Peaceful Bullpen Life [EN]: Chapter 74

People tend to imitate everything about the figures they admire.

If they admire a singer, they’ll mimic the singer’s vocal style or voice; if they admire an actor, they’ll copy the actor’s gestures and expressions.

What happens if they admire a baseball player?

Basically, they buy the player’s uniform and wear it when they go to watch the game. If they play baseball as a hobby, they’ll imitate the player’s form.

What if they spend a little more money?

‘Selling Wonha Kim Han-wool player game-used glove.’

They are drawn to this title and click on it.

But if they are not satisfied with this, those who have some money to spare look elsewhere.

‘Selling Wonha Kim Han-wool player’s actual glove.’

They don’t think about the price.

They check if it’s genuine and buy it right away. I don’t know what they do with it after buying it—whether they just keep it, or use it when they play baseball themselves.

“Hmm.”

I fiddled with the black glove that I had used for about half of the 2018 season.

I didn’t take very good care of it, so there’s quite a bit of dust on it and some parts are worn out.

Still, I used it myself. They’ll buy it.

The charity baseball game is not just a baseball event. It’s a day where the word ‘charity’ is the main focus, not ‘baseball’.

On this day, another event with the word charity attached takes place. It’s a charity auction.

Participants donate their personal belongings or cherished items. The organizers put these items up for auction and donate all the proceeds.

I decided to donate my glove to this donation item. I’m a baseball player after all. It would be good to donate baseball equipment.

The weather now, more than a week after December, naturally makes you utter the word cold.

It’s the perfect weather to break a bone if you play baseball in a normal baseball field.

Therefore, the stadium where today’s exhibition game will be held is Gocheok Dome, the home stadium of Dongseong Hornets and the only dome stadium in Korea.

“…Hmm?”

I don’t really like Gocheok Dome, but it’s a place I have to come to often, so I can’t not know about this environment—how much traffic there is at this time.

Why are there so many people?

Seeing a much larger number of cars and people than during the league, my slightly tilted head quickly found its angle. [He understood the reason.]

Not only baseball players but also many actors and singers participate, so there will be many people who come to see them.

I felt a slightly different atmosphere than usual, as I felt that they were fans of specific celebrities rather than baseball fans.

I sneaked past the people into the stadium and arrived at the first base dugout.

“Senior.”

“Ah, Han-wool. Thank you for coming.”

As soon as he saw me, he smiled brightly and held out both hands. Not wanting to be outdone, I lowered my waist even further and showed respect.

“No, thank you. Thank you for inviting me to such a big game.”

“No, I’m more grateful.”

From the senior who always used honorifics to me, even though I was a distant junior, I could see the aura of a truly great person.

I received my uniform directly and heard about my position for today in advance.

“What position am I playing?”

No.

“No, am I starting? No, not the starting pitcher, am I starting?”

At my suddenly timid question, the senior laughed heartily.

“Yes, yes. I’ll put you in as a starter. I’m thinking of third base for now. Is there anywhere else you want to go? I’ll put you there.”

“Third base? That sounds good. Then what about the batting order?”

“Third? Fourth?”

“Oh my… Is it okay to put someone like me in such an important position?”

“That’s what makes it fun.”

“Ah, I see……”

…Is this a diss?

“…I’ll go in fourth.”

I’ll hit one and be done with it. Really.

“Okay. I’ll put you in as fourth batter and third base.”

Once the position and batting order were decided, I greeted the people I would be playing with.

I had a light conversation with the players I already knew, asking how they had been doing.

I became friends with other celebrities and famous people I met for the first time, and even exchanged numbers with a few of them.

“Wow… you’ve made it. Coming to a place like this.”

“I guess so. I’ve made it.”

“Wah!”

“What’s wrong?”

“…Oh my gosh. What are you doing here, Eun-seo?”

I was startled by the voice suddenly heard from behind, shaking my large body.

Eun-seo, who was looking at me with a pathetic expression, smirked and held up her camera.

“What else? I came to film.”

“You’re filming this too?”

“Well, Wonha player is here, so.”

“Ah……”

“What’s with that expression?”

“Why are you so angry today?”

“How can I not be angry?! I’m working overtime right now!”

Ah, 인정 [TN: I acknowledge that; lit. acknowledgement].

“But you’ll get overtime pay.”

“That’s true, but……”

“Then work hard.”

“Wow, boomer [derogatory term for someone with outdated views].”

“Back in my day……”

“Ugh!”

I chuckled at her truly disgusted expression.

“There’s a congratulatory performance today. Do you know who’s coming?”

“I don’t know.”

“Essentric is coming, they said?”

“……”

“Hey, I’m just asking just in case. You didn’t forget, did you?”

“No way.”

“Who are they?”

“……”

“……”

“Ah, I know! That group with the person who threw the ceremonial first pitch when I pitched, right?”

“Wow… what a great memory.”

Clap… clap…….

The soulless applause was tearing my heart apart.

“Have you been in contact with Seo-yeon?”

“Sometimes. I just reply when she contacts me.”

“Why? If I were in Han-wool’s shoes, I would have jumped at the chance.”

