On The Rise As A Catcher [EN]: Chapter 6

Song Seok-hyun could only stare at the front gate of the house where Kim Na-young had disappeared, a bewildered expression on his face.

“Exam stress is going to kill someone.”

* * *

When Song Seok-hyun met Jung Mi-nam and told him everything, the reaction was unexpected.

“…So, what are you going to do now?”

Song Seok-hyun was surprised by Jung Mi-nam’s calm reaction.

“Seriously? What’s with that reaction?”

“What, man?”

“You’re not making fun of me? I was prepared for a dark history [a past filled with embarrassing or regrettable events].”

“Is this the time to make fun of you? You’ve been branded as someone who can never play baseball again.”

“Don’t go that far. Who knows? I might go to an independent baseball team and try again during the tryouts.”

“Hey, stop it. It’s just going to be harder for you.”

“Now that I’ve drawn my sword, I have to cut something, even if it’s just a radish [meaning he has to accomplish something, even if it’s small]. I can’t quit like this.”

“Why are you trying so hard? Don’t worry about me and just work with me. Or just go to the army early. Let’s enlist together. How about it?”

“Are you saying that knowing that enlisting together means being at the front lines?”

“How much experience do I have rolling around on the baseball field? What’s so scary about the front lines? I can do it.”

“No, man. You have a promise to your parents. Learn some work first and then go to the army.”

“If you’re going to go, it’s better to go early.”

“Stop it, man. I feel so sorry that I can’t say anything. And I’m not just saying this, I’m really going to do my best to play baseball. If it doesn’t work out even then, I’ll give up thinking, ‘I really can’t help it.’ But as long as there’s a glimmer of hope, I can’t let it go.”

“Hey, why are you going so far? You liked baseball, but not this much.”

“Sigh.”

Song Seok-hyun almost said the word ‘mother’ but held it back [implying he’s doing it for his mother’s sake].

“Let’s just say I have my reasons.”

“Why? Is your family forcing you to do it?”

“It’s not that. Sigh, anyway, I have to. Just know that.”

“You’re so stubborn, so stubborn.”

“More than that… is your store busy in the afternoon? Is the peak time in the evening?”

“Yeah, why?”

“Can I train at your store for a bit in the afternoon?”

“Train at our store?”

“Well, I’m not in the baseball team anymore, so I can’t really do it at the baseball field. And I need to keep practicing my mitt work [glove skills]. And batting too. I haven’t been batting so much that I’ve lost my feel for it.”

“You can do it with me.”

“Train with you, going around the neighborhood school fields? I’d be self-conscious and it would take up too much of your time. I’ll just do it alone.”

“Can you even train like that?”

“It’s better than doing nothing. What else can I do? I have to do something.”

“Hey… Sigh, you’re something else.”

Jung Mi-nam nodded.

“Then keep doing it in the evening too. I’ll save you a spot until the store is completely full.”

“You don’t have to go that far.”

“It’s okay, man. My parents are worried about you too. It’s just an empty seat anyway, what would they say if I lent it to a friend? If you feel bad, you can help out with work. My parents like you anyway.”

“I keep feeling sorry to you.”

Jung Mi-nam kicked Song Seok-hyun with his foot.

“You have a lot to be sorry about. But will you be able to train properly like that?”

“I’m just trying to get a feel for it. For the time being, I’ll study at school and practice in the afternoon. That way, I can apply when a spot opens up somewhere.”

“Where would a spot even open up?”

“I don’t know. It could open up in an independent baseball team. I’m even thinking of going to Japan, so I need to find a way to contact them.”

“Japan? Japanese independent baseball?”

“Yeah.”

Jung Mi-nam clicked his tongue.

“Hey, seriously. You’re amazing. You always do this. You get discouraged for a bit and then you bounce back. What is that, that thing?”

“Grit?”

“No, no. A pain in the ass?”

“You son of a bitch.”

“Hehehe.”

The two looked at each other and chuckled.

“What else can I do, whether I’m a pain in the ass or not? This is how you live if you don’t get drafted.”

“If you were a pitcher, you would have been drafted first overall.”

“That’s all in the past. Why are you talking about it?”

Jung Mi-nam lowered his head with a look of realization.

“Sorry. I shouldn’t have said that.”

