Chapters 485 – 477. Opening Series. (3)
“Huh?”
“Huh?”
As the batted ball flew like a bullet and bounced off the pitcher’s foot, Lee Yong-gi and I made dumbfounded noises. And a sound that seems to come from hell echoes through Jamsil Stadium.
“Aaaaah!”
‘It’s been a while since I heard a bastard scream. What are you doing? Don’t play to first base.’
‘Ah…’
I was a little embarrassed when the ball hit the pitcher’s foot, but after hearing Rossby’s words, I quickly ran to first base. Of course, it’s safe at first base. The timing was good because the ball bounced off the pitcher’s foot and flew to a location where none of the infielders could catch it. However,
“Isn’t that dangerous? “I can’t get up?”
The pitcher was lying face down where he was hit and couldn’t get up. In an instant, Hwasan’s infielders gather at the spot where the guy collapsed, and a trainer visits the mound to check on the guy’s injuries.
“Meng Hao, did you have an accident again?”
“What is an accident… Oh, I guess it’s an accident. What kind of pitcher can’t even avoid a batted ball?”
“How do you avoid that? Even you can’t avoid that.”
Well, as the coach said, the batting speed was a little fast.
“But don’t steal base this time.”
“Yes? “Why?”
“Hey, if the pitcher hits and gets on base, but you steal base, it’s a 100% empty ball.”
“Ah…, I guess so.”
While he was talking with the first base coach, the trainer who was checking the pitcher’s condition signaled that he would not be able to play anymore. The pitcher was replaced from the bottom of the first inning… It’s not bad, is it?
“Go and give me an apple.”
“Yes.”
Although I didn’t really do anything wrong, something like this happened again, and since offering an apology is a warm gesture in baseball, I approached the guy who was being carried on a stretcher.
“[Sorry.]”
“[It’s okay, it’s okay. Because I made a defensive mistake. Don’t die.]”
‘What, it’s better than I thought?’
He endured the pain and actually encouraged me when I said I was sorry.
‘Hehe, the slave spirit in my veins recognized my master’s scent. ‘Can that guy see me too?’
‘Mr. Rossby! Why would you say something like that to a good girl?’
‘A good bastard…’
‘Stop! ‘Stop!’
If I talked to Rossby any longer, I felt like I would call him a bastard without realizing it, so I ignored Rossby, took off my hat, and apologized properly.
“[I’m sorry in many ways.]”
“[No, no. Because various things can happen during a game.]”
… I felt sorry for him when he answered kindly. Tsk. To be honest, there was a prejudice that he had a strange personality because he threw a lot of balls, but he was just a good pitcher with poor ball control.
“Yes, Meng Hao. “It’s not your fault, so don’t worry too much about it.”
Lee Yong-gi pats my shoulder and comforts me.
“But, what is the condition?”
“I don’t know, it looks like the bone in my toe is injured, but they said I’ll have to take a picture at the hospital to find out more.”
“Oh my. I hope you recover quickly.”
This guy is a mercenary pitcher brought in to help the team win. His toe bone would take at least 4 weeks, but will the volcano wait? … I guess he came to Korea with the feeling of catching the last rope, so I felt a little pity for him.
“Well, if it takes too long, I’ll have to hire a mercenary or something.”
… Was it my mistake to feel that Yonggi seemed slightly happy? If I’m not mistaken, it was clear that I was under a lot of stress while receiving balls from him throughout training. He seems to have lost some weight too. Well, I thought it would be a bit annoying for me to sit all day and block the ball from a guy who throws it in all directions, and then stand up and catch it.
‘Well, the starters will leave, so the game will take a break.’
When we return to first base, a new pitcher comes to the mound. The new pitcher is Hwasan long relief pitcher Jang Gyeong-chan. No matter how wide the strike zone was, it was unlikely that a bullpen as strong as Jang Kyung-chan would be able to withstand our batting lineup for more than 3 innings.
‘If I do this, if I bring out more bullpens today, tomorrow’s game will be easier, right? Good. Let’s sweep.’
Although there were unexpected accidents, baseball is war. There was no reason not to target the other party’s weaknesses.
“… But don’t steal bases.”
“Yes? How did you know?”
“Hey, I know everything just by looking at your expression.”
“Yes, coach.”
Although it may be a bit of a steal for now.
*
[It should not be a serious injury for Tinie. Ah…, In the end, the mound is replaced. I think that’s it for Tinie. Ji Maeng-ho’s batting speed was 194 km/h. If you get hit by a ball like this, injuries are inevitable. You have to be really careful.]