“Who was it who told me not to do anything stupid……”

That day, I went home and looked up Essentric. I wondered how great a group they were that Eun-seo was making such a fuss.

헐 [TN: OMG].

The first thing I did was search for Essentric’s official account on Mytube [Korean equivalent of YouTube], since they were singers, to listen to their songs. They had nearly 40 million subscribers.

Wow! They’ve completely turned the K-pop scene upside down!

“…But why would such people come here to perform a congratulatory performance?”

“They said they made a special request because they wanted to see Han-wool. They also said they didn’t have anything else to do since they’re on a break these days.”

“Ah. That explains it. There were so many people coming today.”

“That’s right.”

I don’t know.

“But I’m the only one from Wonha here today. Is today my special again?”

“I guess so?”

“Hmm. My role is very important.”

“So if you say anything weird or make any stupid jokes, I’ll cut you out completely.”

“What do you take me for?”

“Boomer.”

Ah, 씨 [TN: Damn it].

I left Jjomulttakyi [TN: likely a nickname or term of endearment] for a moment and grabbed Heon-cheol, who was passing by.

After a brief chat, I held up my glove, and he readily grabbed his mitt.

“It must be nice. Winning again. Aren’t you just tired of winning now?”

“Ah, I’m tired. I’m even tired of winning and doing the ceremony now.”

His cocky attitude with his chin up was quite a sight to see. It would be nice if this ball hit him in the jaw.

PD-nim [TN: Producer], did you film that just now?

Yes! I definitely filmed it!

Ah.

X돼 봐라, 새꺄 [TN: You’re screwed, you bastard].

“…But Wonha’s atmosphere isn’t bad either, right?”

“It’s not bad… but it can’t be as good as you guys, who only win like you eat rice [win all the time].”

“Hmm.”

“We’re still lacking a lot.”

“Is that so?”

“Or what?”

“Isn’t Wonha a pretty strong team?”

Oh ho.

“Spout out some more of that 씬빡 [TN: hardcore] sound [praise].”

“No, it’s true. You have a pretty good starting lineup, a pretty good bullpen. The defense is the best in the league, the hitting is pretty good too. The base running… isn’t bad either?”

“Is it a strong team just because it’s pretty good or not bad?”

“In the end, it’s about balance.”

Balance…….

“PD-nim, please edit this part out for a moment.”

“Yes? Ah, yes, yes.”

“Look at other teams besides our Sangsoo or Dongseong. Especially the bottom-ranked teams. They have one thing that’s exceptionally good. But that’s all they have. They’re teams that can’t do anything if what they have breaks down.”

Gaya has very good base running for all hitters.

Visco has a very strong bullpen.

KP has explosive hitting.

Hanseong… well.

But the problem is when their strengths are sealed.

KP this season is a very good example.

“Also, if you just look at potential, I honestly think Wonha is the scariest. More than Dongseong.”

“Why.”

“It’s literally potential. Dongseong is like… it feels like they’re at their peak right now. Maybe… they’ll be able to play as a strong team for 2 years at most. But Wonha is um……”

Without even throwing the ball, Heon-cheol falls into the depths of thought.

“Why, the experts pick them every year, who they expect to be the top 4 teams. From next year, Wonha will be included every year. For about 10 years.”

The word strong team.

“…I don’t need that.”

It’s just a flash in the pan.

“Why?”

“You have to win the championship. What’s the point of just playing around the post-season?”

“That’s true, but……”

“So come down a bit [stop boasting].”

“Don’t talk nonsense.”

Just as I was about to finish the catchball that had been going on with quite serious stories, Eun-seo came up and asked if I could catchball with other people.

The story is that since there are so many interesting people here, let’s get some 뽕 [TN: hype; buzz].

Basically, all the celebrities who participated here have the condition that they like baseball.

One of their idols is a professional baseball player.

They were moved and touched by the fact that their idol, not anyone else, was asking them to play catchball, and they readily put on their gloves.

I pointed out the posture of throwing the ball, and as a pitcher, I also gave a lot of tips related to control and breaking balls.

“So did you get some footage?”

“Yes. I got a lot of sources with this.”

When my body was moderately warmed up, I approached Eun-seo, who had a satisfied expression. She said that she just needed to film the game later.

About 30 minutes were left until the game started. I finished warming up and was sitting in the dugout, poking Eun-seo and playing around.

I wondered what was going on in the noisy stadium, and when I looked, people were gathering in a suitable corner of the outfield.

“…What is that?”

“Ah, they must be coming out.”

“What is?”

“Essentric!”

I was the only one who was 어벙 [TN: dumbfounded; clueless], and everyone in our dugout, as well as the people in the opposing dugout, were leaning on the railing and focusing on the back of second base.

Still, about half of them are celebrities, but I guess real world stars are different.

After a brief introduction by the stadium announcer, a song with a strong beat was played through the stadium’s speakers. It was noisy, but the song itself was good, so it was fun to listen to.

Exactly three songs.

Essentric performed three of their most famous and popular songs in a row and bowed here and there.

I applauded and cheered for the wonderful performance.

They were even doing the first pitch and first hit with the momentum.

