On The Rise As A Catcher [EN]: Chapter 200

“It’s exhaustion from overtraining, they say.”

“If you increase the training intensity recklessly just because they’re young, this kind of thing happens. Ah, anyway. The Wolves’ nickname isn’t ‘Machine Gun Division’ for nothing, right? Their batting average is consistent from the 1st to the 9th batter. Once their lineup gets going, they pulverize the opponent as if spraying them with a machine gun. In contrast, the Goats’ lineup has its ups and downs.”

“Do you think Song Seok-hyun’s absence today will have a big impact?”

“I think it will be significant. Song Seok-hyun’s umbrella effect [the positive influence a star player has on the entire team] is definitely there. If it’s exhaustion, it will likely affect him tomorrow or the day after as well, which is a major setback for the Goats.”

“Then, what do you see as the key point in today’s game?”

“First of all, both teams have decent starting pitchers. The Wolves’ Roger and the Goats’ Mackenzie are both top-notch foreign players. With Song Seok-hyun out, the balance in both teams’ cleanup hitters is somewhat even. So, I think the performance of the table setters [the first few batters in the lineup, whose job is to get on base] will be crucial. Both teams’ table setters are hitting over .300, and they are both fast. However, they have different strengths and weaknesses.”

“Could you explain how they differ?”

“In the case of the Goats’ Lee Ji-sung and Seol Jin-il, their batting average and on-base percentage are excellent, but their stealing bases is weak. Lee Ji-sung doesn’t do head-first slides after his injury. Seol Jin-il steals bases occasionally, but he doesn’t attempt it often enough to be considered top-tier. On the other hand, the Wolves’ Kim Ha-gyun and Jung Soo-young have a lower on-base percentage than the Goats, but they are well-rounded hitters with good offense, defense, and running abilities. They are good at stealing bases and executing plays.”

“So, can we summarize it like this? The Goats have a high on-base percentage but put less pressure on the opposing pitcher, while the Wolves have a lower on-base percentage but put more pressure on the opposing pitcher.”

“Yes, that’s a good summary.”

-Play ball!

The Goats took the first offensive opportunity as the game began.

On the mound was Mark Roger.

A right-handed orthodox power pitcher, carefully scouted and signed by the Wolves.

A type of player favored in Korea, with a tall stature and a style of overpowering hitters with fastballs.

He also had a high strikeout rate, making him a difficult opponent for batters.

For an average player, that is.

Tap!

Tap!

Tap!

Tap!

Top of the 1st inning, the Goats’ leadoff hitter Lee Ji-sung at bat.

Even in the first inning, Mark Roger was sweating.

“Already his 11th pitch. The full count battle is getting longer.”

“Roger is good at striking batters out, but Lee Ji-sung is hitting almost every pitch, regardless of whether it’s a ball or a strike.”

The catcher signaled to Roger.

A high fastball inside.

A course he could confidently call for against a player without much power.

Roger put his heart into throwing the ball inside.

Bang!

-Ball.

“Walk. It’s a walk. He walks to first base.”

“This is the most frustrating thing. He just increased his pitch count and ended up allowing a runner on base.”

Roger covered his mouth with his glove and cursed.

Next batter, Seol Jin-il.

Lee Ji-sung took a wider lead to attempt a steal.

Everyone at the ballpark knew that Seol Jin-il liked the first pitch.

The catcher called for a low, bouncing curveball.

Roger increased the angle and threw the curveball downward.

A curveball that drops from top to bottom.

The catcher waited with his mitt almost touching the ground.

Thwack!

“He hit it! A hit in front of the right fielder! No outs, runners on first and second. Seol Jin-il hit the first pitch.”

“Wow, how did he hit that? It was a completely bouncing curveball.”

“With Seol Jin-il’s hit, the Goats get a chance with no outs and runners on first and second.”

Roger bit his lip.

Next batter, Kim In-hwan.

Kim In-hwan grounded into a double play after making contact with an outside changeup.

Hitting coach Kang Yeon-tae grabbed Kim In-hwan and raised his voice.

“You have to hit it hard! I told you to hit it hard even if you give up a double play. What’s wrong with you today? Why are you so weak?”

“I’m sorry.”

“Hit it hard, hit it hard. Don’t hit it weakly.”

Two outs, runner on third.

With only one out remaining, Yoo Seon-ho came to bat.

The catcher called for a fastball outside on the first pitch.

He was thinking of being cautious since Yoo Seon-ho was a good hitter, but Yoo Seon-ho had already anticipated this.

Thwack!

As soon as he hit the ball, Yoo Seon-ho threw his bat away.

The bat flew spectacularly towards first base.

