A Rookie In The Baseball Team Is Too Good [EN]: Chapter 426

The Baseball Team’s New Recruit Is Too Good 426

Boys Be Ambitious (3)

A year was drawing to a close.

It had been a truly long year for Ji-seop.

“……”

Leaving the KH Cannons, he had thrown his hat into the ring of the American Major League.

Joining the Tampa Bay Rays, achieving their first-ever championship.

Now, even becoming the deputy general manager and leading the club’s new project.

Looking back, the past year had been so busy it brought a light sigh.

On this day, with only about three days left in that hectic year,

Ji-seop was sharing a drink with colleagues from the Future Strategy Planning Department.

“Everyone, you’ve worked so hard.”

At a sports pub near Tropicana Field, [Big Fergus’s Beer House].

It was right after he had cleanly emptied the large beer glass that the owner had brought.

“Honestly, I feel very sorry. I was planning to at least let you spend the year-end with your families……”

Ji-seop’s plan was disrupted by a phone call from Brian Spann, the president of baseball operations.

The content was that a free agent pitcher, who was initially considered difficult to acquire, had suddenly contacted Tampa Bay.

Interested in the contract terms. Wants to have more conversations. Is it possible to meet today?

With most of the executives and employees on year-end vacation, it seemed that the president of baseball operations didn’t have many cards in hand either.

In the end, Ji-seop and the Future Strategy Planning Department were in charge of the contract work along with the president of baseball operations.

“To be honest, when I received Kim’s call, I felt like my soul was leaving my body……. But it was rewarding.”

That was David Wilson’s statement.

“Thanks to that, we signed a decent bullpen pitcher, didn’t we? The manager was very happy.”

“Hmm, I feel similarly.”

Charles Flex chimed in.

“It was a bit tough, but it felt good to be back on the field after a long time. It reminded me of the old days.”

“……You had a hard time?”

It was John LaMar who raised an eyebrow.

“Come on, let’s be honest, there’s no way Flex had a hard time, right? You just kept looking around the whole negotiation.”

“Wh, what?!”

Charles Flex widened his eyes, but swallowed hard.

“Hmph, did you think I wouldn’t notice? You put on a fancy suit and kept peeking around……. You barely even came to the negotiation table, did you?”

“N, no, that’s because, as I said, it was a tactic to put pressure on the other side! To show them that we also have other cards…….”

“Then at least you should have taken your phone with you. Who was it that bolted as soon as the stadium tour group appeared?”

“Ahem! Cough!”

While Ji-seop was playing tug-of-war with the opposing agent, Charles Flex seemed to be engrossed in his youth business.

In fact, for Ji-seop, just having a ‘name’ like Charles Flex at the negotiation table was a great help, but for John LaMar, it was something he couldn’t just let pass.

The owner’s son nagged and nagged, and the great showman shrank his neck like a turtle.

Just as he was watching that bizarre scene with the feeling of watching a sitcom, David Wilson, who was sitting next to him, tapped Ji-seop on the shoulder.

“Hey…… Kim?”

“Yes?”

As Ji-seop turned his head without thinking, he widened his eyes in an instant.

David Wilson was holding a carefully wrapped gift.

“What is it? Are you giving it to me?”

“Yes, it’s a year-end gift.”

David had a calm expression.

“I gave it to everyone else around Christmas, but Kim was too busy at that time. Do you remember? Because of that Richard Stelmajek.”

“Ah, yes.”

“I bought it especially for Kim, and if I pass today, I thought the timing would be a bit awkward……”

Please, accept it.

He held out the gift package.

“Thank you so much for this year. I learned a lot from Kim, and I received a lot of help. I look forward to working with you next year as well.”

“Oh, you shouldn’t have gone to all this trouble……. I didn’t prepare anything separately.”

While saying that, Ji-seop’s mouth was beaming.

“Can I open this now?”

“Of course, go ahead.”

“Haha, then without further ado…….”

