Chapter 757 – Episode 744. A Confucian Boy From the Country of Courtesy in the East. (3)

“For now, let’s keep this a secret. It is not a good situation for Meng Hao, who swung his fist, to be known as Verdugo for his racial discrimination.”

“Yes, you have to be that determined to win. The guys who just joined this season are more serious about winning than the guys who have been on the team for a long time. To be honest, I wasn’t saying anything, but I was also a bit annoyed. “If it weren’t for Ji, I might have swung my fist.”

Cole, who had been silent in response to Judge’s remarks that seemed to support Ji Maeng-ho, raises Ji Maeng-ho’s hand. Cole, who failed to get a win yesterday despite pitching 7.1 innings, allowing 2 runs and no earned runs, was in the mood to turn the scales on not only Verdugo but also all other fielders.

And the players following Cole also nodded as if they agreed with what Cole said.

Most of the players who follow Cole are reliever pitchers who receive the lowest salary in the major leagues.

Cole, who was treated as the leader of the pitching team, was the type to give a lot to the bullpen, whose salaries were not high, but the bullpen pitchers were also thirsty for a championship.

Since the bullpen members who received the lowest salary were expendable, the team had to win to be in a good position in salary negotiations, so they were hoping to win.

Of course, not everyone viewed Ji Maeng-ho’s actions favorably.

“Even so, is fighting among colleagues the right thing to do for someone who wants to win? Aaron?”

Because there were people like Stanton who presented correct opinions.

“Ha, then is it right to confront the director like that? Jean? “Think about when we were young, and there was a guy like that who would openly swear at the director.”

“No matter what, the punching of my colleague was severe. If it were me, I would have quietly scolded him. Gary.”

“Then shouldn’t you have stepped forward first?”

“If he hadn’t stepped forward, I was planning to tie Alex after the lineup announcement.”

“Yes, I guess so. After the team’s atmosphere was completely shattered.”

In response to the different opinions expressed by the two veterans, Cole, the most senior among pitchers, and Stanton, the most senior among hitters, the other players remained silent with their own thoughts.

‘What is this atmosphere? Are you really trying to cover it up like this? What’s this big deal? Holy shit, then the next time I get hit by Ji, you’re going to let it slip by like this?’

‘Ji’s behavior was certainly extreme, but there was also something unpleasant about Alex.’

‘A guy who came drunk the day before a game and got slapped by a much younger guy, or a guy who started swinging his fists even though he debuted less than a year ago… The team atmosphere is shit.’

‘If we want to win, we have to come together. This is exactly what we have been lacking until now. If someone does something wrong, we should point it out, but we haven’t been able to do that until now. Ji’s actions were extreme, but it was bound to happen someday.’

And in that silence, Judge stepped forward to stop the two again.

“Stop, Gary, Jean. Let’s calm down first. It’s not like you two are going to fight.”

Because I no longer wanted a threatening atmosphere in the locker room.

“And, although Ji’s actions were a little extreme, what he said wasn’t wrong. Try cutting down on alcohol the day before the game. “We’re all in this season trying to win the World Series.”

As soon as the judge finished speaking, there was silence once again due to the strong resonance of the word “Win.”

The players also thought that Ji Maeng-ho’s behavior was extreme, but it was because they seemed to know what he meant by it.

A shot that sounds an alarm on the lazy locker room culture. Some people pledged to work hard, thinking that one hit might come to them, while others nodded, thinking that the team would finally get back on track with that one hit.

While everyone was organizing their thoughts, someone’s laughter broke the silence.

Haha, well, it was fun, right? This is my first time seeing a guy like that. You’re shaking your fist in front of both the manager and coach. “You could feel it when he cleared the bench, but he’s no ordinary guy either.”

The owner of that smile was Soto, who highly valued Ji Maeng-ho’s manliness.

Soto was not afraid of Ji Menghao, nor was he impressed by Ji Menghao’s actions. This situation is just fun.

In fact, even before that, Soto liked Ji Meng-ho quite a bit. From the manly aspect of dating multiple women in front of the media, to the baseball skills that are far superior to other scoundrels, although I don’t know how long it will last, to the manly personality that shows without hesitation when he gets annoyed.

