Perfect Agent [EN]: Chapter 251

Top of the 8th inning.

The score remained unchanged at 0-0.

Both teams had 0 hits, 0 errors, and 0 walks.

It was a game where the word “perfect” truly fit.

In this inning, Go Ji-hoon took the mound for the Buffaloes, as usual.

-We’ve finally reached the 8th inning. It feels like the first seven innings flew by.

-Games with exciting home runs are fun, but perfect pitching duels like today are also really enjoyable. Moreover, neither team has made a single mistake so far. I’m starting to wonder if a record will be set today.

-Go Ji-hoon has thrown 86 pitches so far. He might be starting to tire. Plus, the tension in today’s game has been high, so the physical burden must feel even greater.

-That’s probably true. He needs to be careful not to make any mistakes.

The Jaguars’ first batter in this inning was the cleanup hitter, Han Gyo-jin.

Perhaps because he hadn’t gotten a hit in his previous two at-bats, Han Gyo-jin’s eyes were shining brighter than ever.

But,

Whoosh-

“Strike!”

Even with an aggressive swing from the first pitch, it was difficult to get a good hit against the ball that perfectly clipped the corner of the strike zone.

Thump!

“Strike!”

Waiting wouldn’t change the outcome.

0 balls, 2 strikes.

In a situation where he was getting impatient, it was even harder not to be fooled by the sharp breaking ball.

Whoosh-

“Strikeout!”

Han Gyo-jin, who failed to record a hit in all three at-bats, couldn’t immediately return to the dugout, visibly disappointed.

Next up was the 5th batter, Donald Watson.

This time as well, Go Ji-hoon focused on breaking balls.

Watson couldn’t make a proper swing against the changeup that dove inside and the slider that moved further away.

Go Ji-hoon’s decisive pitch, having secured a favorable count, was unexpectedly a fastball.

It was a pitch that Watson, who had been anticipating consecutive breaking balls, didn’t see coming.

Whoosh-

“Strikeout!”

Watson slammed his bat on the ground, blaming himself, as if he couldn’t believe he had been completely fooled.

He easily made two outs in this inning as well.

Now, the 6th batter, Seo Seong-min.

Go Ji-hoon tried to get ahead in the count with an outside slider and a changeup that started outside and moved towards the center,

Thump!

“Ball!”

Thump!

“Ball!”

The pitches didn’t go where he wanted them to, and they missed the strike zone.

Go Ji-hoon and the catcher changed their strategy and chose a fastball.

Thump!

“Strike!”

Thump!

“Strike!”

He could breathe a sigh of relief as he created a favorable count of 2 balls and 2 strikes.

And the decisive pitch he threw was a changeup again.

‘Gasp!’

As soon as he released the ball, Go Ji-hoon’s mouth let out a sigh.

Unlike what he had intended, the changeup was flying towards a high part of the strike zone.

Seo Seong-min, having made his judgment, swung his bat with all his might.

Clang!

The moment he connected, Seo Seong-min felt a pleasant jolt in his hands and watched the ball’s trajectory as he slowly ran towards first base.

“Wowwww-”

The Jaguars fans in the stands, as well as the players in the dugout, stood up simultaneously.

The batted ball was flying towards the right-field fence at a rapid pace.

Right fielder Oh Seok-hoon chased after the batted ball until the very end, but

The batted ball narrowly cleared the fence.

“Home run!”

The moment the first base umpire signaled a home run, the stadium erupted with cheers.

“Waaaaaaaaa-”

-A truly dramatic home run! Seo Seong-min records the first hit and first run of the game in the 8th inning!

Seo Seong-min, having confirmed that the batted ball had gone over, clenched his fist and raised his right hand high.

“Waaaaaa-”

“Seo Seong-min! Seo Seong-min! Seo Seong-min!”

Enthusiastic cheers erupted from the Jaguars’ stands and dugout.

Watching this, Scott was preparing for his next appearance, making an effort not to show his emotions.

On the other hand, Go Ji-hoon was on the mound with his hands on his knees and his head bowed, not moving.

