A Rookie In The Baseball Team Is Too Good [EN]: Chapter 505

506. The New Recruit is Too Good at Baseball

106. An Unexpected Guest (6)

Around 8 PM that evening.

The central hall of IMG Academy, where the U-18 Baseball World Cup Organizing Committee was located, was bustling with activity.

It was, after all, an international tournament – a grand baseball festival where teenagers from 16 countries around the world gathered.

Naturally, the tournament organizing committee was overwhelmed. They were announcing records to reporters, checking on injured players in hospitals, and finalizing game and training schedules for the next day.

Amidst the flurry of activity, a middle-aged white man with a deeply furrowed brow waved his hands dismissively.

“Damn it, this is driving me crazy.”

Brrr, brrr, brrr.

Ignoring his incessantly ringing phone by pressing the [Reject Call] button, the man glared at a young employee standing across from him.

His name was Patrick Smith, an employee of the Florida Baseball Association and the director of game operations for the tournament.

“Hey, Anna! Can’t we just gloss over this? Don’t you want to go home? I need a break too!”

“But, Mr. Smith…”

The employee called ‘Anna’ trailed off, but didn’t back down.

“Even so, isn’t it unfair to have them train on the school field? They’re here representing their countries.”

“Oh, please! Anna, let’s be realistic, okay?”

Brrr, brrr, brrr.

Director Patrick Smith irritably silenced his phone, which had started ringing again, and continued.

“Anna, you’re a Yankees fan, right?”

“Yes.”

“Okay, let’s say you have a bottle of water in your hand. A Yankees player and a Tampa Bay player both approach you, reaching out their hands. They’re really thirsty! They want water!”

Director Smith gestured wildly, putting on a show.

“You can’t divide the water equally. You can only give it to one of them. In that situation, who would you give the water to?”

“Well, normally I’d give it to the Yankees player, but…”

Anna blinked.

“These days, I think it would be okay to give it to the Tampa Bay player.”

“Huh?”

“Well, you know, Tampa Bay’s baseball is fun these days. And they’re giving our association a lot of help.”

At Anna’s words, Director Smith looked momentarily stunned, as if he’d been hit in the back of the head.

“Well, now that you mention it, that’s true…”

No, no.

The director quickly shook his head.

“No, anyway! You’d give water to the person closer to you, the more important person, right? Isn’t that right?”

“That’s right.”

“The situation is the same now. We have a limited number of fields, and there are many teams that want training grounds. So what do we do? We have no choice but to give priority to the countries that sponsor the tournament generously, like the US, Canada, and Japan!”

Got it? Do you understand?

Director Smith tried to wrap up the argument, but Anna didn’t give in easily.

“But Mr. Smith, if a Major League player came and asked for water, I’d choose one of them, but… if young students come, shouldn’t the choice change a bit?”

“Damn it, what are you trying to say again?”

“In that case, instead of choosing one of them, it’s right to buy more water.”

Anna said very firmly.

“This World Cup is a tournament for kids who love baseball, right? It’s a tournament held for the purpose of them training, playing games, and making friends to their hearts’ content.”

“…”

“So, instead of just making excuses that there are no fields, shouldn’t we adults find a way to get them a field somehow? Buy more water!”

“No, do you know how annoying it is to secure a field? Anna, you’ve been criticized enough so far… Huh?!”

Ring, ring, ring.

The phone on the desk rang loudly at that moment.

It seemed that after Smith turned off his cell phone, the caller had switched to a landline.

The sound was so loud that everyone’s attention was drawn to it. Director Smith had no choice but to sigh and pick up the receiver.

“Ah, what is it!!!”

It seemed that the stress he had accumulated from the conversation was being directed at the call.

“What the hell is going on? Why are you bothering me so much! What? Where?”

At the report from the other party, Director Smith clicked his tongue, dumbfounded.

“The Korean national team what? Just make up something and send them away! How many times do I have to say it to get it right… Huh?!”

W-Who’s coming?!

