Chapter 729 – Episode 716. Watch Out for That Guy! (3)

“Safe!”

The second base umpire’s voice resonates. Since he was running from the moment he grabbed the grip of the breaking ball, the result was naturally safe. As I landed on second base, I could clearly see that the pitcher was annoyed.

Now the situation is 2nd base with no outs.

Honestly, it was stupid to steal third base with no outs on second base. In any case, it was the same to get home with just one hit, and if you compare the probability of scoring when a fly comes out with the probability of dying while running to third base, stealing third base was no different from a nuisance to the team.

So, coach Mattingly was telling me every practice to refrain from stealing third base. However, he was scared and had to let the pitcher who gave up a straight walk know that he could hit third base at any time.

‘It’s a splitter.’

‘Okay.’

And then the opportunity I had been waiting for came to me. With a count of 2-2, the pitcher once again chose a breaking ball. And the moment he flinched, he immediately started running toward third base, and even though he knew I was running, he had no choice but to make a pitching motion.

“Safe!”

Since the timing was perfect, the result was obviously safe. A situation with no outs and no outs on third base was created at once. Now, if there is an infield ground ball or an outfield fly, one point is unconditionally scored…

But things didn’t go as I thought. Judge, who was aiming for a big hit on a full count, struck out and Soto succeeded in getting on base with a walk, but the inning ended when Vientos, who was the fourth hitter, hit a double play.

‘So, this is because he’s an ace, right?’

Is this definitely Seattle’s ace-like pitching, as I heard during the power analysis class? Well, it was funny that the team’s ace gave me a straight walk because he was scared of me, but he definitely looked like he had skills, regardless of what he did to me.

‘Well, at some point, an unavoidable situation will come.’

Of course, I wasn’t that nervous because he filtered me out. Considering the team’s current batting condition, I was bound to get a chance at some point.

And that chance came faster than expected.

The guy who seemed to be getting off to a good start by catching Hall, the leadoff hitter, gave up a walk to Ohapee and a hit to Kelnick, and Volpi, the 8th hitter, also succeeded in getting on base with a walk after a persistent battle.

So, with one out and bases loaded, the ninth batter, Verdugo, came to bat,

Perfect!

Verdugo’s hit to the right was enough for Ohape, who was the runner on third base, to come in. And Kelnick, who was a runner on second base, also went to third base, so now the situation is 2 outs, 1st and 3rd base.

‘No matter how much pride you have, you won’t skip me at 1st or 3rd base with 2 outs. Besides, there is a judge behind me.’

Although he struck out in his previous at-bat, it was clear that facing Judge with the bases loaded would be a huge burden on the opposing pitcher.

And as if my thoughts were correct, he threw a strike from the first pitch. The speed of the guy on the electronic display board was 98.2 miles (158 km/h). It was definitely fast. The space and velocity seem similar, but can you feel that the force on the ball is definitely different?

‘It’s a fastball. Outside.’

‘This time too?’

The pitches he throws to me are all fastballs except for the slider in the first at-bat. And no matter how fast he was, it was strange that he couldn’t get used to it if he saw the ball this much. I waited for the guy’s ball with the intention of throwing it over the fence if he threw it carelessly,

‘… ‘It’s coming!’

The guy’s ball flew into the zone. However, contrary to what I heard from Mr. Rossby, the direction his ball is heading is towards the body… !

Perfect!

There was no time to correct the trajectory, so I aimed the bat at his ball, and luckily the angle and direction of the hit were pretty good.

-Waaaaa!!

Kelnick, who was a runner on third base, leisurely hit home, and Volpi, a runner on first base who started running after seeing the angle at which the batted ball flew, made it all the way to third base. It was disappointing that it didn’t hit a home run, but we made an extra point, so I raised my hand to the cheering home fans.

“Safe!”

And again, taking advantage of his splitter, he stole second base. Since he kept throwing fastballs, I thought there was no time to steal, but with two balls and two strikes, he chose a splitter, and Judge picked the ball out, making a full count.

‘Well, if he showed this level of stolen bases, he wouldn’t miss his next at-bat.’

… As soon as I thought that, there was another reason why he couldn’t filter me out.

Ta – Aak!

The batted ball that Judge lightly pushed went along the first baseline, and I was able to get home with ease.

-Wow!!!

-Jersey! Jersey! Jersey!

I entered the dugout while listening to the fans’ cheers and looked at the ground to see that Judge had settled all the way to third base. It was disappointing that there were no additional points because Soto was out, but the score was already up by 4 points.

From then on, the game went smoothly.

Singer, who appeared as the starting pitcher today, gave up 2 runs, but Miller was shaken by the error, and our batting lineup took advantage of the opportunity. In the end, Miller went down the mound, and at the end of the game, the score difference was 13:3, and we were able to achieve our 10th consecutive win.

‘Well, I expected him to be an ace who throws 100 mph, but his mental breakdown is similar to that of Jang Woo-joo.’

*

“Bryce. So what kind of guy is he?”

“… Write it. If possible, don’t let him get on base. Because I was so distracted by that guy that I lost my form without realizing it. Fuck. And if it weren’t for that mistake, we could have ended up with 4 runs…”

“Okay? How is the hitting?”

“… “He’s better at handling the ball faster than you think, so be careful, Brian.”

*

“These bastards are in the mid to late 150s.”

Seattle’s second-round starter was a guy named Brian Wu. Last year’s performance was poor at 12 wins, 12 losses, and 4.80, but in 2024, he had a full-time 3-point range, and this year, he appeared in two games and recorded an ERA of 2.84 over 12.2 innings, so he was not an opponent to be taken lightly.

