A Rookie In The Baseball Team Is Too Good [EN]: Chapter 403

New Recruit of Baseball Team Is Too Good – Episode 403

New Recruit of Baseball Team Is Too Good 403

89 Another Sunshine Day (5)

On the day the Tampa Bay Rays’ general manager ordered a review of the relocation plan.

So, on that very day when the path to rise beyond the deputy general manager seemed to unfold before Ji-seop’s eyes.

Ji-seop, having returned home, was calling ‘Sakhalin Park,’ Vice Chairman Park Hong-ju of the KH Cannons.

“Ah, Vice Chairman!”

-What is it, are you [being a busybody] again?

As always, Sakhalin Park’s voice on the phone was gruff.

-Why do you call so often? You called when we won the championship, when we went to the White House… No, didn’t you call just yesterday?

What he said was true.

Yesterday evening, when Ji-seop went to the airport to see off his family, he had called Sakhalin.

It was because of his parents. His parents, who had completed their departure procedures, wanted to express their gratitude to ‘Cannons Vice Chairman Park.’

In any case, it was certainly true that he had been in contact more frequently recently.

He knew it could be a discourtesy to the busy Sakhalin Park, but Ji-seop had no choice on this day.

‘When I think about it… it’s all thanks to Vice Chairman Park’s guidance.’

Sakhalin Park was the one who led Ji-seop, who had been lingering in the amateur baseball scene, to the KH Cannons.

Sakhalin Park was also the one who opened the new door to the Major League for Ji-seop, who was only immersed in the excitement of winning the championship.

Looking back, he was the one who completely changed his baseball life. So, Ji-seop wanted to report to him first.

About the new task given to him on this day.

And about the new possibilities that unfolded before him on this day.

-Hmm, really? The general manager of the Tampa Bay Rays gave you such instructions?

Sakhalin Park, who initially showed signs of annoyance, began to listen quietly when Ji-seop got to the point.

He would interject with ‘hmm’ from time to time, and sometimes remain silent as if lost in thought.

When Ji-seop finished reporting what had happened that day, what came from the phone speaker was his hearty laughter.

-Hahaha! Well, listening to you, it’s worth you calling me!

Hahaha.

Listening to Sakhalin Park’s laughter, Ji-seop was inwardly waiting for his praise.

Well done. Great job. As expected of the guy I had my eye on.

Of course, he wasn’t the type to say such things outright, but he was sure that he would be very proud inside.

Yes, until this point, Ji-seop was thinking that way-

But,

What?

The next moment, what Ji-seop heard was Sakhalin Park’s thunderous roar.

-Hey, Qingtao [Ji-seop’s nickname]!! Are you going to get your act together or what?!

“Yes?!”

Like a bolt out of the blue.

That was exactly how Ji-seop felt at this moment.

“No, Vice Chairman! What are you talking about all of a sudden? What do you mean get my act together?”

-You need to get your act together! You need to get it together quickly! Or should we just leave it as it is!

Sakhalin Park’s tone was firm.

-Think about it. The Tampa Bay Rays are moving their home to Nashville? Is that the kind of story you can just tell to outsiders?

“…Yes?”

Ji-seop realized his mistake.

Of course, rumors about the relocation would have already started circulating inside and outside the club by now.

But a little while ago, Ji-seop mentioned the matter, even mentioning General Manager Brian Span.

Depending on who was looking at it, this could be seen as leaking internal club information to the outside.

-You’ve never done this before, but all of a sudden you’re chattering about things you weren’t even asked about… Can you really say you haven’t lost your mind?

“I, I’m sorry.”

Ji-seop unconsciously shrunk his neck like a turtle.

However, Sakhalin Park’s stern scolding did not stop there.

-Okay, let’s say you were happy to be given a big job and you told the story. I can understand that if I give you a hundred concessions. It’s not like I’m going to go somewhere and blab about your club’s business.

He continued.

-But what? You might be able to look higher than the deputy general manager? What kind of nonsense is that, huh?!