The ball soared into the sky.

“The fence! The fence! It went over the fence! Yoo Seon-ho’s two-run home run! Yoo Seon-ho perfectly fills Song Seok-hyun’s void!”

“Roger’s pitch wasn’t bad, but Yoo Seon-ho hit it too well. He really aimed for it and swung the bat.”

“2-0. I thought it would be a tight game, but they scored in the first inning.”

Roger struck out the next batter.

Returning to the bench, Roger threw his glove down and covered his head.

Bottom of the 1st inning.

The Goats’ pitcher was Mackenzie.

Mackenzie got three outs with five pitches.

“Mackenzie’s pitches are dancing today.”

“When Mackenzie is in good condition, his pitches have great movement. It’s like no pitch comes straight. His cutter, sinker, and circle changeup all have good angles that break left and right. Once you get caught up in it, it’s hard to get out.”

“How should the Wolves deal with it?”

“They need to shorten their swing and hit the ball upwards with power. They need to abandon the desire to hit a big one and focus on getting a hit.”

Roger pitched scoreless innings in the 2nd and 3rd after giving up 2 runs in the 1st.

The Wolves also pitched scoreless innings in the 1st, 2nd, and 3rd.

When both teams had scoreless innings in the 4th, Manager Ham Seong-hoon called the hitting coach closer.

“The lower batting order hasn’t gotten on base at all today. I think we need to make a change. What do you think?”

“Roger’s pitches are so good… I’ll tell them to grip the bat as short as possible and aim for one pitch. His fastball rate is high today, so if they aim for the fastball, it might get better.”

“Aiming for a pitch is a good method, but his pitches are so good that it won’t be easy even if they aim for it. Let’s do this instead. Let’s go like Ji-sung.”

“Ji-sung? But not everyone can do Ji-sung’s cutting skills.”

“Even if they can’t do it like Ji-sung, they can do something similar. Stand close to the plate and aim for one pitch and go for a full swing.”

“A full swing? They’re not getting hits even now.”

“They’re not getting hits because they’re being overpowered by his pitches. Since they’re going to keep striking out anyway, I think it’s better to aim for a big one and put pressure on the opponent.”

“Hmm… I understand. Then I’ll instruct them to stand close to the plate and swing fully. Ah, but then it will be difficult to respond to inside pitches. What should we do?”

“We have to give that up. We can’t aim for everything.”

The first batter in the top of the 5th inning was Oh Jin-young, the 7th batter.

As soon as Oh Jin-young entered the plate, he stood very close to the plate.

“You’re going to get hit, you idiot. Move away.”

The catcher warned, but Oh Jin-young didn’t move and widened his stride even more.

The pitcher frowned at Oh Jin-young’s stance.

The pitcher’s first pitch was a fastball inside.

-Ball.

Roger tilted his head as if he didn’t like it.

The second and third pitches were also inside, making it 2-1.

Oh Jin-young didn’t move from the plate.

Roger threw the fourth pitch inside, making it 3-1.

Roger took off his hat and touched his rosin bag [a small bag containing powdered rosin, used by pitchers to improve their grip].

“As expected……”

Ham Seong-hoon sighed in relief.

Roger made it a full count with a changeup and then used an outside fastball as his final pitch.

Thwack!

The ball hit by Oh Jin-young went straight down the right field line.

The right fielder caught the ball and threw it, but there was enough time to get to second base.

“It’s working well?”

The Goats’ hitting coach, Kang Yeon-tae, smiled brightly.

Ham Seong-hoon nodded.

“What foreign players struggle with the most when adapting to the Korean strike zone is not the outside, but the inside. They get a feel for the outside as they throw it a lot, but Korea doesn’t throw inside pitches often because the inside strike zone is tight. Since they don’t throw it, they don’t get a feel for it. It’s not like foreign players aren’t burdened by inside pitches.”

Roger walked the next batter, Jung Dong-gyu.

With runners on first and second with no outs, the catcher got up and went to the mound.

“Stop trying to throw inside pitches. Just compete on the outside. They still can’t hit it.”

“Okay, okay.”

“Seriously. Got it? Calm down, calm down. Let’s calm down and compete on the outside. He’s the 9th batter. Overpower him with strength.”

The Goats’ 9th batter was shortstop Jung Young-soo.

He was flawless as a shortstop, but his batting average hovered around the low to mid .200s.

Unlike his natural athleticism, he wasn’t good at making contact.

The catcher called for Roger to throw an outside fastball on the first pitch.

“Hoo.”

Roger took a breath and threw his fastest pitch outside.

At the same time, Jung Young-soo’s waist turned.

Thwack!

