Pitcher’S End, Batter’S Start [EN]: Chapter 155

Bottom of the 9th, two outs.

A game-winning grand slam.

A single swing that ended the rivalry in a comic book-like fashion. The moment that ball soared over the fence, Truist Park, and all of Atlanta, erupted. The crowd went wild, ready to jump onto the field at any moment. All the players rushed out to celebrate Lee Jung-woo, who had just touched home base.

“You’re really… no, ha…”

“I’m just a bit good, you know.”

Lee Jung-woo playfully replied to his teammates, who were struggling to speak while enthusiastically hoisting him up, unable to hide his smile.

‘There’s still one more game left, but… whether we win or lose tomorrow, it doesn’t matter anymore.’

Unless Arthur Hunter sets some incredible record in the next game, it was impossible to surpass Lee Jung-woo’s impact at this moment. At least a draw. At worst, a narrow victory. Most likely, his victory. The head-to-head matchup had almost completely swung in Lee Jung-woo’s favor.

No, even if he showed an even greater impact, it wouldn’t matter. At least the people who watched this game would acknowledge it: that Lee Jung-woo was truly comparable to Arthur Hunter.

Lee Jung-woo was happy to have achieved his goal, but at the same time, an indescribable sense of accomplishment welled up from within. He, who had not even dared to meet the eyes of the great player who existed in a different world, was now truly standing shoulder to shoulder with him.

The emotion it gave him was significant.

Lee Jung-woo’s eyes momentarily stung with the overwhelming emotion, but he tried hard to hold it back.

‘No, no. I can’t be satisfied with just one game. There’s still more I can do.’

Lee Jung-woo forcibly suppressed the rising satisfaction. He hadn’t achieved anything worthy of being intoxicated with himself yet. It was just one narrow victory. There were many games left. His career was still at the starting point.

That’s why Lee Jung-woo didn’t try to be satisfied with just this.

‘I have to keep running. Towards higher places.’

There were still so many things he could achieve that he couldn’t be satisfied with just this, so Lee Jung-woo composed his euphoric mind. Arthur Hunter approached Lee Jung-woo, who had calmed his overwhelming emotions after the game.

“Hey, hey, isn’t this too much? A complete defeat. I’m so embarrassed I can’t even lift my head.”

“It’s the same multi-homerun. I’m still far behind.”

“Do you really think so? Come on, don’t be so coy~”

“It’s just one game. The series isn’t over yet either.”

Arthur Hunter wore a strange expression at Lee Jung-woo’s reply. He seemed a little surprised, but on the other hand, he seemed satisfied.

“Yeah, that’s how I can save face. Thanks to you, I’ll be able to hold my head up a bit. Then let’s do well tomorrow too. It seems a bit much, but get some rest if possible.”

Arthur Hunter spoke like a teammate, but Lee Jung-woo didn’t misinterpret it. Although he had only known him for a short time, it was enough time to know his sincerity.

Arthur Hunter smiled contentedly and turned back to the Dodgers team, and Lee Jung-woo also turned away. He suddenly spoke.

“And you better prepare yourself.”

“Yes. I hope we have a good match tomorrow-”

Arthur Hunter shook his index finger as if that wasn’t it at Lee Jung-woo’s textbook answer.

“No, not that. I’m talking about the people. It’s just one game, but… it seems like it’ll be enough to change the world.”

“Ah.”

As Lee Jung-woo let out a low exclamation, Arthur Hunter smiled playfully and pointed to his neck with his thumb.

“There’s more at stake here than you think. You can look forward to it.”

Then Arthur Hunter walked away again. Lee Jung-woo tilted his head at the vague words. Soon he realized just how great the weight of the name Arthur Hunter was, just like he said.

####

[‘King Of Atlanta’ Jung-woo Lee defeats Arthur Hunter!]

[The battle of symbols in the talked-about bat flip race! ‘The challenger wins!’]

[‘I’m a person who admits things quickly. Lee stood out much more today.’ Arthur Hunter concedes the result…]

[‘Although they are the opposing team, Jung-woo Lee was Great today,’ ‘But tomorrow’s game will be different’ Dodgers manager reveals his ambition]

-I honestly thought we lost… I was wrong. I should have believed until the end.

