A Rookie In The Baseball Team Is Too Good [EN]: Chapter 313

Baseball Team Newbie Is Too Good – Episode 313 (313/512)

Chapter 75: I Can See His Hands (1)

The weekend three-game series held at Camden Yards, the home stadium of the Baltimore Orioles, proved to be a turning point for the Tampa Bay Rays this season.

It was a turning point that propelled the team, which had been steadily improving, to suddenly surge to the top of the leaderboard.

-The ball soars high towards left field! The left fielder makes the catch! Game over! The Tampa Bay Rays win!

In reality, the series wasn’t statistically significant.

They played three games and won two, adding only one win to their record.

However, that one win, specifically the win against Vincent Hyama, had enormous consequences.

-I was amazed! I didn’t expect the Tampa Bay Rays to play like that against Vincent.

-True. Tampa Bay has a poor record against Baltimore… And Vincent Hyama even debuted a new killer pitch today, didn’t he?

-That’s right! A curveball! A curveball with incredible power! But the Tampa Bay players persevered… and eventually forced Vincent off the mound at the start of the 7th inning. That’s telling! It proves they know how to handle an ace pitcher!

Although Jiseop was meeting with Vincent Hyama and didn’t see it himself, he heard that American sports channels were praising the Tampa Bay Rays that night.

The next day, the St. Petersburg local media also lauded the Tampa Bay players’ tenacious fighting spirit.

And that wasn’t all.

-Did everyone watch today’s game? Our Rays beat Vincent!

-Unbelievable! I thought they’d just strike out and get crushed again… What happened to the Tampa Bay guys?

-Who cares? The important thing is that we gave those obnoxious Baltimore guys a beating! They’ve been so cocky, even though they don’t have any great players besides Vincent.

-No time for this! I’m going to the Baltimore channel to congratulate those losers for not winning even one game with Vincent!

The Tampa Bay Rays’ online fan forum, usually quiet, buzzed with activity after their victory against Vincent Hyama.

For the first time in a while, they were visiting other teams’ forums and posting friendly greetings to the ‘newbies’ who came to visit after hearing the news.

As a positive atmosphere grew among the fans, the most significant change was the Tampa Bay players’ confidence.

“I don’t know if I should say this, but weren’t we kind of… awesome this time?”

“Right? We were awesome, weren’t we? I think so too!”

“Who would disagree? Not many teams have won against Vincent… and we’re the only ones who beat a pitch that wasn’t even in the scouting reports, right?”

“I feel like I’m getting a sense of something. Does everyone feel that way? I feel like I’m starting to get a sense of how to deal with ace pitchers?”

The Tampa Bay players chattered like this all the way from Baltimore to their next away game.

As if their words about ‘getting a sense of something’ were true, they performed at a surprising level.

They swept the Toronto Blue Jays in a three-game series, won two out of three against the Minnesota Twins, and then swept the Seattle Mariners in a three-game home series.

They were on a tremendous run, defeating each team’s ace in turn, recording 10 wins and 2 losses in their last 12 games.

Wow!!!

With this, the Tampa Bay Rays pushed the New York Yankees down and ranked second in the American League East Division.

The difference in wins with the first-place Boston Red Sox was now only two games.

All of this stemmed from the head-to-head match against Vincent Hyama, so it was no surprise that Jiseop was treated to a cup of coffee by Brian Span, the general manager.

“Here you go. Let’s talk while you drink.”

It was a special cup of coffee that the general manager had personally brewed and brought over.

* * *

“Actually, I met with Manager Mike Clemmons this morning.”

Brian Span, the general manager, said as he sat down across from Jiseop and the other members of the Future Strategy Planning Department, who had each received their coffee.

“It was an opportunity to express my gratitude for the manager’s hard work. It feels like just yesterday that we were struggling at the bottom of the division, but now we can aim for the top spot.”

Slurp.

The general manager took a sip of his personally brewed coffee.

“But the manager said very firmly that it wasn’t because of him, but because of everyone’s efforts. And if he had to pick just one thing…”

His gaze turned to Jiseop.

“He said that the Future Strategy Planning Department, your hard work, was the biggest factor.”

Jiseop couldn’t turn his head to check because the general manager was looking at him, but he could guess that the corners of his colleagues’ mouths in the Future Strategy Planning Department were twitching.

It was Brian Span, a legend in the industry credited with creating the current Tampa Bay Rays.

To be singled out for praise by such a person would be an unparalleled joy for a front office employee.

“He said that your game prediction reports are a great help to the team. As the person who initiated this project, I was really grateful and happy to hear that.”

Brian Span’s praise continued for quite some time after that.

He thanked them for taking on the project despite the difficult work involved.

He said that he felt reassured that they were dealing with the players and coaching staff despite their tight schedules.

He said that he was surprised that they had been recognized by the field staff and were allowed to board the team’s private plane, and so on.

“The evaluation of you within the team is getting better and better. There are even some opinions that the Future Strategy Planning Department should participate in the July regular meeting.”

The team’s regular strategy meeting is held once a month.

If they were formally invited to this meeting, it would mean that the Future Strategy Planning Department had been recognized as a core department of the Tampa Bay Rays.

This was exactly what Jiseop, John Llama, and David Wilson had been eagerly hoping for.

“I’m keeping a close eye on your performance. So please continue to do your best in the future.”

With Brian Span’s words of encouragement, the coffee time came to an end.

Just as he was about to leave the president’s office, saying ‘Thank you, President!’ in a loud voice.

“Ah, just a moment… Kim?”

The general manager called out to Jiseop.

“Yes, sir.”

“Would you be able to spare a day next weekend? The manager has made a special request.”

