Perfect Agent [EN]: Chapter 289

Team Korea (10)

Top of the 9th, 1-3, bases loaded, no outs.

Even though Japan was clearly in the lead, the Japanese pitcher showed no *yoyu* [composure] whatsoever.

The Japanese pitcher took a labored breath and started his windup.

The ball, released from the pitcher’s hand, flew toward So Young-joon on the far outside corner.

So Young-joon tapped the ball with his bat.

-Thwack!

“That’s it! That’s it!”

The batted ball flew quickly toward the right side of the outfield.

As soon as he hit the ball, So Young-joon started running toward first base with all his might.

The batted ball started rolling along the outfield line all the way to the fence.

-Waaaaah-

-Run! Run! Run!

“The batted ball is going to the deepest part of the field!”

“At this rate, it looks like everyone will be able to score!”

The commentator and I jumped up from our seats without even thinking about it.

Na Joon-ho, who was on third base, stepped on home plate with ease, and Park Sung-joo, who was on second base, also touched home base after passing third base.

Furthermore, Han Gyo-jin, who was on first base, also rushed past third base and headed for home.

As soon as it became clear that not only two but all three players could score, the Korean spectators and the players in the dugout started to go wild.

-Waaaaah-

-Home! Home!

The right fielder, who had finally caught the ball, threw it with all his might to the second baseman, who was the cutoff man.

Han Gyo-jin, who had arrived near home, dove toward the base.

Meanwhile, So Young-joon stepped on second base and ran to third base without any hesitation.

“So Young-joon is challenging for third base! Will he be safe?”

The second baseman, who caught the ball thrown by the right fielder, realized that it was already too late to throw to home and threw the ball to the third baseman.

So Young-joon gritted his teeth and ran toward third base with all his might, sliding as he dove.

The third baseman immediately tagged So Young-joon’s body with the ball.

The two actions happened at almost the same time.

But it didn’t take long to know the result.

-Safe!

-Waaaaaaaaah-

The Korean spectators and the dugout hugged each other and shouted with excitement.

“Safe at third! So Young-joon’s bases-clearing triple in the top of the 9th! With this one hit, Korea suddenly *gyeokjeon* [reverses the score] and takes the lead 4-3!”

“I guess he was saving his best for the 9th inning after showing a disappointing performance earlier in the game.”

I struggled to suppress my welling emotions and said.

So Young-joon, standing on third base, raised and lowered his hands repeatedly, further energizing the crowd.

-Waaaaah-

-So Young-joon! So Young-joon! So Young-joon!

“By the way, has So Young-joon always been this fast? He was so fast just now that I could barely see his feet.”

“I don’t think I’ve ever seen that before either. I think it’s the speed created by desperation.”

I struggled to hold back the laughter that was coming out.

The game continued with a runner on third base.

“Yang Hee-chan was ejected, and designated hitter Han Gyo-jin is now wearing the catcher’s mask, so it’s pitcher Jang Soo-young’s turn to bat. Korea is using a pinch hitter here. Seo Sung-min is getting ready!”

-Seo Sung-min! Seo Sung-min! Seo Sung-min!

As Seo Sung-min walked out with his bat, the Korean spectators erupted in enthusiastic cheers.

“This is the best pinch-hitting card that Korea can play. He’s been doing a great job as a pinch hitter in this tournament, right?”

“He perfectly fulfilled the role the team needed in important situations.”

“If it weren’t for Seo Sung-min, it might have been difficult for us to get to the finals.”

I nodded and continued the conversation.

“It’s great enough that we’ve taken the lead, but it would be better to create a little more breathing room than to face the bottom of the 9th with a one-point lead. There’s a runner on third base, so I hope we can add to our score.”

“We’ve completely seized the momentum, and there aren’t any outs yet, so I think we can be optimistic.”

Seo Sung-min checked the coach’s signals and nodded.

Then, he gripped his bat and prepared to hit.

-Play ball!

The game restarted with the umpire’s call.

The pitcher glanced at So Young-joon on third base and started his windup.

And the moment the ball was about to leave the pitcher’s hand,

So Young-joon suddenly started running toward home base.

-Home! Home! Home!