Did I even say that?

Ji-seop felt dizzy.

-When did you get into the habit of thinking about the rice cake [dreaming of future rewards] before you even started the work? Hey, Qingtao! Were you that kind of guy? Were you such a dimwit that you couldn’t even think about the order of things when a plausible position was offered?

“That, that is…”

No.

Absolutely not.

Ji-seop was about to answer that way, but he ended up closing his mouth without saying a word.

The moment he heard Sakhalin’s scolding, Ji-seop wanted to hide in a rat hole.

‘Damn it, why did I do that?’

If it were normal, no matter what David said, he would have just smiled wryly and waved his hand.

If it were normal, no matter what he heard, he would have calmly thought about how to solve the problem.

When did I become so excited? When did I become so flustered?

“I have nothing to say, Vice Chairman.”

Ji-seop, who had been silent for a while, opened his mouth with a heavy heart.

“I was short-sighted. As you said, I think I was out of my mind for a while.”

It could have been because of the first World Series victory in the club’s history, or it could have been because of the anticipation of becoming the deputy general manager soon.

But what’s the point of looking for such excuses? Ji-seop was just ashamed.

“You trusted me and sent me here… I’m really sorry. I’ll be careful not to let this happen again in the future.”

There was no other story. He didn’t make excuses at length.

What was wrong was wrong. Ji-seop cut it off, admitted it, and bowed his head.

That clean attitude seemed to please Sakhalin Park.

-When you feel like the gears are meshing, when you feel like things are speeding up. You should always be most careful at times like that.

The KH Cannons’ acting owner said in a much softer voice.

-It’s good to have goals. It’s good to have ambition. But the moment that becomes the top priority, the moment you run while only looking at that… you miss a lot. You throw it away.

He continued.

-People call that choice? They say you’re only taking what you need, that you’re focusing on what’s important. But in my experience… the things that are thrown away at times like that are usually the person’s greatest strengths.

So,

Always look around.

That was Vice Chairman Park Hong-ju’s advice.

-When things are going well, when you think you can speed up a little more… be sure to stop and look around. Then you’ll see. What you’re missing, what you shouldn’t miss. Do you understand what I’m saying?

“Yes, sir!”

What else could I say here?

Ji-seop answered energetically.

“I’ll keep what you just said in mind. As you know, I’m a naturally good at looking around, aren’t I?”

-Hmph, you always talk a good game.

Sakhalin Park retorted gruffly.

-Well, I guess that’s not wrong. You were only throwing a 128km/h ball at best, so you must have been watching the manager’s and coach’s every move throughout your career as a player, right?

“No, Vice Chairman! If you mention my past that I want to hide again here…”

When Ji-seop trailed off as if he was in trouble, a loud laughter was heard from the phone speaker.

Whether it was Ji-seop’s misunderstanding or not, it was a different kind of laughter than the one he had heard a little while ago.

-Yes, just do that.

Sakhalin Park said.

-Occasionally stopping and looking around… if you don’t forget that, everything you want will naturally follow.

Before he knew it, his voice was dripping with affection for Ji-seop.

I’m glad I called the vice chairman. Ji-seop was thinking that when.

With a bit of hesitation, and a bit of awkwardness, Sakhalin Park said one word.

-Hey, Qingtao.

“Yes, Vice Chairman.”

-I’m just asking in case… you haven’t forgotten it, have you?

“Yes? What are you talking about… Ah.”

Ji-seop, who had been tilting his head for a moment, was soon raising the corners of his lips with a smirk.

“Don’t worry, Vice Chairman. I always remember that promise.”

No matter how much recognition he receives in the Major League, no matter how high he goes.

“I… will definitely return.”

To KH Cannons.

To the place everyone is waiting for.

Ji-seop was answering without a moment’s hesitation.

* * *

From the World Series victory, to the visit to the White House, and now to the imminent promotion to deputy general manager.

