

‘Wow, that batted ball missed? ‘Fuck.’

When it seemed like it was hit in the exact center of the bat, it didn’t go over smoothly, and then a hit like this went through the infield again.

‘This is baseball.’

I was lucky to get on base, but a hit is still a hit. Moreover, getting the leadoff hitter on base was very meaningful.

‘Are you going to run?’

‘Hmm…’

Honestly, I was a little worried. I was a little tired because I played a lot of games these days. When I checked my speed during training, it was definitely slower than at the beginning of the season. Any other catcher would have run in such a tight situation, but it was a burden on Lee Yong-gi’s shoulders. The pop time was around 1.9 seconds and the throwing speed was quite fast.

Moreover, Minjun Kim’s only breaking ball is a slider. The slider was also 140, so running was a bit burdensome. If he gets out here, it would be a disaster. Instead, he seemed capable of tormenting pitchers. In any case, if he only increased the lead width when he was holding the breaking ball grip, he would not be caught in check.

“Strike!”

The first pitch that hit Suho Kim was a fastball.

‘It’s a slider.’

As soon as he hears the word slider, he widens his lead. Minjun Kim keeps glancing at me as if he is checking my stolen bases.

“Ball.”

I don’t know if my lead width helped, or if I had intended to throw it as a ball from the beginning, but the slider went out of the zone. I don’t know if it really helps, but as a runner, you have to do your best on the base.

“Base on balls!”

Kim Su-ho ends up getting a walk. With this, no outs and 1st and 2nd bases. Looking at Kim Min-jun’s ball control today, it seems like it would be better to bunt, but the batter who came to bat was Ki Ki-joo. The probability of bunting was tiny. Well, our manager wasn’t the type to bunt well in the first place.

So all I can do is send a signal to the weatherman. It was very easy for this two-pitch type pitcher to sign. When it comes to breaking balls, the only one is a slider.

‘Senior Sangju! It’s a slider.’

At my signal, the weatherman’s eyes widen slightly. A sign that you clearly understand. A moment passes, and Kim Min-jun extends his arm to throw a pitch. And the weather warning bat swung like a thunderbolt.

Ta – Aak!

‘Please, this time!’

A good hitting sound is better, but this is Jamsil. I watch the batted ball between second and third base because it might not have gone over. And, with the crowd cheering, the batted ball bounced off the fence.

‘I finally can’t catch it!’

As a runner on second base, the ball was enough for me to get home. When he stepped on home plate and looked behind him, Su-ho Kim received a stop sign from third base and stopped at third base, and Ki-joo Ki went all the way to second base.

“[It was good base running.]”

“[Yes, Williams. You too, solve it. Got it?]”

“[I will work hard!]”

“[Don’t work hard, do well, do well! Do you understand?]”

“[Yes!]”

After instilling baseball power into Williams, the next batter, he enters the dugout and shares his joy with his teammates. Although he had the misfortune of being caught by a fielder after hitting a good hit, he scored with a good hit after hitting a lucky ball. Moreover, Samurai’s chances were still there.

‘Okay, it feels good. It smells like a lot of scoring…’

“Wow, if this happens, I’ll be the winning pitcher?”

I was a little disgusted to see Junhu excited at the thought of becoming a winning pitcher, but since he had worked hard today, I decided to let him go and leaned against the dugout railing to watch Williams’ at-bat.

“Ball.”

“Ball.”

“Ball.”

The ball went in three times in a row as if the pitcher was shaking. If things continue like this, it’s a chance to have the bases loaded with no outs. I feel like the scent of the big inning is getting stronger.

‘Okay, let’s go like this…’ .’

Ta – Aak!

At that time, Williams’ bat swung like lightning, and the batted ball flew like a laser.

“Out!”

“Out!”

… Inside the shortstop’s glove.

“Ah…”

“I caught that one.”

“It’s a waste. It’s a waste.”

One out on a line drive that goes into the shortstop’s glove. And the shortstop directly touched the runner on second base who could not return to base, resulting in two outs. A chance of 2nd and 3rd bases with no outs quickly becomes 2 outs and 3rd bases.

‘Has that kid lost his mind because he hasn’t been getting hit lately?’

The result of hitting a three-ball is a batting ball…

“[Hey! Williams!]”

“[Yes, yes!]”

“[What is the hit? Are you a bastard? Are you out of your mind? Did you come to play?]”

“[… Sorry. I want to score points.]”

“[Ha, this bastard won’t work. Help me come to my senses?]”

“[No!]”

Should I at least give Williams a shot behind the dugout? While I was thinking about it, I heard a loud hitting sound and cheers again.

“What? What?!”

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

“Did it fall?”

“What was this kid doing not watching when the captain was hitting a home run?”

At that moment, Choi Jin-cheol’s batted ball went over the fence.

“You are a fine. Bastard. “Send me coffee tomorrow.”

“Ah…”

Fuck, Williams bastard is making me cringe at my coffee. It costs 7,000 won per cup of coffee, and even the coaches get 35 cups…, No, it’s an extended entry…

“… “Ah, can I do that?”

A cup of coffee costs 300,000 won. It’s ridiculous.

“This bastard makes a lot of money… You won’t be able to do it. Special…”

“No, no. “I will take your order and buy it tomorrow.”

You can’t make a special hit at the golden hour. Although money was precious, time was more precious than money. I was a little upset about the sudden expense, but it was still 3-0 with Choi Jin-cheol’s home run. The smell of victory soothed my sore stomach a little.

“Senior! It was great!”

“Captain Choi! What is a home run?!”

“And… As expected, senior Choi Jin-cheol… “He completely turned Jamsil upside down.”

“Look at how soulless this bastard is. “A bastard who receives 300 million won is so petty that he sells coffee.”

“A senior like that gets 1.5 billion won.”

“Still, the coffee that someone else buys is delicious.”

The coffee someone else buys is delicious. It was an undeniable truth.

“If you hit a home run today, I’ll buy it for you.”

“Is it true?”

… And while he was aiming for a home run, he struck out like a dog and the game ended.

“Thank you for your hard work!”

“Okay, let’s do it tomorrow just like today! Let’s sweep and wedge this time!”

“Yes!”

But we won the game 3:1. We got off to a good start by taking the first game of the first place series.