[Ji Maeng-ho is not a good grounder, but an unfortunate accident occurred. Still, I’m glad he didn’t get hit in a dangerous area.]
-ㅅㅂ Killer Mangho is now dipping the pitcher as well
┗Who would think you did that on purpose? Even if you are a fierce defender, how do you control your hitting?
┗┗But if it’s Ji Maeng-ho, it might be possible haha
-I told you not to throw it towards your body and get hit, but you actually threw it towards your body and got hit by the batted ball haha
┗No, what kind of athletic ability does a pitcher have? The kid who throws 160 can’t even avoid a batted ball haha
┗How did he avoid that and his batting speed was so damn fast
-Meng Hao, did you hit someone again?
┗Ah, the ball hit me this time haha
[Meteorological warning hits! It passes by the second baseman! Ji Maeng-ho reaches third base in one go! Now 1 out, 1st, 3rd base!]
[Hey, if it was a shift against a normal player, it would have been a ball with a high chance of being caught, but excessive shifting has been banned this season, right? It will be the fun of this season to look forward to what kind of performance left-handed hitters will show.]
[Williams’ batted ball flies high! Center fielder, catch! Departing from Jimaengho, we arrive safely at home. AT Thunders score first! Now the situation becomes 2 outs and 1 base. … Choi Jin-cheol picks this ball. Walk. Now, 2 outs, 1st and 2nd bases.]
[Player Jang Gyeong-chan suddenly comes up, and his control seems to be shaking?]
[Kim Su-ho’s hit! The runner on second base makes it all the way to home! Coming in! Now 2:0! Runners on 1st and 2nd base again. And Seongtae Yoon comes in at bat. … Seongtae Yoon’s batted ball cuts into right-center field! The runners who started first went home one by one! Home! Even first base runner Choi Jin-cheol comes home! Score 4:0! Seongtae Yoon hits a timely double with 2 RBIs! The AT Thunders explode with firepower that they could not show yesterday starting from the bottom of the first inning!]
[This is the fear of AT’s batting lineup. Of course, Jang Gyeong-chan suddenly stepped up and put in an effort, but once it explodes, it is the AT batting lineup that explodes like an active volcano, right?]
[… The shortstop catches Kim Hyun-seong’s batted ball. Three out. The long first episode comes to an end.]
*
The first game I’ve been waiting for. It took quite a while for the game to start, but it didn’t take long for the second batter to come around. In the bottom of the first inning, Hyun Seong-i, who was the 8th batter, came to bat, and the first attack in the bottom of the 2nd inning was Baek Jeong-jin, the 9th batter.
“Out!”
“Out!”
And my second at-bat came when the opposing pitcher, who had found stability, threw out Baek Jeong-jin and Jeong Hwi-cheol in succession.
“Ball.”
“Is this missing too?”
“Brother, anyone can see that he’s crazy.”
“Tch…”
Although the expanded strike zone and dedicated framing were added, the decision could not be changed. Maybe because Tinie is a mercenary, he came in, but Jeong Gyeong-chan was a pitcher whom I had faced a few times before. He didn’t seem to want to deal with me with two outs.
‘It’s a slider.’
‘Okay.’
The second ball is a slider. The guy’s slider, which showed an outside trajectory from the start, runs away.
“Ball.”
Two balls with this. The third ball is also stuck in a position where it cannot be hit. When it became a three ball, the fourth ball hit the outside, and it was a straight walk.
‘It seems to be similar this year. Well, you probably don’t want to hit a home run against me with two outs. The pitcher is not even Seonghyeon.’
It was something I expected, so I unpacked my gear and headed to first base.
“Meng Hao, are you going to run?”
“Of course I have to run.”
He gave interviews saying he doesn’t steal bases, but only a fool would believe that. Well, it’s true that it hurts from being chafed, but when I visually checked the newly introduced pitch clock in an exhibition game, it looked spacious even when I entered with bent leg sliding, so I was planning to enter the base first with my legs this season.
“Safe!”
“Safe!”
Okay, all the checks have been removed. In this case, there is no check. Now it’s my game against Lee Yonggi’s shoulders,
‘Fastball.’
‘Okay.’
And no matter how fast the ball was, sniping second base in a situation where it was impossible to check was impossible, even for Lee Yong-gi, who boasts the best defense in Korea.
