Genius Pitcher Hides 170Km [EN]: Chapter 36

#35. Burning Jamsil Baseball Stadium

– Hello, this is Sports Invitation. Commissioner. Although it’s early in the season, the Seoul Warriors’ momentum is terrifying. They are currently tied for second place with Suwon with a record of 7 wins and 4 losses. What do you think?

– Ah, yes. That’s right. Isn’t this the Warriors who have been wandering around at the bottom, recording 9-8-10-10th place for the past 4 years? Even if it’s early in the season, being in second place is definitely something to pay attention to.

– So, what is the biggest reason for the Warriors’ rise?

– First of all, it’s ‘that player.’

– Haha, these days Warriors fans call him ‘that guy.’

– Yes, Han Su-hyeok, who is recording a batting average of 0.411, an on-base percentage of 0.499, a slugging percentage of 0.998, and 6 home runs and 15 RBIs in 10 games this season, can be said to be at the forefront of the Warriors’ early leap forward.

– Commissioner, let’s be honest for a moment. Did you expect Han Su-hyeok to do this well?

– Of course. Isn’t he the player who turned down Seattle’s $3.5 million offer? Of course…

– That’s a little different from what you told me at the drinking party back then…

– Ah! My wife and children are watching at home. Unless you want to show the head of the household losing his job in real time, let’s just leave it at that.

– Haha, I understand. Then, what other factors are there besides Han Su-hyeok?

– The pitching staff, especially the starting pitchers, has been pretty good. Ryan Stark and Brooks Parker, the two foreign players who both recorded an ERA [Earned Run Average, a measure of pitching performance] in the 3s last season, recorded quality starts in two consecutive games. Lee Man-sik, who started as the third pitcher, also showed relatively stable pitching.

– On the other hand, the relief pitchers were a bit disappointing, right?

– Yes, Choi Jeong-soo and Hong Young-sik are being alternately used in the closing position where Han Jin-woo left, but… I think we need to watch a little more.

– Is it because manager Lee Dae-jun is a hitter? The unconventional lineup is having quite an effect.

– Many people were doubtful about Lee Chang-mo, who has a weakness in baserunning due to injury, being the lead-off hitter, but so far it has been a success. He is contributing to the team with his on-base percentage rather than his running. Choi Min-seok, who was traded in the second spot, is doing a good job as a connector… There’s no need to mention Han Su-hyeok in the third spot.

– The bottom of the lineup was better than expected, right?

– Yes, Ahn Chi-wook, who was batting fifth in the opening game, was demoted to seventh as his batting average dropped to the .100s [a batting average below .200 is generally considered poor]. He has recently recorded 1 hit and 2 hits in each of the last 2 games, gradually adapting to the pros. In this case, the Warriors’ bottom of the lineup can’t be ignored.

– Well, the Warriors will have a 3-game weekend series against their Jamsil rivals, the Magicians, for 3 days starting tomorrow. The Magicians are currently in 4th place, following the Warriors.

– This 3-game series will be really fierce. It’s a traditional Seoul rivalry, and before the season, two players from both teams exchanged uniforms. In addition, we can’t leave out General Manager Jung Min-sik, who moved from the Warriors to the Magicians. The two teams are intertwined in many ways.

– It will be a game with many meanings.

– It’s literally a war. As always, the game between the two teams will be a war regardless of the objective team strength. This Jamsil 3-game series will be a war.

Click.

Min Ye-rin, who turned off the TV, said to her manager in a determined voice.

“Did you hear that, Oppa [an honorific term used by a younger woman to address an older brother or male friend]?”

“Huh? What… Yerin-ah?”

“They said it’s a war. We need to prepare for war.”

“No, why are you doing that…”

“Okay, is everything you need for tomorrow ready?”

“Huh? Uh, uh.”

“Coffee truck, cheering supplies to give to the audience, etc., etc., etc., pull yourself together and check again. If we fall behind the Magicians in anything, we’re all just going to die there.”

The manager’s words, ‘Why do you keep supporting the Warriors with your own money?’ came up to his throat and then went back in.

He remembered that Min Ye-rin had said several times that she was making money as a celebrity to watch baseball.

“I don’t think we need to die…”

“Okay, go and do the final check quickly. I need to use the internet.”

