Chapter 88 – Episode 87. National Team VS Australia (2)

“Hey, is it Joo Seung-cheol?”

“Meteorologist, fighting!”

As soon as Joo Seung-chul went to first base, the atmosphere on the bench started to liven up. And the director was giving out various operational signs.

‘Let’s see, so I was told to steal the base, right?’

It’s a sign of stealing from Joo Seung-cheol…. I seemed to know what it meant.

‘Really?’

‘Absolutely.’

‘What do you mean?’

‘Even if the weatherman is a good hitter, he is a left-handed hitter. Plus, it takes a lot of shifting because it’s a pull-type typewriter. The reason Ki Sang-ju failed in the majors last year was because he couldn’t break through the left shift. Isn’t that why we want to send Joo Seung-cheol to second base to reduce the risk of double play?’

‘… What’s wrong? An asshole like you.’

‘Ah! Don’t be upset, don’t be upset. He’s been playing baseball for about 10 years now, don’t you know that much?’

Hehe, I’ve known you for 10 years, but I wonder if the other person doesn’t know that fact?’

‘But the fact that you know is also a benefit. He has to throw a fast ball to catch a steal, but that alone is good for the hitter, and getting the pitch out increases the ball count.’

Well, I could throw a breaking ball without worrying about runners, but that was the realm of psychological warfare, not my concern.

‘… It’s no fun to know.’

‘This is the basics!’

Know who is stupid Even if I look like this, from elementary school to 4th grade, how many years. 4th grade, 5th grade, 6th grade, middle school…. Anyway, I’ve been playing baseball for about 10 years.

Anyway, as the tactical battle between the two coaches in Korea and Australia unfolded fiercely, the batting order of the weather began.

In the first pitch, Joo Seung-chul took a running motion, but probably because he was a major leaguer, Hendricks did not waver and threw a fastball in the mid-150s to Ki Sang-ju and was declared a strike.

“The first ball strike is difficult.”

“Still, Sangju is left-handed, so it won’t be easy for him to come in.”

“Hey, hey! Aren’t you cheering? Raise your voice! Bastards!”

“Meteorologist Fighting!”

“Blow it up! Meteorologist!”

‘What ball would you throw here?’

‘I would just trust my ball and throw a fastball. Honestly, what kind of finesse does a pitcher need to catch a batter? One overwhelming fastball is enough.’

‘But since he’s also a starter, he’ll adjust his pace.’

Hendrix, seen in the video, is a fireballer with an average speed in the upper 150s. He was frequently spotted throwing 100 miles. However, as Rosby said, the velocity of the guy who came out as a starter was in the late 140s to early 150s.

‘It’s not to the extent that the weatherman can’t hit it.’

Right!

“Five! Ah…. This doesn’t work.”

But it’s too urgent. The weatherman hit Hendricks’ second ball hard, but hit a foul that curves wide to the right. And if you were driven to two strikes like this, any hitter would be in a hurry.

Whoa!

Through the cheering of the crowd, the sound of the meteorologist cutting the wind was heard.

“Ha, Sangju senior was too greedy.”

“But thanks to Seungcheol, he went to second base.”

Hendrix’s deciding ball, the curveball, struck out Giang Ki-joo without moving. Still, he sent runners into scoring position, albeit with two buys.

“It’s a nice swing.”

“What is Nice….”

Ki Sang-joo quietly sat on the bench with his face hardened as if he didn’t like his swing. However, I had a question, so I went up to the weather manager regardless.

“Seniors. How big is the curve?”

“… Yes?”

“Wow, that’s good too. Ask now.”

I heard someone muttering, but I ignored it.

“Curve…. 130 mid-to-late, but the angle of the bend is big. Faster than most Kvar player slider speeds? It’s a curve, so the angle is big.”

“Well…. All right.”

“But why are you asking this? I wouldn’t be leaving anyway.”

“That’s something you don’t know.”

“Don’t ask the people you should ask….”

Haha. Sir, I also wanted to ask. Anything else special about that?”

When I opened the door, Park Cheol-young, who occupied a place in the starting lineup, took over.

“Once the form is difficult to distinguish. Ordinary pitchers should have a difference in form when throwing a fastball or a breaking ball, but it is like Hendricks.”

“As expected, it was difficult to tell them apart even when watching the video.”

“And the setup position is fast, so it’s hard to get the timing right.”

“All right.”

Ta-evil! As I was listening to the story of the meteorologist, a loud noise came from the stadium. Is this because he is also a strong criminal?

“Five! A strong criminal.”

“Are you passing?”

“Big! Big!”

-Wow!!!

Tokyo Dome is said to be a large stadium, but the environment of the stadium was an environment that made many home runs. If it rains this much, can it pass?

The players in the dugout looked at Kang Han-beom’s batted ball with one heart and one mind. Unfortunately, Kang Han-beom’s batted ball was caught in front of the warning track.

“Ah…. If Hanbeom was 10 years younger….”

“What about 10 years? He would have passed if he were only an hour younger.”

‘It’s a pity. For a monkey. No, is he a pig?’

‘Oh, Mr. Rossby said it was a waste, are you cheering for Korea?’

‘What is cheering? It’s because I don’t think you’ll be able to play in a single game if you’re like this.’

‘Then are you worried about me? Either way feels good, right?’

‘Shut up, monkey kid.’

Not being honest.

“Thank you for your effort.”

“Hey, I’m dead. Pass the mon too.”

