Chapter 748 – Episode 735. The Best Catcher in the League. (2)

Ta-ah!

‘Fuck, didn’t this bastard bet money? How can this happen?’

I don’t know much about sports betting, but it’s definitely a loss by 1 point, or a goal conceded right after scoring. It was clear that they had bet money on something like this. Otherwise, we wouldn’t have been able to concede a point every time we gave it away.

A guy who has won more than 15 games for three years in a row and has an ERA in the 3-point range can suddenly become like this.

No matter how much Rodon got older and his earned run average tended to increase, it was really a skill that made no sense unless he was betting.

‘I changed the catcher and thought he would do well in two games… Did you intentionally pitch well in two games to avoid getting caught?’

As soon as the lead was 3:2, I asked a question to Rodon, who hit a two-run home run and allowed the game to come back, but unfortunately, I didn’t get an answer. Rodon just silently throws the ball.

Perfect!

“Out!”

And the inning ends with a grounder to third base to Stowers.

‘No, the ball is good now…’

The ball thrown to Stowers was a perfect slider that hit the low strike zone near the knee. I can’t believe the guy who threw a ball like this threw a ball to Lutchman that he was told to hit. Questions also arise whether he received money from Lurchman rather than betting.

Considering that all 4 points allowed today were hit by that guy, we couldn’t rule out that possibility.

‘Rodon, I’ll have to watch this bastard more carefully from now on.’

I wanted to check which of the two, sports betting or paying for home runs, was true, but since the game was still going on, I decided to focus on the game for now and entered the top of the 4th inning.

“Base on balls!”

Although his OPS was close to 1 against right-handed pitchers, he was recording a miserable performance against left-handed pitchers, so Hall, who played as the number 8 hitter today, got a walk, giving him a chance with 2 outs and runners on first base.

‘Yes, I should go out once when there are runners. Let’s start with a tie.’

A turn at bat with the intention of tying the score.

“Is it 2-for-2 today? “Why don’t you get some rest now?”

Unexpectedly, Lutchman spoke first. He didn’t really want to talk, but he took the initiative, so I asked him a question to satisfy my curiosity.

“So how much did you give to Rodon?”

“… Huh?”

“How much did they give me to give me 4 RBIs?”

“Haha, I said something… A friend who knows how to tell jokes.”

If he had given me real money, I would have been embarrassed, but seeing him laugh it off made me feel better about sports betting.

“Anyway, be careful, I’m watching.”

“Haha, I guess I’ll have to keep quiet, so I don’t end up like Cigar.”

Why is this guy laughing during the game? .

‘It’s a fastball. ‘Body side.’

And in the meantime, Mr. Rossby, who had completed exchanging autographs with the pitcher, relayed the pitch type. His first pitch was a fastball. Since it wasn’t a very fast ball, he waited and resolved to throw it over the fence as soon as it came into the zone, but

“Ball.”

It becomes a ball as it penetrates deep into the body.

“Why is it so deep? Would you like to give it a try?”

“If you’re scared, back off. “Friend.”

When I saw the talking tail, it seemed like it was the intended ball, but since there was no way he would suddenly throw an empty ball, it seemed like he was planning to plant the ball inside the body and play outside.

“Let’s see if he says that even after hitting a home run.”

‘Slider, towards the body.’

The second ball he chose was a body slider. If a left-handed pitcher throws a high slider toward the right-hander, the ball is begging to be passed over the fence, so set the zone low and wait for the guy’s pitch.

‘Uh… ?’

“S~Trike!”

However, the ball must have slipped out of my hand and hit the backdoor castle on the outside, and I had no choice but to watch the ball.

‘… Mr. Rossby. I’ve been feeling it for a while now, but this guy’s Jegu is a bit weird. I’ll just listen to the pitch and leave.’

‘Okay.’

Since he was showing poor pitch control against me, both with the home run ball he hit in his first at-bat and with this ball as well, I decided to just listen to Mr. Rossby about the pitch.

“Oh, I guess I’m weak to this backdoor slider?”

“Oh, I’m weak, so throw it one more time.”

“Okay. Then, I will give you one more slider, so please pass it this time.”

‘Slider.’

‘Oh, what happened?’

I can’t believe you’re being really honest about choosing a slider here. It’s also a moment to admire the guts that I don’t see in most catchers. The ball thrown by the pitcher was flying to a similar position as before.

Perfect!

“Foul.”

‘Oh, it was a little low!’

However, the ball came slightly lower than before and the result was a foul.

“Wow, I can’t believe I can’t get over this. Should I give it to you again?”

“Why don’t you come again?”

‘It’s a splitter.’

‘That’s right.’

Just when I was thinking about showing my guts again, the ball that the battery chose was a splitter. I think the intention was to make him believe it once and strike out in a two-strike situation, but honestly, it was a bit obvious.

‘Well, that’s pretty much where catchers use their brains.’

Now all I had to decide was whether I was in the zone or not.

Usually, most splitters who come in for a strike with two strikes tend to fall one-bound and draw the bat, but I also thought that I could use my head to put it in the zone.

‘Well, that’s obvious too.’

Of course, it wasn’t difficult to deal with. Since the splitter was a falling ball, all I had to do was to release the bat when I felt it was coming up, and hold the bat when I felt it was coming down, as I usually do.

‘Now, come.’

And, when he threw the ball, it felt like it was falling slightly. Considering this guy’s trajectory, this is pretty much…,

‘… Huh?!’

… I thought so, but I felt something strange and immediately threw out the bat.

Perfect!

However, it was difficult to hit the ball accurately with the bat that was swung at a late timing, and the ball flew high and was caught by the center fielder.