Min Ye-rin, who sent her manager back, opened her laptop and accessed the Warriors Gallery [an online fan forum].

Then, with a grim expression, she typed one letter at a time on the keyboard.

– The Warriors will probably crush the Magicians in this Jamsil rivalry with 3 wins.

* * *

When I was playing in the Big League [Major League Baseball], there wasn’t really a team that aroused a sense of rivalry in me.

Perhaps because the teams I played for were relatively weak and small-market teams, there was no dramatic rivalry like the Yankees-Red Sox, and even if there was, it wasn’t my concern.

Before I turned pro, when I was a Warriors children’s member, I don’t think I was ever excited or heated up because of a rival team.

When I was a children’s member, the Warriors were a strong team that won the Korean Series [the championship series of the KBO League] every other year, and the Magicians, who could be said to be arch-enemies, couldn’t even breathe properly in front of the Warriors.

Is that why this atmosphere, which is going crazy ahead of the Jamsil rivalry, is a bit unfamiliar to me?

Buzz buzz.

Friday afternoon, when the first game of the 3-game series against the Magicians is scheduled.

Five hours before the start of the game, the area around Jamsil Baseball Stadium, which would normally be deserted, was crowded with people.

What is that coffee truck unit standing in a row over there? Who called that? It’s a mess, a mess.

I pushed through the crowds and moved towards the stadium. Fans who recognized my face around me looked surprised, but they didn’t approach me directly, as if they were trying to be considerate of the player ahead of the game.

I arrived in front of the entrance for the players.

But in front of that entrance, fans were gathered and giving tremendous cheers and applause every time the players came to work.

Everything is good, but… you have to make room for people to enter…

“Excuse me, sorry for a moment…”

“Hey, who’s pushing… Huh! Han Su-hyeok?”

“Yes, I’m sorry. I have to go into the stadium, so please…”

“Ah, ah, of course. Just a moment. I’ll clear the way for you!”

A huge man with a beard covering about half of his face, a pretty plausible beard for an Asian, checked my face and started shouting at the top of his lungs.

“Everyone! Han Su-hyeok is here! First, make way and then cheer! There! Lady! You’re too close to the aisle. Step back!”

“Really? Is that Han Su-hyeok? Where? Oh! It’s really him?”

“Okay! Everyone, stick to the right a little! So that our Han player can go in and train quickly! Slowly, slowly. Yes, that’s good!”

The big man shouted a few times, and soon a path was made to the entrance.

As I entered the passage along that path, tremendous cheers and applause followed behind me.

What the heck is this commotion?

I barely entered the stadium like that.

I’m not in my right mind. But the strange thing was that it wasn’t just outside the baseball stadium.

The atmosphere on the ground was also unusual.

“Su-hyeok, you’re here?”

“Yes, senior. You came out early. But where are the others?”

“It seems like Man-sik is gathering the pitchers separately to talk… Well, should we gather once first?”

The senior fielders, who usually came out later than me, had all come to the stadium.

With a dazed heart, I ran to where the fielders were gathered.

Senior Jo Seong-oh, who confirmed that all the starting fielders were gathered, opened his mouth with a determined expression.

“Okay, do you know what day it is today?”

“Yes!”

It was nothing special, but an ear-splitting answer came back.

I was surprised.

“There’s a saying that you shouldn’t even lose rock-paper-scissors to the Magicians guys. Even for the past 4 years, when they were playing fall baseball [post-season baseball], we had to watch it on TV at home.”

“I know!”

“Good. No other words are needed. We will win unconditionally today. If the ball comes to your body, go out even if you get hit. Let’s not be a disgrace to the pitchers. Okay, let’s fight!”

The players, who shouted loudly, scattered in all directions with determined expressions.

Seoul Warriors and Magicians.

Now, the number of teams based in Seoul has increased to three with the addition of the Fighters, but until then, they were eternal rivals who divided Seoul and competed.

Looking at the fierce history of the two teams, the Magicians had the upper hand in both skill and popularity until the mid-90s, but the Warriors’ victory in 1995 and the emergence of the golden generation led to the Warriors’ overwhelming victory until 2020.

However, while the Warriors fell to 9th place in 2022 and continued to wander around the bottom, the Magicians became regular customers of fall baseball and became a strong team that competed for the championship every year.

