On The Rise As A Catcher [EN]: Chapter 99

“Team Leader!”

The one who opened the door and came in was Kim Hak-in, the operations team leader.

Kim Hak-in saw Ham Seong-hoon being grabbed by the collar and rushed over to stop the manager.

“Team Leader, this is not the time for this.”

“Let go. How dare you grab my hand!”

“Team Leader! The atmosphere is not good right now. There are even protesters in front of the stadium.”

“Protesters?”

The manager let go of Ham Seong-hoon’s collar.

Ham Seong-hoon straightened his neck once.

“What protesters?”

“There are at least thirty fans gathered in front of the stadium right now. And more are gathering.”

“What? Already? How long has it been since the article came out?”

“Public opinion is very bad. The club’s website is already down.”

The manager’s face turned ashen.

The operations team leader cautiously asked.

“Um… I assume the president has been informed?”

The manager rolled his eyes around and then stormed out of the office.

Ham Seong-hoon and Kim Hak-in, left in the manager’s office, looked at each other.

“I’m sorry, Manager.”

“…Haa, I hope this wasn’t your doing, Team Leader.”

“It seems the manager obtained the hospital records through an acquaintance. I tried to dissuade him, but he was very angry, perhaps because he felt betrayed…”

“He handled it too emotionally. Shin-eon himself said he could play well enough until this season. That’s what he said after talking with the doctor. At least if he had talked to Shin-eon, the misunderstanding would have been resolved.”

The operations team leader’s mouth dropped open.

“Were you already aware, Manager?”

“Yes, Shin-eon consulted with me first.”

“Then why didn’t you say anything?”

“Shin-eon asked me to wait until he scheduled the surgery with the doctor. There’s no problem playing in the games, and isn’t it personal information? He asked me to wait, too.”

The operations team leader narrowed his brow.

“Then, was the manager so angry just now because…?”

“Yes, he got very angry when I said I knew.”

“Ah… so that’s why he was so angry. I thought it was a bit much.”

“If he had talked to Shin-eon even once, he would have known that Shin-eon didn’t deliberately deceive him… The process is very unfortunate.”

“He told me to trade him right away, saying that if he talked to Shin-eon, it would be revealed that our club knew about Shin-eon’s condition.”

“…Haa, is that so.”

Ham Seong-hoon lowered his head.

“I can understand thinking that the player hid his illness, but I don’t know if this is something to get so angry about. Is he so angry that he’d trade him right away on the same day?”

“Maybe he felt betrayed?”

“If we’re talking about betrayal, the players who have played for Goat have been betrayed all along. How many cases are there where they were discarded like old shoes after dedicating themselves to the team to the point of overwork? Even Jeong-ryul wasn’t treated like a human being this season.”

“…”

“Haa, so is that why he felt more betrayed? Because he hasn’t been treating people like human beings, and then he got backstabbed?”

“It’s not necessarily that.”
Ham Seong-hoon closed his eyes.

“You know this could be a big problem, right?”

“…Yes.”

“It’s true that Shin-eon talked to me about his illness. Even if I didn’t tell the club, when Shin-eon gets surgery, it will be like he told the club. Even if I deny it, there’s a high possibility that the club will be misunderstood for deliberately hiding the illness and trading him.”

“…I didn’t know it would go that far.”

“Perhaps after this trade, it may be difficult to make trades for a while. If they think they’ve been deceived, who would trade? Unless Shin-eon hides the fact that he told me the truth, it’s ridiculous to trade him like this and then ask Shin-eon for cooperation. He’s on another team now, too.”

Kim Hak-in put his hand on his forehead.

“This is a bigger deal than I thought.”

“The trade itself isn’t bad. We got the Bulls’ closer and a promising bullpen pitcher. But trading the starting catcher in the middle of the season is a big deal in many ways. It’s also a big blow to Shin-eon’s pride. Shin-eon’s cooperation will be difficult.”

