A Rookie In The Baseball Team Is Too Good [EN]: Chapter 497

The Freshman on the Baseball Team is Too Good 497

105 The Major League Promised (1)

The day the upper deck of the third floor of Tropicana Field was opened.

The day 45,369 spectators filled the stadium.

And above all, the day the Tampa Bay Rays’ new stadium construction was officially announced in front of so many people.

The heat of that night,

didn’t subside easily.

Wow!!!

The final score was 9-3.

Even after the game ended with Tampa Bay’s victory, the atmosphere around Tropicana Field was electric.

It felt like the excitement was building as the game ended. People leaving the stadium sang loudly and headed to nearby bars.

“Wow, this is amazing! It’s a truly amazing night! I don’t know when I’ve felt this good!”

“Haha, I know! They’re building a new stadium! Shouldn’t we make today a 기념일 [ginyeomil – anniversary/special day] for our Cowbell Boys?”

“Wow, a new stadium! The story I heard when I was a kid is finally coming true!”

Tropicana Field. It was a problem that had frustrated Tampa Bay fans for a long time.

How many times had they heard it? When they said they supported the Tampa Bay Rays, that story followed them like a shadow.

-I heard your home stadium is a mess? The facilities are terrible, and the transportation is inconvenient! That’s why there are no spectators and no popularity, right?

It was a story they all knew. The fans knew it too. But isn’t it up to me to criticize the team I support?

People who weren’t usually interested criticized as if they were officials from the Florida Baseball Association, and I couldn’t refute them properly, so I just seethed inside for a long time.

But now that frustrating time was over.

A new stadium is being built. A great stadium, an amazing stadium. And a new era for the Tampa Bay Rays is dawning with that stadium.

“Cheers!”

“Cheers!!”

“Damn it, let’s go all the way tonight!!!”

People’s faces were flushed red, and they clinked their large beer glasses so hard that the beer overflowed.

As they gulped down beer like a herd of whales, some tables seemed to have conversations like this.

“But you know, shouldn’t Jeffrey or Brian have made today’s official announcement…?”

It wasn’t easy for the team staff, but the fans casually called the owner and general manager by their first names like friends.

“Well, that’s usually the case, but… what was his name, Kim? That Asian guy said earlier? The two of them attended the city council meeting.”

“That’s right! That’s the part that’s strange to me!”

It seemed that there were people among the fans who had sharp reasoning skills.

“It’s less than a 5-minute drive from here to city hall! They could have come if they wanted to. But the fact that they entrusted it to that Asian guy means…”

“Hmm?!”

“Huh?!”

A feeling of having taken a step closer to a secretly hidden truth.

Just as the fans were putting aside the beer they were drinking and taking out their cell phones to search for the name ‘Kim’-

“Then we’ll be leaving, Chairman.”

The two people who threw a clear ‘message’ to Tampa Bay fans that day.

Team owner Jeffrey Taylor and general manager Brian Spon were leaving St. Petersburg City Hall.

“As you said earlier… I’ll take you to the general manager’s house first.”

“Okay, sure. Thanks for your hard work.”

The team owner nodded lightly to the driver and spoke to the general manager sitting next to him.

“As you said… he was amazing.”

“Yes?”

“Kim, I mean. The future strategy planning division.”

The team owner stroked his chin.

“MVP chants, haven’t you ever received one either? Whether it’s from the players or the team staff.”

“That’s right, I haven’t.”

The general manager smiled.

“Actually, I couldn’t have imagined it in the first place. The front office is just the front office, but in reality, they’re the people who move behind the scenes, aren’t they?”

“Hmm.”

“Besides, there’s always a subtle tension between the players and the front office… so an MVP chant that starts with their lead is even more of a dream.”

“Huh, it seems like you’ve done something even more amazing. Your…”

Swoosh.

The team owner turned his head.

“Brian, your ‘successor’ that you had in mind.”

“Haha, well. His position is so firm that I can’t say it’s 100% confirmed yet…”

The general manager showed a habit of taking a step back, but it didn’t last long.

“Now that things have come to this, we can’t delay it any longer. We need to make it a fait accompli as soon as possible.”

“Are you confident?”

The team owner asked playfully.

“Lama said that Kim… is very strong? He said he’s not the type to be easily swayed by other people’s words.”

“I know. It’s definitely a difficult task. But isn’t that why I’m getting a high salary from the team owner?”

Team owner, don’t forget.

The general manager smiled.

“I’m Brian Spon, remember?”

He continued.

“Right now, I’m just applauding Kim’s performance… but I was once called a genius, wasn’t I? I was once considered one of the best deal makers in the major league.”

Deal maker.

A person who has the talent to plan things.

General Manager Brian Spon seemed determined to use all the means at his disposal.

* * *

After the Tampa Bay Rays’ new stadium construction was announced, Jisub couldn’t concentrate on his work for a while.

It was perhaps natural. It was surprising that he was in charge of the official announcement, but the MVP chants came out during the national broadcast.

Interest in the Tampa Bay Rays’ Asian deputy general manager skyrocketed, and naturally, Jisub’s cell phone went dead once again.

