A Rookie In The Baseball Team Is Too Good [EN]: Chapter 475

The Baseball Team’s New Recruit Is Too Good 475

The Baseball Team’s New Recruit Is Too Good 475

101 The Last Piece of the Puzzle (1)

At the very moment Ji-seop was receiving an unexpected phone call.

Brian Span, the general manager of the Tampa Bay Rays, was visiting the home of team owner Jeffrey Taylor.

“Oh, Brian!”

Jeffrey Taylor’s wrinkled face lit up with a bright smile at the visit of his longtime friend and colleague.

“Welcome, welcome! I don’t know how long I’ve been waiting for you to come!”

“I’ve heard roughly what’s been going on.”

Brian Span said with a wry smile, setting down the briefcase he was carrying.

“I heard that the team’s board of directors came here en masse today… Were you alright? It must have been quite a commotion.”

“I’m fine. What could be wrong? It’s what I expected from the start.”

The team owner shrugged.

“With Joseph Carter’s whereabouts unknown, and even you leaving Tropicana Field [the Tampa Bay Rays’ stadium]… Those guys must have been on pins and needles. They must have wondered what was going on.”

Recalling the board members’ fierce reactions, the team owner sighed briefly.

“They were all frantically looking for you. Where did Brian go? How can he leave his post at such an important time…? They were almost like children who had lost their mothers, and these are grown men.”

“I’m sorry, Owner.”

Brian Span bowed slightly, and the team owner waved his hand as if it were nothing.

“There’s nothing to be sorry about. But listening to the directors’ outcry, I suddenly had this thought.”

Jeffrey Taylor looked at the colleague he trusted most.

“Brian, couldn’t we postpone your proposed plan a little longer?”

The team owner continued.

“The plan to entrust your position to the person who leads and achieves the team valuation project.”

* * *

In response to Jeffrey Taylor’s question, Brian Span, the general manager, remained silent for a while.

He was just silently looking at the frame hanging across from him. A frame containing a panoramic view of Tropicana Field.

It was after the team owner’s butler brought in a cup of tea and left that he spoke again.

“Owner, as I’ve said before… now is the right time.”

Brian’s tone was firm.

“The Tampa Bay Rays are now facing a new era. A new era requires new leadership, and you agreed with that, didn’t you?”

“That’s true, but…”

As the team owner touched his chin and clicked his tongue as if frustrated, Brian Span quickly straightened his posture.

“I’ve been the general manager of the Tampa Bay Rays for over 20 years. Inevitably, I’ve had a long tenure.”

“…….”

“It’s a bit presumptuous to say this myself, but for that reason, my successor will have a very difficult time. They will be fighting against the legacy I’ve left in every area.”

Jeffrey Taylor did not object to this.

Because it was something that the 100-year history of Major League Baseball proved.

How deep a shadow does one giant cast?

And how many successors does that shadow swallow?

“Therefore, I think the person who succeeds me should be given a strong shield. A shield that can protect their intentions amidst the criticism and accusations coming from inside and outside the team.”

“That’s… the team valuation?”

Jeffrey Taylor asked.

“Achieving the team valuation, completing the last puzzle of the new stadium construction project… This fact will protect your successor?”

“Yes, that’s right.”

Brian nodded.

“Joseph Carter’s eccentric temperament is well known in the industry. The process of meeting him and negotiating will not be an easy mission at all.”

“Hmm.”

“Even if you manage to reach a negotiation result, the next step is the team valuation process. Colliding head-on with those ruthless certification company people and producing results… That is also a mission that ordinary people cannot accomplish.”

A subtle smile appeared on Brian Span’s lips.

“It’s a difficult task. It’s a challenging task. But the person who overcomes this stage will have an authority that no one can dare to challenge. They will be qualified to lead our Tampa Bay Rays from the forefront.”

“So, now is the right time, you say? Well, if you say so, I won’t object any further…”

The team owner took off his reading glasses and sat across from Brian Span.

“So, is the list of candidates out?”

The team owner asked.

