A Rookie In The Baseball Team Is Too Good [EN]: Chapter 280

Chapter 69: The Boss Is Watching (6)

One small ball thrown by Ji-seop.

That changed everything.

“?!!”

Victor Johnson Jr.’s face, which had been full of confidence, was now filled with bewilderment.

He probably didn’t expect that an Asian guy who suddenly appeared would accurately throw his new breaking ball.

Thomas Culkin, the coach of the Tampa Bay Rays, walked towards him, who was blinking as if he couldn’t believe what he was seeing.

“Hey, Victor!”

He was smiling.

A ‘winner’s smile’ that anyone could recognize.

“I don’t even need to ask, right? Whether the breaking ball Kim just threw is similar to your Revolution something or other.”

*I told you so.*

Thomas Culkin clicked his tongue.

“Creating a new breaking ball is incredibly difficult. Few people approach it with the idea of ‘let’s create something completely new’ from the start. It’s closer to a result that comes from the process of developing an existing breaking ball.”

His ‘declaration of victory’ continued.

“Now, drop those useless thoughts and prepare to return. I’ll talk to the manager to see if we can cancel this minor league demotion…….”

The Tampa Bay Rays were experiencing great difficulties due to the absence of their ace at the beginning of the season.

From the coaching staff’s point of view, they had to persuade Victor Johnson to get on the mound somehow.

So, the coach was suppressing his bubbling anger and reaching out to his inept disciple, but-

“……That’s not it?”

Victor Johnson Jr.

As expected, he was not one to easily give in.

“That ball was significantly different from Revolution No. 7. I cannot accept what you’re saying, Coach.”

“What, what did you say?!”

It was enough to make one go crazy.

That was exactly Thomas Culkin’s reaction at this moment.

“Are you kidding me right now? Do you think I didn’t see it? I clearly saw your face turn white when Kim threw the ball.”

“Ah, I admit that. Kim’s pitching was amazing. It felt like he recreated the image in my head exactly! It was really great. But…….”

“But what?”

“That was Revolution No. 6.”

Not No. 7, but No. 6.

Victor Johnson cleared his throat.

“I’m sorry, Coach. I made a mistake. I should have been talking about Revolution No. 7, but I was explaining No. 6! Oh, look at me! Haha!”

*I’m sorry, I’m sorry.*

As the Tampa Bay’s ace pitcher slapped his forehead and laughed heartily, Thomas Culkin rolled up his sleeves and took a step forward.

“That, that airhead is really trying my patience…….”

The pitching coach was grinding his teeth.

The time for dialogue had passed. It was really about to turn into a fistfight.

It was at this moment that someone’s hand landed on the shoulder of the pitching coach, who was about to risk a penalty and administer ‘physical therapy’.

“Coach.”

It was Ji-seop.

Unlike Culkin Coach, whose face was flushed red, his face was relaxed.

“Please leave it to me for now.”

“To, to you?”

Before the pitching coach could even answer, Ji-seop strode towards Victor Johnson.

And said.

“Ah, is that so?”

It was a nonchalant expression.

“What I threw a little while ago was Revolution No. 6……. So, if we have to be precise, that means it’s an older version of Revolution No. 7?”

“I, I guess so?”

Victor Johnson flinched slightly as Ji-seop approached.

But only for a moment, he opened his mouth with a brazen expression.

“It’s not just an older version, it’s a completely different pitch! I don’t know if you know this, but I’ve always been overflowing with ideas…….”

“Okay, I understand.”

Ji-seop cut him off.

“I understand what you’re saying. Then tell me about the ‘real’ Revolution No. 7 now.”

“Huh?”

Victor Johnson was slightly embarrassed.

Ji-seop replied calmly.

“Didn’t you promise? In exchange for me throwing the ball, you would cooperate with the basic verification of Revolution No. 7.”

“We, well, yes…….”

“So please tell me quickly.”

Ji-seop picked up a ball that had fallen on the ground and walked to the mound.

“Revolution No. 7, what kind of ball is it?”

He continued.

“Victor, you don’t need to feel pressured. It’s okay to make mistakes. I’m ready to throw whatever ball you tell me to, no matter how many times.”

Ji-seop smiled brightly.

That kind smile seemed to feel a little different to Tampa Bay’s young ace.

“N-no matter how many times…… you said?!!”

A drop of cold sweat was running down Victor Johnson’s spine.

* * *

And what followed was,

a pleasant time of righteous education.

Whoosh- Pow!

Ji-seop began to accurately reproduce the ‘real Revolution No. 7’ that Victor Johnson was describing.