“My death is the guy from Mon, Gyeonggi-do.”

“Now. The attack at the end of the first inning was disappointing, but it wasn’t so bad that even that bastard couldn’t hit it. Is not it? Focus on defense and prepare for the next attack. OK?!”

“All right!”

Because it was the first game, the atmosphere at dugout was good.

‘Ah! Whatever it is, I want to win by a big margin and go out…. I also want to hang out with Hendrix.’

Watching a game I don’t play in is boring, even if it’s a national team game. I didn’t want to go through those games anymore because I got sick of them in high school.

‘Why? Then should I break that little leg?’

‘Who are you? Are you Cheolyoung’s older brother? Oh, then Kim Hwan-young will watch second base.’

Since Kim Hwan-young was an infield all-rounder, it was only natural for Kim to play second base, given the nature of short-term battles where defense is important. And he broke his leg, what do you see a man as? I am a democratic citizen with a strong law-abiding spirit.

Hehe, is that bastard threatening a woman with a video?’

‘Ah, that’s because Hyuna seduced me. With her taste, who would have wanted to see? It worked well for Hyuna too. Because a big, handsome guy like me looked after him.’

‘Self rationalization is great. That’s a good mindsethehe.’

What is self-justification, Facton? Anyway, I raised my voice and shouted because the score gap had to be widened to finish this boring game and even play as a pinch hitter.

“Choi Joong-hoon fighting! Let’s block and attack!”

“Maknae fighting is good. Mind! Support you too.”

*

[This is pitching worthy of a major leaguer. Hendricks. It’s unfortunate for our national team, but Hendrix’s pitching today was really great.]

[That’s right. However, among the rules of the WBC, there is a player protection rule. In the main round, there is a limit of 65, and Hendrix’s pitch count is 56 now, so this inning is probably the last.]

With two outs and no runners at the end of the 5th inning, South Korea’s 8th hitter Park Chul-young stepped into the plate.

‘Didn’t the coach tell me to watch the ball as much as possible?’

Korea’s strategy against Hendricks at first was to attack at the earliest possible timing. Because there was nothing good about getting into a fight against a major league pitcher.

However, since Hendricks’ pitch limit was being filled, there was no need to hit fast, so from the end of the 5th inning, the batter’s strategy changed to seeing as many balls as possible. Because of that, Kim Soo-ho, the 6th hitter, and Lee Yong-ki, the 7th hitter, retreated with a hit, but Hendrix’s strategy of overloading the number of pitches worked well.

[Park Chul-young recorded a hit and a stolen base in the previous at-bat against Hendricks.]

[In fact, that’s the strong point of Cheol-Young Park, isn’t it? Quick feet that anyone can appreciate. If you go to first base, second base is almost automatically obtained, so Hendricks will deal with it as carefully as possible.]

[Besides, there are 9 pitches left right now, right? Park Chul-young should be able to lower Hendrix.]

As the commentator wished, Park Cheol-young was persistently fighting against Hendricks. As much as he achieved a batting average of 300 for 4 consecutive years after taking the starting position in the Shinra Triggers, he was a confident hitter in sophistication and was fully demonstrating his strengths.

Right!

‘Eww…. Late.’

It was the timing to make enough hits with 140 balls, but Hendricks was throwing the ball with all his might because he knew that this inning was the last.

‘156? Is this a finishing ball with over 60 pitches? I’ll chew on it when I come to Korea.’

Of course, Hendricks, the top finisher in the major leagues, will never come to Korea, but just imagining it was Park Chul-young.

‘Let’s stop thinking about this stupid thing and focus again. Full count now.’

Park Cheol-young’s head started to get complicated. So far, every ball Hendricks has caught on his last strike has been a curveball. But shall we throw a curveball here as well? A ball that could be your last? If you are a pitcher, wouldn’t you win with a fastball? No, I have a winning shot, so why do I have to go fast? However, according to preliminary data, he was a pitcher with a fastball rate of over 60%…. What if you twist those dots and throw a slider? Rather, sliders are more dangerous. No, no………….

“Time!”

“What the puck!!”

Hendricks reacted violently to the time request he shouted to clear his confused head.

‘The referee accepted it, but why the fuck? That’s why pitchers are cubs….’

But for Park Chul-young, this was a good thing. If a pitcher expresses intense emotions, it means that he has lost his composure, and due to the mechanism of sensitive pitchers, if he loses his composure, his control will inevitably deteriorate.

‘Okay, let’s wait.’

Park Chul-young decided to wait and waited for Hendrix’s ball.

In general, Park Cheol-young was right. In the KBA, in situations like this, most of them were walks. But Hendricks was a major leaguer, and among those major leaguers, he was a top-class finisher.

“Huh!!”

When Hendrix’s spirit rang out, Park Cheol-young instinctively knew that this ball was coming into the zone. And he had no choice but to turn the bat at a late timing.

‘Fuck! That’s right-!’

Park Chul-young’s desperate heart must have reached him, and the tip of the bat rescued the ball right before it went into the catcher’s mitt.

Widely!

Throbbing sound. However, Park Chul-young did not give up. As soon as the ball hit the bat, Park Cheol-young’s feet were already heading toward first base. Australia’s third baseman and Hendricks also started running to catch the missed ball.

“First!”

Reach! With the first base in front of his eyes, Park Chul-young stretched out his feet.

“Ugh!”

Pain felt in the ankle.

“Cheolyoung!”

The trainers and coaches started running to the first base where Park Chul-young had collapsed.