A Rookie In The Baseball Team Is Too Good [EN]: Chapter 92

The Baseball Team’s Newbie Is Too Good – Episode 92

#The Baseball Team’s Newbie Is Too Good Episode 92

Chapter 26: How to Increase Views (2)

A person obsessed with views.

Reporter Hwang Young-joo, nicknamed ‘Jo Mi,’ said,

“It’s a light interview piece.”

She said with the sweetest smile.

“I thought it would be good to share with readers what Kim Ji-seop experienced while preparing for this home run derby.”

But she wouldn’t have known.

That the KH Cannons’ manager’s interpreter could read other people’s minds.

[KH Cannons… Their performance is so good this season that any article related to this team is guaranteed to get views.]

That was the voice Ji-seop heard when he stared ‘intently’ into Hwang’s eyes.

[But the reasons why the Cannons are doing well, Manager Freeman’s leadership… There are already too many articles like that, right?]

[To get more guaranteed views… Right now, we need an exposé about the internal problems of the Cannons.]

[Conflicts between the foreign manager and the Korean coaches, or the subtle tensions between veteran players and rookies…]

Unaware that Ji-seop was quietly laughing inside, Hwang’s mind raced.

[Kim Ji-seop, was it? If I can win this guy over, I can get a decent story out of him.]

[Someone who has never been able to cross the threshold into the pros… He must be desperate to have his name in an article, so he won’t be able to refuse my request, right?]

A trick so obvious.

Ji-seop’s answer was:

“Ah, I see.”

Whether he could do the interview or not.

It wasn’t a problem that needed a long argument.

“In that case… Reporter, could you please submit a formal interview request through the team’s PR team?”

“…An interview request?”

Oh, look at this guy?

‘Hwang Jo Mi’s’ expression was exactly like that.

* * *

During his time working for the baseball team, Ji-seop realized one thing.

Whatever the problem, it’s better to leave it to a ‘professional’.

Problems with a pitcher are better left to the pitching coach, and problems with a batter are better left to the hitting coach.

‘In the same vein, it would be best to leave problems with reporters to the PR team.’

With that thought, Ji-seop said, ‘Please contact the PR team’—but-

“Ah, so that’s what happened?”

Even to the PR team, who could be said to be experts in media relations, the existence of ‘view-obsessed person’ Reporter Hwang Young-joo was quite troublesome.

That was the word from Kwon Dae-woong, the deputy manager of the KH Cannons PR team.

“You did well. No matter how minor the coverage, it’s our policy to go through our PR team first.”

You did well, you did well.

Deputy Manager Kwon Dae-woong nodded.

However, unlike the words coming out of his mouth, a shadow was cast over his round face.

With a long sigh of ‘Hoo’ added to this, Ji-seop, who was next to him, couldn’t help but ask.

“Deputy Manager, what’s wrong?”

“Hmm?”

“You don’t look so good.”

“Ah, it’s because of Hwang Jo Mi.”

Kwon scratched his head ‘roughly’.

“Actually, this isn’t the first time. It’s not the first time Hwang has asked us for coverage.”

The answer came back that it was already the fifth time since last month.

The subjects of the coverage were also very diverse, ranging from Manager Arthur Freeman to General Manager Seo Chang-gi, Operations Team Leader Park Sang-woo, and veteran catcher Cheon Jin-woo.

“The superficial content of the coverage is an interview looking back on the first half of the season… But we’re not stupid.”

The opponent is ‘Hwang Jo Mi’.

Kwon Dae-woong seemed to have similar thoughts to Ji-seop about what she wanted.

“Isn’t it obvious? Isn’t she the type of person who will only dig relentlessly into whether there are any problems inside the Cannons?”

“Ah.”

“So I refused everything. All the coverage requests that have come in so far.”

After hearing the story up to this point, Ji-seop also had a vague idea.

“But there’s a limit to continuing to refuse like this… Is that roughly the situation?”

“Maybe?”

Kwon shrugged his shoulders.

“People on our front office side hate Hwang Jo Mi, but the evaluation in the field isn’t bad.”

“…”

“Some managers only take calls from Hwang. There’s even a rumor that one team’s general manager has drinks with Hwang every month.”

The story is that she is a person who has firmly established her own ‘territory’ in the baseball world.

It was added that if you continue to refuse such a person’s coverage request, problems may arise among other reporters later on.

Because reporters are bound to take the side of the same reporter.

“So I’m a little worried. I have to accept a coverage request at some point, but I don’t know when the timing should be…”

Deputy Manager Kwon Dae-woong seemed to be lost in thought with a serious expression.

It was the very next moment that he sent a subtle look to Ji-seop.

“Hey… Ji-seop?”

“Yes?”

“Do you still do it these days? Translating articles posted on the Internet into English and delivering them to the manager…”

“I do.”

When Ji-seop nodded, Deputy Manager Kwon’s expression became even more subtle.

“Isn’t it cumbersome? I heard that you sometimes translate posts on internet communities.”

“It takes a lot of time. It’s not something I’m used to.”

“Right?”

Kwon Dae-woong pointed to himself with his finger and continued.

“I… I majored in English.”