The way he threw a bat at Cole at the Olympics, or the way he rushed to hit the opposing pitcher when he almost hit a bean ball, couldn’t have been fun. And just by looking at him, he had absolutely no reason to dislike the guy who kept making things fun.

Cole who defends Ji Maeng-ho, Stanton who shows signs of discomfort and says it’s not him, Judge who tries to smooth things over somehow, and Soto who just smiles saying that something fun has happened.

In particular, Soto is the leader of the Hispanic community within the club.

Since Verdugo was also of Hispanic descent, the players who were close to Verdugo were angry at Ji Maeng-ho’s actions, but when Soto smiled and lightened the mood, as Americans have a strong macho culture, the locker room soon became a hot topic of discussion about the fight between Ji Maeng-ho and Verdugo that had just occurred. Moved.

“So, can you send Doogi to one room like that?”

“I don’t think it’s possible? Even though Alex is short, he’s a tough guy.”

“Nice… “It’s been a while since I saw a hot fight, so I’m on fire too.”

“Wow, did you see that kid’s eyes? “Are you going to pee?”

“Haha, I guess bench clearing will be no problem in the future. “You can beat up your colleagues, so how good can you be at beating your opponents?”

While the players pretended like nothing was wrong, thinking about the fight from earlier and laughing and chatting,

‘Phew… I almost got screwed, but how did I get through it? Anyway, that idiot. Seonghyun didn’t tell me to be careful for no reason. Ji Maeng-ho needs to be managed more in the future.’

Judge, the team’s captain, breathed a sigh of relief at the unprecedented situation that ended positively.

And at that moment, after pouring out all his emotions, Meng Hao’s head cleared,

‘Ah, I’m screwed. No, it’s because Mr. Rossby kept instigating it!’

‘Instigating… Hehe. You were the one who swung the fist first. I just helped out.’

‘Under… Like in Korea, you have to beat them out of sight… Fuck, I got so angry without realizing it that I threw up in front of everyone.’

… He was bowing his head in the coach’s office, surrounded by Mattingly and his coaches.

*

“Ji. What was that just now? “You’re shaking your fist at a colleague in front of me, the director.”

“… “I’m sorry.”

As soon as I entered the director’s office, Mattingly glared at me with a stern look on his face, so I immediately apologized. He was a former major league legend hitter, so there was definitely some vibe, but that wasn’t the reason I offered the apology.

If something like this was going to happen, it should have been done in a place without a director. This is tantamount to ignoring the director’s authority.

What happened yesterday, as did Mr. Rossby who encouraged me, and I lost control of my anger, so I unknowingly threw Verdugo’s bamboo stick in front of the director, which was a complete mistake on my part. That’s why I was truly feeling sorry for director Mattingly.

“It’s not that I don’t understand how you felt when you did that. It’s not uncommon for players to have fights among themselves. But you fully understand that doing it publicly in a place where the entire team is gathered is very wrong, right?”

Fortunately, after the apology was handed over, Mattingly spoke in a more subdued tone. Or maybe he was secretly praising me for beating up the arrogant Verdugo instead of him.

“… Yes, I know.”

Anyway, Mattingly was in a good mood, so I kept going in a low-key manner.

“Hmm. No one has seen this other than us, so we have no intention of publicizing it. It’s not like the camera was rolling. Of course, that doesn’t mean there’s no discipline. First, the club plans to impose a fine on itself. And the club’s own disciplinary action will be taken after talking with Verdugo.”

After talking with Verdugo… Surely a guy wouldn’t be punished for hitting him in the face once? I was a little worried.

“… But, did you still discriminate against them?”

“Under… Well, there is that problem too. This is also a problem that will become a bit noisy if it spreads… So, I’m thinking of calling Verdugo here. What do you think?”

There was no reason to refuse. As a victim of racial discrimination from Verdugo, I should have received an apology.

“I like it.”

As soon as I answered positively, Verdugo, who had gone to the infirmary, walked in.

