On The Rise As A Catcher [EN]: Chapter 193

“Yes.”

“Let’s do well today. Don’t feel pressured. Let’s just focus on today’s game. Just think about today.”

“Yes, just today.”

* * *

-Play ball!

The Goat’s attack in the top of the 1st inning was fruitless.

In the bottom of the 1st inning, Lee Changhoon was on the mound.

Hitter number one, Choi Youngseok, stepped into the batter’s box, repeating the hitting coach’s words in his mind.

“His pitches have lost their power. Focus on pushing the ball to the opposite field. Push it to the opposite field.”

As soon as Choi Youngseok entered the batter’s box, he firmly planted his left foot inside the plate.

A foot extended furthest to the front and closest to his body on the plate.

He stood close to the plate with his back foot.

“They’re really on top of things, those Pegasus guys. Their updates are fast, so fast.”

At Ham Sunghoon’s grumbling, the pitching coach silently puffed out air through his nose.

“Choi Youngseok is standing very close to the plate.”

“That means he’s not afraid of Lee Changhoon’s inside pitches at all. And it’s not like Lee Changhoon doesn’t throw inside pitches.”

Lee Changhoon bit his dry lips.

*Can’t he hide the fact that his pitches have lost their power?*

Pop! Pop!

Song Seokhyun slapped his mitt, drawing Lee Changhoon’s attention.

A sign to throw outside.

It was a signal to do as he always did, regardless of the opponent’s intentions.

“Hoo, gotta listen to my wife [referring to his catcher, Song Seokhyun].”

Lee Changhoon grinned once.

The first pitch was an outside fastball.

For Choi Youngseok, who was standing close to the plate, it was a ball that he could hit right on the sweet spot.

Thwack!

The ball hit by Choi Youngseok passed between 1st and 2nd base and curved towards the foul line of 1st base.

*At least a single or a double.*

Choi Youngseok sprinted towards 1st base, then slowed down.

Slide!

Seol Jinil slid in, extending his glove.

The ball was sucked right into the glove for an out.

The right fielder was much further forward than where he should have been.

-Out!

“Out! Seol Jinil makes a nice catch!”

“The Goat used a shift there. When Choi Youngseok stood close to the plate, the Goat moved their fielders to the right.”

“Choi Sungyeon’s hit is turned into an out by the Goat’s shift. When the opponent shows a move, they counter with another move.”

Hitter number two, Shim Changgyu, stood close to the plate just like hitter number one, Choi Youngseok.

The Goat didn’t release the shift and kept the players moved to the right field line.

“They’re not hiding their intentions from each other. The Goat is planning to attack thoroughly on the outside, and the Pegasus is also aiming thoroughly for the outside.”

“Lee Changhoon isn’t a pitcher who doesn’t throw inside pitches, but the game is interesting today.”

“Lee Changhoon is smiling too. They’re laying their cards on the table and playing Hwatu [Korean card game, similar to poker].”

To Catcher

Number 1 Is Mine (4)

Lee Changhoon’s first pitch was an outside changeup.

Shim Changgyu swung and missed.

-Strike!

Shim Changgyu tilted his head and raised his bat.

“Lee Changhoon’s changeup has a significant drop.”

“Lee Changhoon originally throws a variety of pitches, but recently he’s increased the proportion of changeups. It seems he’s decided to use it as his go-to pitch. He wasn’t like that before.”

The second pitch was an outside fastball.

Shim Changgyu flinched.

Bang.

Song Seokhyun’s shoulder flinched as he caught the ball in his mitt.

The umpire checked the position of the mitt and called out loudly.

-Strike!

“Ah.”

Shim Changgyu didn’t hide his displeased expression and puffed air through his nose.

Hae Seolja looked at Song Seokhyun’s mitt in close-up and said.

“I think that was a victory for Song Seokhyun’s framing [skill of subtly influencing the umpire’s call by catching the ball in a way that makes it appear to be in the strike zone]. It was missing about half to one ball, but he pulled it in. That kind of skill is what you call experience; it’s only possible with experience, but Song Seokhyun does it well even though he’s a rookie.”

