On The Rise As A Catcher [EN]: Chapter 138

“He’s persistent. Goat is persistent. Has Goat always been this persistent as a team?”

Ham Seong-hoon clapped, greeting the players returning to the bench.

Hitting coach Kang Yeon-tae said, seemingly moved, “The kids have changed. They’ve become more cohesive.”

“Definitely, with Ji-sung and Seon-ho stepping up, the teamwork is excellent.”

“At this rate, our top hitters can hold their own against any team.”

“If we can do this well against the Pegasus and Scorpion, we can expect good results in the postseason.”

Bottom of the 3rd inning.

Goat’s chase ended at 4 points.

What helped the faltering Jo Sang-woong was second baseman Kang Gyun-seung’s super catch.

The Scorpion players returned to the bench, relieved.

“Seung-cheol.”

The Scorpion’s battery coach called Gu Seung-cheol.

“Yes, Coach.”

“From now on, keep a close eye on Ji-sung. It seems like his steps got tangled when Ji-sung got on base, so focus on catching him for sure. Don’t give him easy steals either.”

“Yes, I will be careful.”

“You know Ji-sung’s legs are still good, right?”

“Yes, of course.”

Sonic.

That was Lee Ji-sung’s nickname.

Daegu Sonic Lee Ji-sung.

Even in international competitions like the WBC [World Baseball Classic], Lee Ji-sung’s speed worked against any country in the world, including the United States and Japan.

He’s not just fast, but he also has a knack for stealing the pitcher’s timing.

“Hoo.”

I didn’t realize it when he was on the same team.

The value of a runner named Lee Ji-sung.

The value of a veteran named Yoo Seon-ho.

Players who seemed like burdens when they were with the Scorpion fit together like puzzle pieces when they went to Goat.

“It’s tough, so tough……”

The narrowed score gap from the 3rd inning ignited the competitive spirit of both teams’ starting pitchers.

Han Min-seok, having regained his pace, no longer allowed the Scorpion to get on base.

Jo Sang-woong also induced ground balls, increasing the out count, but the momentum was broken when he allowed Lee Ji-sung a hit.

“Lee Ji-sung is widening his lead at first base again.”

“Lee Ji-sung is running aggressively today. The Scorpion battery must be very nervous.”

Lee Ji-sung lowered his body.

Jo Sang-woong’s pickoff attempt.

Lee Ji-sung returned to the base standing up.

Jo Sang-woong made two more pickoff attempts in a row.

And the pitch he threw was an outside fastball.

Thwack!

Seol Jin-il swung with all his might as if he had been waiting for it.

“Right field fence! Right field fence! A huge hit that hits the right field fence! He couldn’t clear the fence, but Seol Jin-il hits a double. It’s enough for the speedy first base runner to come home.”

“Today, it’s not a pitching duel but a hitting battle. It’s a flow that no one expected before the game.”

“The KS duo is waiting in the following lineup.”

Jo Sang-woong clenched and unclenched his fist.

He’s already thrown a lot of pitches.

He’d be lucky to pitch until the 5th inning today.

It was good until the 1st inning, but why did things get so twisted?

Is my pitch not good today?

Jo Sang-woong lost faith in his pitch with Kim In-hwan at the plate.

He’s not confident he can beat Kim In-hwan with his fastball.

Kim In-hwan, who had been swinging and missing at breaking balls, drew a walk in the previous at-bat.

Neither fastballs nor breaking balls are working.

What should I throw?

The anxiety turned into agony.

Walk to Kim In-hwan.

Gu Seung-cheol walked straight to the mound.

“Wh, what are you doing?”

“Yes? Ah, I’m sorry.”

“Just look at the mitt and throw. If he hits it, it’s my fault, and if you catch it, it’s your merit. Got it?”

“……Yes.”

“Forget the thoughts and focus, focus. Got it?”

“Yes.”

Focus.

Jo Sang-woong closed his eyes and took a deep breath.

Focus and put all your effort into each pitch.

Then the first pitch should be the most confident pitch, a slider with a small angle.

“Gu Seung-cheol visited the mound this time. Han Min-seok showed a different side of himself after Song Seok-hyun visited the mound in the last inning, right? Will the Scorpion be able to show a different side this time?”

