The Pitcher Just Hits Home Runs Well [EN]: Chapter 104

104. VS MLB? (2)

The news was shocking on multiple levels.

Unlike soccer, baseball rarely features inter-league games between professional leagues from different countries. The most common examples were the Okinawa League, which took place before Korea-Japan relations soured, and the MLB-Japan All-Star Series, which was more of an exhibition event.

The MLB Secretariat had long discussed the globalization of baseball, but it seemed an impossible task.

Nevertheless, the discussions continued, and one idea that surfaced was having the KBO [Korean Baseball Organization] teams, which had recently begun gathering in Arizona for spring training, join the Cactus League [a spring training league for MLB teams].

Naturally, each MLB team strongly opposed the idea. From their perspective, practice games against teams that weren’t even Triple-A [the highest level of minor league baseball] caliber would be a waste of time.

That’s why even the reporters in Arizona couldn’t fathom it.

Consequently, correspondents from newspapers other than the Korea Daily, which broke the story, were severely reprimanded by their editors, who questioned their purpose in going all the way to the United States.

“Seriously, why is the Marines [Busan Marines, a KBO team] suddenly having a practice game with a major league team? They’ve only been having internal scrimmages.”

“Don’t even get me started. The Marines front office hinted at a surprise announcement about a practice game with an outside team, but other teams said they didn’t have anything scheduled with the Marines. I figured it would be an NCAA Division 1 [top level of college athletics in the US] team at best, but sigh…”

Two middle-aged reporters wearing glasses grumbled on the bus to Mesa, Arizona.

“This has to be because Manager James Cole used his influence, right?”

“Well, he saw some unpleasant things at the end of his time with the Marines… But did he still have some affection left for them? How is Cole even managing in the majors again? I thought his career was over when he was kicked out of the Marines like that.”

“Cole always had strong connections with Oakland. Plus, he’s quite capable. He immediately joined Oakland as a strategy coach and became manager in just one year.”

“Amazing… When he was with the Marines, I just thought he had a terrible personality. So he must have been quite competent?”

“That’s why the Marines brought him in as manager for $3.5 million over two years.”

“Huh? $3.5 million is 4 billion won [South Korean currency]? The Marines spent that much on a manager? He must have been a major league-level manager?”

“No, even major league managers don’t get paid that much. A major league rookie manager usually gets around $800,000. $1.75 million a year is the kind of money a manager with a few years of experience would get.”

“Then I have to admit it. He got paid that much and finished 10th and 9th, so even if he saw some unpleasant things at the end, he should use this much influence.”

***

“No…, no!!!”

James Cole woke up from his sleep with a scream, his back soaked in sweat. Was it a terrible nightmare?

It was a nightmare from that day five years ago.

At the time, he had chosen the offer with the most money out of three options. The deal was $3.5 million over two years, plus support for living expenses. He had no idea it would become such a recurring nightmare.

Two years with the Marines. He developed stress-related hair loss, and it took over two years to recover. Even now, he still hasn’t fully regained the thick hair he had before going to Korea.

“Damn it…”

He frowned as he gulped down a glass of cool water.

He knew the Marines well.

How could he not? It was the team he had managed just three years ago.

Unless there had been a change that shook the heavens and the earth, it was hard to imagine the Marines, stuck in the abyss, becoming a normal team. Even if such a change had occurred.

However, according to the negotiations between MLB and KBO, and between the Marines and Athletics front offices, over half of the participating players had to be on the 40-man roster [a list of players eligible to play for a major league team] as of last year, and half of those had to be on the 26-man roster [the active roster of a major league team].

This is really…
The Marines front office guys.

They are definitely capable…

“Those stupid Marines guys.”

The negotiation itself was very well done. But what level do these Marines front office guys think their team’s skills are at?

Of course, they know they started training about three weeks earlier. But it doesn’t matter.

James Cole was surprised when he was appointed manager of the Marines and found out that spring training was in early February. He was even more surprised by the players’ physical condition when they gathered.

How can a professional join training with such a messed-up body?

Major League spring training opens after mid-February, but players arrive with at least minimal conditioning completed. They don’t just drag their completely exhausted bodies. Even if the Marines started training three weeks earlier, frankly speaking, there won’t be much difference in physical condition.

To put it bluntly, even if the Athletics formed a team with the bottom 20 players out of the 61 in their major league camp, they would have an 80% chance of winning. No, even if they picked the top 20 players from the minor league camp right next door, they could win 8 out of 10 games against the Marines.

Moreover, more than half of the players are on the 40-man list? And half of those are on the 26-man list?

Usually, players who go to the KBO as foreign players perform at the KBO All-Star level. Those are the players around the 40-man roster, outside the 26-man.

What about the players above that?

Of course, they are players who could aim for MVP based on KBO standards.

“Are they thinking of giving them shock therapy or something?”

If that’s what they’re thinking, the Marines front office has made a big mistake.