“It’s, it’s a pitch that shows a trajectory completely opposite to a curveball! It’s a pitch that greatly improves the amount of change in a circle changeup!”

As Victor Johnson explained, dripping with sweat, Ji-seop, who had been listening quietly, calmly gave an answer.

“Ah, so it’s a ball like this?”

Whoosh- Pow!

What was the coach’s evaluation?

“Ah, isn’t that the ball Fernando Valenzuela used to throw? Although there are hardly any people who throw it these days…….”

“F-Fernando Valenzuela?”

*Who is that, you baseball geek?*

Victor Johnson looked at the coach with that expression, then quickly changed his words.

“I’m sorry! I made another mistake! Actually, it’s about greatly reducing the spin of the ball…….”

“Ah, so it’s this?”

Whoosh- Pow!

“I, I’m sorry. The real Revolution No. 7 is a more developed form of changeup? So…….”

Whoosh- Pow!

“The ball I’m trying to create, um…… I was wondering if it would be a good idea to give a big difference in speed from the four-seam fastball…….”

Whoosh- Pow!

Whoosh- Paow!

Every time Victor Johnson came up with an idea, Ji-seop proved that there was a pitcher in the past who had the same idea.

After this process was repeated about six times, Victor Johnson, who had been so confident, also lost his momentum.

“…….”

He didn’t say anything.

He was just staring blankly at the target that Ji-seop’s ball had reached.

‘*……Is it about time?*’

Ji-seop, having confirmed Victor Johnson’s expression, quietly took off his glove.

As he walked down the mound with his glove, he was thinking of a word to comfort Victor Johnson in his head.

‘*Well, his mentality must be completely shattered by now.*’

In a way, what happened from now on was important.

Although it was a foolish act, from Victor Johnson’s point of view, one of his ambitious challenges had returned in a miserable state.

He must have been hurt to some extent, his pride must have been scratched, and he must be feeling a lot of regret for the past time.

How to soothe that heart well and lead him to be ready to stand on the mound again.

In Ji-seop’s experience, that was all there was to solving this kind of problem, but-

‘*Hmm?*’

The moment Ji-seop came down from the mound and approached the 24-year-old ace, he could sense that the situation was flowing a little differently from what he had thought.

“…….”

It was Victor Johnson’s eyes.

The eyes of the guy who had been staring blankly like a dead fish just a few seconds ago.

But in the short time that Ji-seop came down from the mound, the guy’s eyes had recovered to their original state.

No, it was hard to see it as a simple recovery. His eyes were sparkling more than before, no, ‘shining’ was a more appropriate expression.

‘*What, this guy. Hasn’t he understood yet even after getting beaten up like that?*’

Should I have given him a little more righteous education?

Should I have kept throwing the ball until he was completely tattered?

At that very moment when Ji-seop’s head was getting a little complicated.

The pitcher with a terrifying mental recovery grabbed Ji-seop’s arms.

“Kim!!!”

And said.

“How much is your salary?!!”

* * *

A truly absurd question.

Before Ji-seop could even answer, Victor Johnson shook his head vigorously.

“No, no! Now is not the time to think about money! Well, you can earn as much money as you want later…….”

Kim!

He called Ji-seop again.

“I’ll give you 1/3 of my salary! In a lump sum if you want! So, won’t you be my personal instructor?”

“A personal instructor?”

“Yes!”

Victor Johnson nodded his head.

“Wow, I’ve never seen anyone like you! Not to mention your knowledge of breaking balls, you can accurately guess what kind of ball it is just by listening to a few words I say!”

*You’re the first person to know my heart so accurately.*

*You’re also the first person to read my thoughts so accurately.*

Victor Johnson’s heart seemed to be pounding.

“I think it’s possible with Kim. I originally started with a year in mind, but if Kim helps me, I think it’s possible in 3 months.”

“Possible…… what?”

To Thomas Culkin’s question, Victor Johnson replied with a bright expression.

“Hey, what else could it be! It’s the completion of Revolution No. 7! The completion of a new breaking ball that will turn the major leagues upside down!!!”

The moment he heard Victor Johnson’s answer, Ji-seop unknowingly let out a hollow laugh.

‘*The completion of a new breaking ball?*’

While working at the Cannons, I thought I had become somewhat accustomed to the eccentricities of the players.

There was a basement in the place I thought was the bottom, and it seemed that there was a player in Tampa Bay who surpassed the Cannons.

A player who harbors absurd ambitions.