“Safe!”
‘It’s easy.’
In the demonstration race, timing was measured only by eye due to the risk of injury, but the newly introduced rule was quite advantageous to the runner.
‘Then Sangju senior!’
Now that I’m at second base with two outs, there’s only one thing for me to do. Senior Sangju also sends me signals with his eyes.
‘Slider.’
‘It’s a slider!’
The team’s inability to steal signs and my ability to clearly identify the type of pitch in the battery were a mystery even within the team, but the players knew that I could predict the type of pitch and trusted me completely.
Ta-ah!
And there was no hesitation because Ki Ki-joo was the third hitter, and they had been working together for the past year.
-Wow!!!!
– Weather warning! Weather warning! Weather warning!
Ki Ki-ju believed my words and swung the bat coolly, and his batted ball flew over the fence.
‘6:0 from the second inning? ‘I went to the game.’
“Meng Hao, it was good.”
“Hey, just because you know it doesn’t mean you can hit it all. That’s a senior’s ability.”
“You idiot, you know how to say bold things. “Our blind side has grown a lot.”
“It’s not the blind side!”
“No matter who looks at it, it looks like a blind spot. “Let’s go to the dugout.”
… You fell behind during the ceremony.
*
[Haha, Ji Maeng-ho seems really happy about the home run. It seems like you are hitting your senior Ki Ki-joo really hard? You’re looking for someone, but you can’t find them, right? Haha.]
[Does this mean AT Thunders is in a good mood? One of the reasons we won two championships in a row is because of that bright dugout atmosphere. I understand that the age difference between Ki Ki-joo and Ji Maeng-ho is more than 10 years, and when a junior hits a senior on the back so hard, it means that they are in a good mood.]
[From the bottom of the second inning, 6:0! AT Thunders is a great batting lineup.]
-I went to the game today ㅅㅂ
┗Yesterday I was in trouble because of the pitching game, but today I’m in trouble because of the batting. Let’s turn off the TV.
[At the bottom of the 4th inning, AT’s batting lineup explodes once again! AT Thunders add 4 points and make a big inning! Ji Maeng-ho scores 4 runs, including a solo home run as the leadoff hitter! Now the score difference is 10:2!]
[Even though the zone has expanded, AT’s batting lineup does not seem to have been affected at all.
-The fierce god of defense finally hits a home run haha
-Fuck, there are still 5 episodes left, and I’m already in the off-hours zone haha
┗Honestly, it seems difficult to turn the tables.
[Jang Yoon ends the 6th inning with a three-way throw. 6 innings, 2 runs allowed. Demonstrates quality starting pitching. … Bottom of the 6th inning, AT Thunders attack. Pinch hitter Woo Kwan-hyung steps in.]
[Because the difference in scores is large, candidates are being appointed to improve the players’ batting and game sense, right?]
[Safety! Woo Kwan-hyung’s 3,150th hit in the league! This is the first hit this season.]
[He’s a great player, right? There was talk of retirement last year, but through a conversation with coach Lee Soo-hyun, it was announced that he would retire this season, and a retirement tour is scheduled. Just looking at the way you play, I think you can do it for another year or two, haha.]
[Ah, Tinie’s medical checkup results have just arrived. It is said that he needs at least 4 weeks of rest due to a fractured toe.]
[Ah… Tinie, Seon Sun throws a really attractive ball, so it would be a real shame.]
-Let’s just go become a mercenary. I didn’t expect that guy to begin with haha
┗Maeng Ho-shin’s big decision due to concerns about the decline in quality of the league.
┗Meng Hosin’s consideration to quickly train the throwers and compete for the championship… Thank you… Mang Hosin…
-Well, be merciful to the opposing team too… After all, you are a fierce warrior
┗Hwasan Gallery is here to share the great will of the fierce warrior god to bring in the right mercenaries.
┗Ji Meng-ho is a player like a big mountain peak, and Meng Ho-mong will join him
[Out. Game over. In today’s game, AT Thunders won 11:4 and won 2 games in a row. Thank you, viewers, for joining us.]
-Let’s get ready for tomorrow’s game, you damn bastards have gotten stronger haha
┗Well, 1 win and 2 losses against the winning team is fine haha
┗┗I haven’t won 1 game yet. Get excited ㅅㅂ
┗Tsk, we should have won the game yesterday.
-But you keep going to Tiny together?
┗Wouldn’t it is a recovery period? First, there are no official ones.