Chapter 478 – Episode 470. 2025 Spring Camp. (1)

[… AT Thunders are also sweating and training in Arizona. Come join us in Arizona to enjoy the on-field atmosphere of the AT Thunders, who are aiming for their 3rd consecutive Korean Series victory.]

[We have now met last year’s winning team, AT Thunders. First, since it was the winning team last year, I was quite curious about the training atmosphere?]

[Yes. This season, the AT Thunders are aiming to win the championship again this year, just like last year. In general, when talking about a dynasty, three-peat is really important, right?]

[Three-fit?]

[Three-peat refers to a team that has won the championship for three consecutive years. It is a term that originated in the NBA, the American professional basketball league, and is said to have been first used by Pat Riley, the coach who led the LA Lakers and established a dynasty. In Korea, it is a famous story that the basketball king, Michael Jordan, achieved the three-peat twice and led the Chicago Bulls dynasty.]

[This is a really great record. But, is there a team in the KBA league that has the potential to achieve such an incredible record of three-peat?]

[Yes. This is the AT Thunders we will meet this time. Which team in Korean baseball history can be called a dynasty? There is a lot of controversy when doing this, right? However, there are only two dynasties that are truly recognized: the 80s Buffaloes and the 2010s Mad Cats. And the team challenging the strongholds of those two teams is the AT Thunders.]

[Hey, just by hearing about it, you can tell that we are going to attempt a huge record, right? Actually, AT Thunders’ performance last year was scary, right?]

[Yes. At the center of it all was Ji Maeng-ho, who had a batting average of .400 and hit 63 home runs. Of course, we cannot leave out the performance of Woo Kwan-hyung, who won the Korean Series MVP. Haha.]

[Then, in Commissioner Kim’s opinion, AT Thunders’ three-peat! Do you think it is possible?]

[… Are you asking this question already? Well. Actually, I can’t really give you a definitive answer on that, right? However, it is true that the possibility is high. First, Joo Seung-cheol, the key player of last year’s Korean Series partner Hancheol Grizzlies, advanced to the major leagues, and there was no loss of power as they succeeded in capturing Park Jun-hyung, an internal free agent this season. It is true that the probability is high if there are no injured players.]

[Commissioner! So, do you think it is possible?!]

[Oh, indeed. What’s wrong? I guess I’ll just have to wait and see. I haven’t even seen it yet…]

[Then, let’s take a look at the AT Thunders’ spring camp together to see if the AT Thunders’ dynasty challenge is possible!]

*

“[Mr. Ji. If I really do well this season, they will erase all the photos, right?]”

“[That’s right, asshole. Was this kid just fooled? If you play in all games, excluding injuries, I will erase everything.]”

“[I believe it.]”

Anyway, this bastard was deceived and survived. Williams This guy stuck to me throughout spring training and kept asking me this.

I heard from Soyoung that Williams was planning to run away to the United States after this season. However, after hearing that, I sent him the photo I took that day without saying anything, and he immediately renewed his contract, and he was going through spring camp with us.

‘I’ve definitely corrected my cheating habits. This kid is definitely good at batting and defense in the league.’

Williams’ performance last season was .340 with 12 home runs in 71 games. He also had an OPS of 0.987, which was at a level where he could aim for the Golden Glove if he appeared in all games, so it was clear that he would be a big help this season. And he was definitely motivated because he said that if he played well this season, he would delete his photo.

“[So it’s just one year, right?]”

“[That’s right, bastard. Ha, why the fuck can’t I trust people like this? Do you really need to get hit one more time to come to your senses?]”

“[No, no. Haha. I always believe.]”

“[Train hard and work hard. Also, if you say that you don’t work hard, and it hurts, that’s really fucking true. Got it?]”

“[All right. Mr. I hope Ji has a good day too.]”

By the way, if you look at what he says, he is such a good guy, but why did he have bad intentions? If you do that, he’s good at it.

Anyway, it was quite reassuring that the foreigners who won last year’s championship were also together this season. Not only Williams, but also foreign one-two punches Bellingham and Crongs.

Bellingham was an optimized pitcher for the KBA league, so he didn’t have to worry about going somewhere else, but he said he had a hard time catching the Crongs, who had 17 wins last year. Although he received a love call from Japan, Crongs’ heart seemed to be moved by the general manager’s request that he wait for one more year and pursue the major leagues.