“Anyway, can I go to your store tomorrow?”

“Yeah, I’ll tell my dad. The store is mostly run by me and the part-time worker anyway. My dad only comes and goes in the evening, so do whatever is comfortable for you.”

“Thanks. I’ll work hard and help out.”

* * *

Studying by day and working by night.

For Song Seok-hyun, it was studying by day and baseball by night.

In the morning, he read books and in the evening, he played baseball.

Song Seok-hyun borrowed every baseball textbook and book available at the library and read them all.

“Wow. There was something like this?”

He was a baseball player, but baseball books were unfamiliar to him.

From the beginning, he learned baseball on the field, so he never had the opportunity to learn baseball from books.

Recently, it was popular for coaches from professional backgrounds, major league personal coaches, and Japanese conditioning coaches to publish books with their know-how.

Song Seok-hyun confirmed the theories he had only learned through his body with books, and he belatedly became passionate about learning.

While others studied Korean, English, and math, Song Seok-hyun devoured one book a day.

At school, no one bothered Song Seok-hyun for reading baseball books, even though he had belatedly left the baseball team.

Song Seok-hyun had already become so famous that the teachers were careful not to provoke him and stir up trouble.

“Hey, let’s go.”

When school was over, Song Seok-hyun carried his mitt and headed to the store with Jung Mi-nam.

It was routine to greet the part-time worker, help out with some work, and then start training in the remaining room.

Bang! Bang!

Song Seok-hyun held his mitt and caught the ball in the screen baseball field [an indoor baseball practice facility].

It may have looked ridiculous, but Song Seok-hyun was serious throughout.

Jung Mi-nam stared at him from behind.

“Hey, your mitt work has changed a bit?”

“Mitt work?”

Bang!

Song Seok-hyun asked the part-time worker to stop the machine for a moment and sat down.

“Does it look like it?”

“You’re lifting your left armpit.”

“You have a good eye.”

“I’m a catcher senior, man. Do you think I wouldn’t know that?”

“That’s right. I read in a book that the current trend is to lift the armpit a bit. That way, you can catch the ball coming to my left by turning it sideways and putting it in the strike zone. If you keep your armpit attached, your posture is stable, but it’s a bit awkward when catching the ball coming to the left.”

“Where did you pick that up from?”

“Pick it up? This is the major league trend these days. You slightly turn your index finger to the 2 o’clock direction to make mitt work easier. In Major League Baseball, they value framing scores highly [the art of subtly catching a pitch to make it appear within the strike zone]. If you frame well, the catcher scores points. A good catcher can win more than 2 or 3 wins a year, so I have to practice hard. Bang. Bang bang!”

Just then, a customer came.

Song Seok-hyun took off his mitt and stepped forward.

“I’m going to earn my keep.”

Jung Mi-nam sighed in the spot where Song Seok-hyun had left.

“Does he like baseball that much….”

Success as a catcher

A second chance

Click, click.

Jung Mi-nam was rubbing his sleepy eyes and eating breakfast.

His hair was a little longer than a buzz cut, but it was a mess.

Jung Mi-nam blinked and swallowed his rice.

Seeing this, Jung Mi-nam’s father cleared his throat.

“Ahem. Did you sleep late again yesterday?”

Jung Mi-nam nodded.

“Yeah, a little?”

“You’ve been late every day lately. Is it because of Seok-hyun?”

As soon as Seok-hyun’s name came up, his younger sister Jung Hee-yeon’s ears perked up.

“I help him with training and talk to him, so it’s late.”

“Sigh, what’s going to happen to Seok-hyun? Can he even train at the screen baseball field?”

“He says he’s okay. He says he’s just grateful that he can catch the ball.”

“What do you think?”

“I don’t know. I don’t know if it will help, but I can’t just do nothing.”

His younger sister asked in a passing tone.

“Does Seok-hyun oppa [an honorific term used by younger girls to address older brothers or male friends] train at our store these days?”

Jung Mi-nam nodded.

“He helps with work and trains, all in one.”

“Why does he do it at our store?”

“He’s graduating soon, so it’s hard to hang around at school anymore. Actually, there are too many people at school who are uncomfortable with Seok-hyun. So, it’s all in one.”