Ji-seop didn’t ask why he was suddenly bringing up his college major.

He just smiled slightly and held up three fingers.

“Three months.”

“Wouldn’t two months… be possible?”

“You can look for someone else.”

“…”

Kwon Dae-ri [Deputy Manager] pondered for a moment.

He nodded as if he had given up.

“…Three months, deal.”

* * *

Ji-seop, who agreed to a solo interview in exchange for handing over the job of translating newspaper articles for three months.

It was three days later that he came face to face with the person in question, ‘Jo Mi’ Hwang Young-joo.

“Oh, Ji-seop! Why is it so hard to see your face? Am I going to eat you? Am I going to eat you?!”

Even though this was only their second meeting, Reporter Hwang Young-joo patted Ji-seop on the shoulder and acted friendly.

“Of course, I also had the purpose of writing an article about me… But honestly, I didn’t have a heart to help Ji-seop?”

“…Is that so?”

“Oh, of course! Is that even a question!”

Reporter Hwang made a fuss.

“The position of manager’s interpreter is a bit like that, right? You’re getting recognized and treated well now. But what happens when Manager Freeman steps down? Then our Ji-seop… could become a duck adrift on the Nakdong River [a Korean river, implying being lost and without direction].”

That wasn’t wrong.

It was also something that Arthur Freeman usually said like a habit.

“So you have to promote your existence whenever you have the chance. There is an interpreter named Kim Ji-seop in the Cannons! You have to ‘engrave’ this in people’s minds. If you ask the PR team every time like this, you’ll really regret it later.”

Just in time, the ‘buzzing’ sound was heard.

Reporter Hwang picked up the cafe’s vibrating bell and stood up.

“I’ll get the coffee and come back. Just a moment!”

Reporter Hwang walked away with quick steps.

A bitter smile was already forming on Ji-seop’s face as he looked at her back.

‘Hehe, it’s just as Kwon said.’

At first, they will act friendly.

They will pretend to be helping the other person.

That was the advice that Kwon, the person in charge of media relations for KH Cannons, gave to Ji-seop.

‘And what follows is… a very subtle leading question, right?’

You clearly thought you were talking about the topic ‘A’, but when you come to your senses, you find yourself talking about ‘B’.

There have been more than one or two people who have fallen for this trick and created ‘exclusive articles’ for Reporter Hwang.

It was a truly scary story for the baseball team’s front office, who had to be very careful, but it was not something that applied to Ji-seop.

‘Well, I have a solution.’

Ji-seop looked at Reporter Hwang, who was returning with two iced Americanos with a relaxed expression.

“Well, shall we start?”

Reporter Hwang Young-joo, who was sitting across from Ji-seop, took a ‘slurp’ of her coffee and continued.

“I originally wanted to hear the story about the home run race… But by the time I waited for permission from their PR team, the timing was too late?”

Reporter Hwang Young-joo changed the interview topic she had originally put forward with just one word.

Ji-seop laughed inwardly, ‘She’s really a slippery person’.

“We can’t write an article about something that has already passed… I’ll ask you about what our Ji-seop is doing.”

“Please do.”

Ji-seop answered while ‘crunching’ the ice in his iced Americano.

Of course, his gaze was fixed exactly on ‘Hwang Jo Mi’s’ eyes.

“I heard that you were a player until last season, but suddenly you started working as Arthur Freeman’s interpreter this season…”

Squeak.

Reporter Hwang adjusted her glasses.

“Being the ears and mouth of the manager… How is it? I think it must be a very burdensome and difficult task.”

It was at this moment that Ji-seop was inwardly surprised by the reporter named Hwang Young-joo.

‘……Wow.’

It was an ordinary question.

It was an extremely ordinary question to hear.

However, when he stared ‘intently’ into Hwang’s eyes, an unexpected flow unfolded.

[She’ll probably say it’s hard. Everyone in the world thinks their job is the hardest.]

The voice that Ji-seop heard in his ear.

[If you ask what’s difficult, the answers that will come out are the difference in baseball terms, the difference in nuances, and…]

The difference between Korean and American baseball culture.

Hwang’s head was spinning quickly.

[If I ask for specific examples, she’ll try to gloss over it with a laugh, right? Or she’ll bring up trivial stories about the players. But if I put the pitcher change that happened the week before last on the table…]

Her gaze turned to Ji-seop.

[The discord between Manager Freeman and the Korean coaches that is being raised in some parts of the baseball world… I’ll be able to start talking about this.]

It’s not difficult to start the story, but once it’s started, it’s not difficult to create a story.

Reporter Hwang Young-joo seemed to have come to this interview with all those calculations done.

‘I heard she’s obsessed with views… She’s really no joke.’

Honestly, Ji-seop was a little surprised.

He was surprised by the sincerity of making such a scenario.

He was also interested in the audacity of trying to touch the most sensitive part of the club with an ordinary question.

Of course, all these emotions came out because the solution to ‘Hwang Jo Mi’ was firmly established in Ji-seop’s mind.

“Ah, are you talking about working as the manager’s interpreter? To be honest…”

And as always,

Ji-seop’s solution is simple.

“It’s a piece of cake.”

“Really? That’s right, how hard it must be…”