Lalalalala.

Ji-seop was humming without realizing it as he unwrapped the package.

But that was only for a moment. After unwrapping the package and checking its contents, Ji-seop couldn’t help but tilt his head for a moment.

‘What…… is this?’

First of all, it was a T-shirt.

A black short-sleeved T-shirt. The kind that uses functional fabric to wick away sweat well.

In fact, he had no complaints about the material or shape, but the design of the T-shirt was truly difficult to understand.

What does it mean? There was a large red stripe on the shoulder, and the waist was full of colorful logos that he had never seen before.

Decisively, in the center of the T-shirt, there was a Statue of Liberty holding a baseball bat and swinging with all her might.

That’s right. It was the Statue of Liberty. The very statue that can be said to be the symbol of America.

“Kim, how is it?”

David Wilson asked.

“Do you like it? I don’t think there will be any problem with the size…….”

“Ah, yes! It’s good! How should I say it, it’s a very…… very unconventional design for a T-shirt! Hahaha.”

He laughed out loud, thinking of the giver’s sincerity, but Ji-seop’s head was full of question marks.

What is it? What the heck is it? The Statue of Liberty swinging, is it perhaps the Yankee sense that I’ve only heard about?

Just as he was wondering how to react any further, he heard someone’s voice from across Ji-seop.

“Huh?”

“Ummm?!”

It was John LaMar and Charles Flex.

The two people, who had been bickering about every little detail, suddenly turned their heads and widened their eyes.

“No way, this is…….”

“Wait a minute, David!”

At this time, Ji-seop thought to himself.

It seems like the two are about to say something about this difficult T-shirt.

Why did you buy something like this? Where did you pick up something like this? It seems like they’re going to say something.

As expected, even if it’s Yankee sense or whatever, people’s eyes are no different. That’s what Ji-seop thought, but-

“What, David bought that too?”

“Huh? Then did Flex too?!”

The next moment, Ji-seop couldn’t help but let out a hollow laugh.

As if they had made a promise, John LaMar and Charles Flex were also taking out T-shirts from their bags.

The same shirt with a black background, red stripes, and the Statue of Liberty swinging with all her might.

Three identical shirts were already there, and Ji-seop was staring at his colleagues with a slightly dazed expression.

“No, seriously…….”

He couldn’t help but laugh a little.

“What wind has blown into everyone?”

* * *

Clock Wise.

That was the brand name of the T-shirts that John LaMar, David Wilson, and Charles Flex had bought.

The price wasn’t cheap either. One short-sleeved T-shirt cost about $150, or nearly 200,000 won [approximately $150 USD].

After hearing this, I suddenly became curious. Why did they choose [Clock Wise]? Why did they bring this to give to Ji-seop?

“Well…… it’s because Kim always wears the same clothes.”

That was David Wilson’s statement.

“Sometimes you wear a suit, but you almost always wear the same polo shirt, right? The one provided by the club.”

“I…… did I?”

Ji-seop blinked.

“That’s right, and the casual clothes you occasionally wear have no sense at all.”

Charles Flex stepped in.

“Even if you’re busy with club matters……. Kim, you’re a bit too much! So what can we do? It’s right for us to take care of you.”

“Of course, this is also related to the reputation of our Future Strategy Planning Department!”

John LaMar also nodded.

“We can’t just buy any brand and bring it……. When I thought about it, Clock Wise was the best!”

It was said to be one of the hottest brands in New York these days. Especially among the young elites of Wall Street.

Usually, these brands have poor quality compared to the price, but Clock Wise is famous for its good materials and finishing.

And since they released a T-shirt called Statue of Baseball, [Goddess of Baseball], as this year’s new year-end product, there was no other choice, but-

“…….”

Ji-seop was fully aware of the inner thoughts of his Future Strategy Planning Department colleagues.

[I brought the most expensive T-shirt in the store……. It must be good, right?]