“…Haa.”

“I can’t interfere with the club’s operations. But there’s something I need to tell you.”

“Yes, please tell me.”

Soon, Kim Hak-in’s face hardened at what came out of Ham Seong-hoon’s mouth.

“Pardon?”

* * *

[Give us back Park Shin-eon!]

[Cancel the crazy trade!]

[Is Goat out of their mind!]

The hastily written words on sketchbooks and white cloths, without even banners, were all about cursing Goat [the baseball team’s name].

Park Shin-eon was one of the best catchers in the league.

After coming to Goat as a free agent, he showed what his price tag was worth with his stellar performance.

Although rookie catcher Song Seok-hyun has joined, Song Seok-hyun is only twenty years old.

It will take at least 3-4 years for Song Seok-hyun to learn the ropes under Park Shin-eon and resolve his military service [mandatory service for South Korean men].

Considering Park Shin-eon’s age, he can sufficiently perform his role as an A-class catcher for the next 3-4 years.

When Park Shin-eon’s aging begins, they can naturally increase Song Seok-hyun’s playing ratio and transition generations smoothly.

With Seo Il-hyuk backing up Park Shin-eon while Song Seok-hyun is in the military, fans thought that Goat wouldn’t have to worry about catchers for the next 10 years or more.

They thought they could give up even Seo Il-hyuk if they had to trade, but they never imagined trading Park Shin-eon.

“Haa.”

Team Leader Kim Myung-soo massaged the back of his neck as the number of fans continued to increase.

People are already taking pictures.

It’s impossible to know if they are ordinary people or reporters.

Woo-oong.

Woo-oong.

The manager’s face turned pale as he looked at the caller on his phone.

Lee Hwa-sung, the president of Goat.

Kim Myung-soo was Lee Hwa-sung’s right-hand man.

Instead of Lee Hwa-sung, who was focusing all his efforts on returning to the group [the parent company], Kim Myung-soo even served as the president.

Normally, Lee Hwa-sung’s policy was that there shouldn’t be any problems with the baseball team, but Kim Myung-soo felt a chill down his spine even before answering the phone.

“Hello.”

-Team Leader Kim, what’s going on? Why is public opinion like this? What happened?

“Well… that’s… I’ll meet you and explain.”

Kim Myung-soo hung up the phone.

Cold sweat dripped down his back.

It’s definitely a big deal that Park Shin-eon hid his illness.

It’s a heinous act.

How dare he deceive the club while taking the club’s money? It’s unacceptable.

But…

What if he’s questioned about how he found out about Park Shin-eon’s illness?

Wouldn’t Lee Hwa-sung, who hates things getting complicated, abandon him?

Considering the years they’ve spent together and their close relationship, it might be excessive to consider the worst, but where is loyalty in a company?

The manager checked his attire.

The president is still hosting guests at the golf course today.

He has to respond as if it’s nothing serious, with a smile.

Isn’t it a trade with justification?

They also have a big catcher prospect named Song Seok-hyun, so it’s a trade that takes care of the practical benefits.

Kim Myung-soo kept repeating in his mind.

It’s a trade without problems.

It’s a trade without problems.

It’s a good trade.

It’s a well-done trade.

* * *

“You made a trade like this?”

1 hour later.

Where Kim Myung-soo was standing was not a golf course.

It wasn’t the stadium either.

The group’s headquarters, the chairman’s office.

President Lee Hwa-sung and Team Leader Kim Myung-soo bent over at a 90-degree angle.

“Hey, you crazy bastards! If you’re running a baseball team, there should be some basics! No matter how urgent it is, you trade the starting catcher? Are you crazy? Are you guys crazy?”

“We’re sorry!”

“We’re sorry!”

“Even if you don’t know baseball, you should ask the people below you! Did the staff approve this? Did they oppose it? Huh? Did they oppose it?”

