Genius Pitcher Hides 170Km [EN]: Chapter 215

#214. The River You Must Not Cross

“It feels so weird seeing Su-hyeok hyung [older brother or respected male figure] in a different uniform.”

“I know, right.”

“Dong-seok.”

“What?”

“I’ve made up my mind.”

“About what?”

“I’m going to peak within the next three years and go to America.”

“Pfft.”

“Are you laughing at me?”

“Dude, I get Su-hyeok hyung, but even Im Jun-yeong stayed in Korea instead of going to America. And you, Choi Maru? Oh… are you willing to accept a minor league contract? That might be possible.”

“You little…”

It had already been over two months since Han Su-hyeok’s transfer to Seattle was finalized.

And the joint spring training between the Seattle Mariners and the Seoul Warriors, in preparation for the 2030 season, was held in Arizona, USA.

Thwack!

Thwaaaaaack!

Han Su-hyeok, wearing a Seattle uniform, consistently produced massive hits in live batting practice.

And Warriors’ juniors, including Choi Maru and Park Dong-seok, stared blankly at the scene.

It felt like they had a grand farewell, but in reality, Han Su-hyeok and the Warriors players hadn’t quite grasped it yet.

After finishing his introductory press conference and returning to Korea, Han Su-hyeok immediately began preparing to move to the United States.

He didn’t have much to pack anyway, and the club was taking care of his living arrangements in the US, but there were a few important things left to do.

The first thing he did was take care of Jacob and his daughter, who had followed him to Korea and silently helped him from behind for three years.

‘Jacob, I’ve arranged everything with the hospital in Seattle. It’s time for you to go home.’

‘Hmm, do you still need me? Even in America?’

‘Of course. Unless you’re quitting this job, don’t go anywhere and stick right by my side.’

Perhaps due to the butterfly effect caused by Han Su-hyeok’s regression, Annie, Jacob’s daughter, still had to pay a huge price for her treatment, even though she should have been covered by health insurance by now.

But it didn’t matter.

Han Su-hyeok was no longer someone who would be swayed by such petty amounts of money.

No, even if that weren’t the case, he was determined to take responsibility for them to the end.

For the benefactor and his daughter who had helped him keep his body and mind from falling apart in both his past and present lives.

After Jacob, Han Su-hyeok met with Seo Hyeong-ju and Ahn Chi-wook.

‘Don’t lose your minds just because I’m not around, and don’t slack off on your training, especially you, Ahn Chi-wook.’

‘Why always me…’

‘I can’t let this go. I’ll have to ask the coaches to keep an eye on you separately.’

‘Forget it, I’ll take care of Chi-wook, so don’t worry about him. More importantly, Han Su-hyeok.’

‘What.’

‘Wait for me. I’m going soon too.’

‘Wait for what.’

‘The Major League… I’m going too.’

Han Su-hyeok chuckled at Seo Hyeong-ju’s determination.

Come to think of it, he was originally a guy who would have crushed the KBO [Korean Baseball Organization] and gone to the Major League to secure a starting center fielder position even if left alone.

Since such a guy was burning so brightly, he thought that he might become an even better player than he had known.

‘Well, do it if you can. But I think you should worry about this season first, don’t you think?’

‘Worry about what?’

‘If you fail to win the championship right after I leave, the fans will probably say that the Warriors only won because of Han Su-hyeok.’

Seo Hyeong-ju, seemingly shocked by Han Su-hyeok’s words, bit his lower lip and replied.

‘Just you wait… I’m not going to let that happen no matter what.’

‘Do as you please, and anyway, here.’

‘What’s this?’

‘The card key to my house. You said you’re getting ready to move out on your own. Chi-wook is already in his fourth year and still making things uncomfortable for the younger players in the minor league dorm.’

‘Hey! How am I making things uncomfortable for the younger players… Who takes better care of the rookies than I do?’

‘Just being with you is uncomfortable. Anyway, you two take care of this house and live here.’

‘…Really?’

Entrusting the management of his house to his colleagues, no, his friends, for the day he would return.

Having one last all-night drinking session with Park Seong-hoon, whom he would be separated from for a while.

Having completed all the arrangements, Han Su-hyeok immediately moved to the United States and set up a personal camp with Jacob.

Han Su-hyeok, who was once again playing in the Big Leagues, decided to make some changes to his play style in order to properly confirm how far he could go and to bring home the World Series championship trophy that he had narrowly missed in his previous life.

First, he began working to gain weight.

The Major League plays 162 regular season games. That’s 18 more games than the KBO’s 144 games.

To get through such a tight schedule, games must continue without rest days unless there is something special. The situation is completely different from Korea, where they are guaranteed rest every Monday.

The distance traveled is also a problem.

You have to travel all over the United States, which has a huge landmass, to play games.

You have to get used to living on a plane for hours after the game.

To make matters worse, Seattle, where Han Su-hyeok joined, has the longest travel distance among the Big League teams.

The conclusion is this.

To endure the grueling schedule and to compete against players who are much faster and stronger than in the KBO, weight gain was essential.

As a result, Han Su-hyeok spent all his time working on his body for two months before spring training began, under Jacob’s guidance.

The result is this.

Thwaaaaaack!