“He has talent not only as a hitter but also as a catcher.”

“That’s right. Making the mitt look natural, but not letting the pitcher lose out. It looks easy, but there aren’t many catchers in the league with that level of skill. Honestly, there might be some disappointing players among the starting catchers of the eight teams.”

Song Seokhyun sent a sign to the pitcher.

‘Outside. Slider.’

Shim Changgyu’s bat came out to Lee Changhoon’s pitch.

Tap.

The ball hit the end of the bat and rolled weakly towards 2nd base.

The 2nd baseman caught the ball and tossed it to 1st base, out.

Shim Changgyu slung his bat over his shoulder and returned to the bench.

“You knew where it was coming, and you still couldn’t hit it?”

The hitting coach’s half-joking, half-serious words made the atmosphere on the bench even heavier.

Pegasus’s number 3 is Kim Hanseong.

He was one of the top sluggers in high school baseball along with Kim Inhwan and is currently second in home runs on the team.

Lee Changhoon’s first pitch was a high inside ball, ball.

The next pitch was a curveball, swing and a miss.

Song Seokhyun called for a changeup.

Tap.

The ball caught on the end of the bat rolled in front of the pitcher.

Song Seokhyun caught the ball and threw it straight to 1st base.

Out, change of offense and defense.

Both teams had no score, but the atmosphere of the Pegasus was more subdued.

The Goat’s attack in the top of the 2nd inning.

Foreign pitcher Steve Hoffman was still on the mound.

Bang!

Bang!

-Out!

Hitter number 5, Yoo Sunho, couldn’t even touch Hoffman’s fastball properly and stepped away from the plate.

Hoffman rode the momentum and handled the next two hitters with routine ground outs.

“Hoffman is in good condition today. His pitches are sharp.”

“Pegasus is really good at picking foreign pitchers. There’s a reason why they’re building a dynasty.”

The Pegasus’s attack in the bottom of the 2nd inning.

The batter is number 4, Kim Wook.

“Give me something good, Seokhyun.”

Kim Wook joked as he stepped into the batter’s box.

“Yes, of course. A fastball right down the middle.”

“Really? Hyung [older brother or senior] believes in you.”

“Yes. Trust me and swing.”

Song Seokhyun sent a sign to Lee Changhoon.

‘Curveball.’

The advantage of Pegasus’s number 4 hitter Kim Wook is, above all, his anticipation.

Unlike his seemingly easygoing personality, he has a clever mind and catches the opposing pitcher’s intentions remarkably well.

To face Kim Wook, you either have to overpower him with force or mix in unexpected pitches.

Lee Changhoon threw the ball.

Bang.

The ball fell downwards. It was a ball.

“Didn’t you say it was a fastball, Seokhyun?”

“The ball has so little power that it fell down.”

“Isn’t that obviously a curveball?”

“It fell because it didn’t have any power, *sunbaenim* [senior/respected colleague].”

Song Seokhyun blew on the ball.

*Right now, Lee Changhoon’s pitches are dull to anyone.*

He’s somehow managing the game with control and ball distribution, but Kim Wook, who is good at anticipating, is the worst opponent for Lee Changhoon right now.

‘Changeup. Low.’

Even if he gives up a walk, he won’t go easy.

That was the conclusion Song Seokhyun came to against Kim Wook.

Thwack!

“Hit, it’s a hit. Kim Wook lightly hits the ball and steps on 1st base.”

“It was a hit that overcame the shift. Kim Wook’s hitting feel is good.”

Song Seokhyun got up from his seat and put his hands on his waist.

It was a ball that was out of the zone, but he hit it accurately.

*There’s a high possibility that he was aiming for it from the start.*

He knew they wouldn’t have a head-on match with him, so he widened the zone and waited for a ball he could hit without being too greedy.

“He’s tricky……”

He’s a hitter who has hit 40 home runs, but the hit just now is more bothersome than a home run.

A number 4 hitter who knows how to hit according to the situation.

He’s a hitter optimized for producing runs.

