A Rookie In The Baseball Team Is Too Good [EN]: Chapter 53

The Newcomer in the Baseball Team is Too Good – Episode 53

Chapter 16: Throw with All Your Might to the Center (1)

KH Cannons, facing the opening of the season.

Experts considered KH Cannons to be among the ‘Bottom 3′ of the 10 professional baseball teams in Korea.

-Is there any need to explain further? KH Cannons finished 8th last season.

-Fortunately, there were no FA [Free Agent] player departures, but aside from replacing foreign players, there were no significant improvements to the team.

-Appointing a foreign coach for the first time in the team’s history is noteworthy… but ultimately, it’s the players who play on the field, right?

The team wasn’t strong to begin with, and there were no significant reinforcements.

They put in effort during spring training, but every team does that.

So, the general consensus was that KH Cannons’ performance this season wouldn’t be anything special.

But surprisingly…

When the season actually started, KH Cannons began to show a remarkably good early performance.

Strike!

Strike, batter out!!

The ‘Man of the Opening Game’ was starting pitcher Jimmy Morris.

The Cannons’ foreign player who had been causing headaches by broadcasting online during spring training.

Now completely integrated into the team, he showcased a fastball with a top speed of 152 km/h in the opening game, pitching a fantastic game with 12 strikeouts, 3 hits, and no runs allowed in 8 innings.

Crack!

Craaaack!

Ryujangho stood out in the second game of the season.

The Cannons’ ‘genius hitter’ who had been struggling with a severe slump since the second half of last season.

Having become a more seasoned hitter through this spring training, he showed a terrifying performance with 4 hits in 5 at-bats, 2 home runs, and 7 RBIs, including a walk-off hit in the bottom of the 10th inning.

Although they missed the victory in the third game due to the bullpen’s instability, they showed a stable performance in both pitching and hitting in the next game, regaining the victory.

-KH Cannons’ early pace is very good. The winning streak isn’t long, but the absence of losing streaks is remarkable, isn’t it?

-That’s right. The starting pitching is somewhat stable, and the harmony between new players and veteran players is quite good.

-KH Cannons, who declared ‘winning the Korean Series [championship series of the KBO League] within 3 years’ by appointing a foreign coach for the first time in the team’s history last season! I’m looking forward to seeing if this good momentum can continue!

Recording 6 wins, 3 losses, and 1 draw in the first 10 games of the season, ranking 2nd in the mid-season standings.

When they won the first two games in the subsequent 3-game series against Geosan Mariners, Cannons fans began to stir with excitement.

-Wait a minute, if we win today, and the Dragons lose in Changwon……

-W-we……

-We’re going up to 1st place, right?!

It might have been a common occurrence for other teams’ fans, but for Cannons fans, it was the first time in 12 years to face ‘1st place in the mid-season standings’.

Coincidentally, the starting pitcher that day was ‘Ace’ Jimmy Morris, so the ‘ascent to the top’ (in the mid-season standings) after 12 years was considered as good as guaranteed, but at that moment-

Craaaaaack!!!

Around 9:20 PM that day, a refreshing sound of batting that erupted from Sajik Baseball Stadium in Busan plunged Cannons fans into the depths of despair.

-This hit is high! And very far! The outfielders are already standing still, and eventually, it goes over the fence!!! Walk-off home run!!!

A three-run walk-off home run.

KH Cannons’ closer Kim Jung-gyu’s fourth blown save of the season.

It was a time when the weaknesses of the Cannons, which had been hidden by the good early performance, were beginning to be exposed one by one.

* * *

Perhaps it was only natural,

That night, the internet community of KH Cannons fans was like a battlefield.

-Is this what you call baseball, you sons of bitches!

-No, why do you put a closer who can’t even protect a 2-point lead in the closer position?!

-Is Kim Jung-gyu a professional baseball player or a professional mukbang [online eating broadcast] streamer? How many games has that bastard ruined!

-Kim Jung-gyu is Kim Jung-gyu, but what are we going to do with our catcher? How many times is he going to let Kim Jung-gyu’s forkball pass him, damn it……

Perhaps the disappointment was inevitable because the expectations were so high.

The fans’ outcry was so great that the internet community was about to explode.

As it was the director’s interpreter’s job to understand the fans’ sentiments, Ji-seop was looking at the bulletin board, ‘click, click,’ with a can of beer in front of him.

How long had he been observing the bulletin board like that, for about 30 minutes?

With a ‘ding’ sound, the hotel door opened, and a familiar voice was heard.

“Ji-seop, are you still awake?”

The owner of the voice was Go Chang-deok.

Ji-seop’s colleague who joined the company at the same time, and the person who accompanied the first-team squad this season as part of the power analysis team.

Perhaps because it was right after such a dramatic defeat, the power analysis team’s meeting was a little longer than usual.

“Yes, is the meeting over?”

“Yeah, roughly. When did you guys finish?”

“We finished about an hour ago……”

“What did they say on your side?”

Since they belonged to different departments, the meetings that Ji-seop and Go Chang-deok attended were also different.

Ji-seop was at the coaching staff meeting hosted by Arthur Freeman.

Go Chang-deok was at the power analysis team meeting hosted by the power analysis team leader.

However, on this day, the topics covered in both meetings would have been the same, so it was understandable that they were curious about each other’s perspectives.