After that, Crongs, whom I met at spring camp, said, ‘I thought about going to Japan, where they would pay more, but since you were here, Ji, I decided to stay too. ‘Because it’s fun to be with you.’ He said something that gave me goosebumps, causing cold sweat to run down my spine, but the fact that a pitcher of Crongs’ caliber remained on the team was definitely a green light for a third straight victory.

“Meng Hao! “The broadcasting company is looking for you?”

“Me? “Why?”

While I was soothing Williams’ anxiety, the manager came to see me. A broadcasting company is calling me. Could it be that a broadcasting station came all the way to the United States to look for me because of my sense of entertainment? Are you trying to come all this way and recruit me?

‘Ha, I need to focus on baseball…’

“Uh, I’d like to do a spring camp interview with you, Sangju, Jincheol, and Suho.”

“… Baseball broadcast?”

“Then it’s a baseball broadcast, otherwise why would you come all the way here?”

… Fortunately, I felt like I could focus on baseball.

“Meng Hao, anyway, the restrictions on interviews within the team are slowly being lifted, so let’s not cause any accidents. It’s not a live broadcast, but… Okay?”

“Hey, they say I had an accident sometime.”

However, despite my sincere words, the manager looked like he didn’t believe me and dragged me to where the seniors were.

“Hey, Ji Maeng-ho! “Why is the youngest coming so late?”

“Senior, do you think I’m likely to cause an accident?”

“I was just about to say that. Please don’t have an accident during the interview.”

Well, I knew that Sangju senior would react like this. He is a person who likes to tease others and joke around a lot. I looked back at senior Jincheol with anticipation. Senior Jincheol was a pleasant person as last year’s captain, but he was not the type of person to lie about things like this.

“Meng Hao. You just keep your mouth shut. Okay?”

… As much as he is cheerful, he is also a person who jokes around a lot when he is not playing, so I expected this as well. But senior Suho was really different. Because he was a senior who was quiet and didn’t joke around much, both during the game and on a regular basis.

“…”

There is no need to remain silent until this happens…

“Senior, please say something…”

“Only talk about baseball.”

…

“If you heard it, go sit down. “You little one.”

“… Why am I on the blind side?”

Did you see that too? Fuck.

“Then why did you leave the counseling center?”

“… That’s my opinion.”

“I gave my fans a break and was sad~.”

“You didn’t say it in that tone?!”

I don’t know who the weatherman is imitating, but he speaks in an exaggerated tone. If it weren’t for my senior, I would have hit him, really.

“Uh, I think I just cursed with my eyes? “Brothers, this guy just swore, right?”

“Of course AT Thunders. Maybe it’s because they’re last year’s winning team, but the atmosphere is good. The team does well because the core players are so close. “Aren’t we really going to lose three games in a row?”

The action that made me want to hit the weather warning ended when the commentator came.

“Ah, senior, are you here?”

“Okay, there’s nothing special today, I’ll just do an interview and then go in. Here’s the script.”

There was nothing special about the script handed out by the broadcasting company. It was all about baseball. I quickly skimmed through the script, then sat down on the ground and took a break.

“Don’t you read the script?”

“Senior, I am a veteran who has participated in two entertainment shows.”

“Ugh… Well, nothing special. “If this guy is being interviewed, then why are you so anxious?”

There was an incident where Sangju senior started an argument, but we brushed it off and the interview began soon.

“Hello! Dear baseball fans! And AT Thunders fans! The AT Thunders are the 2023 Korean Series champions, the 2024 regular league and Korean Series champions, have won their second consecutive league title, and are aiming for their third consecutive win in 2025!”

Clap clap clap. Applause erupts at the caster’s words. After applauding, I looked around at the expressions of the seniors, and they were full of confidence. Normally, when you hear something like, “We’re going to win three games in a row,” We tend to get excited and be cautious, but the seniors’ faces didn’t show any signs of that.

Confidence that we can win this year as well. In a way, it was natural. It was that kind of confidence that the coach emphasized throughout spring camp. Before I joined, the winning mentality was already ingrained in the minds of my teammates, which is hard to believe for a team that went through 20 dark years of not even being able to make it to the postseason.

‘But isn’t it natural?’

‘Yes? No, don’t you usually get scared about what happens if a team that is supposed to win doesn’t win? The team has had a hard time for 20 years. Of course, we won two years in a row.’