“Wow… Su-hyeok hyung, you can definitely tell he’s bulked up. How far is that going to fly, seriously?”

“You shouldn’t be talking like it’s someone else’s problem. You have to face that hyung in a practice game tomorrow, right?”

“What about you? You have to hit Su-hyeok hyung’s pitches, don’t you?”

“Oh, right.”

He increased his weight from around 95㎏ to 105㎏ [approximately 209 to 231 pounds]. And that work is still in progress.

193㎝ tall and 115㎏ [approximately 6’4″ and 254 pounds], that was the most ideal body that Han Su-hyeok and Jacob were aiming for.

Anyway, Han Su-hyeok, having finished his live batting practice under the attention of the Mariners and Warriors players, stepped away from the batting cage.

Choi Maru and Park Dong-seok, who had been waiting for that moment, ran towards Han Su-hyeok.

“Su-hyeok hyung! Here’s a towel, and a drink!”

“Drink the one I brought!”

* * *

Unlike the external view, there were those within Seattle who had a negative view of Han Su-hyeok.

No matter how unbelievable the results were, there were many players who were dissatisfied with the fact that an Asian player who had played in a Double-A level league was hogging the spotlight.

In particular, the pitchers who had lost their spots due to Han Su-hyeok’s arrival, that is, those who were on the edge of the fifth starting rotation, or the hitters who had not secured a firm place in the lineup.

However, the atmosphere began to change little by little after spring camp began.

A much larger, solid physique than they had seen in the videos, one that was hard to believe belonged to an Asian.

In addition, the favorable attitude of the team’s top star, Ryan Tibo, and the living legend, Ty Johnson.

And above all, a speed that was already close to 100 miles per hour, even though it was only February, and the power to send the ball flying over the fence every time it hit the bat.

Even those who initially had a negative view of Han Su-hyeok gradually began to acknowledge his existence.

Of course, dissatisfaction still lingered on the faces of a few.

That dissatisfaction was completely quelled on the morning of the day the practice game between the Mariners and the Warriors was scheduled.

As time passed, the minor league players who had been invited to the camp began to empty their lockers one by one. The process of separating the wheat from the chaff had begun.

Thanks to that, the nerves of the players in ambiguous positions became extremely sensitive, and one of them crossed the river he should not have crossed [did something they shouldn’t have].

It was the guy who had witnessed Min Ye-rin visiting Han Su-hyeok the night before after training.

“A rookie who’s only played in Double-A brings a girl to camp, doesn’t know how scary veterans are and acts recklessly… Kuek!”

The guy, who had been filled with anxiety about the future while going back and forth between the minors and the Big League for the past five years, tried to vent his anger in the wrong place, and eventually paid the price.

Han Su-hyeok grabbed the collar of the white guy, who was 5㎝ [approximately 2 inches] taller than him, and threw him against the locker room wall.

Crash!

With a sound like the wall was breaking, the guy foamed at the mouth and collapsed to the floor.

“Fcuk!”

“Kill him!”

Two guys who were close to him, and who also had complaints about Han Su-hyeok, rushed at Han Su-hyeok in succession.

Thwack

“Cough!”

Whack

“Keok!”

Han Su-hyeok grabbed the arm of the guy who was running from the front and tripped him, sending him flying.

Then, he punched the guy who attacked from behind in the side, sending him to the ground.

The Seattle locker room fell silent at the unexpected sight.

“…Hey, Han. Even so.”

Ryan Tibo muttered with a disgusted expression, looking at the three guys writhing on the floor like worms.

He tried to stop them, but everything was over before he could.

Han Su-hyeok had crushed the three guys, who were bigger than him, in an instant.

“What! What the hell happened!”

The coach, who had heard the news late, ran into the locker room, but Han Su-hyeok had already left to take a shower.

* * *

“Tell me again. What happened?”

“That is, Han Su-hyeok and Jonathan, Ken……”

“I don’t want to hear the names of those trash, so what you’re saying is that those pathetic bastards threw punches at Han Su-hyeok!”

“Yes, sir. That’s right.”

“Those damn bastards! How hard did we work to bring him here, how dare they! Tom! Are you outside? Don’t just stand there, bring Tom here!”

At Daniel Mitchell’s roar, an employee hurriedly ran out and brought someone in.

A huge man in a black suit and horn-rimmed glasses, Daniel’s aide and the employee in charge of this stove league trade [off-season trading period].

“Review the trade offers that have come in again, and put those three pieces of trash who punched Han Su-hyeok in there somehow and get them out of my sight.”

“Yes? Sir, even so… If we force it like that, we’ll lose out.”

“You stupid bastard! Lose out? What if Han Su-hyeok leaves our team because he’s upset about saving those guys? What if he says he’s going back to Korea? Who’s going to take responsibility for that?”

“…….”

“You still don’t know what’s a priority? Han Su-hyeok is the core of our team this season. If there’s anyone who blocks or interferes with him, anyone who gets in our way, we have to step up and get rid of them first. Everyone, keep that in mind. If I hear about something like this happening again, you’re all fired. Do you understand me?”

“Yes! Boss!”

“Get out. Take care of what I just ordered right away, and you go to the camp and check again to see if Han Su-hyeok is still upset about this. What are you doing? Run out there right now. Hurry!”