“On our side… Coach Do Jin-cheol was raising his voice until the end of the meeting.”

“Coach Do Jin-cheol… the first-team pitching coach?”

“Yes.”

Ji-seop continued, fixing his gaze on the monitor screen.

“Kim Jung-gyu is currently training his slider. If the power of the slider increases just a little more, he will be able to control the forkball that he can’t control. Just give him time until then.”

“Hmm, so Coach Do Jin-cheol is focusing on the slider…”

Go Chang-deok, nodding with a ‘I knew it’ expression, turned his gaze to Ji-seop.

“Ji-seop, what do you think?”

“About what?”

“Kim Jung-gyu. Is it a reasonable choice to equip him with a slider at this point?”

“Well, even if it’s not reasonable, isn’t it the obvious next step?”

Ji-seop prided himself on being an expert when it came to knowledge of changeups.

Because he was the one who had tried every changeup to compensate for his fastball with a top speed of 128 km/h.

From Ji-seop’s point of view, adding a slider wasn’t a bad choice.

“Forkballs are difficult to control… and in the first place, it’s not a good pitch for a closer to use.”

The forkball was a ball that flew like a fastball and then ‘hooked’ and sank right in front of home plate.

To deceive the batter, it had to be controlled low enough to bounce once on the ground.

Of course, there was always a risk that the catcher wouldn’t be able to catch it properly, so it wasn’t a recommended pitch for closers who had to protect a narrow lead.

“On the other hand, sliders are relatively easy to control, and above all, they are pitches that are less likely to be missed by the catcher.”

In this game, the impact of the ‘reverse walk-off three-run home run’ was so great, but if you think about it, the catcher contributed to the crisis by dropping Kim Jung-gyu’s forkball.

If closer Kim Jung-gyu could develop a reliable slider, Ji-seop thought that he could avoid a game like today.

However, Go Chang-deok seemed to have a slightly different idea from Ji-seop.

“I also think the slider isn’t bad. The problem is… Kim Jung-gyu’s slider is too ordinary.”

“…Is that so?”

“It’s already been 2-3 years. And Coach Do Jin-cheol wasn’t the first to try to teach Kim Jung-gyu a slider.”

Go Chang-deok scratched his chin.

“Baseball players all think the same thing, right? Everyone thought of the slider, and they tried to develop it… but no matter what they did, they couldn’t get the quality to use it in a real game.”

“Heh heh, he must lack the knack for it.”

Ji-seop took a ‘gulp’ of the remaining beer in the can with a bitter smile.

It was right after Ji-seop put down the can that he looked at Go Chang-deok, saying, ‘So?’

“Hmm?”

“So, what is your opinion, hyung [older brother or male friend]?”

On the outside, he had a gentle, bear-like impression, but from what he had experienced so far, Go Chang-deok was hiding something in that round belly.

He wasn’t the kind of person who would just ramble on about Kim Jung-gyu without a deeper reason.

“Because you have some other idea about Kim Jung-gyu… isn’t that why you’re giving me such a long introduction?”

“Heh heh, is it that obvious?”

Go Chang-deok smiled bashfully and pulled the backpack he had brought towards him.

“Actually, if you want to be precise, it’s not my opinion… it’s just that there’s one plan that our power analysis team has been consistently advocating since last year.”

He added that it was only an argument, and it had never been discussed in the coaching staff meeting even once.

“What… is it?”

Kim Jung-gyu, the fixed closer of KH Cannons.

A way to resolve his chronic control anxiety.

Ji-seop, who was intrigued, got off the chair and gave a look that said, ‘Tell me quickly,’ but for some reason, Go Chang-deok kept adding preambles.

“It may sound a bit absurd. Especially to someone like you who has actually played baseball.”

“Yes, I understand.”

“Don’t get too excited. You have to listen to my explanation slowly first. Got it?”

“I said I understand? How many times are you going to say it?”

What on earth is he trying to say that he’s being so hesitant about?

Ji-seop chuckled in vain, but Go Chang-deok opened his mouth with a serious expression.

“To put it simply, it’s this. Let’s break away from the fixed idea that the forkball must be thrown low so that it bounces once on the ground.”

“Then? Where are you going to throw it?”

The next moment, Ji-seop could guess why this plan hadn’t been brought up to the coaching staff meeting after all.

“In the center.”

“Yes?”

“If Kim Jung-gyu can throw the forkball in the center, he will be able to improve significantly… that’s the conclusion of our power analysis team.”

“…Are you kidding me?”

Ji-seop was dumbfounded.

“A forkball in the center? Even though the forkball is a ball that doesn’t travel as far as other balls… if you throw it into the center, it will only be an easy pitch for the opposing batters, right?”

“That’s right. But if you add one important fact here… Ji-seop, your thoughts may change a little.”

The following words were a bit out of the blue.

“Let me ask you one thing, Ji-seop. Since KH was founded, has there ever been a player who won the home run title?”

“Home run title? I don’t think there was a home run title…”

“What’s the reason? It’s not like there were no hitters who were considered strong hitters at all.”

“That’s because the outfield of KH Cannons Field is as wide as Jamsil Baseball Stadium [known for its large outfield]… Ah.”

Ji-seop could roughly grasp what Go Chang-deok was aiming for.