-I saw a few people leaving when there were two outs. They’ll regret it for the rest of their lives.

-Stupid guys. You have to believe in God until the end. Disbelief is hell!

-Lee, is he a god? Lee, is he a god? Lee, is he a god?

-Where does Lee live? If anyone knows, please let me know. I feel like I have to bow in that direction every morning.

-What are you, a Muslim?

-God is omnipotent! And there is only one!

-That’s right, and that God came across the Pacific lololol

As Arthur Hunter predicted, the reaction was significant.

The showdown had already attracted a lot of attention even before the game. It was an unusually highlighted match for a batter vs. batter, so many baseball fans were already paying attention. He created a movie-like come-from-behind victory in such a game. The voices shouting Lee Jung-woo’s name became much louder than before.

Some extreme fans even said that they would bow three times a day in the direction of Lee Jung-woo, like Muslims. The fans didn’t just end with such reactions but also took direct action.

“We’re closing now-”

“Shut up and bring me Lee’s uniform! Here’s the money, take care of it! I don’t need change, bring everything you have! Size? I don’t give a damn!”

“Bobblehead [a small doll with an oversized head that wobbles]? Is this all you have? Recommend anything with Lee’s name or face on it! Yeah, that’s pretty good. Do you have any more?”

“Is this a poster? Don’t you have anything bigger? Excuse me! Do you have anything the size of a movie screen?”

“No, why would we have that here….”

After the game, the departing spectators ransacked the Braves fan store like a horde of angry zombies. The store couldn’t close until well past closing time due to the aggressive atmosphere, as if they would turn into robbers if they didn’t hand things over.

That’s how a night of frenzy unfolded, with the Braves operations and marketing teams cheering and the store employees looking tearful. People wanted to have it: evidence that they were in the middle of this game.

“Aren’t you signing autographs? I brought the bat and glove that Lee uses.”

“He must be very tired today. They say he’s about to faint?”

“Well, he played so well, it’s natural that he’s tired. Then there’s nothing we can do. We shouldn’t bother Lee.”

“Lee usually signs autographs well, so let’s wait before tomorrow’s game.”

The fans who ransacked the store lingered around, hoping to get an autograph, but they scattered in an instant when they heard that Lee Jung-woo was tired. Not only this frenzy-filled scene, but also various internet sites showed a tremendous response, with traffic temporarily soaring.

On the bulletin board of one baseball community, all ten pages were covered with posts about Lee Jung-woo’s grand slam. Whether it was bandwagoning or genuine fandom, some celebrities known as Braves fans also expressed their emotions on their social media. Mark had to receive a flurry of calls that threatened to explode his phone.

In that madness, fans of other teams trembled.

-The Braves are completely crazy today. Their eyes are completely turned over.

-Did they have the World Series without me knowing? What’s wrong with these guys?

-Actually, it’s usually like this when it comes to Lee… but it’s especially bad today.

-No, what the hell did Lee do to make the southern bumpkins go crazy?

-Apologize right now. How dare you wag your dirty tongue. Do you want to taste my 12 gauge [shotgun]?

-Ah, sorry for calling you bumpkins.

-You’re wrong. Bumpkins? I don’t care about that. My father and grandfather were proud to be rednecks. What I want is an apology for Lee. How dare you call him ‘that bastard’. Do you want to die?

-They’re crazier than I thought.

Usually, those who would pour cold water on such an atmosphere or cause trouble couldn’t dare to confront them because the Braves fans were so crazy. They just quietly tried not to become targets.

Not only the Braves fans, but also those who supported other teams but liked Lee Jung-woo personally also praised Lee Jung-woo loudly. Some resourceful store owners subtly placed products related to Lee Jung-woo in the front row. Restaurants that Lee Jung-woo often visited even added laughable menus such as ‘Mr. Lee’s Recommended Menu’.

The situation was already crazy enough, but the storm didn’t end there.

It was only the fuse that had been lit.

It was only one game.

Like Arthur Hunter said, the world was changing.

####

Even during that madness, the sun rose the next day, and the second game was held as scheduled.

Compared to the thrilling previous game, the second game went very simply.

The Dodgers, who had already missed the previous game at the verge of victory, lost their strength. The Dodgers’ fourth starter couldn’t stop the rampaging Braves.

