Chapter 607 – Episode 594. A South American Powerhouse. (5)
-Waaaaa!!!!!!!
“It’s a fierce tiger!!”
Along with the cheers of the crowd, the first base coach can be heard shouting from behind.
“Fuck! This is it!”
I couldn’t hold back any longer, so I swore loudly and slammed my fist towards the crowd of spectators from Korea. And the shout gets louder when you see that fist!
Seeing Alcantara, who had laughed at me the previous time at bat, throwing down his glove and hearing those shouts, it was like heaven.
‘Boy, your position is worse than I thought. … If it had been Jamsil, I wouldn’t have passed.’
Now the score is 3:3.
And the atmosphere was clearly leaning towards us.
*
[Ji Maeng-ho! Ji Maengho! Jimaenghooooo!! This time, Ji Maeng-ho saves the Republic of Korea! Immediately tied! Ji Maeng-ho makes it 3:3! This player is smart!]
A decisive home run that hit 3-1. Since the destination of the hit was unknown until the end, the caster was almost fainting and was shouting out Ji Maeng-ho’s name.
[Ugh!!!! Ji Maengho!! Ji Maengho! Ji Maengho!! … Wow, the exit speed was 140 km/h and the launch angle was 38 degrees. I think it took about 6–7 seconds… As expected, this is the tremendous power of Ji Maeng-ho.]
The commentators, who had been screaming together to lose their sanity, could not help but be astonished after Ji Maeng-ho’s home run data came out. That home run, which flew over the fence with a slow batting speed of 140 km/h and a high launch angle of 38 degrees, was a home run that can only be described as incredible.
After such a powerful home run, Joo Seung-cheol came to the plate in a chaotic situation.
[I wish Joo Seung-cheol could also hit a home run here…]
Because the atmosphere was chaotic, we were expecting one more home run… But Alcantara was Alcantara.
[Joo Seung-cheol retires from the plate after a 5-pitch match. Three outs with this. The inning ends.]
[Ji Maeng-ho did a really great job. The tie here is huge, right? Now it looks like Alcantara will be the next batsman and the last. Because there are 77 pitches. If you do this, you can really try from episode 7 onwards. Most of the Dominican pitchers are fast pitchers, but no pitcher throws a better pitch than starting pitcher Alcantara?]
[I hope so. It has to be that way.]
However, since Alcantara had no pitches left, he had to face only one batter in the next inning, and the South Korea dugout was busy.
[In the top of the 7th inning, the pitcher on the mound is Kim Won-ho. He showed great performance against Taiwan, throwing 5 scoreless innings as a starter, and recorded an ERA of 2.30 and 15 wins last season.]
The pitcher chosen by Korea’s busy dugout was none other than Kim Won-ho. There were many pitchers prepared in Korea’s bullpen, but Seonghyun could not be used considering the next game, and the Dominican batters were too scared to use another pitcher.
However, Kim Won-ho is a pitcher that major league scouts have been observing since last year. And as such, he was thought to be the next pitcher within the team, after Jang Woo-sung, Jung Woo-sung, Seong Hyun, and Go Young-hwan, so in a way, it was a natural choice.
[… Soto’s hit. The leadoff batter gets on base. … Rodriguez’s batted ball! Ah! Catch it! Yang Ji-hyuk!]
But, Dominica was Dominica. With Soto’s amazing hit, the situation is safe with no outs at first base.
[If you were to pick an outfielder with the widest defensive range in Korea, the first player you would pick is Jihyuk Yang, right? This is it!]
The person who put out the fire in that situation was Yang Ji-hyuk, who came on as a pinch hitter and recorded a lucky hit. Yang Ji-hyuk, who took center field as Joo Seung-cheol moved to right field, showed wide defense as the coaches expected,
‘Thank you, senior!’
… It was enough to relieve the tension of the pitcher who had just stepped onto the mound.
[… Kim Won-ho strikes out Diaz!]
In this way, a virtuous cycle of good rain leading to good fishing continues,
[… Swing strike! Out! Kim Won-ho puts two batters on base, but ends the inning without allowing any runs!]
Although they put one more runner on base, Korea was able to end the inning without allowing any runs.
And then the bottom of the 7th inning began.
“Siwoo, Algiers? You are the last Put down the Alcantara.”
“All right. “Director.”
Choi Si-woo, the lead hitter, came to bat after receiving a special order to unload Alcantara, who threw 77 pitches.
He came out as the team’s No. 4 hitter, but what was more important than his pride was his country’s victory. Choi Si-woo, who knew that the way for the team to win was to face less Alcantara than just one person, and faithfully carried out coach Joo Hyung-jin’s special order.
“Strike!”
“Strike!”
“Strike~! Out!”
