Genius Pitcher Hides 170Km [EN]: Chapter 104

#103. End of the First Half

When I first declared my intention to be a two-way player in the Big Leagues, I garnered immense attention not only in Korea but also from Big League and Japanese baseball fans.

As the second person to attempt the nearly impossible feat of being a two-way player in modern baseball, and as an Asian like the pioneer before me, I was bound to be a subject of curiosity in many ways.

Of course, negative opinions were more prevalent.

Even Shohei Ohtani, hailed as a player blessed by the gods, hadn’t achieved satisfactory results as both a pitcher and a hitter until 2022. It wasn’t until 2023 that he was finally recognized as a complete player in both aspects.

The problem was that he had to sacrifice his elbow ligament in return, and ultimately, he had to retire much earlier than expected due to the aftereffects of the injury.

It was a situation where favorable public opinion was impossible to form.

Even my own team, the Seattle Mariners, wasn’t entirely on my side.

From a marketing standpoint, being a two-way player would be helpful, but at the time, Seattle was more interested in reaching the World Series for the first time in their history than in increasing revenue.

Moreover, unlike Ohtani, who only played as a pitcher and designated hitter, I was aiming to be a fielder as well. In other words, I wanted to catch all three rabbits: pitcher, fielder, and hitter.

[Promising Player from the East Should Prioritize Safe Growth Over Two-Way Play]

[Is Hitting Really Necessary for a Prospect Who Throws 104 Miles Per Hour?]

[In Modern Baseball with the Designated Hitter Rule, the Impact of a Pitcher’s Hitting on the Game is Minimal]

Fueled by such opinions, most media outlets in the United States ridiculed my challenge as reckless.

And to some extent, their predictions came true.

In my first year in the United States, I was certain to enter the Big Leagues, but I had to spend two years in the minors due to a shoulder injury. Even after recovering and making it to the Big Leagues, I was only given limited hitting opportunities under the team’s management.

After starting as a pitcher, the next game was always a rest, and more than half of the games I played were as a designated hitter rather than a fielder.

Looking back now, I can see that Seattle cared about me that much, but at the time, I couldn’t understand the team’s interference at all.

I wanted to pitch even one more inning, and I wanted to have even one more at-bat. I wanted to be evaluated as a proper fielder, not just a designated hitter.

Eventually, after my contract with Seattle ended, I moved to Cleveland, who promised to fully guarantee my two-way play.

Hmm.

And then my shoulder immediately blew out, completely ending my career as a pitcher.

Thinking about it, those were truly eventful times.

That’s why, in this second chance, I’ve been extremely careful and managed my body meticulously.

Except for that one appearance because of Magicians, no, because of that bastard Hwang Sung-min, I had completely sealed myself as a pitcher.

Until I was more prepared, until I was ready to be a two-way player without putting too much strain on my body.

But now, it seems like the time has come to step up.

With only nine more games left, the WBC [World Baseball Classic] will begin. And immediately after that is the second half of the season. Including the canceled games, there will be approximately 48 games in the second half.

People seem to be interested in my single-season home run record, but that’s not what’s on my mind right now.

My Warriors teammates have been running at full speed until now, and frankly, it’s close to a miracle that we’ve come this far.

Who knows what will happen in the second half when the stamina of the starting players declines.

Sung-hoon hyung [older brother/friend] and General Manager Park Jae-cheol will do their best to make trades during this break, but no one can guarantee the results.

What’s especially concerning is the pitching side.

If even one of the starting pitchers has a problem, it’s all over. Not only will we lose our hard-earned second-place position, but we could also miss out on the postseason altogether.

To achieve my goal of the Warriors’ championship, we need a pitcher named Han Su-hyeok.

“Well, based on my assessment… yeah, it’s a bit funny to express this in numbers, but I’d say the balance is over 90% adjusted.”

“That’s good enough for me.”

“Maybe it is. But maybe it isn’t.”

Jacob’s expression is more serious than ever. He looks like he wants to persuade me until the very end.

Combining pitching, hitting, and fielding is not as easy as it sounds.

The reason why Ohtani, who was said to have a body blessed by the gods, retired so early was that the balance between these aspects was broken, and that ultimately led to injuries.

Hitting, fielding, and pitching are all baseball, but the muscles used for these three plays are different, and the training methods required are also different.

