On The Rise As A Catcher [EN]: Chapter 60

“I’m sorry!”

“Ha, it’s fine. Go in.”

Park Sang-yeon sat down, his face blank.

After a moment of daze, Park Sang-yeon asked the player next to him.

“Is this my fault? Was I that slow?”

“No. That catcher’s throw was insane. It was incredibly fast.”

“Is that so? It wasn’t that I was slow, but his throw was good?”

“Yes, the ball curved a bit, but the speed was incredible.”

“So it wasn’t that I was slow?”

“Your timing was a bit slow, but not enough to be out by a mile.”

Park Sang-yeon looked at Song Seok-hyun, who was sitting at home plate.

Wasn’t he an unknown catcher?

Objectively speaking, his speed was definitely above average.

To fail a steal attempt so easily against a winding-up pitcher.

The conclusion is one thing.

That catcher’s shoulder is superhuman.

He’s never seen such a strong arm before.

“What the hell is that guy…”

Among the young catchers under 23, Park Sang-yeon was by far the best prospect.

Park Sang-yeon, who had been called the best catching prospect of his age group since he joined the team.

Park Sang-yeon’s eyes were filled with confusion as he looked at Song Seok-hyun.

“Hoo-ah.”

Lee Baek-chan smiled slightly as the runner was out.

“Strikeout! Lee Baek-chan gets a strikeout.”

“His fastball is really good. The batter can’t keep up.”

“Lee Baek-chan is different when he catches a runner. He’s definitely full of energy.”

“If there are no runners, Lee Baek-chan is a player who can do his part even in the first team.”

Lee Baek-chan shut out the bottom of the 8th inning.

Lee Baek-chan’s fastball was difficult to hit before the batting order came around.

Once the fastball worked, the slider and changeup were enough to deceive the batter.

“His ball is heavy.”

Song Seok-hyun gave Lee Baek-chan a thumbs up as he entered the dugout.

Lee Baek-chan chuckled.

“You seem to have a faster ball than me.”

“Really? No way.”

“The ball flew over my head earlier, and it was brutal, you know?”

“Don’t worry about the runners and just throw. Even if they send them to second base, you can suppress them with your stuff. I’ll catch all the ambiguous ones.”

“Okay, thanks.”

The Sangmu team was leading 5-4.

Sangmu was winning, but the atmosphere was hotter with the Goats.

He failed to steal even though the pitcher was winding up.

It was a shock that was hard for the Sangmu players to accept.

“Alright, alright. Let’s go.”

Pitcher Kim Young-gon shouted, trying to liven up the atmosphere as he headed to the mound.

Just one inning to stop and they win.

The subdued atmosphere doesn’t matter.

The main character of the game is the pitcher.

“Kim In-hwan is at the plate.”

“One home run ties the game. Kim In-hwan has power. Kim Young-gon has been pitching well, but if he makes one mistake here, the game will be back to square one.”

“The pitcher winds up. Gets a strike.”

“Wow, that was a full swing, even though it was a swing and a miss? Kim In-hwan has been swinging fully throughout the game today.”

Park Sang-yeon snapped out of the shock of the failed steal and focused on his original duty as a catcher.

A hitter with destructive power.

No head-on match.

Slider from the first pitch.

Slider on the second pitch too.

Slider on the third pitch as well.

He keeps throwing only sliders.

He never gives a good ball [a pitch in the strike zone that is easy to hit].

“Kim In-hwan gets a walk.”

“It seems like he had no intention of competing from the start.”

“But the next batter is Song Seok-hyun. He hit a grand slam in the first inning, right? Sending the runner and competing against the runner who hit a home run here… Haha. Is this a good choice?”

“It’s true that Song Seok-hyun hit a grand slam in the first inning, but that could be seen as luck. First of all, Kim Young-gon threw a hittable ball, and Song Seok-hyun swung with all his might from the first pitch. Except for the first inning, Song Seok-hyun has been very passive. He barely swung. If so, wouldn’t it be a more reasonable choice to pick Song Seok-hyun over Kim In-hwan, who swings with all his might?”

“I see. The batter who hit a grand slam in the first inning is coming up. I wonder what kind of match it will be in the ninth inning.”

Seok Su-il had taken his hands off his laptop a long time ago.

He crossed his arms and was already immersed in the game.

New reporter Oh Jang-heung also had his mouth slightly open as he stared only at the stadium.

One throw in the 8th inning ignited more interest in Song Seok-hyun than the grand slam in the 1st inning.

“Wanna bet?”

At Seok Su-il’s suggestion, Oh Jang-heung rummaged through his wallet.

“I’ll bet 10,000 won [approximately $8 USD] on him hitting.”

Seok Su-il frowned.

“You little punk. You’re making a preemptive strike in front of your senior.”

“I have a feeling. That kid, Song Seok-hyun, seems like he’s going to be something.”

“I was going to bet on him hitting too.”

“Then we can’t bet, can we?”

“Then you can bet on him not hitting.”

“Why don’t you just give up on the bet? Do you really have to empty the pockets of a poor newbie?”

Seok Su-il laughed.

“Why do you think he’ll hit?”

“Just a feeling.”

“Is that what a reporter should say?”

“Then what about you, senior?”

Seok Su-il raised one corner of his mouth.

“Certainty.”

Oh Jang-heung glanced at Seok Su-il.

“What, what’s with that look?”

