Genius Pitcher Hides 170Km [EN]: Chapter 157

#156. Last Pitching Spirit

Warriors fans, who had been languishing in the bottom ranks since 2022, were recently experiencing days that felt like a dream.

The team that had been stuck at the bottom last season was now contending for the top one or two spots until the very end.

And that’s not all.

Han Su-hyeok, who was on track to achieve various new batting records, including the first .400 batting average since the beginning of professional baseball, was now challenging the single-season home run record.

“Selling sturdy, large, stainless steel, five-tier folding butterfly nets! Only 25,000 won [approximately $20 USD]!”

“How much? 25,000 won? Are you crazy!”

Whether it was a home or away game, on days when the Warriors played, the area around the stadium was crowded with Warriors fans, vendors, and scalpers.

Some people bought butterfly nets for less than 10,000 won [approximately $8 USD] online and sold them for high prices in front of the stadium, while others brought handmade butterfly nets they made themselves.

Because of this, the public officials who had to control the surrounding vendors and the personnel who had to clean the stadium after the game were having difficult days.

Collecting the discarded butterfly nets after the game was no easy task.

“Couldn’t get a ticket? How many do you need?”

“Two.”

“Two tickets for 400,000 won [approximately $300 USD], but how about a special discount for 300,000 won [approximately $225 USD]?”

“Pardon?”

The area around the Changwon Stadium, where the Warriors and Raptors game was being held, was filled with people holding butterfly nets, and Han Su-hyeok was doing batting practice before the game.

Thwack!

Thwaaaack!

“Wow… he’s really something else.”

“Hey, watching that will only make your shoulders stiff. I’d rather go for a run.”

His teammates shook their heads as they watched Han Su-hyeok’s batting practice.

According to the results of the recent team physical examination, Han Su-hyeok’s growth had almost stopped.

He was 193cm tall and weighed 97kg. If he hadn’t been a dual pitcher and hitter, it might have been better to slightly reduce his body fat, but currently, he had the most ideal body that wasn’t biased towards either side.

Hitters who are larger than average have to stand at the plate with a disadvantage.

The strike zone widens along with their large physique.

Han Su-hyeok was no exception. But he covered that weakness with his precise eye and long arms.

A long reach that never misses balls entering the zone, and a batting method that changes freely depending on the course and pitch.

Han Su-hyeok’s batting, which produced unbelievable long hits and sometimes created balls that quickly penetrated the infield, was so impressive that even experts who had been in this field for decades were amazed.

Maintaining balance throughout the season with completely different approaches requires tremendous mental strength, concentration, and the corresponding skills.

In any case, Han Su-hyeok, who was close to achieving a single-season home run record while batting without favoring one side, was actively aiming for long hits throughout batting practice today for some reason.

Watching him, Jang Deok-su muttered to himself.

“That pitcher is going to be screaming today.”

* * *

‘Damn it, he’s a terrible guy.’

Changwon Raptors, backed by one of the largest IT companies in Korea, is a team in a regional rivalry with the Busan Titans, which boasts the largest fanbase in Korea.

Considering that many of the fans supporting Changwon are people who left Busan due to its terrible management and poor performance, it might seem like a satellite club.

In any case, Changwon, which was founded in 2011 and opened the KBO’s [Korean Baseball Organization] 9-team system, won its first 통합 [integrated] championship in 2020, nine years after its founding, thanks to its strong financial power and active investment.

But that was it.

Changwon, which poured everything into winning the championship, immediately fell to 7th place the following year due to the departure and injury of its core players, and has been unable to escape the middle and lower ranks until the 2026 season.

Changwon Raptors, the 6th-place team that had been fighting with Daejeon for 5th place until the middle of this season but eventually failed to compete and is preparing for next season.

However, Lucas Bennett, a foreign pitcher who was giving his all for his future regardless of the team’s performance, was now in serious trouble.

With a somber expression, Lucas turned his head and looked at the scoreboard.

1 CF Seo Hyeong-ju

2 SS Han Su-hyeok

3 RF Walter Smith

4 DH Jang Deok-su

5 3B Ahn Chi-wook

6 2B Lee Chang-mo

7 LF Kim Su-hak

8 C Yong Ji-hoon

9 1B Kang Jin-seok

This was today’s Warriors lineup.

Center hitter Jo Seong-oh had not yet recovered from his injury, and Yong Ji-hoon wore the catcher’s mask instead of Jang Deok-su and Walter.

Originally, he would have given the catcher position to one of Jang Deok-su or Walter Smith and pushed the batting order back, but there was one reason why the Warriors couldn’t do that now.

Han Su-hyeok’s challenge for a new home run record.