‘Ah…, Fuck. Mr. Rossby, was it an incoming ball?’

‘Yes, if I had left it, it would have gone in.’

‘Sweet, I swung because I felt like I was missing something, but I was a little late in judging.’

‘Well done. As a batter, you have to know how to swing the bat even when you know you shouldn’t.’

‘… ‘You’re not keeping me in check because you’re afraid I might surpass Mr. Rossby’s record, right?’

‘This fucking bastard… ! … ! … ! … !!’

Mr. Rossby seems to have hit the nail on the head and lets out a barrage of swear words. I listened to Mr. Rossby’s swear words with one ear, let them out of the other, and took my gloves.

‘Ha, fuck, you’re lucky. Look how the siltu came right into John’s direction.’

The game went on with the promise of the next one, and when Rodon gave up one more point in the bottom of the fifth inning, making the game a two-run lead, my fourth chance came.

What opened up that opportunity was Verdugo, who came on as a pinch hitter against the changed pitcher, Hesley.

Perfect!

Verdugo, who came to the plate instead of Torrance, who was the leadoff hitter and a catcher who was not expected to hit much, produced a simple hit that passed between the shortstop and second baseman, and was able to come to the plate once again when there was a runner on base. 〈 Br〉

‘Hesley… A right-handed pitcher who throws at a top speed of 97-8 mph (156-157.6 km/h) and an average of 94 (151.2) mph. He threw a slider and a sweeper, right?’

Hesley, standing on the mound, was a pitcher who threw a fast fastball, a slider with a bell drop, and a sweeper with great lateral movement. In addition, he was the pitcher with the best record out of Baltimore’s bullpen, excluding closer Bautista.

Looking at the video, he was clearly a fast and difficult pitcher. Of course, you have to deal with it in person to find out.

‘Fastball to the body.’

‘Okay.’

And his first pitch choice was an inside fastball. The pitcher’s velocity was fast, so my timing was delayed when I watched, but I waited for his ball, thinking that he was going to plant it in the body like before.

“Ball.”

As I expected, the first pitch was declared as a ball.

‘Wait, it’s a bit obvious, isn’t it?’

And I felt a little disappointed. I felt like he was the best catcher in the league in comforting the pitcher in a critical situation, but from the first at-bat until now, I didn’t feel like his ball combination was particularly great.

On the contrary, I was impressed by the ball combinations of Yonggi and Gyeongho, whom I played against in Korea, but the ball combinations he showed during today’s game were a bit disappointing to say that he was the best catcher in the major league.

‘Here, outside sweeper?’

‘Yes, it is an outside sweeper.’

And again, a ball formulation that is close to standard. The ball bending outward against a batsman who showed his body and flinched was very standard.

“Ball.”

Since it was my first pitch from a pitcher I had never seen before, I waited for the two balls to pass out of the zone.

‘In my second at-bat, I put it in the zone with two balls, what about this time?’

‘It’s a fastball. Outside.’

‘Okay.’

And this time too, the thought that they might not want to give me the three-ball somehow crosses my mind. If he had the mindset that it didn’t matter if it was a three-ball, he would have chosen a breaking ball.

‘… ‘Two, three!’

Ta – Aak!

A batted ball pushed against the edge heads toward right-center. But I felt power from the ball, so I ran as fast as I could toward the base.

‘Third base! 3rd base!’

When I almost got to second base, I heard Mr. Rossby call out for me to go to third base. I went around second base and when there were 5 to 6 meters left in third base, the third base coach motioned for me to slide, and I flew toward third base.

“Safe!”

The result is safe.

“Whoa, is it now a 1-point victory?”

“It was a good hit. Ji.”

“But, Rutchman, is there anything wrong? “They said he was the best catcher in the major leagues, so I thought his ball combination was amazing.”

“Well, Lutchman is good at defense, but he doesn’t have a special ball combination style.”

“Stop chatting, can you hear everything?”

“Oh, sorry. “I was talking to the coach about strategy, and you heard that.”

“… “I understand why the Rangers threw the bean ball.”

“Well, can you tell me why Seeger’s nose was broken?”

“… Joy. You will soon find out. “Why is Lutchman called the best catcher in the league?”

After arriving at third base, there was a small argument with the third baseman, but our strange atmosphere did not last long.

Ta – Aak!

Because Judge’s home run followed.

After that, Stanton and Volpi hit consecutive hits, and I thought the score would increase, but unfortunately, the changed pitcher blocked the batters behind with consecutive hits, and our offense ended with only a one-run lead.

‘With this, 6:5. It’s a reversal again.’

However, the joy of the comeback is short-lived.

As the Baltimore third baseman said, I immediately realized why Lutchman is called the best catcher in the major leagues.

Ta – Aak!

‘Fuck, that pata is brutal.’

… Lutchman turned the game around again by hitting a 2-run double against Camacho.

They said he was the best catcher in the league, so I thought he was good at leading the pitcher and attacking well like Yong, but he just hit the bat so well that he became the best catcher in the league.

And the upset in the bottom of the 8th inning was fatal. Because the opponent’s closer was Batista, who had an ERA of 0.

“Base on balls!”

They somehow got a walk from Batista, succeeded in stealing bases, and both Judge and Soto got on base, but Paul, who replaced Stanton as a pinch runner, got a chance to load the bases with two outs, resulting in an out.

‘Fuck, if I had known this would happen, I would have just swung the bat and tried to get a cycling hit instead of worrying about getting on base.’

… So my return match ended in defeat thanks to Rutchman’s ridiculous performance.