“Center-left! Center-left! A hit that pierces through the center-left! Jung Young-soo’s hit explodes! The runner on second scores, and the runner on first also comes home! The batter reaches second base. Jung Young-soo’s two-RBI [Runs Batted In] hit. The Goats lead 4-0.”

“This is big. This is big. The mental burden of a 2-run difference and a 4-run difference is different.”

Roger tightly closed his eyes.

As Ham Seong-hoon’s strategy began to work, all the Goats players began to stand close to the plate.

The catcher, Shin Min-ho, complained to the umpire.

“Isn’t he standing too close? It looks like he’s touching the line.”

“He’s not touching it. Continue.”

“He could intentionally stick out his elbow. His elbow is already out.”

“It’s not out. That’s within the limits. Why are you doing this, really.”

Roger wasn’t originally a pitcher who was weak against inside pitches.

However, as the Goats persistently targeted that weakness, he became hesitant to throw inside pitches, as if he couldn’t throw them at all.

It was enough to overwhelm the Goats’ lineup with just outside fastballs, but as his mentality wavered, his control also faltered.

The Wolves eventually gave up one more run before taking their starting pitcher out.

“Hoo, halfway there.”

Ham Seong-hoon smiled a little only after Roger went down.

Roger is an A-class starting pitcher.

It is clear that he is a difficult pitcher for the Goats’ lower batting order to handle.

Even if he had just kept throwing outside pitches, he would have been guaranteed a quality start [pitching at least six innings and allowing three or fewer earned runs], but the problem was the battery’s [pitcher and catcher] coordination.

Many foreign pitchers don’t trust Korean catchers and often insist on their own style.

Roger, who had a strong ego, ended up getting tangled up himself by throwing inside pitches.

Unlike Roger, who was taken out before the 5th inning, Mackenzie pitched up to the 8th inning, allowing only one run.

On days when he was in good condition, Mackenzie’s fastballs were all ground balls.

The result was 6-2.

Song Seok-hyun, with a gaunt face, applauded the players returning to the bench.

“Run, Goats! Run, Goats! Whoa whoa whoa whoa!”

“Run, Goats! Run, Goats! Whoa whoa whoa whoa!”

The Goats fans’ cheering song filled Jamsil [a famous baseball stadium in Seoul].

Success as a Catcher

Jamsil Rivals

“Ughhhhh. Oh man, I’m going to die.”

Song Seok-hyun stretched and got up.

The time was 11 a.m.

Yawning widely, he went to the living room and saw his mother cooking samgyetang [Korean ginseng chicken soup].

“It’s past Boknal [the hottest days of the year in the lunar calendar, when samgyetang is traditionally eaten], why are you making samgyetang?”

“You need to nourish your body. You seem to be in bad shape these days.”

“I’m okay today. I think my condition is recovering now.”

“Really? That’s a relief. Come on, come wash up. Let’s eat quickly.”

The two mothers finished their lunch with samgyetang.

After finishing his meal, Song Seok-hyun immediately changed his clothes.

“Are you leaving already?”

“I went to bed early yesterday, so I didn’t really do anything. I need to go and warm up and prepare.”

“Rest more on days like this. Taking care of your stamina is the most important thing.”

“I’m okay now, I’m okay. Sleep is the best medicine after all. I feel refreshed after sleeping.”

As Song Seok-hyun left the house, he patted his thighs with his hands.

“I guess I used muscles I don’t usually use. Ugh, it’s lasting a long time.”

* * *

Second game against the Wolves.

Song Seok-hyun played as a designated hitter instead of a catcher.

Thanks to this, Yoo Seon-ho was pushed from designated hitter to left fielder.

Lee Chang-hoon, who was scheduled to start as a pitcher, was groaning even before the game started.

“This is a disaster, a disaster. If a fly ball goes to left field, it’s going to be a major accident.”

Lee Chang-hoon was worried about defensive errors, but that became a non-issue once the game started.

Bottom of the 1st inning, the Goats’ defense.

The Wolves’ 1st batter, Kim Ha-gyun, was standing so close to the plate that he was blocking the catcher.

“What are you doing?”

Seo Il-hyeok asked Kim Ha-gyun as if he was dumbfounded.

Kim Ha-gyun didn’t respond to Seo Il-hyeok.

“Isn’t he standing too close?”

Seo Il-hyeok appealed to the umpire, but the umpire shook his head.

“His body isn’t out.”

“But at this point, it’s almost out.”

Only then did Kim Ha-gyun speak.

“Isn’t this what the Goats did yesterday?”

At Kim Ha-gyun’s words, Seo Il-hyeok couldn’t confidently say no.