[The Braves players are hitting freely. Harry Stewart, the starting pitcher today, also gave up a lot of runs… but the Dodgers are in more serious trouble.]

[The difference from the last game is that the main players are quieter than expected. Lee and Hunter, both players only have 1 RBI each.]

As if venting their anger at being reduced to extras in the previous game, the Braves hitters went wild, leaving Lee Jung-woo aside.

The two players who were the main players in the previous game were both silent, one due to the expected rebound and the other due to poor hitting.

As a result, the gap between the two teams when the two were excluded was inevitably noticeable.

‘I used too much strength. Fortunately, it doesn’t seem serious. I’ll just have to be satisfied with being a spectator today.’

Although he ran pretty well for a spectator, Lee Jung-woo didn’t push himself. Sometimes he had to trust his teammates and rest like this.

And his teammates were doing well enough that there was no need to run around with a tired body.

‘Poppin, I saw some bad comments on the internet, but it’ll be okay today.’

As much as Lee Jung-woo was praised the day before, there were also players who were criticized. In Joey’s case, he was named as the main player in the victory along with Lee Jung-woo. The lower hitters were better off because of them, saying that Lee Jung-woo’s picturesque home run came out thanks to them.

In the case of the 5th hitter Poppin, he received extreme criticism. He recorded ground balls throughout the game and cut off the flow of the attack.

As if to make up for it, he was flying around today.

[Fair! Poppin, who showed a disappointing performance the day before, finally does it today! 2-RBI timely double!]

[The score is 10 to 2. Haha, unlike the previous day, the Braves are dominating from beginning to end.]

Centered around him, other hitters also seemed to be in rhythm, pushing the Dodgers from beginning to end and maintaining the lead until the end.

Thanks to such teammates, Lee Jung-woo watched the game with a slightly more comfortable mind. Arthur Hunter, on the other hand, didn’t look good. Unlike the Braves, the Dodgers’ loss was too great.

[The Dodgers are being blocked too easily, unlike yesterday.]

[Excluding Arthur Hunter, the Dodgers don’t have any other great hitters, so it can’t be helped.]

The Dodgers struggled to score, but they couldn’t catch up with the already serious point difference.

[Stevenson! He gets the KKK [three strikeouts in an inning] and protects the team’s victory!]

[He’s showing the appearance of the guardian deity that the Braves are proud of. He’s at the age where he should be looking forward to retirement, but he still shows his strength as a strong closer.]

In the end, closer Stevenson got the last out count of this game with a three-pitch strikeout.

The last game in April between the Braves and the Dodgers, which had attracted people’s attention, ended somewhat anticlimactically. The defeated Dodgers shook their heads as if they were frustrated. It was a game they thought they could do enough, but the result was a 2-game sweep. The shock was not small.

“Cough… I think I did something unnecessary. I thought we would win one game.”

After the game, when they exchanged their final greetings, Arthur Hunter scratched his head as if he was embarrassed.

He had talked about the game first, but he was swept. Even because of that, he was in danger of losing first place to the Giants. He had no face to show to the fans.

“There are still many games left. It’ll be different next time.”

“Oh, are you comforting me? This is what it feels like to be comforted after losing. I feel terrible. Well, it’s a pity, but there are times like this. Hey, now that it’s like this, I’ll have to vent my anger on Harding later. You guys have to catch the Giants later when you meet them. That’s how it’s fair.”

“I’ll try. The Dodgers also have the Phillies- Ah, there’s no need for that.”

“Anyway, it was fun. I lost this time, but the result will be different next time we see each other. Prepare yourself well. I keep getting stronger.”

From Arthur Hunter’s appearance, who was disappointed but didn’t lose his confidence until the end, Lee Jung-woo could feel the dignity of a top player. Arthur Hunter left with a strong handshake, just like when they first met. With the cool April.

‘Is it only been a month? There’s still a lot left to go until the championship.’

He had defeated the most dangerous opponent, but there were still many games left for the Braves. The journey to the championship that everyone wanted was still a long way off.

It was so far away that it was hard to fathom. Lee Jung-woo didn’t lose confidence.

In the end, like this confrontation, the Braves and he would win in the end anyway.

‘I’ve defeated Arthur Hunter. Let’s keep destroying the league.’