“Oh, it was a mess.”

The storm-like atmosphere subsided to some extent about three days after the official announcement.

It was then that Jisub was able to comfortably receive a congratulatory call from his KH Cannons teammate, Go Changdeok.

-I was watching the broadcast on TV and was surprised! Wow, I can’t believe I saw a face I knew on American TV!

It had already been a few days, but Go Changdeok still sounded like he was walking in a dream.

-It seems like the atmosphere in the United States has calmed down a bit? Oh, it’s still the same here! Our PR team is still working overtime!

“The PR team is… why?”

Go Changdeok chuckled at Jisub’s question.

-Hey, isn’t it obvious? A team employee from our Cannons went to the major league and made the official announcement of the new stadium construction! So who would the reporters contact first? Our PR team, right?

In fact, it was said that it was originally an event that would have been handled simply with a short news article.

It’s not a player, it’s the front office. The public’s interest is low. It wasn’t a matter that sports media would focus on.

But it seemed that a post on the KH Cannons fan site became a hot topic among baseball fans.

-I think one of our fans recognized your face.

Go Changdeok continued.

-These days, the kids have amazing eyes, don’t they? They searched all the photos on the team’s website and found your face!

From his days with the Cannons to his time with the Boston Red Sox and now with the Tampa Bay Rays.

It was a post that organized his career by finding Jisub, who appeared in small photos here and there in the team’s promotional photos.

-An employee who was with the Cannons until just a few years ago is now the deputy general manager of the major league, so people can’t help but be interested! Oh, I heard that you have an entry on the Sprout Wiki?

“Sprout Wiki… you mean the Wiki site?”

-That’s right!

It was from this point that Go Changdeok’s nagging began.

He told him to review the contents of the Wiki site and to change the photo to a better one.

Go Changdeok was more excited and poured out various suggestions, but in fact, Jisub’s interest was in a slightly different place at this time.

“Okay. I’ll take a look later. But more than that…”

“Hmm?”

“How is the situation with the Cannons’ new stadium…?”

This was what Jisub was curious about.

“It seems like the full-scale construction has been underway for quite some time, but since then, there have been few media reports.”

* * *

About 30 minutes later.

Jisub was heading to Brian Spon’s office after receiving a call from General Manager Brian Spon.

There was a board meeting of the Tampa Bay Rays that day. He said there were a few things to discuss regarding the decisions made at the meeting.

“…”

While waiting for the elevator button to be pressed, Jisub was thinking about the story he had heard from Go Changdeok earlier.

‘Hmm, I see. The construction is progressing smoothly as planned, right?’

The new stadium was scheduled to be completed at the end of next year.

The KH Cannons were also scheduled to start the season in the new stadium from the year after next.

Jisub was relieved to hear the news from his former team.

‘It’s a good thing I got some attention from the Korean media this time… If that wasn’t the case, I almost wouldn’t have been able to keep my promise with the vice chairman?’

The promise with ‘Sakhalin Park’ Vice Chairman Park Hongju.

When the Cannons’ new stadium is built, he wanted him to take office as the new general manager.

Of course, there was a condition. He had to become someone that anyone would nod their head to.

He had to return to Korea as someone with skills, experience, and reputation.

‘I’ve been recognized in Tampa Bay to some extent, and the Korean media is paying attention to me… Shouldn’t I be considered qualified enough?’

He felt a little lacking.

Because the other party was Sakhalin Park.

Then, as Go Changdeok said, should he add more to the Wiki site entry?

Would it be better to appeal his existence to Korean baseball fans in that way?

While thinking about that, he knocked ‘knock, knock’ and entered General Manager Brian Spon’s office-

“Hmm?!”

Jisub’s eyes widened.

The person waiting for Jisub inside was not Brian Spon.

“Mr. Higgins?”

R. J. Higgins.

He was the vice president of marketing for the Tampa Bay Rays.

“Is it just Mr. Higgins? I came here after receiving a call from the president…”

“Ah, yes! The president has an urgent schedule and is away. He said he probably won’t be able to come in today.”

“Is that so? Hmm…”

Jisub clicked his tongue.

He came after receiving a call, but he couldn’t find the person himself.

Should he contact the general manager? Just as he was about to take out his cell phone, it happened.

“No, you don’t need to contact the president separately. Today, I… this R. J. Higgins will guide Kim.”

“Mr. Higgins will?”

Jisub tilted his head.

“More than that, guide… Where are you going to guide me? You wouldn’t be guiding me to Tropicana Field.”

“Haha, right? Kim knows more about Tropicana Field than I do.”

Smirk.

It was at this moment that a strange smile appeared on Vice President Higgins’ lips.

“The final conclusion was reached at the board meeting a little while ago. What kind of reward will be given to Kim, who led this new stadium construction project.”

“A reward?”

Jisub’s eyebrows twitched.

“Wow, that’s good news, but… I can’t easily guess. Is there a reward that requires a separate guide?”

“Hehehe, you’ll be surprised.”

Vice President Higgins said, twirling his car keys.

“Kim, is it true that there is a saying in Korea? The creator made this world, but above that…”

Above that,

what is there?