Lee Hwa-sung looked at Kim Myung-soo with his eyes.

Kim Myung-soo was sweating profusely.

“We’re, we’re sorry!”

“Who led this kind of trade? President Lee, was it you?”

“No, it wasn’t.”

“Then? Team Leader Kim? Was it you?”

“…I’m sorry. I’m sorry, Chairman!”

Kim Myung-jin clenched his fist.

He’s a chairman with a fiery personality and a hobby of running a baseball team.

As much as the chairman’s fist was trembling, the president and team leader’s sweat was also exploding.

“President Lee.”

“Yes, Chairman.”

“You traded the starting catcher, right? Huh?”

“Yes.”

“Are you going to win this year?”

“Pardon?”

Lee Hwa-sung was surprised and raised his head.

“Yeah, you must have done this with the intention of winning. Isn’t that right?”

Lee Hwa-sung couldn’t answer.

Even if he’s not familiar with baseball, it’s absurd to talk about winning with Goat right now.

“Who brought Go Jin-seok and Kim Jin-seok for Park Shin-eon? Who led this trade? Who’s the staff member?”

“Th, th, th… It’s Kim Hak-in, the operations team leader.”

“Both of you get out. Get out and tell the operations team leader to come here right now. Immediately!”

President Lee Hwa-sung and Team Leader Kim Myung-soo took this opportunity to back away from the chairman’s office.

The chairman, left alone, slumped into his chair.

He has grown the company more than dozens of times with his own hands.

Chairman Kim Myung-jin was a person who was more confident than anyone else in business.

Chairman Kim Myung-jin, known as the Midas touch, couldn’t get baseball, which he liked so much, to work out as he wanted.

It’s already been 23 years since he last won.

The infused liquor he kept to drink when he won has been in a corner of the chairman’s office for 23 years.

Everything else works out, but why doesn’t baseball work out as he wants?

He’s the owner who pours in the most money, is the most passionate, and knows the most about baseball, but why can’t Goat win and always flounder!

Kim Myung-jin took out his blood pressure medication.

“I should just quit baseball…”

Catcher’s Success Story

Second Impact

“Are you the one who led the trade?”

Operations Team Leader Kim Hak-in’s head was spinning.

How many times would a baseball team’s operations team leader meet the group’s chairman?

The baseball team is a small company somewhere at the very bottom of the group’s affiliates.

He knew that the chairman’s love for baseball was special, but he never imagined that he would call the operations team leader separately.

“Yes, yes. But I didn’t make the trade…”

“I know. The team leader ordered it, right?”

“…Yes.”

“The order was a mess, but you still brought in some useful guys.”

“…Thank you for seeing it that way.”

“You seem to have quite the skill.”

Kim Hak-in lowered his head deeply.

“So, I just want to ask you one thing.”

“Yes, Chairman.”

“Will our team win this year?”

Kim Hak-in swallowed hard.

“Tell me honestly.”

“Th, that’s… Everyone is working hard. There will be good results.”

“What kind of results?”

“Th, th…”

“Tell me honestly. What’s lacking? We can fill what’s lacking.”

Kim Hak-in bit his lip.

His head is blank, not knowing what to say here.

It feels like his head is being bleached.

“Don’t you know I have a quick temper?”

The chairman’s tone rose.

Kim Hak-in recalled his conversation with Manager Ham Seong-hoon before coming here.

-Now that we’ve started this kind of trade, it’s as good as opening the floodgates. A trade of S-class players is something that has never happened in the baseball world. The board has been shaken, so wouldn’t other trades become easier?

-What are you talking about?

-Don’t we have cards that we can’t even use right now? They are cards that we can’t use, but others might be able to use. How about raising one of those cards this time?

-Pardon?

-Since we’re getting criticized anyway, let’s make another bold trade to fatten up our team. Don’t we have positions that our team is lacking?

-That’s absurd. It’s already such a mess right now…

-Would it be difficult?