[Bottom of the 7th inning, the pitcher is still Alcantara. … Three pitches, strikeouts! Alcantara catches Choi Si-woo with three pitches and a strikeout! But Alcantara ends here!]
[Choi Si-woo, you had no intention of hitting at all, right? He was in the mindset of somehow getting three balls out. This is the mindset for the team.]
The result was a three-pitch strikeout, but the pitcher who struck out had a grim expression on his face, the batter who had struck out smiled and returned to the dugout, and Alcantara, who had been tormenting Korea by allowing on base only three times out of 22 at-bats, left the mound.
[Now the pitcher on the mound is a taunt. He is a typical fastball type pitcher who throws a cutter, high-speed slider, and sinker that reach up to 103 mph. … Kang Han-beom is being replaced here. The batter who appears is Koo Jin-mo.]
[I guess you thought Koo Jin-mo had a better response to fast balls than the older Kang Han-beom, right? Plus, I’m a left-handed hitter.]
[I liked Coach Joo Hyung-jin’s pinch-hit strategy today, but I think I should trust him again this time. … Ah, outfield fly. Two outs.]
[Hey, how do you throw a ball over 100 mph so easily? After all, it is Dominica, a powerhouse in South America.]
The pitcher who replaced Alcantara, who showed terrible pitching, was a provocation. Coach Joo Hyung-jin tried to deal with Doval by pinch-hitting, but unfortunately, the luck of getting a pinch-hit did not happen twice.
However, there was still one more player from the major league in Korea’s batting lineup.
[Weather alert! A batted ball that splits right-center! A weather note that reaches second base!]
… It was Gyeong Gi-ju who, like other hitters, was silent all day. Ki Ki-joo, who hit a double, was immediately replaced by Lee Eun-chong, who boasts quick feet,
[… Lee Yong-gi’s hit! Pinch runner Lee Eun-chong made it all the way home! Coming in! Lee Eun-chong hits home with a short hit! Score 4:3! Korea has now achieved a reversal! Ki Ki-joo, Lee Yong-gi, and Lee Eun-chong! The three winners of last year’s Golden Gloves will do it!]
After Ki Ki-joo hit a double, Lee Yong-gi took advantage of the pitcher’s shakiness to hit consecutive hits, bringing the score to 4:3. Korea, riding the wave, succeeded in turning the game around.
But Korea’s on-base reach ended there.
[… Out! Kim Su-ho hit a good ball, but was caught in the outfield. However, he added 1 point and Korea turned the tables! The game now goes to the top of the 8th inning!]
Korea was unable to add any more points, so the game went into the top of the 8th inning, and the atmosphere of the game was about to turn strange again with Kim Won-ho walking Tatis Jr. And giving up a hit to Machado.
[Ah, a pitcher replacement sign is being sent here.]
[There is only one pitcher who will come out of here, right?]
And the role of the director is to break that trend!
Joo Hyung-jin pitched the most reliable pitcher at a certain time. After only one inning, a pitcher who was more reliable than Sung Hyun or Jang Woo Joo opened the bullpen door and began to walk out.
[Yes. Ko Young-hwan comes out of the bullpen.]
The hero of that walk was Ko Young-hwan, one of the major league players with only four players on the national team. Ko Young-hwan, who played the role of closer for the Minnesota Twins last season, knew very well what his role was,
[Kim Won-ho comes off the mound with 2 outs and 1st and 3rd bases after 1.2 innings. Now on the mound is South Korea’s closer Ko Young-hwan. … Strike out! Go Young-hwan strikes out Soto! Of course, it’s Go Young-hwan!]
As the coach expected and as the people hoped, he came down from the mound, preventing a crisis. So Dominica put out two runners for two consecutive innings, but failed to score, and the ending for such a team was bound to come down to one thing.
[… Out! Go Young-hwan catches the final out count of the game! South Korea is the powerhouse of South America! Defeat Dominica! Advance to the semifinals!]
[I’m really proud. It wasn’t an easy match today, but I’m really proud of the players.]
Like that, South America’s powerhouse Dominica was eliminated by South Korea following the Olympics and swallowed back tears…,
-Korea! Advance to the semifinals! Ji Maeng-ho’s great performance!
… Ji Maeng-ho recorded 2 hits in 4 at-bats, 1 home run, 2 runs, 2 RBIs, and 2 stolen bases, scoring 3 of the team’s 4 runs…
┗ㅇㅅㅁㅎㅅ
┗Ji Maeng-ho is it you again?! Ji Maeng-ho is it you again?! Ji Maeng-ho is it you again?!
┗Wow, I yelled at Alcantara in full voice when he hit a home runㄷㄷ
┗┗Everyone in our apartment screams together haha
┗Petaju? Blogge? Soto? Machado? Ah, just ordinary people playing in a league without Ji Maeng-ho
… At the center, as always, was Ji Maeng-ho.