“The manager?”

Jiseop tilted his head.

“May I ask what it’s about?”

“It’s nothing special. It’s just about time to check on our players in Durham.”

Durham. Durham Bulls.

It meant the Tampa Bay Rays’ Triple-A team [the highest level of minor league baseball].

“Usually, I go alone quietly… but Manager Clemmons strongly recommended it. He said that it would be helpful in many ways if I took you with me, Kim.”

A person like Manager Clemmons wouldn’t say such a thing without a reason.

“I heard from the manager that it was Kim’s advice that led to the head-to-head match against Vincent Hyama, right? About not telling the players about Vincent’s killer pitch.”

“Ah, yes, that’s true, but…”

“Manager Clemmons highly praised that. He said that thanks to your advice, we were able to climb up to second place.”

It was at this moment that a strange smile appeared on the general manager’s face.

“I don’t know if you know this, but our manager is very stingy with praise. For him to praise you so highly like this, I’m curious too. About how great your insight is.”

“Well, I don’t know if it’s really insight…”

Jiseop took a step back out of courtesy, but the general manager had an expression that seemed to see right through Jiseop’s inner thoughts.

“There’s a guy named Christopher Ben in the Durham Bulls. He’s by far the best prospect our franchise has… The main purpose of this trip is to check on his condition.”

How about it?

The general manager asked.

“The manager made a special request, so how about you come with me and have dinner with that great guy?”

“Really?”

Now that he knew the situation of the major league team to some extent, Jiseop knew that this was not just a simple dinner.

‘It’s a discussion about the timing of the major league call-up [promotion to the major league team].’

Major league call-ups are often described as ‘a phone call that comes out of the blue one day,’ but in the case of the team’s top prospects, it wasn’t that simple.

When a prospect’s growth reaches a certain level, the team’s top executive visits to check on the player’s condition.

To see if they are ready to come up to the major leagues, and if they are ready to play their part when they come up.

Being invited to such a meeting was a great honor for Jiseop as well.

“Thank you. I’ve been wanting to meet Christopher Ben, too.”

“Ah, really? That’s good. Then this Saturday…”

However, that joy was short-lived.

Jiseop hesitated.

“Sa, Saturday, you said?”

“Yes, this Saturday. It just so happens that Ben is scheduled to start that day…”

What’s wrong?

Brian, the general manager, asked, tilting his head.

“Do you have other plans?”

* * *

About ten minutes later.

Jiseop was getting a stern lecture from David Wilson, the ‘drill sergeant’ of the Future Strategy Planning Department.

This was probably the first time Jiseop had been scolded by him.

“Kim, what did I tell you?”

David Wilson sighed.

“I told you that I would write the report for you, so you should attend the orientation?!”

That’s right. Graduate school orientation.

More precisely, the Fort Myers University MBA program orientation.

That was why Jiseop had no choice but to decline Brian Span’s offer to accompany him on his trip.

“The school said that you only need to come once out of three times, right? But you’ve been putting it off all this time, and now you’re throwing away this great opportunity…”

It was actually four times.

For students like Jiseop who were working in the field, the school gave them one additional opportunity.

However, if they didn’t attend this time, they would assume that they didn’t intend to register for this semester.

In any case, the ‘last orientation opportunity’ he received and the date proposed by Brian, the general manager, overlapped exactly, so Jiseop had no choice.

‘Damn it, why did the dates have to overlap like that?’

It wasn’t that Jiseop had nothing to say.

Since being assigned to the Future Strategy Planning Department, he had been working non-stop every day.

Of course, that wasn’t the whole story.

‘The book I have to read for the orientation, I haven’t finished it yet…’

He hadn’t finished it.

Jiseop hadn’t even read 30 pages yet.

At this rate, he would be scolded by Professor Kevin Prior.

Just as he was wondering how to get through this crisis, someone appeared to take Jiseop’s side.

“Hey, David! Don’t be so hard on him. David knows best how busy Kim has been all this time, right?”

It was John Llama.

The main director of the Future Strategy Planning Department and Jiseop’s senior at Fort Myers Graduate School.

He spoke in a ‘senior’ manner for the first time in a long time.

“And Kim, don’t be too disappointed. It’s a shame that you missed the opportunity to go on a trip with the general manager… but our Fort Myers Graduate School also has good opportunities.”

“Good opportunities?”

David Wilson showed interest.

“What kind of opportunities are you talking about?”

“There’s a reason why our Fort Myers University is famous in the baseball world, right? When new students come in, they are divided into several groups, and each group is assigned a mentor to help them.”

John Llama said that the lineup of these ‘mentors’ is amazing.

“People who have been general managers in Major League Baseball, people who have experience as managers, or current agents… For your information, I was mentored by General Manager Billy Bean.”

“Billy Bean? Are you talking about the Billy Bean who is famous for ‘Moneyball’ [a book and movie about using data analytics in baseball]?”

“That’s right.”

At this time, David Wilson’s face showed an expression that said, ‘You were mentored by General Manager Billy Bean, but why are you only this good?’ but John Llama wasn’t the kind of friend who could notice such an expression.

“Professor Kevin Prior’s connections are so impressive, so you can expect the mentor lineup to be great this time too.”

So there’s no need to be so disappointed about the trip with the general manager being canceled.

Jiseop was slowly nodding his head because what he was hearing wasn’t wrong, but at that moment.

John Llama had a serious expression on his face.

“Of course, if you want to get the most famous person as a mentor… you’ll need a little competition.”

“Competition?”

“Yes, I think they’ll probably do it again at this year’s orientation.”

Jiseop had vaguely expected what he would say next.

“A level test for new students.”