“I definitely have to get an interview with that guy tomorrow, right?”

“Hey, what’s with that look?”

“I think I should go down and check it out in advance just by looking at this.”

“Hey, aren’t you going to answer?”

Kim Young-gon on the mound rubbed rosin on his hands.

The number of pitches was ninety-two.

It was a small number of pitches considering he threw a lot of pitches in the first inning.

You could clearly see just from the number of pitches how easily Kim Young-gon had played the game from the 2nd to the 8th inning.

Catcher Park Sang-yeon glanced at Song Seok-hyun and gave a sign.

‘Slider, outside.’

He was a batter who hadn’t swung much today.

It was necessary to approach carefully.

Clang!

-Strike!

The batter didn’t move.

A slider that filled the outside corner.

Song Seok-hyun slightly shook his bat with all the strength taken out of his body.

“Song Seok-hyun lets the ball go by.”

“It’s actually a good thing right now. If he had hit that ball, it would have likely been a ground ball. Even if it came into the strike zone, a slider with a big break like that is likely to result in a ground ball if hit wrong.”

The catcher asked for a fastball, just in case, on a deep inside pitch.

-Ball, inside.

The batter still didn’t budge.

The catcher asked for a fastball that missed one ball outside.

-Ball, outside.

Another ball missed.

Song Seok-hyun still didn’t budge.

“The battery [pitcher and catcher] is carefully continuing the match.”

“I guess they’re being cautious because it’s the 9th inning and he’s the cleanup hitter, right?”

The catcher signaled to drop the slider down.

The pitcher shook his head.

The catcher asked for a slider that went outside.

The pitcher shook his head again.

“…….”

The pitcher looked down at the catcher with his head stiffly raised.

His expression said that he wouldn’t continue to avoid the match.

A head-on match.

The pitcher’s stubbornness to prove that the home run in the first inning was luck.

Looking at it coldly, the pitcher’s stubbornness was right.

After the home run in the first inning, the batter didn’t show much.

Only one or two swings.

The pitcher was also slowly reaching his limit of pitches.

He was also full of the desire to make up for the run he gave up in the first inning.

There was enough reason to compete.

“…….”

The catcher licked his dry lips.

The pitcher’s argument is correct.

It’s right, but… he doesn’t feel like competing easily.

The catcher scanned Song Seok-hyun up and down.

Discomfort.

What the heck is that relaxed expression and posture?

‘Fastball, inside.’

Only then did the pitcher nod at the catcher’s sign.

Clang!

-Strike!

This time too, the batter didn’t move.

The batter was so quiet that it made you wonder if he could be this listless.

The catcher clenched his fist tightly and looked at Song Seok-hyun.

Timing to compete.

The catcher, who had been hesitating, gave a sign.

‘Slider, outside.’

The catcher’s mitt was in the zone.

A slider that comes into the zone, not a slider that goes outside.

Today, Kim Young-gon’s slider is a ball that you can’t hit even if you know it.

When the count is full, the batter tends to think of the fastball first, so a slider that comes into the zone was the best choice for the catcher.

“Hmm.”

Song Seok-hyun slightly shook his shoulders and then tucked them in a little more.

The catcher was briefly nervous, but that was all Song Seok-hyun did.

The pitcher threw the ball.

A hard slider that comes like a fastball and suddenly breaks.

Thwack!

With a thunderous sound, the ball went over the center fence and over the upper part of the stands.

Out-of-the-park home run.

A ball that goes directly out of the park.

Song Seok-hyun’s swing just now was a full swing without hesitation.

“Home run! It’s a home run! An out-of-the-park home run! Song Seok-hyun hits another home run! A grand slam in the first inning! A come-from-behind out-of-the-park home run in the ninth inning! Today’s main character, today’s MVP is Song Seok-hyun!”

“Wow, that swing was really amazing! Who knew he would swing so coolly even with a full count?”

“The batter, who had been passive since the home run today, had a really exhilarating last swing.”

“6-5, a come-from-behind victory! Today’s game is really fun. It’s not easy to have a game this fun even in the first team.”

“Kim Young-gon hangs his head. The manager is coming out himself.”

“He has to be replaced. There’s no other choice. Kim Young-gon pitched well today. He gave up 6 points, but he suppressed the batters throughout the game.”

“But he gave up 6 RBIs [runs batted in] to only one player, Song Seok-hyun. Song Seok-hyun has become Kim Young-gon’s killer.”

“There are pitchers and batters who don’t match well. This time, I think Kim Young-gon and Song Seok-hyun didn’t match well.”

Seok Su-il forgot his status as a reporter and applauded.

An out-of-the-park home run over the center fence in a minor league game, is that even possible?

Not Kim In-hwan, but an unknown catcher caused an accident.

“What are you doing? Go down! Get an interview with him right now, hurry!”

At Seok Su-il’s instruction, the new reporter got up from his seat and ran.

Seok Su-il’s Young Gun series article.

Perhaps the flower of the Young Gun series article will bloom in the Goats first, not in Sangmu [Korean military baseball team].

Thriving as a Catcher

Young Gun (6)

“Good job!”

The game ended with the Goats’ victory.

Lee Baek-chan tightly tied up the Sangmu lineup with his fastball.

After the game, Kim Jung-ryul approached Song Seok-hyun.

“Hey, MVP. How did you know it was a slider and hit it? What’s the tell?”