‘Those two bastards joined the team with you, and didn’t one of them transfer as a free agent?’

‘Uh… ?’

After listening to Rossby’s words, it seems like the seniors have no reason to be scared… ?

Sangju senior and Jincheol senior joined the team in 23 years, the same year as mine. Jincheol senior made his debut at, but it was 10 years ago, and Sangju senior also had experience winning at Hancheol, so there was no reason to be scared. As far as I know, Suho was a member of the team for 21 years, but he had a very one-and-done style, and it was a short period of time for him to become part of the team.

‘If you think about it, it’s natural for the seniors to have confidence in their expressions. But Mr. Rossby, isn’t it surprising?’

‘What?’

‘I also know the years other seniors joined the team. Pretending not to be interested.’

‘… Shut up.’

As expected, he is a man who is very interested in me. Not being honest. As I was smiling at Mr. Rossby, the seniors began to introduce themselves one by one.

“Hello. This is Choi Jin-cheol, who is the captain of the AT Thunders this season as well.”

“Hello. It’s a weather week.”

“This is Kim Su-ho.”

And then it’s my turn.

“Hello. KBA MVP for two years in a row, Golden Glove at second base for two years in a row, batting average of .400 for two years in a row, 60 home runs for two years in a row, what else? Anyway, this is Ji Maeng-ho.”

I introduced myself plainly.

“… “Isn’t Ji Maeng-ho the only one that’s a bit long?”

“It’s true, right?”

Records from which there is nothing to take away. It was clear that if I left anything out, I would be criticized for being unlucky. Excessive humility was actually poison.

“Hey! We also received the Golden Gloves two years in a row!”

“Well, that’s right.”

“Haha, that’s right. Choi Jin-cheol won the first baseman Golden Glove for two years in a row, Kim Su-ho won the third baseman Golden Glove for two years in a row, Ki Ki-joo won the outfielder Golden Glove for two years in a row, and Ji Maeng-ho won the MVP and second baseman Golden Glove for two years in a row. Player. We’ve gathered 4 people who are leading the AT Thunders’ hard-hitting line. Fans are calling them the AT Thunders Fantastic Four, right? Did you know?”

The batter Fantastic Four. This is my first time hearing this story. Anyway, baseball fans like to use names like this. No, not only fans but also experts and reporters liked to use these embarrassing nicknames. The same goes for calling me a ‘devil’.

‘Where is a person as good as me, devil?’

But the other Fantastic Four. It wasn’t that I didn’t understand. Senior Jin-cheol with 38 home runs and 124 RBIs, Sangju senior with a batting average of .303 8 with 24 home runs and 121 RBI, Su-ho senior with an on-base percentage of .404 with 16 home runs and 125 runs as the number one hitter. There was no senior who was embarrassed by an embarrassing nickname.

Of course, so did I. In my case, ‘ONLY ONE’ suited me more than ‘Fantastic Four’, but the nickname ‘Fantastic Four’ made some sense. But…,

‘Why the Other Fantastic Four?’

I was a little curious about the need to add the word ‘type’ in front of it.

“But why the batter Fantastic Four? Are there any Fantastic Four pitchers?”

Since I needed to solve my questions quickly, I asked questions right away to resolve those questions.

“Yes, of course there is. The AT Thunders’ starting players are called the Pitcher Fantastic Four. Didn’t you know? Crongs, Bellingham, Yun Jang, and Junhyung Park. You all led the team with 10 or more wins last year, right? “I believe that’s why the fans gave it that name.”

“… Are they still called The Fantastic Four? “Then why don’t I do Fantastic Four?”

To be honest, except for Crongs, the list is a bit lacking in weight… Except for Crongs, all of them had an ERA in the 3-point range, and in particular, Junhyung, who had an ERA in the upper 3-point range, was suddenly a little embarrassed by the nickname Fantastic Four because his brother’s name was included.

“Yes?”

“Can’t I be left out of Fantastic Four? It feels a bit heavy…”

Moreover, in my opinion, the strongest starting lineup is Hwasan, led by Seong-hyun, so it feels a little awkward to be grouped with our team’s starting pitchers.

“…”

“Meng Hao! Mouth! PD, I’m sorry. Please cut this part slightly.”

… Korean society was a very difficult society for young people to have convictions.