At the same time, Seo Sung-min gripped his bat short and lightly pushed the ball toward first base.

“Oh! They’re trying a squeeze bunt here!”

The first baseman, who rushed over, caught the ball and looked at home,

But before he knew it, So Young-joon was sliding and touching home base.

It was enough to know the result without seeing the umpire’s decision.

-Safe!

-Waaaaaaaaah-

In the cheers of the Korean spectators, the score changed to 5-3.

So Young-joon *beoltteok* [suddenly] stood up and vigorously hit his chest with his fist toward the Korean spectators.

“He’s safe! Korea has scored another point! It’s a truly unbelievable moment!”

“They boldly attempted a squeeze bunt here, and Seo Sung-min and So Young-joon perfectly executed the play.”

“Now the score is 5-3! Korea is pulling away by another point!”

Seo Sung-min, who was out at first base, returned to the dugout to the enthusiastic cheers of his teammates.

The inning ended without any further hits in the following batting order.

The game continued into the bottom of the 9th inning.

Choi Jung-hwan went to the mound for Korea.

“Now, Korea’s closer Choi Jung-hwan is on the mound!”

“He’s been reliably closing out the 9th inning throughout this tournament.”

“There are three outs left until Korea’s victory. I hope he finishes it *hwaksilhage* [decisively] until the end.”

“It’s still a big help for the pitcher to have a two-point lead at 5-3.”

Choi Jung-hwan, after checking Han Gyo-jin’s sign, started pitching.

-Whump!

-Ball!

-Whump!

-Ball!

Both pitches narrowly missed the strike zone.

“He can throw with confidence. With the quality of Choi Jung-hwan’s pitches, the possibility of giving up a home run is very low even if he challenges the batters directly.”

Choi Jung-hwan’s pitching started again.

The third ball was flying closer to the center of the strike zone than the previous balls.

-Thwack!

With a sharp sound, the batted ball quickly soared into the outfield.

-Waaaaah-

Cheers erupted from the Japanese spectators, who expected a hit.

The Japanese runner started running with all his might.

Right fielder Oh Seok-hoon was running with all his might in the direction where the batted ball would land.

And he dove at the perfect timing.

The ball went into Oh Seok-hoon’s glove as if it were being sucked in.

The first base umpire raised his fist to confirm this.

-Out!

-Waaaaaaaaah-

-Oh Seok-hoon! Oh Seok-hoon! Oh Seok-hoon!

“Wow! Oh Seok-hoon’s amazing *hosubi* [great play] defense here!”

“If he hadn’t caught this ball, it would have been at least a double. If the first batter had gotten into scoring position, today’s game would have become complicated again.”

Choi Jung-hwan, who was watching from the mound, took off his hat and raised it to show his gratitude to Oh Seok-hoon.

That’s how the first out count went up.

Now, the battle continued with the second batter.

-Whump!

-Strike!

Choi Jung-hwan boldly threw a strike this time.

And the second ball followed.

-Tick!

The weakly hit ball bounced high and headed toward Choi Jung-hwan on the mound.

Choi Jung-hwan, who had finished pitching, stretched his arm up to try to catch it, but the batted ball was too high to catch.

It looked like it was going to pass through the infield,

But someone’s glove quickly snatched the batted ball.

It was So Young-joon’s glove, who had appeared out of nowhere.

“He caught it! So Young-joon, just throw it calmly!”

Everyone in the stadium swallowed hard and watched So Young-joon.

While moving his feet, So Young-joon re-gripped the ball in his glove and threw it toward first base with all his might.

The ball that came out of So Young-joon’s glove traveled accurately to the first baseman’s glove.

-Out!

-Waaaaah-

“That’s right! This is So Young-joon!”

I slammed the desk and shouted.

“It was a batted ball that was completely going over second base. How did he catch a ball like that?”

Choi Jung-hwan, with his mouth wide open, gave So Young-joon a thumbs up.

I could feel So Young-joon trying to manage his expression as if nothing had happened, but it was impossible to completely hide the smile that was coming out.

“Now it’s two outs. There’s only one out left for Korea to beat Japan and win the championship!”

“We’re really close. But you never know until the end in baseball. Our players must concentrate until the end.”

