Genius Pitcher Hides 170Km [EN]: Chapter 137

#136. Where Did That Guy Come From?

There are many elements that make up the game of baseball, but if I had to pick the two most essential, they would undoubtedly be pitching and hitting.

Baseball begins when a pitcher throws a ball and a batter hits it.

In the battle between the pitcher throwing the ball and the batter trying to hit it, which side has the advantage?

The batter who is considered an A-lister if they hit successfully 3 out of 10 times?

Or the pitcher who needs to succeed at least 7 out of 10 times?

Opinions vary widely, but from the perspective of someone doing both, I think the pitcher is at a much greater disadvantage.

This stems from the difference in concentration.

The batter gets a chance to take a breather between at-bats. During that time, they can chat with teammates, play defense, and naturally refresh themselves, giving them time to prepare for the next showdown.

But the pitcher is different. Once the inning starts, there’s no escape.

The only way for a pitcher to come down from the mound is to be replaced by the bench or to successfully finish the inning.

In other words, the batter only needs to focus on the battle with one pitcher and the current at-bat, but the pitcher has to keep all nine hitters in the opposing team’s lineup in mind.

Naturally, it’s more difficult, more nerve-wracking, and the aftermath of losing a battle can linger longer.

“Play!”

Participating in the WBC [World Baseball Classic], or more precisely, starting in the game against the USA, reminded me of a few things I had forgotten.

Despite all those disadvantages, I truly love the position of pitcher, and the tension I feel every time I throw a ball gives me immense joy.

And most importantly, only the pitcher can dominate the entire game alone.

[1st Batter Center Fielder Yang Sun-woo]

The game started, and the Magicians’ leadoff hitter stepped into the batter’s box.

Center fielder Yang Sun-woo, a teammate from the national team who wore the same uniform during the last WBC.

But now, he’s just an opposing team player to be defeated.

I made eye contact with the batter. Yang Sun-woo’s eyes were filled with tension.

Before the WBC, my feelings towards the Magicians were close to the worst.

Aside from the special relationship of being Jamsil rivals [teams based in the same district of Seoul], the worst bench-clearing incident caused by Hwang Sung-min and Song Gi-tae made it impossible to feel good about them.

However, being able to wear the same uniform with four Magicians players, even for a short time during the WBC, seems to have diluted those feelings a lot.

Especially when I think about Kim Sung-soo from the Warriors, who took care of me quite a bit.

There are no more grudges. Now, all that remains is an intense desire to win, to completely crush the Magicians as rivals.

I placed my foot on the pitching rubber and slowly began my windup.

Suddenly, the baseball stadium became quiet. The spectators, who had been roaring until just a moment ago, held their breath as if they had made a promise and fixed their gaze on me.

The pitching form, which had been battle-tested through the last game against the USA and was now completely reliable, slowly began to operate.

From the lower body to the waist, to the shoulder, and back to the fingertips.

The repeatedly amplified energy exploded, launching the baseball towards the batter.

Whoosh.

Thwack!

“Strike!”

“Wow!”

“Seriously, damn! Crazy!”

“Han Su-hyeok! You’re the best! The best!”

There was no need to turn around and check the scoreboard.

Speed 169 km/h, spin rate 3,000 RPM.

The best ball I could throw was lodged right in the center of the zone.

* * *

“Burp.”

“……?”

“Ah, I’m sorry.”

The Warriors’ first baseman, Jo Sung-oh, apologized to the first base umpire, startled by the burp that had involuntarily escaped.

The boiled potatoes and sandwiches he had eaten before the game felt stuck in his throat, but now they seemed to be finally digesting.

It wasn’t that he was feeling particularly unwell. It was just that excessive tension had been interfering with his stomach’s movements.

As the captain of the team, which was running second in the league, Jo Sung-oh had been feeling extreme stress lately.

The increasingly exhausted players, the weaknesses of the Warriors that were being revealed one by one as the season progressed.

The WBC had provided a brief respite by interrupting the league, but that didn’t mean the existing problems would solve themselves.

And then that incident happened. The injury of Lee Man-sik, the oldest member of the pitching staff and the third starter.

That idiot had stubbornly pushed himself too hard and gotten injured.

Thinking about the player as an individual, it would be better to get surgery right away. Trying to endure it could lead to bigger problems.

But Lee Man-sik ultimately chose to endure it. He was determined not to be absent as well, in a situation where the pitching staff was already lacking.

That’s how the second half of the season began.

The addition of Han Su-hyeok, who had returned after crushing the WBC, and Jang Deok-soo, who had grown noticeably, was so welcome, but he couldn’t just laugh.

The negative thought that the team might collapse due to the absence of two starting pitchers wouldn’t leave his head.

Those ominous thoughts didn’t subside easily, even after winning the series against the Busan Titans.

Could they really maintain their second-place position in the second half of the season? Would they collapse in an instant and fail to even advance to the fall baseball games [post-season playoffs]?

Those thoughts filled his head and interfered with the digestion of the snacks he had eaten before the game.

But all that anxiety, fear, impatience, and tension vanished in an instant.

The moment Han Su-hyeok threw a 169 km/h fastball, breaking the KBO’s [Korean Baseball Organization] all-time highest speed record, all the worries that had been clouding Jo Sung-oh’s mind disappeared completely.

And then, Han Su-hyeok struck out Yang Sun-woo with just three pitches, including a 162 km/h two-seamer and a 135 km/h changeup, and smiled at him.

Right then, his blocked stomach opened up, and a burp involuntarily escaped.

I was worried for nothing. How could I still be having such foolish thoughts after playing half a season with that guy?

Only three starting pitchers left?

That’s right. But one of the pitchers added there is a special-class pitcher who would be called an ace even if he were thrown into the Big Leagues right away.