“Someone who can succeed you, silence Joseph Carter, and successfully lead the team valuation… The fact that you came to me like this today means that the list of candidates is out, doesn’t it?”

“Haha, even as time passes, your intuition is still as sharp as ever, Owner.”

Brian Span, the general manager, picked up the briefcase he had placed at his feet.

Clatter. With the sound of the lock being released, he took out a piece of paper and handed it to the team owner.

“Here is the list of candidates you mentioned.”

The general manager said.

“First, I’m going to tell these friends the hotel where Joseph Carter is staying. After that, I’ll leave it to their individual skills.”

“Huh, you’ve already found out Carter’s whereabouts?”

The team owner opened his eyes wide and accepted the document.

“My, my, your information network is always amazing to see. Even those high-nosed team directors don’t seem to have a clue…”

Who could succeed such a great friend? Is there really anyone who can stand shoulder to shoulder with such a great friend?

The team owner felt a sense of regret and began to examine the documents that Brian Span had handed him.

“Hmm, R. J. Higgins? Yes, this friend should be included. Deputy General Manager Rebecca Carney is no pushover either… Hmm?!”

The team owner, who had been calmly reviewing the list, suddenly narrowed his brow and raised his head.

“Wait a minute, Brian?”

“Yes, Owner.”

“Is this list… accurate? Did you perhaps print the wrong file or something?”

Tap.

The team owner tapped the document with his finger.

“I don’t seem to see the name of a friend who should definitely be on this list?”

“Ah.”

At this point, Brian Span did not bother to ask who it was. Who should definitely be on the list. What name the team owner was thinking of.

From the beginning, Brian had anticipated that this question would come up, so he was answering with a calm expression.

“Are you talking about Kim?”

He nodded.

“Yes, I also struggled until the last moment… But I ultimately decided to exclude him from the list.”

“Excluded from the list? Not accidentally left out?”

The team owner’s reaction was one of incomprehension.

“No, why? Kim was your most trusted employee, wasn’t he? In terms of recent performance, he’s more impressive than anyone else on this list!”

“Yes, that’s right, but…”

Brian Span replied.

“There are a few things about that friend that bother me.”

“Bother you? What?”

As the team owner leaned forward and asked, the general manager sighed briefly and replied.

“First of all, his career is too short. It hasn’t even been two years since he started working as a Major League Baseball front office staff.”

“Hmm, career, huh.”

“And the fact that his official status is that of a dispatched trainee from a Korean professional baseball team also bothers me. It means he’s always thinking of returning to Korea.”

A ridiculously short career and the fact that he was affiliated with a Korean team.

Brian Span, the general manager, thought that this was reason enough, but what came back was the team owner’s hollow laughter.

“Brian, are you giving that as a reason now? Why are you being so unlike yourself?”

“Yes? What do you mean…”

As the general manager blinked, the team owner tapped him on the shoulder.

“Have you already forgotten? When you first became the general manager of the Tampa Bay Rays, you had no experience in baseball, did you? And you were much younger than Kim is now.”

“W, well, that’s true, but…”

“Besides, you’re bothered by the fact that he’s affiliated with a Korean team? No, why does that bother you?”

The team owner crossed his arms and snorted.

“Does having a goalkeeper mean you can’t score? If the fielders are guarding, does that mean no hits will come out? If the Korean team is holding onto Kim, we should start thinking about turning Kim’s heart around with better treatment and conditions!”

“Better treatment and conditions…”

“If that doesn’t work, we should be prepared to set up a negotiation table with the Korean team, shouldn’t we? To just give up on talent like Kim, since when did we become a team that can afford such luxury?”

Brian Span could only smile wryly at the team owner, who was practically ranting.

“You haven’t changed, Owner.”

“Hmm? What?”

“Your nature of not being able to leave good talent alone. If you go any further, you’ll be cutting a plane ticket to Seoul right away.”

“Of course! We’re a team that needs to secure talented front office staff. That’s how we can maintain our competitiveness!”

Brian Span, the general manager, nodded silently at the team owner’s words.

