The Pitcher Just Hits Home Runs Well [EN]: Chapter 200

200. Crisis (6)

“Seriously. I never thought I’d live to see someone hit a home run with such a weird form… I mean, how did that even go over?”

“Who knows? Maybe it was a moment where skill transcended form?”

“Bullshit. Jjoyou, you should be grateful to your parents for giving you that body. Seriously, how does your head turn first, and then the ball goes over the fence? I don’t get it?”

“Well, I guess we can’t say ‘the sound of Jo Yu-jin hitting a home run’ anymore, huh?”

“Wait, did we ever say that?”

The dugout was bustling with the joy of victory.

The players’ faces showed confidence.

“Alright, we came all the way to Daegu, let’s get some ‘뭉티기’ (mung-ti-gi, fresh raw beef) and ‘오드레기’ (o-deu-re-gi, grilled cartilage).”

“Uh, I’m not really into raw meat.”

Seo Kyung-joon, who had a multi-hit game for the first time in a while, cheerfully suggested going out to eat, but Lee Jung-hoon cut him off.

“Come on, how can a guy have such a picky palate?”

“I don’t even like 육회 (yuk-hoe, Korean-style beef tartare). But I’ll take the guys who don’t like raw beef. Hey, let’s go eat 막창 (mak-chang, grilled pork intestines). Daegu is all about 막창.”

Seo Kyung-joon’s brow furrowed slightly.

Gyu-man stepped in to mediate between the two.

“You guys are acting like kids, arguing about what to eat. We can eat everything. Let’s have 막창 for the first round, and then go for 뭉티기 for the second. Those who don’t like 뭉티기 can have 오드레기.”

“Wow, hyung. That’s a brilliant idea.”

I don’t know what was so brilliant about Gyu-man’s suggestion, but Seo Kyung-joon, who loves eating as much as Gyu-man, was thrilled at the idea of eating everything.

“Soo-won is coming with us today, right?”

“Of course. It’s the day our soulmate battery hit home runs together. Soo-won, you’re coming, right?”

“Is Jjoyou buying? To celebrate your first home run?”

“Uh… uh?”

“What’s up? Gyu-man, I heard Jjoyou is treating us all to celebrate his first home run?”

“Really? Wow, Jjoyou is so generous. Is your dad a building owner? If you pay for both rounds today, won’t your salary be cut in half?”

“Jjoyou got a hefty signing bonus as a second-round pick. Plus, he got an expensive watch from Soo-won. It’s okay if his salary is cut in half.”

Jjoyou looked unusually flustered.

His expression was too transparent. Half of him was thinking, ‘I guess I really have to buy since I’ve been getting free meals all the time?’ and the other half was thinking, ‘But grilling meat is usually really expensive.’

“Hey, hey, stop teasing him. He’s going to cry.”

“Come on, do you think we’d really make you pay? Just come and eat hard. Right, Gyuman hyung?”

“…Yeah, let’s go quickly.”

***

-Knock knock

“Coach. It’s Choi Soo-won.”

“Come in.”

Inside Coach Kim Dae-cheol’s office.

The desk was full of paper documents. Being a bit old-fashioned, he preferred paper documents despite the tablet provided by the team.

“You called for me.”

“Yes, how’s your body doing these days? I heard you lost 4.5kg.”

“Ah, that was right after the game yesterday, but I’ve recovered some of it.”

Soo-won’s statement was true.

Glycogen, the fastest source of energy, requires 3g of water per 1g to be stored in the body. Fighters usually rebound in this way, and although it’s not to that extent for pitchers, most of the weight loss on game day is due to the depletion of glycogen. Just eating well can restore most of the weight.

“That’s good. It must be tough to manage your condition in the summer, but are you doing okay?”

“It’s a bit tough, but we’re almost past the 7th station. I’m going to work harder.”

Coach Kim Dae-cheol shook his head.

“The 7th station? We’re only halfway there. There’s still a long way to go.”

Indeed, although they had played nearly 100 out of 144 games, there was still a long way to go.

“You mean the postseason.”

“You catch on quick.”

“Yes, but we’ll have about two weeks of rest if we go straight to the Korean Series anyway. For now, I’m just focusing on winning the regular season.”

Kim Dae-cheol knew about the secret agreement between Choi Soo-won and the team.

But even so, he didn’t feel that Choi Soo-won’s desire to win was to urge that ‘grand decision’.

“That’s a good goal. In that sense, let’s skip your next start. You’re too tired right now.”

“Pardon?”

“We haven’t even pulled up the rotation. The rest day is perfect. I’m thinking of skipping your rotation and pulling up the next one.”

“Wait a minute, Coach. I can pitch. Besides, I’m not the only one who’s tired. All the other players are the same.”

“Yes, everyone is tired. But if a starter pitches one game and rests well, they can recover their weight and come back to the mound. But you’ve lost almost 2kg from your usual weight, even with the weight you’ve recovered. I’d like you to skip a few at-bats and rest… Anyway, I’m going to skip your next start, so keep that in mind.”

“…”

“If you understand what it means that I’m calling you in to tell you this in person, you wouldn’t be making that face.”

Of course, he understood how much of a privilege it was that the coach was explaining this to him in person, and how much he was respecting him.