“Can he train at the store?”

“I don’t really know. It’s more like… um… I think he’s just anxious. He can’t just do nothing.”

“Is that so?”

Jung Mi-nam’s father said.

“Seok-hyun is determined to be a walk-on player, right?”

“If he can’t be a walk-on player, he’ll play independent baseball. If it’s hard in Korea, he said he’ll go to Japan.”

Hee-yeon’s eyes widened.

“Japan? Oppa is going to Japan?”

“Hey, why are you surprised that Seok-hyun is going to Japan?”

“Why is he suddenly going to Japan?”

“If he wants to continue being a baseball player, he’ll go.”

“No, why doesn’t he do it in Korea!”

“…….”

The atmosphere at the table turned cold.

Jung Mi-nam’s father cleared his throat.

“You’re spitting rice. How can a grown woman be so clumsy?”

“……Sorry, Dad.”

“Mi-nam, what do you think? Does he have a chance?”

“In terms of skill, he has a chance… But he has to show something. And he doesn’t have a chance to show it. His walk-on player resume is a guaranteed failure, so there’s no answer. I wish he would find another job, but he’s stubborn. He keeps saying he’s going to play baseball.”

“Seok-hyun’s mother must be worried a lot too. Sigh, geez.”

Jung Mi-nam’s mother also chimed in.

“That’s right. If nothing had happened, there would be several banners hanging in the neighborhood by now.”

“It’s a shame, it’s a shame. Seok-hyun is a very kind and diligent kid, but one wrong step keeps messing things up.”

“Mi-nam. Take good care of Seok-hyun. Seok-hyun might be wandering right now. He’s been playing baseball all his life, so how frustrating must it be since he can’t do it anymore. There are often cases where people cling to something even though they know it’s not working. If he really wants to play baseball, there’s nothing we can do, but if he’s just being stubborn, try to talk to him. Seok-hyun is the eldest son and now the head of the family, so he can’t just be stubborn, can he?”

Jung Mi-nam nodded.

“Okay. I’ll talk to him.”

Breakfast ended like that.

After finishing his meal, Jung Mi-nam prepared to go to school.

He was packing his bag in his room when he heard a knock.

“What is it?”

“Oppa, just a moment.”

Hee-yeon opened the door and smiled.

Jung Mi-nam’s forehead immediately furrowed.

“Why are you suddenly talking like that? What’s with that creepy smile?”

“……Hoo.”

Hee-yeon took a breath and smiled again.

“Oppa, should I help out with the store too?”

“What are you talking about? You never even come near the store, why suddenly? Is it because of Seok-hyun?”

“No. Well, it’s not just that. I thought I should help with the family business too.”

“You’re going to be a senior next year. You already have to go to tutoring, what time do you have to help out? Did you get permission from Mom? Should I go ask her?”

“Wait, wait. Are you going to Mom right now?”

“Yeah, I have to tell her you’re talking nonsense.”

“Ah, oppa.”

“Tsk. Aren’t you going to get out of here? You’re trying to cling to Seok-hyun. Seok-hyun is already having a hard time. He’s already got enough on his mind without you bothering him. Let’s just go our separate ways.”

As Jung Mi-nam packed his bag and tried to leave the room, Jung Hee-yeon blocked his way.

“Get out of the way, please.”

“Oppa! Can’t you be a little more cooperative?”

“What do you want me to cooperate with? Seok-hyun isn’t interested in you, okay?”

“Ugh, seriously. How do you know if Seok-hyun oppa is interested in me or not when I haven’t done anything!”

“Stop it. Do you think Seok-hyun would even notice someone like you right now? Ugh, seriously, get lost and don’t bother me.”

Jung Mi-nam pushed Jung Hee-yeon aside and left the room.

Hee-yeon pursed her lips with a sulky face.

“You can’t even help me, even though you’re my brother.”

* * *

Swish.

On a rainy day with few customers.

Jung Mi-nam and Song Seok-hyun were sitting in chairs, looking out the window.

“I checked my fortune today and it said a noble person would come, I guess the noble person was the rain [a self-deprecating joke, implying the rain is the only good thing that happened].”

At Song Seok-hyun’s words, Jung Mi-nam brought up another topic.

“Are you really thinking of going to Japan?”