“The next batter is Kim Seonghyun. He’s a master of the one-legged batting stance. He’s a genius hitter who has consistently hit over .300 since his debut.”

“He didn’t have a big impact yesterday, but I don’t know what will happen today.”

Song Seokhyun sent a sign to Lee Changhoon.

Before the game started, they talked about varying the pitching tempo differently for each player today.

As slow as possible for hitters who are in a hurry, and as fast as possible for hitters who need time.

The tempo should be increased for hitters who have a long preparation time and a leg kick.

‘Fastball.’

First, an outside fastball.

Kim Seonghyun watched the first pitch.

-Strike.

As soon as Song Seokhyun threw the ball, Lee Changhoon threw another ball right away.

Curveball.

Kim Seonghyun stretched his leg forward and pushed the ball.

Thwack!

The ball hit by the bat flew straight towards 1st base.

Kim Inhwan snatched the ball and immediately got Kim Wook out.

“Double play! A double play comes out here.”

“Kim Inhwan’s defense was good just now, but I think Kim Wook was a little careless. He should have been prepared to return to the base at any time, but he left the lead awkwardly. Since the hitter is Kim Seonghyun, he must have thought he would go to 3rd base if there was a hit, but a double play came out here.”

“The Goat’s defense is doing its part today. I wonder if the Goat was such a solid defensive team.”

“The Goat hasn’t had any major highlights, but they haven’t had any defensive problems. The Goat that baseball fans generally think of is like a nobleman; they don’t work hard, but if you think back, there’s no part of their defense that you can call a hole. It’s not like the best center line in history like Pegasus, but having no holes in defense is an important part of the championship race.”

Jung Yongwook stepped into the batter’s box.

Jung Yongwook reached 1st base with a hit that went over the 2nd baseman’s head.

The next batter is shortstop Kim Hyungwoo.

He was a player who was praised as a shortstop with everything in offense, defense, and running.

Thwack!

“The 1st base runner goes to 3rd base! The batter runner goes to 1st base! Kim Hyungwoo’s hit! Pegasus sets the stage for a chase even after the double play.”

“This is the power of Pegasus. There’s no batting order to skip. After the cleanup hitters, there’s the best catcher of all time, Jung Yongwook, and then there’s the best shortstop of all time, Kim Hyungwoo. Both players are in positions where defense is important, but their offensive power is also at a level where they can be cleanup hitters in any team. Solid defense and balanced batting order. That’s the strength of Pegasus.”

Lee Changhoon fiddled with the rosin bag.

*They keep breaking through even with the shift.*

*There’s no batting order to rest.*

Distracting thoughts crept into his head.

The next batters are Hong Seongwook and Song Minjun.

They’re the 8th and 9th hitters, but Hong Seongwook has an OPS [On-Base Plus Slugging] of 0.8, and Song Minjun has a career slugging percentage of over .500.

*Can he catch the two sluggers with his bland pitches?*

‘Time.’

Song Seokhyun saw Lee Changhoon hesitating and went up to the mound.

“*Seonbaenim* [senior/respected colleague].”

“Oh, why did you come up?”

“The slow balls aren’t coming.”

“Huh?”

“The fastball and changeup are all at their highest speeds. The timing becomes the same. How about throwing with a little less power?”

“Ah…… Is that so? I was throwing too hard.”

Song Seokhyun went down from the mound.

Lee Changhoon closed his eyes and quietly muttered.

“Slowly. Even slower.”

Song Seokhyun sent a sign.

‘Curveball.’

Lee Changhoon threw a curveball in the middle of the strike zone.

-Strike!

“Lee Changhoon raises the count with a slow curve in the 80km/h range. Hong Seongwook looks at the ball as if he’s dumbfounded.”

“It’s draining when a ball like that comes. Surprisingly, there are many hitters who can’t hit those kinds of balls.”

The next pitch is an outside changeup.

Hong Seongwook swung.

Whoosh!

-Strike!

“Swing and a miss! Hong Seongwook sticks out his tongue once again. An 111km/h changeup came in.”