Rather, Kim Dae-cheol was the one who didn’t know. He didn’t know how much Soo-won was respecting the coach’s authority with the attitude of a rookie, which was why he wasn’t jumping up from his seat right now.

“Understood.”

Choi Soo-won got up from his seat.

He didn’t like this situation. The reason he chose the KBO [Korean Baseball Organization] instead of the Major League was to gain the ‘experience’ of playing through the season as a two-way player. And the experience he had in mind included pushing through tough situations like this, continuing to play as a two-way player.

If he went to the Big League right away, the schedule would be nothing compared to the KBO. So, the experience of playing through tough moments like this could be a great asset to him.

At least, that’s what Soo-won thought.

And the first game on Tuesday between the Phoenixes and the Mariners, in which Choi Soo-won did not play.

The Mariners beat the Phoenixes 9-4, taking the victory.

***

Thinking about it coldly, it wasn’t that strange to give me a day off.

My velocity had been dropping recently, and I definitely felt like I was burning through the fat stored in my body like crazy, and even burning muscle.

But people are usually good at thinking rationally and logically, but when night comes and they get lost in thought, the emotion that flares up sometimes subtly wins over that cold reason.

“No, I’m telling you. I think this is a conspiracy to control me because I’m going to go straight to the US if we win this year. Since I’m guaranteed MVP [Most Valuable Player] this year and next year, they’re going to finish second this year and win next year. That’s the conspiracy.”

“Soo-won, that’s a bit too far-fetched. Besides, you guys won today anyway… I mean, shouldn’t the damn bottom-ranked team throw like the top-ranked team on a day like today? It’s a game without Soo-won, after all.”

“Exactly. Jjoyou doesn’t hit a home run, and the Mariners win with a performance that’s not like the Mariners. What’s going on? Am I the only one who’s exhausted in this heat?”

“Exactly. Yu-jin hit another hit today? Well, it’s better than getting hit by a home run. It’s better, but I don’t understand why that damn bottom-ranked guy is running away from a .240 hitter and getting behind in the count, and then throwing it right down the middle. I just don’t get it?”

“Well, I don’t know either. I should be happy because we won today. But it feels like we won without me. I don’t feel that good.”

“I’m in a very bad mood right now. Why did that damn bottom-ranked guy screw up the game like this even without Soo-won? I mean, you have to win at least in the game you’re not playing in to avoid a losing streak. If Soo-won plays in the remaining two games, we’ll get swept again. What are we supposed to do if we miss this opportunity? Are we going to play baseball in the fall?”

Was it because we had a face-to-face conversation a while ago?

The video call with Park Eun-jin wasn’t awkward. Well, it felt like we were just saying what we wanted to say, but that was okay in its own way. I just needed someone to vent this frustrating feeling to.

“But in that sense, Soo-won.”

“Huh?”

Park Eun-jin suddenly looked at me with a strange expression. And she had idol makeup on, probably because she had just come back from recording today. Her face was definitely different from when I saw her in school. I swallowed hard without realizing it.

“It’s nothing much, but are you free tomorrow and the day after?”

“Free? Why suddenly?”

“Well, I have some free time tomorrow and the day after. If you’re okay with it, let’s go on a date. I heard you got a car for winning MVP this time. How about a 1-night 2-day drive along the east coast? By the way, this is a seduction.”

“Eun-jin…”

A moment of silence. I grinned.

“Park Eun-jin, you’re a terrible actress. Well, you can only seduce if you’ve done it before. You’re making it so obvious that you’re trying to stop me from playing tomorrow and the day after to help the Phoenixes win.”

“…Was it that obvious? My acting teacher said I had a talent for acting.”

“That teacher was too loyal to capitalism. I think you need to change that teacher. Besides, I have a car but no license.”

“Really? Don’t you need a license to go to the US? Isn’t it harder to get a license in the US?”

“Yeah, it’s hard. So I’m going to get a license after this season.”

Such useless chatter continued for almost an hour.

“Oh, is it already this late? Hey, Park Eun-jin, you need to wash up and go to bed. You haven’t even taken off your makeup yet.”

“What? How did you know I was wearing makeup?”

“How could I not know?”

“You’re unnecessarily detailed in weird places, Choi Soo-won. You can’t even use that detail where it’s needed.”

“Anyway, I’m hanging up now.”

“Wait!!”

Park Eun-jin suddenly moved closer to the smartphone.

“I feel that way sometimes too. When other members of the team go on variety shows and promote the team’s name, it’s definitely good for me, but I feel weird. That’s too natural. But Soo-won. The reason that member can be so active on variety shows is because we all worked hard together. The reason the Mariners are playing baseball like humans even without you. The reason Jjoyou is hitting hits and home runs is because you worked hard. So don’t worry too much.”

“Hey, what’s with this cheesy line right before hanging up?”

“I know it’s cheesy too? That’s why I didn’t say it earlier and I’m saying it now before hanging up? Anyway, I’m hanging up now!!”

***

The 2nd and 3rd games against the Phoenixes.

I only played as a designated hitter in both games.

[Series Sweep!! Unstoppable Force!! Will the Mariners Secure 1st Place in the Season Like This?]