It was at this moment that Director Patrick Smith froze in his spot.

His eyes were wide open, cold sweat dripped down his face, and he looked momentarily flustered.

Anna, who was standing across from him, as well as the other employees, tilted their heads at his strange behavior.

“W-Welcome!!!”

He shouted.

“Quickly, guide them to this office… No! Guide them to the VIP lounge! Huh? What did you say?”

The next moment, everyone on the organizing committee was surprised and looked up.

“Hey, buddy! Of course, you should bring the people who came with him there too!”

Director Smith shouted very loudly.

“What, were you just going to bring Kim to the VIP lounge alone?!”

* * *

About ten minutes later.

Jisub was in the tournament organizing committee’s VIP lounge with officials from the Korea Baseball Association.

The decision to have a conversation in a quiet place was intended to be helpful, but it was quickly becoming a meaningless gesture.

Around the VIP lounge, tournament organizing committee employees were crowded, forming a long line.

They were whispering among themselves, taking pictures with their cell phones, and some were holding pens and balls, perhaps hoping to get autographs.

“…”

Looking at the noisy atmosphere, Jisub opened his mouth with a wry smile.

“If I had known this would happen, I should have brought some autographed balls from the players… It’s a bit embarrassing to come empty-handed.”

“Yes? No, no!”

The person waving his hands was Director Patrick Smith.

“Gifts? What gifts are you talking about? It’s an honor that Mr. Kim visited the organizing committee at all.”

Isn’t that right?

Director Smith looked at the employee sitting next to him and smiled brightly.

That employee had a look on his face that said, ‘Why is this guy acting like this?’

“I’m old, so I can’t help it… But most of the young people working in our association dream of working in Major League Baseball. On the front office side, of course.”

“I think I saw quite a few people with association experience during the last internship recruitment.”

“Right? If you’re okay with it later, please answer a few questions. That alone would be a great gift…”

As he continued, Director Smith looked at Jisub with a slightly embarrassed expression.

“But I didn’t know Mr. Kim would be coming as the acting head of the Korean national team… I’m a little out of the loop, I guess.”

“Haha, that’s what I’m saying. I’m a bit flustered too.”

Jisub scratched the back of his head.

“There were special instructions from our CEO, and many of the people who usually help me are involved with this Korean national team.”

“Oh, is that so? Haha, the baseball world is small, both in Korea and the United States. It seems everyone knows each other through just one connection.”

Watching Director Smith smile, Jisub was secretly timing when to bring up the main point.

The Korean national team was facing several difficulties, but the most pressing issue was the training ground.

He had gathered some information and had a good solution. Now he was going to address them one by one.

[Damn it, this has become difficult. I didn’t know there was such a big shot supporting the Korean national team.]

The thought came from the director.

Jisub decided to observe the situation for a while.

[Wait a minute, can we refuse Mr. Kim’s request? We’ve received a lot of help from him, and we’ll receive a lot of support in the future, right?]

The director was racking his brain tremendously in a short period of time.

[If it’s just a phone call, it’s one thing, but since he came in person, we have no choice but to show our sincerity. Okay, if we can’t refuse Mr. Kim’s proposal anyway…]

Swish.

The director raised his head.

“Mr. Kim, did you come because of the Korean national team’s training ground issue? Or the accommodation? Or are you worried about the tendency of the referee assigned to the next game?”

“Yes, of course, I think the most urgent issue is the training ground…”

Jisub looked around at the people from the Korea Baseball Association sitting on either side of him, and then smiled slyly.

“If appropriate solutions are given to the remaining problems, I think our players will be very happy.”

* * *

According to people in the amateur baseball world, international competitions are truly a march of hardship.

First of all, they struggle to communicate. It’s not just a linguistic problem, but a cultural one. Nothing is resolved quickly, and any request is met with delays.

Then, the localism that exists everywhere rears its head, the problem of insufficient funds arises, and even minor misunderstandings with the local people accumulate, making it only a matter of time before the tournament is negatively impacted.