The two teams with such a history will clash for the first time this season.

The Magicians, who reinforced 2 FAs [Free Agents] in the last stove league [off-season] and even brought Song Ki-tae to the vacant shortstop position.

On the other hand, the Warriors, who had no special reinforcement except for my joining.

The rivalry is said to be greatly influenced by factors other than power, but anyway, the underdog at this point is clearly the Warriors.

Hmm.

Well, baseball is originally about upsetting strong teams.

By the way, there’s a congratulatory performance before the game today? Min Ye-rin? Is it that celebrity again?

* * *

“Wow!”

“Awesome!”

“…What the heck is that.”

“Su-hyeok, what are you looking at so intently? I thought you weren’t interested in celebrities?”

“No, it’s not that…”

“Hehe, you’re an unavoidable man too. Yes, those are good times.”

Senior Kim Su-hak’s teasing doesn’t reach my ears at all.

Min Ye-rin, a crazy fan of the Warriors, whom Seong-hoon hyung [older brother/friend] runs out to greet barefoot whenever she visits the club.

She is singing again in front of my eyes. To encourage the Warriors players ahead of the Jamsil rivalry.

Drones are flying in the sky above Jamsil Baseball Stadium, the number of laser lights has increased, and fireworks are constantly exploding.

Something seemed to be much more upgraded than the opening stage last time, but the important thing was not that.

“That woman is Min Ye-rin…”

I was really surprised to see the face captured largely on the electronic display.

The woman who lived next door to me, who seemed so shy, the woman who came to my house with her father and dumped a bunch of housewarming gifts.

And…

Min Ye-rin, an extreme Warriors supporter who solved Seong-hoon hyung’s worries in one shot.

That was the same person.

Oh my god.

“Hehe, Han Su-hyeok. Did I tell you last time? A man in Korea must…”

“Shut up and grab your glove and follow me. I’ll warm up instead of doing useless things.”

“…Why only me all the time.”

I don’t know either.

When I feel strange, I feel like I have to mess with you first to calm down.

Hoo.

Let’s ignore it. What’s important now is not who that woman is.

Let’s think about that later.

Today, manager Lee Dae-jun’s lineup was like this.

1st batter, 2nd baseman Lee Chang-mo

2nd batter, center fielder Choi Min-seok

3rd batter, shortstop Han Su-hyeok

4th batter, right fielder Max Walker

5th batter, 1st baseman Jo Seong-oh

6th batter, designated hitter Kang Jin-seok

7th batter, 3rd baseman Ahn Chi-wook

8th batter, catcher Jang Deok-soo

9th batter, left fielder Kim Su-hak

Starting pitcher Ryan Stark

It was almost the same lineup as before, except that senior Kang Jin-seok, a right-handed outfielder who hit 4 home runs in 5 games in the minor leagues recently, was called up to the major leagues and put his name in the 6th batter position. That’s a relief. Considering that Shin-in [rookie] Yoo In-cheol was in the lineup as a designated hitter until the last game. Of course, the face of the guy who was dropped from the lineup darkened considerably.

I looked back at our players who would be playing in today’s game in front of the dugout one by one.

Everyone was waiting for the game with a mixture of anticipation and tension.

But Ahn Chi-wook’s expression was a bit strange. Following the gaze of the guy looking somewhere, Song Ga was out in front of the visiting team’s dugout.

Hwang Seong-min and Song Ki-tae, Han Jin-woo, Jung Ki-ho.

Song Ki-tae is the only one of the Warriors’ troublemakers who we often see.

Hwang Seong-min disappeared somewhere after being released from the team due to the last incident, and Han Jin-woo and Jung Ki-ho seem to be doing well in the minor leagues.

The only one who is showing his face on the major league stage is Song Ki-tae.

He might have come up and picked a fight like before, but maybe he was tired of the Hwang Seong-min incident, he just frowned from afar and didn’t do anything else.

That’s a good thought, Song Ki-tae.

I don’t want to be ejected for starting a bench-clearing brawl before the game either.
Hmm.

Well, let’s put aside such an insignificant guy…
Himenez, who will be the starting pitcher today, Park Su-gil, who boasts both hitting and running despite being a catcher.