The Marines team has a solid mentality that doesn’t get too shocked even if their winning percentage drops below 30%. There’s no way they’ll be shocked by a big loss to a major league team.

James Cole shook his head, thinking that far ahead.

It’s a useless thought.

Yeah, what’s the point of thinking about the Marines now? Now that it’s come to this, he just needs to thoroughly destroy that damn team that even gives him nightmares.

A total of 64 people.

He sent 3 of them down to the nearby Pitch Park, so now there are 61.

He doesn’t even plan to use several of the best players.

That’s because it’s just one game.

One person is enough to make them feel the overwhelming difference in class.

Josh Anderson.

25 years old.

He earned his first salary arbitration rights this year and signed a whopping $5.5 million contract. But no one said that amount was excessive.

He was the third-place winner of the American League Cy Young Award [award given to the best pitcher in each league].

The top pitcher in the major leagues will appear in the game against the Marines.

***

[Hello. This is Hohokam Stadium, where the Oakland Athletics’ spring training is taking place.]

[This is also where the game between the professional baseball team Busan Marines and the Major League team Oakland Athletics will be held today.]

[It’s a truly exciting moment. Isn’t this the first time a KBO team has played a game against a Major League team since the KBO was founded in 1982?]

[That’s right. There was one game at the All-Star level, but this is the first time that teams are playing against each other properly. As far as I know, this is the same even if you expand the scope to Japan. There have been All-Star exchange games, but this is the first time that teams are having a game individually.]

[I’m proud. Busan Marines. I’m really proud. Major League Baseball is practically the best league in the world. The fact that we are playing against a team in that league shows how much the KBO has developed.]

[I think so too. This is a truly moving moment for fans who have watched the KBO for a long time. Just 45 years since the 80s when it was said to be worse than the Japanese second team. Finally, a KBO team will have a practice game 1:1 with a Major League team in the United States.]

[Moreover, the starting pitcher for today’s opponent, the Oakland Athletics, is Josh Anderson!! Fans who watch Major League games know very well that he is a young pitcher who is 25 years old this year and won 3rd place in the American League Cy Young Award last year. In other words, he is a pitcher who won 3rd place in the award given to the best pitcher in Major League, which is like the Choi Dong-won Award [award given to the best pitcher in the KBO] in our country. He is one of the top five ace pitchers in the entire Major League.]

[I’d also like to point out that the manager of the Oakland Athletics is James Cole, who was the manager of the Marines until three years ago. He knows the Marines’ strengths and weaknesses better than anyone in Major League. Manager James Cole has chosen his team’s ace pitcher, Josh Anderson. I think there’s something meaningful in that.]

[Ah, the stadium is starting to get organized. We’ll see you after a short commercial break.]

The caster, who put down his headset during a short break, asked the commentator.

“Hyung [older brother/respected colleague], will this game really work out? Josh Anderson is too high of a level… What if something like a perfect game happens…?”

“No, it won’t go that far.”

“Well, Lee Gyu-man is still a batter who excelled in international matches, and Noh Hyung-wook is also a top-class batter in the current league. Those two will be able to do it, right?”

“If James Cole has any sense, he won’t let Josh Anderson pitch a complete game in a practice game, no matter how perfect it is. It’s still the end of February. The players haven’t warmed up yet. Maybe about 3 or 4 innings? I don’t think he’ll throw more than 60 pitches?”

“Ah, that’s why you said a perfect game won’t happen…”

“Of course. There’s a difference in league level. Frankly, even if the Dolphins, the winning team last year, played in the MLB, they would struggle to win 30% of their games. Even if the KBO All-Stars gathered, they would barely win 30% in the MLB. The Marines are a team that wins 20% in the KBO. If you wanted a competitive game, you should have played against the Dolphins. Why the Marines of all teams…?”

“Could it be that James Cole used his influence a little?”

“If James Cole used his influence, I think it’s not out of goodwill but out of resentment.”

“Is it that bad?”

“I think the Marines will have done well if they lose by less than 10 points. Look at the player list now. Almost more than half are starting-level members, and the rest are veterans who have been playing in Triple-A without ever making the majors. If these guys came to the KBO? They’re all Gold Glove-level players.”

“I’m going crazy. How am I supposed to commentate on this…?”

***

“James, this means we don’t owe each other anything now. Okay? To be honest, you should think that you owe me now.”

“I know you got a lot from the secretariat, so what debt are you talking about? Let’s just say that nothing is left between us now.”

“I feel like I lost a bit… Well, whatever. But is that friend really that good? Enough to hold such a large-scale showcase?”

“Of course. I’m telling you in advance because it’s you, but Oakland should save money. Because the best prospect in history will appear at a really cheap price in two years, or maybe next year.”

“You’re always exaggerating…”

“You’ll know if what I’m saying is an exaggeration or not if you watch today’s game.”

The game started.