The Pitcher Just Hits Home Runs Well [EN]: Chapter 365

365. World Series (1)

[New York Mets Pull Off Another Amazing Feat!!]

Those tenacious bastards.

After experiencing the spicy flavor of New York media, you often realize that Korean journalists are still from the Land of the Rising Sun [a common East Asian expression referring to Japan]. Seriously, there’s a limit to sarcasm. This is closer to an attention-grabbing post title on an internet community than a news headline.

I didn’t bother asking if he was okay.

Of course, he wouldn’t be.

“Here.”

I just tossed him a can of non-alcoholic beer.

“What’s this? It’s not beer?”

“It’s not. It’s just beer-flavored soda.”

“Still, this is illegal in New York……”

“It’s legal by our country’s standards. Besides, buying it is illegal, but taking it out of the fridge at home, well… I don’t know.”

He stared intently at the non-alcoholic beer can for a moment, then popped the top and took a big gulp with a determined expression.

“Ugh…… What is this? It’s so bitter?”

“That’s the taste of adulthood.”

He frowned and took another sip of the non-alcoholic beer.

“Well, it’s not as bitter as the taste of defeat.”

Ugh……

Typical Alex, I guess? Like the ultimate edgelord of the major leagues, he says cringe-worthy things without a second thought. But today, I have to be patient like an adult. That’s why Eun-jin, my father, my uncle, and my aunt all gave me their cards and sent me to the shopping mall.

“The Dodgers were scary. I thought we were definitely going to win. I really thought if it just came down to my turn, we could win……”

“They were a strong team, huh?”

“……Yeah. They were strong. There wasn’t anyone who was incredibly fired up, but there wasn’t anyone you could ignore either. The things you hoped wouldn’t happen always didn’t, and the things you thought couldn’t happen always did.”

He seemed frustrated and went to the terrace, throwing open the window. The cool October wind rushed into the house.

“Mookie Betts or Ohtani might be a little disappointed to hear that?”

“Ah, those two were a little fired up. But the last game felt a little different. Anyway, what I mean is… Anyway, those two were a little fired up. But the last game, I mean, I was really, like, what should I say? I mean……”

What’s wrong?

He suddenly started rambling and talking nonsense.

Wait a minute. Could it be?

“I mean, if I just, you know? If I just stood in the batter’s box!!”

“Hey, give me that.”

“Huh?”

0. 3%.

It was a little high for non-alcoholic, but it was definitely non-alcoholic beer. Besides, there was still about 1/3 of the 500ml can left, so he had only drunk about 350ml of 0.3% alcohol. That’s about the same alcohol as taking a sip of regular beer.

But for that amount, his face is too red. Ah, he’s really a handful.

“Why are you taking it away? I was just getting into it. Anyway, you know? I really felt like something, what was it? You know, that thing where you go up a level.”

“Step up?”

“Yeah, step up!! You know? I felt like I was doing that. But, I mean. Ah, where was I?”

“Okay, okay, let’s lie down and talk. That’s right. Good.”

As someone who’s experienced a lot of setbacks myself, I thought I should offer some adult comfort, but it ended in a somewhat absurd way. But then again, getting completely drunk and passing out on a day like this isn’t so bad…… No, but. Does drinking 2/3 of a can of non-alcoholic beer and getting drunk even qualify as getting completely drunk?

Anyway, with just one day left until the World Series, my last day off passed in a slightly absurd way.

***

[Well, the day has finally arrived. The culmination of a year’s hard work. The first game of the World Series to determine the world’s strongest baseball team in 2028. The New York Yankees versus the LA Dodgers!! This is New York. Yankee Stadium. I’m commentator Lee Ju-hyung.]

[I’m Park Dong-hyeok, providing commentary.]

[Well, today’s game is the first game of the World Series. What are your thoughts?]

[Uh, before we get to the game preview, there’s one thing I want to say. Sometimes people say, “It’s just an American civil war. Well, there’s one Canadian team, but still, it’s just an American civil war, so why call it the World Series?” Actually, the United States is the birthplace of baseball, but their recent performance in international competitions isn’t that great, so it’s hard to call them the world’s strongest.]

[I agree. Of course, Major League Baseball isn’t just a league for Americans, so considering the level of the league, I don’t think the term “World Series” is wrong, but there’s some truth to what they’re saying, isn’t there?]

[But if you look at the history of the World Series, it’s easy to understand. The first World Series was on October 1, 1903. The Japan-Korea Annexation Treaty was in 1910, and the Eulsa Treaty was in 1905, so it was two years before that. At that time, professional baseball only existed in the United States. So, what should I say? In ssireum (Korean wrestling), the term “Cheonhajangsa” (Greatest Wrestler Under Heaven) means the best wrestler under heaven, right? That’s actually true because Korea is the only country that does ssireum. If ssireum becomes globalized and more countries have leagues, wouldn’t it be ridiculous to change the name “Cheonhajangsa” to something like “Peninsula Wrestler”?]

[Ah, so you’re saying that the term “World Champion” in baseball isn’t a literal term, but rather an idiom that was used in that era and has continued to be used even though it doesn’t fit the current era?]

[Yes, that’s right. Ah, but this is just to say that there are such opinions, and in my personal opinion, the champion of Major League Baseball is the World Champion. So, this is where we determine the team that plays baseball the best in the world.]

The LA Dodgers had taken two days of rest.

In fact, what’s even more unfortunate is that their opponent was the New York Mets. If they had played the Championship Series in the West, even if it ended in six games, they would have had to spend a day traveling, so they would have been less rested. This is practically the same as significantly reducing the home-field advantage.