Yang Seon-woo, the center fielder who is one of the league’s leading lead-off hitters, and Go Cheol-hwan, a veteran first baseman who hits 20 home runs every year, are out of the lineup due to injury.

To be honest, it’s a bit of an enviable team.

They must have won the runner-up last season because they gathered those kinds of big-name guys.

Thinking about it, I’m getting angry.

What did this team do while they were raising and buying those players, and only had guys like Song Ki-tae, Hwang Seong-min, Han Jin-woo, and Jung Ki-ho?

As the owner of this team, I forcibly swallowed the rising anger and started preparing for the game.

“Okay, let’s go!”

“Let’s fight!”

The Warriors players, who were going to defend first, ran out to the ground with energy.

A tremendous roar, which seemed at least 1.5 times louder than usual, echoed through Jamsil Baseball Stadium.

There was a huge gap between the Jamsil rivalry that I had watched as a fan and the rivalry that I was actually playing as a player.

Good.

I feel like I can do something today.

“Play ball!”

The game started.

Yang Seon-woo, the lead-off hitter of the visiting team Magicians, slowly entered the plate.

Even among the left-handed hitters who are lined up in the Magicians, he is the most precise and mobile left-handed hitter.

A textbook lead-off hitter who has a batting average in the .300s [a batting average above .300 is considered very good], an on-base percentage close to .400, and steals double-digit bases every year.

Ryan continued to compete on the outside against Yang Seon-woo.

The backdoor slider that curls from outside the zone to the inside and the two-seam fastball that hangs slightly on the outside and falls tempt the hitter.

“Ball!”

“Ball!”

“Ptooey!”

Yang Seon-woo, who picked out two balls in a row, spat and glared at Ryan.

Ryan Stark has enjoyed competing with body-side balls even against left-handed hitters until last season.

The reason was simple. I couldn’t trust the defense of Song Ki-tae, who was the Warriors’ shortstop last season.

Rather, I trusted the defense of Lee Chang-mo, who was guarding second base, so I took the gamble that way.

But now it’s different.

Ryan insisted on competing on the outside as he had foretold me, and eventually Yang Seon-woo, who couldn’t stand it, swung his bat.

Taak!

The backdoor slider that came in from outside the zone was properly caught on the bat.

Although Yang Seon-woo is difficult to hit more than 10 home runs in a season, the batted ball with the wrist strength properly loaded flew between 3rd base and shortstop.

“Ahn Chi-wook!”

At the same time as the hitting sound, I reflexively called Ahn Chi-wook’s name.

A bullet-like ground ball heading next to the third baseman. This is a course that I can’t catch up with no matter what. That guy has to handle it.

Ahn Chi-wook, who had not even reacted to such a batted ball until recently, stretched out his glove with all his might towards the batted ball, perhaps because of the worth of being nagged.

Tuk

“Aak!”

But unfortunately, the catch was not made properly.

The ball that hit the glove that Ahn Chi-wook desperately stretched out bounced high into the air.

Someone’s scream was heard from somewhere in the audience.

Everyone seemed to think it was a hit.

But I haven’t given up yet.

Tuck

Swoosh!

“Wow! Crazy, crazy!”

“What is that!”

“Did it stop in the air? Now?”

The moment the ball that hit Ahn Chi-wook’s glove bounced into the air, I intuitively realized.

That it would be too late to catch this, land on the ground, and then throw to first base.

After finishing all the calculations in an instant, I jumped into the air and snatched the batted ball with my right hand.

Then, I took steps in the air and threw a bullet-like throw towards first base.

The out declaration fell from the mouth of the first base umpire, who had been hesitating for a long time.

“Ah, out!”

It’s a success. This was a play that I couldn’t guarantee 100% success even if it was me.

I looked around.

Ahn Chi-wook, whose face had turned pale because he thought he had missed the batted ball, was staring at me with his eyes wide open.

Ryan Stark is clapping with his mouth open.

Warriors fans were standing up and applauding.

On the other hand, Magicians fans were throwing the chicken legs they were eating and booing.

And the singer Min Ye-rin was trying to climb the safety net, but was caught by the security guard and struggling.

The entire Jamsil Baseball Stadium was burning fiercely.

* * *