Seo-yeon’s posture of throwing the ball had improved a lot, perhaps because she had practiced a lot in the past few months.

It was a sight that made me nod my head. Her face was getting closer and closer to my eyes, which were smiling with satisfaction as a teacher.

“Han-wool, long time no see!”

“Ah… yes. It’s been a while.”

Her bright expression, her smiling face.

The 모습 [TN: figure; appearance] of her, which was full of charisma on stage or in videos, was quite a big disconnect for me to accept.

“You must have practiced a lot. Your form has improved a lot.”

“I watched Han-wool’s form a lot and followed it!”

“Wow……”

Clap clap clap…….

Well… I don’t have anything to say.

“Don’t get hurt today, and work hard. I’ll be watching you all the way.”

“Yes. Thank you for your hard work.”

“Yes!”

After that, Seo-yeon disappears somewhere with her members.

Thud-!

“Ugh!”

“Hyung [TN: older brother/male friend]! What! What is it! How do you know Seo-yeon! Answer me! Answer me right now!!”

“Hey, let go of this……”

As soon as he said that, Heon-cheol suddenly 급발진 [TN: accelerated; freaked out] and questioned the relationship with Seo-yeon.

“No… I just gave her some guidance on the ceremonial first pitch before.”

“Ah, I thought it was something else.”

He easily accepted that one word and let go of the collar he had grabbed.

This is a bit insulting to my pride as it is.

“Go catch the ball, you idiot.”

I shooed him away. He 설설 [TN: hurriedly; quickly] ran and rolled the ball that was in his first base mitt towards me.

Ah, infield defense. How long has it been?

I grabbed the ball that was rolling and simply stepped on it and threw it to first base.

The angle of the arm, which was lower than the usual pitching form, and the trajectory, which was twice the usual pitching distance, drew a long arc.

Next was the shortstop, then the second baseman, and then it was my turn again.

“Ssegan [TN: likely a baseball term, possibly related to fielding]!”

I 달려들었다 [TN: rushed; charged] towards the ball with good spirit. I cut it off as far in front as possible and threw it to second base…….

“Ack!”

“……”

…The ball became an 송구 [TN: overthrow] that I couldn’t even imagine.

While the right fielder, who was playing catch with the center fielder, caught it and sent it back to the infield, the pitcher’s practice pitches were over.

Today’s starting pitcher is the actor who shared his concerns about the delivery with me while playing catch earlier.

Play ball!

From a professional’s point of view, it’s a decent form ‘for an amateur’. However, the level of the hitters is also similar.

The inning ended with a series of beautiful swings and misses on a ball that barely reached 110km [~68 mph], and I just stood there.

Back to our team’s offense.

Since I’m the fourth batter, it’s confirmed that I’ll be entering the next circle [on-deck circle], so I started putting on my equipment one by one.

Helmet on, arm guard on, foot guard on. I also put on a thumb vibration prevention rubber ring just in case.

Boom-! Boom-!

I went out of the dugout and 설설 [TN: gently; lightly] swung my bat. The body, which has pretty good strength even by professional player standards, fiercely cut through the air.

I should have been a hitter.

The first inning attack started and I watched our attack quietly.

The opposing team’s starting pitcher is Lee Kyung-mo, who is in charge of left field at KP Stars.

Since he’s an outfielder famous for his 소녀 어깨 [TN: girl’s shoulder; weak throwing arm], the balls heading to the catcher’s mitt weren’t very powerful.

The speed is in the low 120km [~75 mph] range.

However, this alone is a 0.1 tier speed based on amateurs.

The first batter struck out, the second batter was out with a ground ball to the second baseman, and then it was Heon-cheol’s turn in front of me. He naturally entered the right batting box and took a batting stance.

That, that, that 양아치새끼 [TN: punk; jerk], that guy.

Lee Kyung-mo also had similar feelings to me and pointed at Heon-cheol with a smiling face.

When he slightly moved his finger to the side, the hitter awkwardly smiled and moved to the opposite batting box.

Only then could I feel 편―안 [TN: comfortable; at ease] and watch the game.

딱-! [TN: Thwack-! (sound of bat hitting ball)]

Still, who is Heon-cheol?

The starting catcher for the strongest team in the league, Sangsoo Tigers. And wasn’t he a hitter who was used as number 6?

Just by changing the direction of his vision, there was no reason why he couldn’t hit a 120km ball.

The ball that he hit with force quickly headed to the center fielder. I watched him step on first base and slowly headed to the plate.

Fourth batter, Kim! Han! Wool!!

Ah, awkward.

It was a place where we all gathered to have fun, and both I, who was standing at the plate, and the pitcher who had to throw the ball to me, were smiling.

That’s what makes it fun.

However, the words that senior Lee Young-jin said right before the game made me feel 오기 [TN: spiteful; competitive].

I’ll hit it.

Even though the opposing pitcher isn’t a real pitcher, and even though the bat in my hand is, what was it, a carbon bat!

Boom-!

I’ll hit one over and show that I’m not a fun hitter!

뻥! [TN: Bang! (sound of something breaking/being hit hard)]

“Swing, strikeout!”

Ah, I should just be a fun hitter.