Sweat was dripping from my hand holding the pen.

-Korea! Korea! Korea!

Before I knew it, all the Korean spectators stood up and started cheering.

Everyone in the stadium was watching Choi Jung-hwan on the mound.

Choi Jung-hwan took a deep breath and started pitching.

-Whump!

-Strike!

-Waaaaah-

The cheers erupting from the Korean spectators for even one strike were enormous.

-Whump!

-Strike!

160km/h!

“Oh! It’s the moment when Choi Jung-hwan’s fastball hits 160km/h [~99.4 mph] for the first time in an official game! Korea also has a pitcher like this!”

The moment I saw the numbers on the electronic display, I couldn’t stop my voice from rising.

“He hasn’t even shown this speed in the regular season?”

“Moreover, it’s not just 160km/h, but the quality of the pitch is also amazing. It’ll be difficult to hit a ball like this even if you know it’s coming.”

Choi Jung-hwan seemed to have gained even more confidence and threw the ball confidently.

-Tick!

Even though the batter made contact, the ball flew backward due to Choi Jung-hwan’s power.

“Heh heh, the speed has gotten even faster. This ball hit 161km/h [~100 mph].”

“He must be tired because he’s pitched a lot to get to the finals, but Choi Jung-hwan is pouring out all his strength.”

It didn’t take long for Choi Jung-hwan and Han Gyo-jin to exchange signs.

Choi Jung-hwan took a deep breath and prepared for what might be his last pitch.

And he threw the ball with all his might.

-Whump!

-Strike out!

The moment the umpire’s call rang out,

-Waaaaaaaaah-

A huge cheer erupted from the Korean spectators that seemed to blow away the stadium.

Han Gyo-jin, who was holding the last ball, ran toward Choi Jung-hwan on the mound.

And the infielders as well as the outfielders gathered on the mound.

The players in the dugout also ran out onto the field and piled on top of each other.

Kim Sang-moon, including the coaching staff, also hugged and enjoyed this moment together.

“Everyone, are you watching! It’s finally the moment when Korean baseball reaches the top of the world!”

-Korea! Korea! Korea!

The players were tangled up on the mound, and enthusiastic cheers were constantly erupting from the stands.

I struggled to open my mouth, trying to suppress the overwhelming emotions.

“Thank you to our players. Many people said it wouldn’t be possible this time. But our players did it! Thank you so much.”

Then, So Young-joon’s tearful appearance was shown.

“So Young-joon must have gone back and forth between heaven and hell today.”

“He took on the burden of being the captain of this tournament, and he showed a really good performance in both offense and defense. He made two critical errors earlier in the game, but in a way, those errors made today’s game even more thrilling.”

I clapped my hands and said.

“I think many people thought it was over by the 8th inning, but thanks to the players who didn’t give up until the end, we were able to get such a miraculous result.”

“That’s why I can’t quit baseball.”

Some players took out the *Taegeukgi* [Korean national flag] and waved it while looking at the Korean spectators.

Thanks to that, the fans’ cheering voices rang out even louder.

-Korea! Korea! Korea!

The cheerful cheering song sung together by the spectators and players enjoying this moment rang out in the stadium for a long time.

└Is this real, not a dream?

└How many people would have predicted that we would beat the US and Japan to win this time?

└Honestly, I don’t think even the players expected to win?

└Thanks to So Young-joon, I enjoyed it properly until the end.

└To be honest, I really thought it was over when the second error came out.

└So Young-joon must have wanted to die at that time?

└If he didn’t, he wouldn’t be human. Even I, who was watching on TV, was speechless, lol.

└By the way, looking at the Japanese pitcher, it wasn’t for nothing that he was able to *pyeongjeong* [dominate] Major League Baseball.

└Even if he’s a Japanese player, we have to admit that. It’s overwhelming to see our players end up without even being able to *pyeolpyeoda* [spread] their wings.

└Seeing him throw the ball *siwon siwonhage* [coolly] and powerfully makes me feel *sogi ppeong ttulrida* [refreshed].

└I hope a player from our country will conquer Major League Baseball as soon as possible.

└Anyway, the championship is Korea’s!!!