Some muscles that are strengthened for hitting can actually hinder pitching.

The best thing would be for me not to field at all while I’m pitching. Or, another option would be to move to a position like outfielder, where the defensive burden is less.

But if I’m not there right now, Yoo In-cheol will have to play as the starting shortstop.

Well, I don’t think that’s a very good choice.

Anyway, I’ve completed all the preparations I can.

Pitcher, hitter, and even shortstop. I haven’t neglected training for a single day to be able to perform all those roles.

And now it’s time to see the results.

* * *

The monsoon season and the typhoon that came with it have finally completely dissipated.

Many people have suffered from the unprecedented torrential downpours, but baseball has continued.

The schedules that have been canceled, with a minimum of three games and a maximum of five games per team, will be scheduled for the second half’s rest days or doubleheaders. This is another task for the KBO [Korea Baseball Organization], which is already struggling with the WBC break.

But that’s for later.

It’s a shame that the team’s momentum has been interrupted, but the past few days of rest have been beneficial for the Warriors players. This break was so sweet for us, who have been playing games with a limited lineup.

In the home series against the Seoul Fighters, we recorded a winning series with 2 wins and 1 loss.

Perhaps a team with similar circumstances to ours, running a baseball team on a sponsorship system without the support of a parent company.

The Fighters, who had been achieving decent results every year, were unable to escape the bottom ranks this year due to various issues.

It had to be seen as bad luck. The new sponsor was only interested in advertising effects rather than investment, which had a huge negative impact on the team’s composition and the recruitment of foreign players.

The morale of the team plummeted, and Lee Chan-ho, known as the best leadoff hitter in the country, missed almost two months due to injury. In a way, it was fortunate that they didn’t finish in last place.

The next team we met after the Fighters was the first-place team, Incheon.

[Exclusive: First Place Incheon Rangers vs. Second Place Seoul Warriors 3-Game Series Ends Without a Winner with 1 Win, 1 Tie, and 1 Loss]

[Ace Lim Joon-young Dominates Game 1, Han Su-hyeok Succeeds in Counterattack with Back-to-Back Home Runs in Game 2]

[Season 38th Home Run Han Su-hyeok: “Team’s 1 Win is More Important Than Home Run Record”]

└Real baseball is too harmful to the heart. I took stomach medicine throughout the 3-game series…

└The Titans gave Suwon 3 more wins. Useless bastards…

└(Other Team) Damn, if we had someone like Han Su-hyeok, we wouldn’t be suffering like this. Just give us Yang Gi-cheol back.

└Shut up… More importantly, I wonder if Cheon Sang-jin’s elbow is okay. It looked like it hurt a lot.

└Why did Min Joo-hyun have to hit the ball there…

└I think his SNS got bombed and he closed it ㅋㅋㅋ [laughing sounds]

└People are going crazy demanding our oppa [term of endearment for older brother/male friend] back

└It’s a relief that we have about 20 days off because of the WBC. It would have been really screwed up if it wasn’t for that

└I’m more worried about what happens after that. With the canceled games, the schedule will be hell

└Please bring in some players during the break! You stingy team!

In the 3-game series against Incheon, Min Joo-hyun’s hit ball struck Cheon Sang-jin’s elbow.

Fortunately, he managed to avoid a direct hit at the moment of impact, but Cheon Sang-jin was immediately excluded from the remaining schedule and headed to the hospital.

It may be difficult for him to join the starting lineup immediately after the WBC break.

And the 3-game series against the Magicians, the last schedule of the first half, began.

Not just one or two players remembered when we broke the unwritten rule and attempted a surprise bunt when Lee Man-sik achieved a no-hitter last time.

Not only the younger players but even the oldest veteran, Jo Sung-oh, was slightly excited.

Kim Doo-young, who was certain to be投入 [put in/used] as a middle reliever, even declared that he would hit the opposing batter, even though it was his former team.

Goodness…….

But Lee Man-sik, who started as the first pitcher, calmed down all that excitement.

“Guys, and Sung-oh hyung.”

“Yes, senior.”

“I get a little angry when I think about it, but I hope we can just play baseball.”

“Yes?”

“It’s been 6 years since I last played in the postseason. How much longer will I be able to pitch? I really want to pitch on the mound in the fall this year.”