Nevertheless, a player who doesn’t know how to give up.

A player who, even after experiencing setbacks, quickly recovers like a zombie and flashes his eyes again.

‘*Is there such a crazy guy…….*’

It would be a lie if Ji-seop wasn’t embarrassed, but at the same time, he also felt a considerable amount of anticipation.

Absurd ambition, a heart that doesn’t know how to give up, and a mentality that shows an incredible recovery ability more than anyone else.

If this were manifested on the field and on the mound, it could produce truly amazing results.

‘*There was a reason why the Tampa Bay Rays sold off other starting resources.*’

Of course, to do that, it was necessary to divert his attention from Revolution No. 7, but at this point, it wasn’t that difficult of a problem.

The moment he heard Victor Johnson’s voice asking him to ‘be his personal instructor’, all the plans were already in place.

“A personal instructor……. It’s a kind offer, but I’ll have to decline.”

Ji-seop said.

“I don’t know how much Victor Johnson is willing to give, but I’m aiming for much more money than that.”

“Much more money?”

Looking at Victor Johnson, who was tilting his head, Ji-seop mentioned his colleague he met in the United States.

“Didn’t you know? My colleague you met in the VIP parking lot last time……. John Larma Taylor, the son of owner Jeffrey Taylor.”

“The, the owner’s son?”

Victor Johnson seemed to have noticed what Ji-seop was saying.

“Th, that’s right. No matter how much money I make, I can’t have more money than the owner’s son…….”

Victor Johnson was full of regret.

Ji-seop threw out a bait to lure him in.

“I can’t go with you to Triple A as a personal instructor, but I can still help you develop a new breaking ball.”

“H, help? How?”

As Victor Johnson’s face lit up, Ji-seop replied.

“Please visit our Future Strategy Planning Division. It’s in a somewhat inconvenient place to come, but once you come, we’ll discuss new ideas together.”

“Really? I can just go to the office?!!”

Victor Johnson leaned forward.

“Future Strategy Planning Division? Where is that? Where is the office?”

A strange smile appeared on Ji-seop’s lips.

“You’re asking the obvious. It’s in Tropicana Field. Tropicana Field, Basement 2, Storage D.”

“Tr, Tropicana Field?”

It was at this moment that Ji-seop heard Victor Johnson’s inner thoughts.

*[The office is in Tropicana Field? Then what’s going on?]*

*[If I go down to Triple A today, that means I can’t come to see Kim for the next few months?]*

*[But if I stay in the majors, I’ll have no choice but to play in the game…….]*

Victor Johnson was struggling alone with worries that were not very nutritious.

And after some time, he looked back at Ji-seop and asked.

“Kim, you’ll help me, right? If I come with an idea, you’ll review it with me, right? Really?”

“I told you, didn’t I? Have you only lived being deceived?”

As Ji-seop shrugged his shoulders, Victor Johnson seemed to have made up his mind.

Putting his hands together, lowering his posture, and even shining his eyes, Tampa Bay’s ace turned his gaze to Thomas Culkin.

“C, Coach?”

“Why, what is it, you?”

As Thomas Culkin retorted bluntly, Victor Johnson lowered his body even further and continued.

“Could you tell the manager? I want to stay in the major league if possible…….”

“What, the major league?!”

Thomas Culkin, who would have been overjoyed inside, was putting on a very stern expression on the outside.

“Is the major league a joke? Is it a place where you can come if you want and not come if you don’t want to? Huh!!”

“Coach, I’ll work really hard!”

Victor Johnson clenched his fists.

“I’ll work hard in training and I’ll work hard in games! From now on, I’ll do everything you tell me to do! Really!”

“Can I believe those words?”

Thomas Culkin said.

“If you say you’re not going to the minor league now, you’ll have to be called in by the team’s disciplinary committee, as well as the manager, the general manager, the baseball division president, and the general manager……. You’ll have to be broken by all those people, but is that okay?”

“It’s okay! I’m okay! Please let me stay in the major league, in the major league!!”

As Victor Johnson clung to his arm and begged, Thomas Culkin’s gaze turned to Ji-seop.

Gratitude and apology to Ji-seop, and even a little surprise at having led all these changes.

Thomas Culkin, who had been sending a gaze containing truly diverse meanings, was slightly bowing his head to Ji-seop and opening his mouth.

“Is that so? If that’s what you think……. I’ll talk to the manager once!”

“Thank you! Thank you so much, Coach!!!”

Tampa Bay Rays’ ace, Victor Johnson Jr.

It was the moment when his return to the major league mound was realized.