As Seo Seong-min stepped on home base, including all the infield bases, the string of zeros was finally broken on the scoreboard.

-He got past Han Gyo-jin and Donald Watson well, but he couldn’t get past Seo Seong-min in the end.

-Go Ji-hoon only made one mistake while throwing 95 pitches. That one mistake has changed the situation this much.

As the perfect game bid was broken, the Buffaloes’ pitching coach received the ball from the umpire and walked to the mound.

The pitching coach patted Go Ji-hoon on the shoulder, who couldn’t hide his disappointment, and consoled him.

-Go Ji-hoon is leaving the mound after recording 1 run in 7.2 innings. He showed a really great pitching performance.

-It was a great pitching performance that would have been enough to make him a winning pitcher if it hadn’t been a match against Michael Scott.

The Buffaloes fans cheered for Go Ji-hoon as he came down from the mound.

“Go Ji-hoon! Go Ji-hoon! Go Ji-hoon!”

From the Jaguars’ stands on the opposite side, they clapped and sent generous cheers to the opposing pitcher who had put on a great performance.

The Buffaloes’ new pitcher, who came to the mound, succeeded in preventing additional runs by getting the remaining out.

Bottom of the 8th inning.

Perhaps because Seo Seong-min’s run had energized him, Michael Scott put even more power into his pitches.

Starting with striking out Park Seong-joo by mixing a high fastball and a splitter [a type of fastball that drops sharply] that dropped sharply downwards,

Whoosh-

“Strikeout!”

Whoosh-

“Strikeout!”

He induced a swing and miss in the subsequent at-bats as well, not allowing any runners to get on base.

Scott’s perfect game continued through the 8th inning.

Top of the 9th inning, the Jaguars’ last chance to score in regulation.

The Buffaloes put their closer [a relief pitcher who specializes in pitching the final inning] on the mound.

-It seems like the Buffaloes aren’t giving up easily. They’re making a strong move by putting their closer on the mound despite being down by one run.

-Well, it’s only a 1-point difference. In baseball, a 1-point lead is a situation where you can never let your guard down. Even if just one runner gets on base, the atmosphere will change.

Thump!

Thump!

The Buffaloes’ closer threw the ball with impressive force, reaching nearly 150km/h [approximately 93 mph].

Tick!

Tick!

Because they could create a more relaxed situation in the final defense if they scored even one more point, the Jaguars’ batters fought tenaciously.

However, it wasn’t easy for the Jaguars’ batters, who had been facing Go Ji-hoon, a completely different type of pitcher, to suddenly adapt.

Thump!

“Strikeout!”

Whoosh-

“Strikeout!”

In the end, the Jaguars failed to score additional points and finished their last attack.

Now, finally, the bottom of the 9th inning.

The score is still 1-0.

Scott walked to the mound to finish the last inning.

“Waaaaaaaaa-”

“Scott! Scott! Scott!”

The Jaguars fans all stood up and cheered for Scott.

The eyes of the Jaguars players heading to the field with Scott to play defense were filled with determination.

Not only was it an important game that would determine the direction of this season, but they also felt determined to help complete the historic achievement that was within reach.

-My hands are getting sweaty. It’s nerve-wracking just watching, so the player who’s actually throwing the ball must be even more nervous, right?

-Well, it’s impossible not to be nervous in a situation like this. But you have to let go of the pressure. It would be a shame if he hit a batter now.

-Let’s watch together to see if Michael Scott can make history in Korean professional baseball today.

Scott took a few deep breaths and started pitching.

Thump!

Thump!

154km/h [approximately 96 mph]!

Just looking at the speed on the scoreboard, you could see that he was pouring out his last remaining strength.

Thump!

“Strikeout!”

In the 9th inning, Scott overwhelmed the opposing batter with a fastball exceeding 152km/h [approximately 94 mph].

And then, the at-bat against the Buffaloes’ 8th batter.

The 8th batter swung his bat at the first pitch.

Clang!