“…….”

“It would be nice to beat those guys up again here, but… what if one of our kids gets hurt? Su-hyeok and Deok-soo have to go to the WBC too. Hehe.”

“I know what you mean…….”

“So let’s just play baseball. Okay? I’ll take all the blame for the last game.”

After calming down the team atmosphere, Lee Man-sik started and pitched 5 innings with 2 runs allowed before leaving the mound.

In the 3rd inning, Lee Man-sik’s pitch hit the butt of the opposing team’s veteran, Go Cheol-hwan, but the batter who was hit went to first base without saying a word, and no conflict occurred between the two teams.

In my opinion, maybe there was a prior agreement between those two. A kind of performance to show the juniors who might be excited.

While stopping my excited classmates who looked like they were about to run out right away, I thought about that.

10 years from now, or 15 years from now, when I become the oldest veteran on this team, will I be able to act like that?

Will I be able to prioritize the team over my personal feelings? Will I be able to worry about my juniors first?

Well, I don’t think it’s possible right now, but…….

Still, I decided not to think about which one is right or wrong.

Because it’s still too far away for me.

“I’m so upset that I’m not a pitcher.”

“What are you talking about?”

“I would have said okay to Man-sik hyung and then gone up to the mound and hit them right away.”

Well, if it’s Seo Hyung-joo’s personality, he’s capable of doing that.

Thinking about it, if I end up spending my last years on this team like this, and if Seo Hyung-joo is still by my side then…….

No matter how much I try to hold back, something will happen. That guy is also a crazy bastard.

In the end, we took another winning series with 2 wins and 1 loss in the 3-game series against the Magicians.

And I hit two more home runs in those 3 games, increasing my home run count to 40.

The unusually long schedule up to July was all over.

54 wins, 4 draws, 38 losses, a winning percentage of 0.587, sole 2nd place.

It was a miraculous result recorded by the Warriors, who were considered strong candidates for last place at the start of the season.

And the morning of the All-Star Game dawned.

* * *

※ First Half Results of Major Seoul Warriors Players

Center Fielder Seo Hyung-joo Batting Average 0.279 / On-Base Percentage 0.362 / Slugging Percentage 0.398 / 6 Home Runs / 39 RBIs [Runs Batted In] / 25 Stolen Bases

3rd Baseman Ahn Chi-wook Batting Average 0.298 / On-Base Percentage 0.345 / Slugging Percentage 0.401 / 8 Home Runs / 50 RBIs / 1 Stolen Base

Shortstop Han Su-hyeok Batting Average 0.432 / On-Base Percentage 0.538 / Slugging Percentage 0.914 / 40 Home Runs / 91 RBIs / 23 Stolen Bases

1st Baseman Jo Sung-oh Batting Average 0.317 / On-Base Percentage 0.385 / Slugging Percentage 0.505 / 20 Home Runs / 71 RBIs / 2 Stolen Bases

Catcher Jang Deok-soo Batting Average 0.275 / On-Base Percentage 0.348 / Slugging Percentage 0.455 / 15 Home Runs / 58 RBIs / 1 Stolen Base

Right Fielder Walter Smith Batting Average 0.252 / On-Base Percentage 0.345 / Slugging Percentage 0.461 / 8 Home Runs / 23 RBIs

2nd Baseman Lee Chang-mo Batting Average 0.277 / On-Base Percentage 0.365 / Slugging Percentage 0.380 / 6 Home Runs / 38 RBIs / 2 Stolen Bases

Designated Hitter Kim Su-hak Batting Average 0.267 / On-Base Percentage 0.331 / Slugging Percentage 0.392 / 5 Home Runs / 30 RBIs / 8 Stolen Bases

Left Fielder Choi Min-seok Batting Average 0.284 / On-Base Percentage 0.360 / Slugging Percentage 0.389 / 4 Home Runs / 35 RBIs / 15 Stolen Bases

Starting Pitcher Ryan Stark ERA [Earned Run Average] 3.55 / 10 Wins 6 Losses

Starting Pitcher Brooks Parker ERA 3.43 / 9 Wins 5 Losses

Starting Pitcher Lee Man-sik ERA 3.90 / 8 Wins 7 Losses

Starting Pitcher Cheon Sang-jin ERA 3.72 / 7 Wins 4 Losses