In addition, he had to be careful because his fastball velocity averaged 94-5 mph and reached up to 99 mph. The fact that he couldn’t win the Cy Young Award even with such a fast ball meant that his pitch control wasn’t very good, and that meant that something like yesterday could happen again.

‘Mr. Rossby. As for the location, I will first check the control condition and then listen. I was so confused yesterday.’

‘Hmph, I informed you correctly. It’s your fault for not accepting it.’

‘Yes, yes. Mr. Rossby did nothing wrong.’

And so the game began with Mr. Rossby in sync,

Ta – Aak!

As soon as it started, Cole hit a home run from the leadoff hitter, widening the score gap. And although they did not give up any points, Seattle’s offense went on for quite some time in the top of the first inning as they faced a total of 6 batters. It was a call that gave up only 3 runs in 14 innings in the previous two games, but was it obvious that he was in bad shape today?

‘Tsk, if you’re like this, I guess I’ll have to make it up to you?’

“Cole, don’t worry.”

“Huh?”

“I’ll make it up to you right away.”

“… Phew. “I’m just putting up with it because it’s me, but if possible, don’t talk to the starting pitcher.”

“I just spoke well in the last game.”

“I was winning at the time, kid.”

“Anyway, don’t worry.”

Damn it even though I helped you. Anyway, pitchers are hard to understand.

Anyway, it was his first at-bat after giving Cole confidence.

Perfect!

‘Oh, shit.’

I kicked up the opposing pitcher’s cutter, but my intention to hit a home run was reflected in my swing, and the high batted ball flew far and was caught in front of the warning track.

“What? “Didn’t you leave after saying you would make it up to me?”

When I returned from hitting a fly to left field, I wondered where the person who told me not to talk to him was, but as soon as I returned to the dugout, Cole started talking to me. But I was confident. It wasn’t strange for a batter to miss a single at-bat.

“Well, the batter may not be able to hit one at-bat.”

“… Crazy guy.”

When you hear Cole’s ridiculous laughter and swear words,

Ta – Aak!

A loud sound echoed from the ground. Cole and I’s heads turned towards the ground at the same time, and Judge was raising his hand.

The destination of the batted ball was well over the left wall,

“Nice! This is the captain!”

“Good! I followed right away!”

Other teammates in the dugout were happy, pounding around the dugout at the game-tying home run in the first inning.

“… And, I didn’t say I would make it up to you.”

“… “Are you really crazy?”

I took advantage of the atmosphere and told a joke to Cole, but all I got back was a cold look from Cole. When I approached Judge, who had returned to the dugout, avoiding Cole’s gaze, Judge looked at me and shouted.

“Ji. Did you see it? There are now two left. Tell me to relax. “I’m going to win MVP this year, too.”

“Ah… Yes.”

‘Anyway, this guy is bragging too much.’

Seeing as pitcher Wang Go is so serious that he doesn’t even know how to joke, and the captain is crazy about bragging, I somehow feel like I’m the only sane person in this club. Even though I chose it, I’m a bit skeptical about how I ended up in a club like this.

‘Ugh, I guess I should hit a home run or something.’

Of course, the only thing that can soothe such regrets is a home run.

And that opportunity came with one out in the bottom of the third inning, with the score still at 1:1.

‘It’s a fastball.’

His first pitch was a fastball that hit high and outside.

‘Where was the mitt?’

‘It’s the body side.’

I asked for it towards the body, but seeing that it was stuck high on the outside made me feel like my eyes and reflexes would have to work harder today. Of course, I wasn’t worried or anything like that.

‘Well, it reminds me of Korea and I like it.’

To prepare for situations like this, I’ve been batting without listening to the location for the four years I was in Korea. It was a 97 mph fastball, but I’ve already seen a lot of fast balls yesterday and today, so I’m already used to it.

‘It’s a cutter.’

‘Okay.’

And the ball he chose was a cutter.

“Ball.”

However, due to poor ball control, his cutter missed wide to the outside, and the third ball also hit the ground, creating a three-ball at once.

‘What? The next batter is Judge, so you’re going to skip me?’

Although he was very proud of himself, Judge was a hitter who had hit a home run in four consecutive games, excluding yesterday, and was in excellent condition, hitting a home run today as well, so there was almost zero chance of him skipping me here.

And if a fastball pitcher with poor ball control is cornered by a three-ball, there is only one option.

‘It’s a cutter.’

‘As expected.’

As I expected, he chose a fastball. Maybe this ball will come into the zone. The cutter, which felt like it was slightly floating but sank about a ball, was a perfect ball to hit. Because it was similar to the four-seamer of the fastball pitchers in the KBA.

‘Please, come into the zone, come into the zone.’

The fourth ball of the guy who waited and prayed for the ball to enter the zone.

‘… ‘It’s here!’

This time, he must have succeeded in controlling the ball, and the ball headed into the zone,

Ta – Aak!

This time, I succeeded in kicking the guy’s ball properly. With this level of skill, there was no need to see a batted ball, so I just threw the bat and went to first base. And the batted ball flew past the fence before I even reached first base, eliciting cheers from the crowd.

-Wow!!!!

-Ji! Ji! Ji! Ji!

And I can see Judge waiting for me at home.

“Wow, that was a great hit. J.I.”

“Now there are three.”

“… Huh?”

“There is a difference of 3 home runs.”

After giving it back to Judge in his own way, I entered the dugout and received a lot of affectionate beatings from my teammates on my back and helmet, and at the end of the day, today’s starter, Call, was waiting.

“We couldn’t make it up, but we did turn it around. “You know it’s Cole’s turn now, right?”

“… Haha. Crazy bastard. Are you coming? “I’ll show you too.”

It was also successful in giving Jin Jin-chung a shot with this.

As expected, home runs were the best way to soothe a bad mood.