It was such solid contact that you could sense a hit the moment it happened.

The batted ball was trying to escape the infield at a rapid pace.

At the same time, second baseman Seo Seong-min stretched out his arm and put his glove in the path of the ball.

The ball, which seemed like it would go into the glove, bounced off and fell to the ground.

“Gasp!”

The fortunate thing was that the ball fell right in front of Seo Seong-min.

As soon as Seo Seong-min caught the fallen ball, he didn’t hesitate and threw it towards the first baseman.

The ball arrived at first base at almost the same time as the batter-runner.

All eyes in the stadium were on the first base umpire.

“Out!”

-Wow! Seo Seong-min made a great play!

-I thought it was going to get through that time. Seo Seong-min could have been flustered after bobbling the ball, but he finished the play calmly.

Scott gave Seo Seong-min a thumbs up.

Now, 2 outs in the bottom of the 9th inning.

The team’s victory, as well as the achievement of a perfect game, was riding on this last out.

Han Gyo-jin, who had requested a timeout from the umpire, headed to the mound.

Then, along with the interpreter who ran out, he approached Scott.

Han Gyo-jin spent some time joking around with Scott to relieve the tension.

-Now, there’s really only one last hurdle left.

-It’s amazing just to have come this far. But since he’s this close, I hope he gets the record.

After Han Gyo-jin finished talking with Scott and returned to home base, the game resumed.

The Jaguars fans, as well as the Buffaloes fans, were holding their breath and watching the game.

Thump!

“Ball!”

Thump!

“Ball!”

Perhaps because he was putting in too much strength, Scott’s fastball was outside the strike zone.

Then Han Gyo-jin stood up and gestured for him to relax and throw.

2 balls, 0 strikes.

If he gave up a walk, the perfect game would be over.

It was a situation where he had to get a strike no matter what.

Scott took several deep breaths to calm himself.

And finally, the third ball left Scott’s hand.

The fastball was heading towards the center of the strike zone.

The batter swung his bat with all his might.

Tick!

But because the ball was full of power, it popped up near home base.

“Fly ball!”

Scott pointed to the sky with his finger, signaling that the ball had gone up.

“Waaaaaaaa-”

Everyone in the stadium started cheering.

Han Gyo-jin, who had jumped up, threw his catcher’s mask and quickly moved towards the spot where the ball was coming down.

And,

Thump!

Han Gyo-jin raised both hands high, confirming that he had completely caught the ball with his glove.

“Out!”

As the umpire raised his fist, Han Gyo-jin ran to the mound.

Watching this, Scott also smiled broadly and stretched both hands to the sky.

The Jaguars players on the field, as well as the players in the dugout, ran to Scott.

“Waaaaaaaaaa-”

The cheers from the Jaguars fans were louder than anything they had ever heard before.

The first player to hug Scott was catcher Han Gyo-jin.

Han Gyo-jin ran towards Scott, who was waiting with open arms.

Soon after, the players who ran in clung to Scott and Han Gyo-jin, enjoying the historic moment together.

-Finally! Finally! The first perfect game in Korean professional baseball has been completed!

-I’m really grateful just to have witnessed this. Of course, congratulations to Scott, who completed the perfect game. Go Ji-hoon, who pitched a great game as well, also deserves recognition.

Some Jaguars players started pouring a beverage shower on Scott.

Scott closed his eyes and stretched both arms to the side, not avoiding the pouring waterfall of beverages.

Scott’s face, completely soaked, still had a smile that didn’t disappear.

└Perfect game, that’s awesome lol. The people who watched today’s game live are the real winners.

└I expected it to be fun with Go Ji-hoon and Michael Scott, but I didn’t know it would be this exciting.

└Can anyone still say Han Gyo-jin’s defense is lacking? He’s the catcher who caught a perfect game.

└You have to admit it now. After today, the Jaguars’ starting catcher is Han Gyo-jin.

└And Seo Seong-min’s home run was also huge. Plus, if he hadn’t made that play in the 9th inning, it would have been a hit.