[I can choose an Italian suit with my eyes closed……. But when it comes to clothes that young people wear, I have no choice but to follow the clerk’s words.]

[Everyone was buying that outfit……. That’s right, this must have been the best choice!]

That’s right.

Like you guys would be any different.

Ji-seop, who had seen through his colleagues’ inner thoughts, couldn’t help but chuckle.

“Still, thank you.”

This was sincere.

“I didn’t know you would take care of me this much. It’s a bit difficult because there are three identical outfits……. But I’ll think of a way.”

Whatever the reason, whatever the design, it was something that his colleagues had brought after thinking about him.

Ji-seop could only be grateful. But his colleagues seemed a bit embarrassed.

“Oh, if I had known this would happen, I would have brought the receipt! Then we could exchange it, right?”

“Should we just take it once? If we talk nicely, they might let us exchange it…….”

“Or Kim, just wear one and give the other two as gifts to other people? I don’t mind.”

Ji-seop was already wearing a soft smile to his colleagues, who were scratching their heads and feeling embarrassed.

“No. We can just write numbers on one corner and take turns wearing them.”

“Hey, don’t change your undershirts like the players do!”

“That’s right, that’s a lot of money!”

Like that, for a while, they were noisy, arguing about how to deal with the same T-shirt.

Brrr- Brrr- Brrr-

Ji-seop’s phone, which had been placed on the table, started ringing.

“Hmm?”

Ji-seop, who had checked the caller, tilted his head and pressed the [Call] button.

“Oh, Nicholas! Long time no see!”

As Ji-seop got up from his seat and greeted him, the people in the Future Strategy Planning Department lowered their voices and began to whisper.

“Nicholas? Who is that?”

“If it’s Nicholas……. Ah! It must be the special advisor to the Yankees’ general manager. He went to the same school as Kim.”

“The Yankees? So you’re saying he personally knows someone in the Yankees?”

“Hey, Kim has a wide network, doesn’t he? He probably knows someone wherever he goes.”

“He’s an amazing person. It’s only been a year since he came to the Major League…….”

Not long after they whispered like that, Ji-seop returned to his original seat.

As he picked up a new plate of french fries on the table, John LaMar asked.

“Kim, what’s going on? Isn’t it rare for Nicholas to contact you first?”

“Right? But it’s nothing else……. He just wanted to see my face tomorrow.”

With that, Ji-seop put the french fries in his mouth.

“Spring training is coming soon, so he came over to Tampa a while ago.”

“Ah, so he’s become a neighbor? Well, Tampa is only 30 minutes away from here.”

John LaMar nodded and began to sip his beer, but Charles Flex raised an eyebrow.

“But…… Kim, is there something bothering you?”

“Yes?”

“You look a bit serious. Why, did that Nicholas guy say something strange?”

“Hehe, you’re like a ghost.”

Ji-seop smiled bitterly.

“It’s not that I’m bothered by Nicholas himself, but the noise around that friend is a bit worrying.”

“The noise around him?”

“Yes, I don’t know if I heard it wrong……. But I heard a broadcast welcoming me to Clock Wise. You know, like the broadcast you hear in a store.”

“Cl, Clock Wise?”

At this moment, the people in the Future Strategy Planning Department turned their eyes to the table as if they had made a promise.

What was on the table,

Three T-shirts of the same design.

“Oh, come on!”

“No way!”

“Even if people in the baseball world have thin ears…….”

That can’t be.

It doesn’t make sense.

The people in the Future Strategy Planning Department were waving their hands.

“…….”

The next morning, a look of dismay was spreading across Ji-seop’s face as he entered the store to meet Nicholas.

“Ah, Kim! Over here!”

At Nicholas’s feet, who was raising his hand, there was a paper bag that he had seen somewhere.

It was the Statue of Liberty. A Statue of Liberty illustration holding a baseball bat and swinging with all her might.

‘……What the heck.’

Ji-seop couldn’t help but think.

‘What are these people…… doing to me?’