“Jo Sang-woong has a lot of walks today. He’s a pitcher with good control, but he’s faltering today. He needs to throw his own pitch. The catcher must have pointed this out. Even if it’s difficult, the pitcher has to throw his own pitch.”

Jo Sang-woong glared at Song Seok-hyun.

He’s definitely a scary hitter, but it’s undeniable that he’s still a rookie with little experience.

A slider with a small angle that digs into the right-handed hitter’s body.

There are only a few pitchers in Korea who can throw a slider to the right-handed hitter’s body.

Jo Sang-woong is one of them.

It’s a good pitch to induce a ground ball.

That means it’s a good pitch to get hit.

The smaller the angle, the harder it is to distinguish from a fastball.

“Hoo-oo-oo.”

He took a shallow breath.

His batting stance is similar to Jeong Dae-han, but the distance seems to be twice as far.

If there’s no good place to throw, you have to make a ground ball with a pitch that tells him to hit it.

He looks at first and second base once each.

He puts two fingers together and throws the ball.

The ball had a good spin.

Thwack!

Song Seok-hyun’s bat came out and the ball met the bat.

The ball didn’t fly into the sky and fell to the ground.

It was a ground ball as desired.

“Second baseman Kang Gyun-seung can’t catch it! A hit! Seol Jin-il runs to home! Runs to home! The right fielder catches the ball and throws it, but safe. In the meantime, Kim In-hwan goes to 3rd base. Song Seok-hyun gets a RBI [Runs Batted In].”

“It was a ball that Kang Gyun-seung couldn’t be blamed for just now. It was a ground ball, but it was too fast. It was a difficult ball for Kang Gyun-seung to catch.”

“Who would have expected that both teams would go into a hitting battle today? It’s a really hot hitting battle.”

“These kinds of games are fun for the fans. A back-and-forth game is what makes it impossible to take your eyes off it.”

Jo Sang-woong looked up at the sky with a blank face.

What went wrong?

The Scorpion’s manager, Lee Geon-hoo, pressed his fingers between his eyes.

He missed the timing.

He should have boldly taken down the starting pitcher before the momentum shifted.

If they had been hit with home runs, he would have concluded that his condition wasn’t good today and quickly replaced him, but his condition seemed okay, so he kept him on the mound, and that was the problem.

Jo Sang-woong’s condition isn’t bad, but today the Goat hitters’ bats are unusual.

The bats are on fire.

Goat isn’t just about being careful of the KS duo.

The teamwork from number 1 to number 5 is seamless.

“Manager……”

The head coach approached and looked at Lee Geon-hoo.

The pitcher is faltering.

He was hinting that they should replace him before the score difference widens further.

“Fill 100 pitches.”

“……Yes.”

Lee Geon-hoo was a quick calculator of losses.

In order to subdue the momentum of Goat’s batting, the Scorpion must also send out their winning team.

Even if the winning team blocks Goat’s batting, the possibility of scoring additional points against Han Min-seok, who has regained his pace, is not high.

The return on investment is low……. Then there’s no choice but to go the orthodox way.

The starting pitcher throws until the limit and the winning team or the chasing team comes out depending on the situation.

It’s too fierce to bet on today’s Goat’s batting.

Thwack!

Yoo Seon-ho even hit a hit, and Goat scored another point.

One side of Lee Geon-hoo’s cheek twitched.

Is he trying to protest that he’s not old yet?

But it’s not a pity.

He got an A-class left fielder and home run king in the league by sending out an old player with injuries all over his body and a designated hitter who can’t defend.

Lee Nak-gyun will be back soon.

The choice to abandon Yoo Seon-ho was not wrong.

* * *

“The cheering from both teams’ fans was amazing during the cleaning time [between innings].”

“The fans’ reaction is bound to be different in a game like today. There are a lot of points, but it’s not a one-sided run. Both teams are going back and forth, repeating reversals.”

“6th inning, the score is 9-8. Now both teams’ starters are down and the bullpen is up.”

“Both teams’ managers showed their stubbornness by continuing to drag their starting pitchers along. They didn’t bring up the bullpen quickly.”

“What’s interesting is that both teams’ starting pitchers struck out five and seven today. Judging by the results alone, it was good.”