But regardless, judging from our team’s atmosphere, it didn’t seem to matter much.

Following the overwhelming victory in the regular season, we had a 7-game winning streak in the postseason alone. The team’s momentum was so strong that players were casually talking about winning the World Series with a historic all-sweep, an unprecedented 12-game postseason winning streak.

Top of the 1st inning.

Domingo Rodriguez took the mound. We had an overwhelming victory in the Championship Series as well. That means we didn’t do anything stupid like pulling the guy who started in the first game to pitch in the fourth game.

With a full eight days of rest, Domingo Rodriguez was in top condition. And Domingo Rodriguez in top condition was arguably the strongest in the entire AL [American League].

-Thwack!!!

“Strike!!!”

October 29th.

The weather was now past autumn and into winter. It was the kind of weather where a pitcher’s shoulder could easily stiffen, but from the first inning, Domingo’s fastball reached 96.4 mph. It was a pitch that showed his strong determination to completely overwhelm the Dodgers’ lineup.

Today, the Dodgers’ leadoff hitter was Rocky Chavez.

A 27-year-old from the Dominican Republic who was in the midst of an explosive performance. His stats for this season were 0.269/0.357/0.401.

Second pitch.

He aggressively attacked the zone, and the guy barely managed to foul it off.

That made the count 0-2.

Third pitch.

Domingo went into a big windup.

A dynamic form.

But the pitch that came from his fingertips was a changeup that perfectly stole the timing.

-Clang!!!

A slightly elevated hit.

Jose, who had been given plenty of rest thanks to Oswald Wells’s arrival, made a clean play worthy of his reputation to record the first out.

One out.

A good start.

Garrett Cole, who usually sat in the corner of the dugout with a nonchalant expression when Domingo was pitching, leaned against the fence, watched the game, and spoke to me.

“That guy’s changeup is definitely top-notch.”

“It’s a changeup he learned directly from Pedro Martinez.”

“Hmph, if we’re going to talk like that, I also received one-point lessons from Rocket [Roger Clemens, a famous baseball player].”

“Ah, okay.”

The next batter was Mookie Betts.

He was once considered to have underperformed in the postseason compared to the regular season, but with a lot of experience under his belt, he was one of the most dangerous hitters in games like this. In fact, he had three RBIs in the last game against the Mets, showing that his hitting was on the rise.

But Domingo continued to pitch as if he didn’t care about any of that.

A high fastball.

-Thwack!!!

The umpire’s hand didn’t go up.

A curveball that dropped sharply.

-Whoosh!!

“Strike!!!”

Mookie Betts stepped out of the batter’s box for a moment to adjust his stance.

And the third pitch.

Another high fastball.

-Whoosh!!!

“Strike!!!”

Count 1-2.

Domingo chose a changeup for the fourth pitch.

-Clang!!

The well-hit ball went outside the third base foul line.

And he picked out the fifth curveball, making the count 2-2.

Domingo frowned slightly on the mound and shook his head at Jose’s sign.

He was determined to go on the offensive rather than throw a decoy.

“There he goes again, showing his true colors. Tsk.”

Garrett Cole said, completely disregarding his own even dirtier personality.

Domingo on the mound certainly couldn’t have heard Garrett Cole’s mutterings, but anyway, he made an effort not to look at Mookie Betts and began to focus on Ohtani.

Sixth pitch.

Domingo went into a big windup.

Unlike the previous time when he struck out a batter with an off-speed pitch that didn’t match the windup, this time it was a truly full-force fastball.

A four-seam fastball of a whopping 97.9 mph.

-Clang!!!

And Mookie Betts pulled the ball as if he had been waiting for it.

A strong hit that broke through the infield.

Fortunately, left fielder Angel Cabrera quickly caught the ball. It was a hit that could have been dangerous even to second base if the defense had been a little late.

[A hit!! It’s a hit. Top of the 1st inning. With one out, Mookie Betts pulls the sixth pitch, a high fastball, to get a hit!! His hitting is definitely on fire.]

[Well, with one out and a runner on 1st, Shohei Ohtani steps up to the plate. Shohei Ohtani is coming up.]

[Unlike previous seasons when he always aimed for MVP as long as he was healthy, Shohei Ohtani had 34 home runs this season despite not having any major injuries. It was a bit of a disappointing season for Shohei Ohtani. But even so, he still recorded top-class stats in both pitching and hitting.]

[In particular, he showed a clear decline in the second half of this season compared to the first half. Is this proof that it’s becoming physically difficult to maintain both pitching and hitting?]

[Yes, as everyone knows, as you get older, the problem is more with recovery than with strength. In fact, Shohei Ohtani is showing slightly disappointing results in this postseason compared to his name value.]

-Thwack!!

One pickoff attempt.

“Safe!!!”

Domingo first tied up Mookie Betts’s feet once.

Of course, whether he did or not, he still widened his lead, so it didn’t feel like the pickoff attempt had much of an effect.

“Focus on the batter now, kid.”

It wasn’t even an aside. Garrett Cole muttered to himself so that everyone in the dugout could hear.

Of course, Domingo on the mound couldn’t have heard Garrett Cole’s mutterings, but anyway, he made an effort not to look at Mookie Betts and began to focus on Ohtani.

First pitch.

-Whoooooosh!!!

A huge swing.

Jose Trevino, who caught the ball, jumped up and quickly threw the ball towards 2nd base.

-Thwack!!!!

But it was no use. Mookie Betts’s hand touched the base a step faster.

“Safe!!!!”

He jumped up from his spot and dusted off his lapel. It was a truly annoying sight.

Count 0-1.

One out and a runner on 2nd.

The Dodgers put a runner in scoring position.