Then, loosening his tie a little, he continued.

“Even if I follow your words on the previous two points, there is actually one thing that bothers me the most.”

“Again? What is it this time?”

As the team owner snorted, Brian Span replied with a serious expression.

“Kim… He’s a little lacking in initiative compared to his abilities.”

“Hmm? What does that mean?”

“It means that he rarely shows a willingness to take the lead in situations.”

Brian Span straightened his back.

“He responds almost perfectly to the instructions given from above. He produces results that even surprise me. But he rarely takes the initiative to try something new.”

A follower rather than a leader.

That was the general manager’s diagnosis.

“It’s a bit of a harsh story, but to lead a team, you have to have the desire to take the lead in situations. You have to dislike following other people’s instructions and have the desire to lead the situation according to your own will. But Kim rarely shows such aspects…”

Brian Span clicked his tongue.

It was clearly a gesture of regret.

“Perhaps Kim may be a man suited to assisting someone. He could help John LaMar, or he could assist the friend who will succeed me.”

“Hmm, a role to assist John LaMar, huh.”

The team owner seemed to prick up his ears at these words.

Certainly, since meeting Ji-seop, John LaMar had been gradually establishing his own territory, little by little.

Although he was lacking as the next team owner, if Ji-seop helped him from the side, he might be able to manage the team skillfully.

‘It’s definitely a regrettable thing as a team owner, but as John’s father, should I say it’s a welcome thing?’

As the two top executives of the Tampa Bay Rays continued to discuss how to utilize Ji-seop.

At the very moment they were struggling over whether Ji-seop could succeed Brian Span.

Knock knock knock-

Jeffrey Taylor’s butler very carefully knocked on the door and entered.

“Oh, Peter! What’s wrong?”

“Yes, well, not next, but…”

The butler’s gaze was directed not at the team owner but at Brian Span.

“A phone call came in for Mr. Span a little while ago.”

“A phone call for me? Who is it?”

“Kim said… He said he’s the deputy general manager of the Future Strategy Planning Department.”

The butler continued.

“He said he tried to contact you several times on your cell phone, but you didn’t answer… He asked me to tell you to check your messages.”

“Kim? A message? Is something urgent?”

Brian Span, who had taken out his cell phone without much thought, exclaimed, ‘Oops!’ for a moment.

As the butler said, there were nearly twenty missed calls and messages.

“Haha, it seems like it’s really time for me to retire?”

The team owner joked.

“No, you didn’t realize even though you received so many calls? Where are you keeping your mind?”

“That’s right. I was so engrossed in the conversation with the team owner that…”

The general manager gave an embarrassed smile and hurriedly checked his messages.

And the next moment, he opened his eyes wide in surprise.

“Oh, no, what is this…”

“What’s wrong? What happened?”

“Well, Kim said…”

Even as he spoke, the general manager blinked as if he couldn’t believe it.

“He said he persuaded Joseph Carter. He said he made an appointment to meet him this weekend?”

“Joseph Carter? Are you talking about the Joseph Carter I know?”

The team owner also had a surprised expression.

“No, what’s going on? Isn’t Joseph Carter’s whereabouts only known to you? But how did Kim make an appointment with that old man?”

“That’s what I’m saying. I’ll call him right away and ask what happened.”

Brian Span, with a flustered face, searched for Ji-seop’s contact information.

It was at this moment that a subtle smile appeared on the team owner’s lips.

“But you know, Brian.”

“Yes?”

“Didn’t you say earlier? That Kim doesn’t take the initiative to lead situations. That that’s the thing that bothers you the most.”

But,

Right now-

“He did something you didn’t even tell him to do, didn’t he? Isn’t that right?”

“Something I didn’t even tell him to do… Ah, that’s right.”

They were two people who had been together for nearly 30 years.

Brian Span realized the meaning of what the team owner was saying and slowly nodded his head.

“I understand.”

He put his cell phone to his ear and continued.

“I’ll revise the list of candidates shortly.”

Meaning to include Ji-seop.