“But there were as many walks as there were strikeouts. The walk was the root cause.”

“Isn’t that because the opposing lineup was so burdensome that they avoided it?”

“That’s a valid point. The Goat and Scorpion lineups are burdensome for any pitcher.”

“Goat’s attack in the top of the 6th inning starts with Lee Ji-sung again. Lee Ji-sung often comes out as the lead hitter today.”

Bullpen pitcher Seo Seong-gu aimed for Lee Ji-sung’s body with a fastball from the first pitch.

Lee Ji-sung lost two strikes with two consecutive body pitches, but finally went to first base with a walk after a full count battle.

“Lee Ji-sung goes to first base again.”

“Lee Ji-sung’s legs are on fire today. The Scorpion battery will have a headache.”

When a fast runner goes to first base, the pitcher wants to throw an outside fastball.

This is because the pitcher tries to throw the ball so that the catcher can easily stop the steal if necessary.

Seo Seong-gu was no different.

He threw an outside slider from the first pitch.

Ta-da-da-dat!

Lee Ji-sung ran from the first pitch.

As soon as Gu Seung-cheol caught the ball, he threw it to second base.

This time, it was definitely according to the battery’s plan.

Clang!

As soon as the second baseman caught the ball, he tagged him, but Lee Ji-sung’s hand was already touching the base.

Safe!

“Steal success! Lee Ji-sung succeeds in stealing again. Lee Ji-sung’s legs are scary today. He’s really fast.”

“Hwang Gi-deok is also showing good performance today, but Lee Ji-sung is showing even better performance. Lee Ji-sung is not falling behind in the leadoff match.”

“Lee Ji-sung, who was Hwang Gi-deok’s backup, is showing his skills to the fullest in today’s game.”

Gu Seung-cheol raised his catcher’s mask and looked at Lee Ji-sung.

Daegu Sonic.

His legs seem to be faster than before.

Seo Seong-gu struck out Seol Jin-il with a fastball, but gave Kim In-hwan a walk.

Gu Seung-cheol went up to the mound and told him not to give up a walk even if he got hit, but Song Seok-hyun also got a walk.

Yoo Seon-ho, who came up with bases loaded with one out, pulled the high-course fastball that came in honestly from the first pitch with all his might and sent it over the right field fence.

“Right field fence! Right field fence! Right field fence! It exploded! Yoo Seon-ho’s grand slam! Yoo Seon-ho puts a wedge in the game. A grand slam that announces his health to the Daegu fans!”

“In the end, it’s a walk. It collapsed with a walk. The current Goat is different from the past. If you avoid Kim In-hwan, there’s Song Seok-hyun, and if you avoid Song Seok-hyun, there’s Yoo Seon-ho. If you don’t compete, the price will be higher.”

“If they win this game today, I don’t know who should receive the MVP [Most Valuable Player award]. Yoo Seon-ho? Or Lee Ji-sung? The two players traded from the Scorpion are showing their best condition today.”

The Scorpion’s manager, Lee Geon-hoo, went behind the bench.

The game is over 80%.

It’s hard to turn it over.

If even one crazy player comes out, that day’s game is decided by that player.

Goat has two such players today.

Lee Ji-sung and Yoo Seon-ho.

They were just burdens when they were on the team, but now they’re eyesores when they go outside.

“Hoo.”

The cigarette smoke is bitter.

The game was 16-11.

It was Goat’s victory.

Goat solidified their will to win by bringing in their winning team, Jeong Hong-min, even with a big score difference, but even in the midst of that, the Scorpion chased behind, scoring points.

Although they won, the Goat players brushed their chests at the Scorpion’s potential.

The MVP of the day was Lee Ji-sung.

Ace Up His Sleeve

Gobi (1)

The last game of the Goat and Scorpion’s 3-game series during the week.

The winner of the game was the Scorpion.

Both teams had their 5th starters out, so they expected a hitting battle, but the result was 3-2, a narrow victory for the Scorpion.

Goat scored 2 points in the 9th inning and tried to reverse the game, but the wall of closer Tak Gi-deok was high.

“Tsk, even if we win, we win like this.”

The Scorpion’s manager, Lee Geon-hoo, did not have a bright expression even in the interview after the game.

1 win and 2 losses. Losing series.