Chapter 553 – Episode 545. The Start of the Retirement Tour. (1)
[The bottom of the 12th inning ends when this batted ball is caught by the left fielder. AT Thunders and Hancheol Grizzlies share 1 win, 1 loss, and 1 draw! Today’s game ends here. Jamsil so far…]
-1st place AT Thunders, 10th place Hancheol Grizzlies, 1 win, 1 loss, 1 draw!
… Meanwhile, this series was a rivalry, with fierce matches taking place one after another… In the first game, Ji Maeng-ho hit 3 home runs in one game…
[Ji Maeng-ho! I hit you! Finish! Finish! Ji Maeng-ho breaks his two-game losing streak by hitting a walk-off double in the bottom of the 9th inning with 2 outs and runners on first base! Score 5:4!]
-AT Thunders escape their second consecutive loss! At the center was Ji Maeng-ho.
… On Tuesday and Wednesday, the AT Thunders, featuring Jang Yoon and Park Jun-hyung as starters, suffered two consecutive losses to the Shilla Triggers and were on the verge of being swept in the series. However, Lim Jun-hoo, the starter in Game 3, pitched well, recording a quality start pitching, allowing 3 runs in 6 innings, and in the batting lineup, Ji Maeng-ho hit a walk-off double…
[AT Thunders and NV Rex share 1 win and 1 loss. Who will be the winner of the series? . And before that fierce match, there is a special event today when AT and NV face each other in Changwon, the last game of the season, right?]
[Yes. AT Thunders’ Woo Kwan-hyung, who had the most hits in his career and set records of 400 home runs and 400 stolen bases while adding one home run this season, announced his retirement at the end of this season, right? In keeping with the retirement of such a great player, the KBA secretariat proposed a retirement tour, and other clubs readily accepted.]
[You’re right. Woo Kwan-hyung left a big mark on the KBA League. The retirement tour celebrating the retirement of pinch hitter Woo Kwan-hyung begins here at Changwon NV Park.]
[Ah, NV’s captain Jeong Tae-seong is giving a bouquet of flowers and a picture frame to Woo Gwan-hyeong. It looks perfect, right?]
*
-Um, Senior Gwanhyeong, this is Sihyeon. The first day I pitched, I still vividly remember crying after hitting a home run from senior Kwan Hyeong, and when he told me he was retiring…
An interview with NV Rex’s ace Kim Si-hyun was broadcast on the electronic display board, ending with a video congratulating him on his retirement.
Clap clap clap!
And when the video ended, all the fans in the stadium stood up and applauded for senior Kwan Hyeong. Even though it was the opposing team, I thought it was cool to see them applauding. The congratulations from the NV home fans seemed to explain the path senior Kwan Hyung has taken so far.
‘Wow, it’s spectacular.’
“Are you jealous?”
As I was watching the applause of the audience and engraving that scene in my mind, Sangju senior came up next to me. Senior Sangju also seemed impressed by the slightly moist look around her eyes.
“Do you see it?”
“If you look at me with those eyes, everything will be obvious.”
“Retirement tour. That’s cool. Do you think you will go on a retirement tour when you retire?”
“Me? Wouldn’t I do it? “I have participated in the national team several times.”
“But doesn’t that mean you have to hold on until then? “How many players retire from the second division?”
“This bastard is suddenly swearing. Hey, are you crazy?”
“That’s what it says. “I mean.”
“Well, it’s a blessing to retire like Senior Gwan. Because I am retiring from my position at the top. If you consistently manage yourself like senior Kwan, you will have the opportunity to go on a retirement tour like that. To put it bluntly, if you hit 10% in your later years and are stuck in the second division, it will be difficult to go on a retirement tour. The official retirement tour in the league was with senior Joo Hyung-jin…”
‘Shiba, I started talking to you for no reason. The words are getting longer again. And… What is that? Is it a gold batten? I guess it was only plated on the outside? It must be really expensive though…’
For a few minutes, I listened with one ear and let it out with the other as my senior Sangju gave a comprehensive speech about retirement. Senior Sangju’s nagging ended only when his teammates gathered to take pictures.
“Now! It’s the first day of Kwanhyung’s retirement tour, so let’s win today! It’s Sunday, so I should go up to Seoul in a good mood.”
“Yes!”
After the event celebrating Senior Kwan Hyeong’s retirement tour before the game, captain Jin Cheol called a meeting. Senior Jincheol’s words to win and go up as usual. Perhaps because of the first event of the retirement tour, other players were filled with a desire to win the game.
“Brother, please say something.”
“Hmm… I, the person involved, wasn’t excited, but is there anyone who is excited? There was an event, but let’s win and move up like usual. You can do it, right? “
“Yes!”
“Then let’s go! Invincible!”
“AT!”
After Senior Kwan Hyeong’s short words, the game started.
“Base on balls!”
Senior Suho got off to a refreshing start in the first inning by getting a walk against NV’s starting pitcher Wilson. And the batter who came to bat was senior Sangju, the second batter.
Ta-ah!
He frowned throughout the meeting because his record against Wilson, today’s starter, was not good, but as if to say that his record against him was meaningless, he turned the bat from the first pitch and made a big hit.
‘Will it pass?’
“Oh! Oh! Did you pass over? I think it went over? Sangju hyung!”
“Great, Sangju looks to be in good condition today.”
-Wow!!!
And, just as other teammates expected, the batted ball went over the fence, making the score 2-0 from the beginning of the first inning. And Ki Ki-joo enters the dugout and shares a warm hug with senior Gwan Hyeong.