‘Boy, he’s still a major-leaguer, I saw him walk in.’

When he saw the guy walking in, he felt like he should have beaten him harder, but he was lucky that he wasn’t seriously injured. Because he didn’t want my blood money to be used as a settlement because he was hospitalized.

“… Sorry. Ji. I didn’t mean it. For a moment, without even realizing it…”

And unexpectedly, he apologized to me first. Is this an apology that clearly shows that racism is not an issue that can be overlooked lightly in a country like the United States?

‘Well, if it becomes known to the media, racial discrimination will be more damaging. ‘I just touched it lightly.’

Well, I was angry about being racially discriminated against, but that doesn’t mean I’m one of those people who can’t accept and take my colleague’s apology to heart, so I decided to accept his apology.

“Okay? Well, if you offer an apology, I’ll accept it too.”

After accepting the guy’s apology, I tried to give him a handshake of reconciliation, but the guy flinched. And he smiles awkwardly, probably because he realized I was shaking his hand.

“Haha, well, men usually become friends by fighting.”

Mattingly applauds and enjoys seeing us like that.

“You both know that if this incident becomes known to the media, it will be difficult to look good, right? However, you will also know that if a suspension is issued, the reason must be made public.”

Listening to Mattingly, it seemed like he wanted to end this matter as quietly as possible.

‘Well, the players fought in front of the coach, and it wouldn’t do Mattingly any good if it became known.’

“Yes, I know.”

And he nodded obediently to Mattingly’s words, as if he had been rehabilitated by my weak hand. It seemed like my true feelings had clearly been decided. If I objected to Mattingly’s words here, I would have wondered if I should quietly drag him to a place like a shower room, but fortunately, it was a useless worry.

“Yes, Verdugo. And in fact, a place was prepared for you today even before this happened. In center field. I was scheduled to play center field at number 5 today. Right? Mitch?”

“You’re right. Kelnick’s form hasn’t been good lately, so I was thinking of using you today, Alex.”

“… Thank you.”

No matter how much I think about it, it seems like he was hastily inserted into the lineup, but Verdugo seemed to be moved by Mattingly’s words.

‘The director has a good personality. Even though Verdugo swore at him, he was immediately added to the lineup to appease him… I love even ugly children… What is this?’

After finishing his story with Verdugo, Mattingly looks at me and opens his mouth.

“Okay then, Ji. “What about you?”

“Yes. I’m fine too.”

Verdugo, who doesn’t want his racist remarks to spread, me, who wants to avoid a suspension, and Coach Mattingly, who wants to bury this as much as possible. The interests of the three of us were perfectly aligned, and the other coaches seemed glad that the matter had been resolved smoothly.

‘Phew, I was worried what would happen if I sued them, but fortunately it wasn’t to that extent.’

‘Hmph, men in America don’t sue for hitting and hitting.’

‘That’s a relief.’

The locker room we entered after reaching an amicable agreement between the parties.

“Big, big. “I apologize for causing a disturbance in the locker room.”

I handed the apples to the other players first,

“I made a mistake, but I never had the intention to disparage people of color. First, my origins are also Mexican.”

Even after leaving, he apologized for what he said.

“Haha, it’s okay. Are you okay? Colleagues can fight among themselves, and when they fight, they end up saying things they don’t want to say. “We had fun, right?”

The first to respond to our apology was Soto, who whistled and clapped. And as soon as Soto finished speaking, the other players also responded to Soto’s words by clapping. However, the atmosphere in the locker room did not look that good yet. Does it feel like you are being forced to respond?

Of course, there seemed to be a few people who were moved by my purpose of respecting elders, but still, not all players agreed with my purpose. Confucianism would have been an advanced culture that was still difficult for the uncivilized Westerners to accept.

‘Fuck, I definitely can’t lose today.’

If we lose, some barbarians who don’t know Confucianism will spread the rumor that I lost the game because I caused a scene in the locker room. Then, something that ended well could have turned into a suspension.

Since something like that should never happen, I felt like I had to do my best today with the mindset of unconditionally winning.

Well, I always did my best.