The slightly scattered mind due to the successive successes found its place again with Sakhalin Park’s rebuke.

On the third day after returning to work with a new determination, Ji-seop was racking his brains with the Tampa Bay Rays’ director-level employees.

“Good. Then, we will form the Nashville field investigation team as follows.”

When Ji-seop gave a slight wink, David Wilson, who was sitting next to him, typed on the laptop keyboard.

The list of employees appeared on the screen on the wall, and the meeting participants nodded in satisfaction.

“Each department head should notify the employees by the end of today. I will also post an announcement on the intranet as soon as I finish reporting to the general manager. Then, this meeting is…”

Toc toc toc [Knock knock].

As Ji-seop organized the documents he was holding and got up, a loud voice of ‘Thank you for your hard work!’ erupted from among the people.

Some hurriedly got up from their seats and left the conference room, while others narrowed their eyes and took notes on the screen.

However, most of the meeting participants were approaching Ji-seop with bright expressions.

“Kim! You’ve been working hard.”

It seemed to be one of the directors belonging to the baseball operations division.

“At first, I was worried about how to pick people, but Kim’s guidelines helped.”

“Oh, you’re welcome.”

Ji-seop waved his hand lightly, but the directors’ praise did not stop.

“I understand why the players were looking for Kim so much after working with you directly!”

“Haha, I know! You were very skilled at conducting the meeting, too? This was the first project in our Tampa Bay front office where no shouting broke out.”

At this point, the story that Ji-seop was being promoted to deputy general manager had spread throughout the club.

From the directors’ point of view, they wanted to have a good relationship with the newly emerging deputy general manager.

And if you’re someone who wants to create a ‘good relationship’ no matter what, there’s always a line you have to say.

“Kim, how about it? Now that the investigation team has been formed, let’s have a light…”

Click click.

The directors were sending signals to have a drink, but Ji-seop was shaking his head lightly.

“Haha, thank you for the offer, but… I don’t think I can make it today. I have to contact Nashville.”

“Ah, I see! Well, there’s time to go to Nashville… right? Hahaha!”

People who laughed like that and shook hands with Ji-seop.

Even after the directors, as well as John Larma and David Wilson, left, Ji-seop quietly looked around the conference room for a while.

“…”

There was no particular reason.

It seemed like things were going smoothly on this day.

It seemed like it was okay to speed up the relocation to Nashville.

Sakhalin Park told me to stop for a moment and look around at times like this, didn’t he?

“Oh ho?!”

There was actually a small achievement.

While standing alone in the conference room and looking around, he found a 25-cent coin that someone had dropped.

“Could it be… is this why you told me to look around?”

Ji-seop smiled wryly inside and bounced the 25-cent coin up and down.

Since there was nothing else that caught his eye, Ji-seop began to pack his bag and laptop.

Just as he was about to finish cleaning up and lock the conference room door.

“…Hmm?”

Ji-seop heard someone’s voice.

To be exact, it was a voice coming from the stairs leading down to the second floor.

“Hey, don’t worry too much! You know Mr. Howard, right? The story of the relocation has come up several times so far.”

Mr. Howard.

Mr. Howard, huh.

I’ve heard that name somewhere.

“Of course, I know! I remember my promise with the Cowbell Boys [fan group]… Yes, leave it to me! Oh, who do you think I am? Hahaha!”

Yes, then go in!

The stairs became quiet after the cheerful greeting.

I have a rough idea, but it’s better to check it out first.

The moment Ji-seop moved his steps towards the stairs to confirm the owner of the voice.

“I said that, but… what should I do about this?”

The voice came again from beyond the stairs.

“David seems to be in favor, and Kim is the person in charge of this project… then isn’t there no way? How can I stop the relocation?”

And the next moment, Ji-seop was able to clearly identify who was standing beyond the stairs.

“Damn it, it’s better to catch an alligator that’s hiding in the kitchen…”

It’s better to catch an alligator.

There was only one person in the Tampa Bay Rays who would say these words.