I felt like the combat power of my other colleagues, especially seniors who had spent a long time with senior Kwan Hyeong, had increased significantly.
‘Sweet, I can’t lose, right?’
Seeing that, I strengthened my fighting spirit and just before I took the bat and went to bat, senior Jincheol called me.
“Meng Hao. “Please prepare a meal.”
“Yes? “Are you going to prepare the meal?”
“Okay, since Kwan-hyung is retiring, shouldn’t I do something?”
Seeing Jincheol, who usually doesn’t say things like this, say this, it seemed like the other seniors were also feeling special about today’s game. Although he was not retiring today, he seemed full of desire to win as it was senior Kwan Hyung’s first game on his retirement tour.
And, I felt the same way.
“Senior Jincheol. Just take it easy. “I will do it today.”
“… Okay. That’s just you.”
No, it was slightly different. Although the desire to win the game was the same, I wanted to be the main character of victory no matter how much the game was like this.
Senior Gwan Hyeong also said that we should do it as usual, and the usual me is the player who plays the leading role in the victory. Even though it was Senior Kwan Hyung’s first retirement tour event, I didn’t want to miss the spotlight.
‘Yes, as usual.’
Perfect!
After catching NV’s starting pitcher Wilson’s three-ball pitch, Williams’ sharp ball passes between the first and second basemen and rolls in front of right field. With this, no outs and 1st base.
‘Today, Sangju senior hit one home run, so he should hit at least two.’
I went into the at bat with that in mind. The first pitch, which appeared to be Wilson’s 150, hit the outside.
“Strike!”
A perfect strike that lands low and outside. It would be difficult for me if he could keep throwing balls like this, but like the mercenaries in the KBA league, there was no possibility of him continuing to throw balls like this, so the first pitch was called a strike, but it was okay. No. Rather, it was good.
If you hit the first pitch as a strike, you will want to compete more boldly.
The pitches Wilson uses are fastball, sinker, slider, and curve. After dazzling my eyes with fastballs and curveballs, there was a high probability that he would throw pitches such as sliders or sinkers as winning shots. Then, the ball to throw in a one-strike situation is a curveball or fastball.
As soon as the pitcher threw the second ball, I felt the ball rise slightly.
‘Curve!’
In that brief moment, I realized that his ball had a curve, so I endured it without putting my bat down until the end.
“Ball.”
And just as I expected, the guy’s curve hits a long way down.
‘If this is the case, it’s one ball, one strike, so should I go for one more?’
NV Rex, whom I had been playing against, was the type of team that threw a lot of outside balls to avoid hitting me with home runs as much as possible. So, considering that tendency, there was a high probability that I would look outside once again.
‘It’s outside… Just in case you end up in the zone, put the point slightly behind…’
3 pitches from a pitcher who was ready and waiting to hit.
‘… Slider!’
The third pitch he threw was an outside slider. However, there was enough time to swing the bat at the guy’s slider speed, which was slower than expected. The moment the ball hit the bat, I pushed the ball away while maintaining the impact,
Perfect!
The pushed ball made a cheerful sound and flew slowly toward the right wall.
‘Wait, it’s a bit ambiguous, isn’t it?’
If it had been Jamsil, which had a large stadium, the ball would not have gone over, but this is NV Park. A few seconds to run to first base with little hope.
-Wow!!!!
Cheers can be heard once again from AT’s cheering stands.
-Ji Maeng-ho! Ji Maengho! Ji Maengho!
A home run that narrowly goes over the fence! I clenched my fists and started stepping on the bases.
‘Wow, this is it!’
When I returned to the dugout, cheering at the batted ball that went slightly over the fence, senior Gwanhyeong, who was preparing to bat, greeted me.
“Hey, two home runs already! Hey! Be gentle! Gently!”
“Senior! “I fired a congratulatory gun!”
“Well done.”
Senior Kwanhyeong was smiling brightly, as if he didn’t know that I was thinking about taking away the spotlight today.
‘Okay, I guess I should give another interview on a day like this.’
However, as if I was the only one who thought that, a cheerful hitting sound echoed from the ground again.
Ta – Aak!
-Wow!!!!
– Choi Jin-cheol! Choi Jin-cheol! Choi Jin-cheol!
Choi Jin-cheol hit a home run in just one week.
“Back to back? What day is today? “Why are they like this?”
‘Fuck, today is going to be a little rough. ‘Did the old man eat something wrong all of a sudden?’
The game ended with a 5-point lead from the top of the first inning. On the first day of Senior Kwan Hyeong’s retirement tour, three congratulatory guns were fired to mark the start of the game, as appropriate for the event.
*
[No. 7 hitter Woo Kwan-hyung hits! Ah… Wilson comes down the mound here. Wilson comes down from the mound with only one out.]
[Wilson has shown a poor performance since the last game, but I think his physical strength is probably a big factor, right? He never left the rotation and stayed on the starting mound.]
[Yes. Even so, it was difficult to predict the first inning, but the decision was made in NV’s dugout.]
[Anyway, the AT players’ determination seems to be great as they are holding a retirement tour event for the team’s senior player, Kwan-Hyung Woo, right? I think that determination led to the batting lineup and this result.]
[… Hyunseong Kim! I attacked the changed pitcher’s first pitch! Hit the ball! Shortstop! Second baseman! First baseman! Double play! Jin Yong-jae ending a long inning! The long first inning ends with a 5-0 score! Now it’s on to NV’s attack at the end of the first inning!]