“Swing! Out!”

At that moment, Han Su-hyeok struck out Choi Byung-man, the Magicians’ second batter, with another three-pitch strikeout.

Jo Sung-oh, now completely relaxed, casually spoke to the first base umpire.

“The weather is really nice today, isn’t it?”

* * *

“Hahaha, damn it……”

“Manager?”

“How many pitches has that guy thrown so far?”

A stormy 5 innings had passed.

While Han Su-hyeok easily handled 5 innings with 10 strikeouts, 3 ground balls, and 2 outfield flies, the Magicians took down their 2nd starter, Nathan Bennett, after only 4 innings, and made a desperate move by putting in closer Lee Ha-young in the 5th inning.

Having chosen to face him head-on, they had to win this game no matter what.

Fortunately, Nathan Bennett and Lee Ha-young blocked the 5 innings without giving up a run, and the score remained 0 to 0.

Han Su-hyeok went back to the mound.

“59 pitches.”

“Heh heh, 59 pitches in 5 innings… he’s really crazy.”

The Magicians’ manager, Joo Seok-do, involuntarily let out a hollow laugh.

How surprised he had been watching that guy pitch in the game against the USA.

The game where the bench-clearing occurred due to Hwang Sung-min, and the All-Star game.

He had seen Han Su-hyeok’s pitching twice in front of his eyes, but it was too short. It wasn’t enough to confirm anything, so all he felt was that his ball was terribly fast.

But watching his pitching in the game against the USA, he couldn’t take his eyes off Han Su-hyeok for even a single moment.

The most ideal pitcher that he, who had risen to become the manager of a professional baseball team as a former pitcher, had imagined in his head.

A powerful ball that overwhelmed the opponent with force, and knife-like control, supported by a wonderful breaking ball.

And decisively, an overwhelming mound presence that always maintained a favorable position in the battle with the batter.

It was the kind of pitcher that Joo Seok-do had only dreamed of, or in other words, a pitcher that shouldn’t exist in reality.

The problem was that that ridiculous pitcher had chosen them as his first starting debut opponent in the KBO stage.

The team was in a state of emergency.

The general manager, manager, coaches, and front office staff all gathered to discuss countermeasures.

The discussion lasted for nearly three hours. They discussed a comprehensive plan not only for this one time but also for when they would face starting pitcher Han Su-hyeok in the future.

Opinions were largely divided into two.

The opinion that someone had jokingly said on the internet, that since even the Americans couldn’t hit his ball, there was no way Korean hitters could hit it, so they should just send up a temporary starter and save their strength.

And the opinion that no matter how monstrous a pitcher he was, he would definitely have weaknesses, especially since it hadn’t been verified how well he could maintain his power and control when throwing more than 100 pitches, so they should just face him once.

Both were reasonable opinions. That’s why it was even more difficult to choose, but in the end, the Magicians decided to choose the latter.

The conclusion was that they couldn’t solve anything by just running away from the starting pitcher of the Jamsil rival team, whom they would be seeing for at least 8 years or more.

A total war, a literal total war in which they would pour everything the team had, was declared.

The starting rotation was adjusted, and the 2nd starter who went to the mound pitched with all his might as if he were a closer, throwing 80 pitches in just 4 innings before coming down from the mound.

And finally, the strongest closer, Lee Ha-young, was put in in the 5th inning. It was the Magicians’ will to maintain a tie until Han Su-hyeok came down from the mound.

Now, there was really no place to retreat. If they lost the game like this, the aftermath would be enormous.

But…….

Thwack!

“Swing! Out!”

“Wow!”

“Already 11! 11 strikeouts!”

The moment the Magicians’ leadoff hitter was struck out again at the beginning of the 6th inning, he realized something was wrong.

In the last game against the USA, Han Su-hyeok had consistently thrown fastballs of 165 km/h or more from the 1st to the 9th inning.

In other words, he had been pitching with all his might every inning. That’s why it was visible to the eye that his power was dropping in the 9th inning, and some armchair experts even brought up the issue of Han Su-hyeok’s stamina.

But today, Han Su-hyeok had only shown a 169 km/h fastball once against Yang Sun-woo in the 1st inning and had never thrown a ball faster than 165 km/h since then.

The speed of his fastball was around 160 km/h, along with a modified fastball and high-speed slider around 150 km/h, a curveball that ranged from 145 km/h to 95 km/h, and a 135 km/h changeup.

These were the balls that Han Su-hyeok had thrown so far. In other words, he was throwing with less power.

Nevertheless, not a single Magicians hitter had stepped on first base. They were being completely suppressed.

“Haa… so that means there’s no need to pitch with all his might here.”

He hadn’t realized that Han Su-hyeok’s power, which had gradually dropped as his pitch count reached 100, was because he had been giving it his all against the American hitters.

He now realized that he could easily overwhelm Korean hitters with 80-90% of his power.

‘I’m screwed.’

Manager Joo Seok-do, his face pale, spoke to Kim Sung-soo, the captain of this team who was sitting nearby and had returned from playing with Han Su-hyeok in the WBC.

“Sung-soo.”

“Yes, Manager.”

“How does it feel to face that guy as an enemy?”

In fact, it was definitely not something a manager should say to a player.

But who was Kim Sung-soo?

The oldest member of this team, who was nearing forty and was closer to being a coach than a player.

Joo Seok-do was so frustrated that he just asked the player who had seen Han Su-hyeok up close, hoping to get something out of it.

Kim Sung-soo, noticing the manager’s feelings, forced a smile and replied.

“I’m sorry. I should have made him throw more pitches somehow……”

“That guy really plays baseball damn well.”

“That’s right.”

“Damn it, where did that thing come from……”