Originally, this U-18 Baseball World Cup was also headed down a similar path.

However, the national team players who arrived at the training ground on a large bus the next morning were wide-eyed.

“Wow, coach! What is this place? Is this a Major League stadium?”

“Hey, what are you talking about! Tropicana Field is far away from here!”

“Oh, that’s right. St… something, right? Then what is this place? Why are the facilities so good?!”

The players’ reaction was perhaps natural.

Thanks to the consideration of the tournament organizing committee, including Director Smith, the national team was able to use the practice field of a minor league club based in Bradenton that day.

Bradenton Marauders, a Single-A team under the Pittsburgh Pirates [Single-A is the fourth tier in the minor league baseball system].

While the players were looking around the ground with excited faces, Jisub was on the phone with someone.

“Oh, thank you so much anyway! I will never forget the consideration you gave me this time. Of course, I’ll buy you something delicious when you come to Tropicana Field! I think the away schedule was set for next month… Right? Yes, yes.”

Thank you! Goodbye!

Coach Ahn Youngchan spoke to Jisub, who was returning to the dugout after finishing the call.

“Who was that?”

He had a curious expression on his face.

“Was it that guy named Smith? From the tournament organizing committee?”

“No, I called Mr. Smith earlier… It was someone from the Pittsburgh club just now.”

Jisub put his cell phone in his jacket pocket and continued.

“The tournament organizing committee handled the negotiations, but I thought we should express our gratitude directly.”

“Wow, a man with the phone number of people from the Pittsburgh club on his phone… Amazing.”

When Coach Ahn poked him in the side with his finger, Jisub stepped aside, making an ‘Ehey’ sound.

“Senior, how is it? Is there anything lacking in training? Please tell me if you have any other requests.”

“Hey, no requests! I feel like I’m dreaming right now.”

Coach Ahn had a satisfied expression.

“The ground condition is good, the pitching machine is working well… Look at the kids, they’re going crazy – like puppies released in a snowfield.”

“Haha, I’m glad everyone likes it.”

Even though it was a minor league facility, it was still used by Major League prospects. The players, who couldn’t possibly be unaware of its significance, couldn’t hide their excitement.

They were jumping on the grass, taking pictures next to the fence with the club logo, and picking up balls rolling on the floor and making a fuss.

Then, at the captain’s word, the players gathered with serious expressions and began to warm up on their own.

One! Two! Three! Four!

Two! Two! Three! Four!

Watching the players doing their own training, a happy smile spread across Jisub’s face.

“Special Advisor Kim, thank you. And… honestly, I was really surprised.”

Coach Ahn Youngchan tapped Jisub on the shoulder and said.

“I heard it from the staff. You didn’t say a word, right? They said that the tournament organizing committee set everything up on their own because you came?”

“Hey, I didn’t say a word. I just laid the groundwork to create a positive atmosphere.”

“It’s amazing that it can be done with just groundwork, buddy.”

Coach Ahn looked like he was even more proud of him.

“It feels like just the other day we were working together at the Cannons [A baseball team], but you’re already in a position to be recognized by Americans… Oh, how much your head must have hurt, huh? And how much you must have suffered.”

“Hehe, why are you going so far?”

Jisub just smiled.

“Anyway, that means… you’re satisfied, right? You have to give Vice Chairman Park Hongjoo a good report later?”

That’s right. The important thing was Sakhalin Park [A nickname for Park Hongjoo].

Wasn’t everything prepared with the single thought of avoiding a scolding from that old man?

So, he was urging Coach Ahn to put on a show, and just then…

“Hey, Qingtao [Jisub’s nickname]! Why are you bothering Coach Ahn so much? It’s time for Coach Ahn to guide the players!”

A voice came from behind.

Jisub, surprised, turned his head and saw a bright smile on his face.

“Ah, Vice Chairman!”

“Oh, have you been well?”

Sakhalin Park, Vice Chairman Park Hongjoo.