For that, a reliable hitter must be behind Han Su-hyeok, so that the opposing team cannot easily walk [intentionally walk, or intentionally give a base on balls to] him.

As a result, Walter Smith and Jang Deok-su had no choice but to be placed at 3rd and 4th, and in the end, the third catcher, Yong Ji-hoon, had no choice but to wear the mask.

In any case, from the perspective of facing them, the fact that Jo Seong-oh was missing made it much less burdensome.

The problem is Han Su-hyeok, now and always.

Lucas Bennett, who caught first hitter Seo Hyeong-ju with a ground ball to second base, steeled himself once again.

What the Changwon dugout wanted was to avoid a showdown with him as much as possible.

Since advancing to the fall baseball season had already gone down the drain, the manager, whose contract expires this year, would want to reduce even one loss.

But that’s their business.

Lucas Bennett, who recorded an ERA [Earned Run Average] of 2.71 with 13 wins and 4 losses despite the team’s poor performance this season, had three options waiting for him after the season.

He could stay in Changwon if they significantly increased his salary of $1.1 million this season.

Or he could advance to Japan, which would offer him more than 50 percent more money.

And one more thing, the big league scouts who came to this Changwon stadium today, of course, came to see Han Su-hyeok, but anyway,

One option was to return to the United States once again by catching the eye of those big league scouts.

Of course, the most desired of these was to return to his hometown in the United States.

Lucas was mentally exhausted after living apart from his family for two years because of his wife’s job.

‘Okay.’

Whether to avoid the showdown as much as possible as instructed by the dugout, or to have a head-on match.

Lucas’s mind leaned to one side as he wavered.

‘I’m going to get that guy out here and go back to America.’

It may be an opportunity that will not come again.

A phone call with his agent before the game came to mind.

‘Big league scouts will flock to see today’s game. Don’t panic and throw calmly. Of course, their purpose is elsewhere.’

‘Are you talking about Han Su-hyeok? But how many scouts do you think will come?’

‘As far as I know, at least 13, New York, Boston, LA, Philadelphia, it seems like all the rich guys are flocking there.’

‘Hmm.’

‘Well, thanks to that, we may have a good opportunity, but the important thing is not to get excited about it. The important thing is for Lucas to maintain his pace. Do you understand what I’m saying?’

Big league scouts flocking to see Han Su-hyeok, if he can only catch their eye, if that’s the case, returning to the United States may not be just a dream.

Fortunately, there are no runners on base after catching the troublesome first hitter.

Lucas, who bit his lip tightly, threw the first pitch to Han Su-hyeok with all his might.

And immediately regretted it.

Thwaaaack!

“Ugh!”

* * *

In the top of the first inning, the Warriors scored first with Han Su-hyeok’s big double and stolen base, and Walter Smith’s sacrifice fly, and Lee Man-sik came to the mound.

How long has it been since his last start?

He was injured as soon as the WBC [World Baseball Classic] break started, so it seems like it’s been almost two months.

“Come on, senior, fighting! [a Korean expression of encouragement]”

“Fighting!”

Yong Ji-hoon, who was wearing a catcher’s mask for the first time in a while, like himself, shouted in a loud voice.

Yong Ji-hoon, who had been active as a backup catcher in the first half, had moved to first base backup after Walter Smith joined as a replacement foreign player.

A first baseman wearing a catcher’s mask; fortunately, there are no major problems with basic catching and blocking.

Manager Lee Dae-jun entrusted him with the catcher position today because he trusts veteran Lee Man-sik.

He believes that he can do well enough even with Yong Ji-hoon as his battery [pitcher-catcher duo].

Wriggling

Lee Man-sik rotated his right arm a few times.

The unpleasant pain that started in his elbow and spread throughout his arm had almost disappeared.

Everyone around him, including the doctor, advised him to have surgery.

The Tommy John surgery that has become almost commonplace now.

If you replace the damaged ligament and rehabilitate well, you can regain your skills as much as possible. With the development of medicine, the success rate has also become very high.

The problem is the rehabilitation period.

It takes at least a year from surgery to rehabilitation.

That was the part that Lee Man-sik was worried about.

If he ends the season and undergoes surgery, he will be able to return around the second half of next year.

That may be the answer if you only think about the individual player.

But Lee Man-sik knew it. He knew that his life as a pitcher was almost over, even if it wasn’t his elbow.

Thanks to managing his body without missing a single day of running, his stamina is still good, but his shoulder, which has been pitching more than 130 innings every year for more than 10 years since his rookie days, has already reached its limit.

Even if he can regain his old skills 100 percent after surgery, the skills themselves are already declining rapidly.

The team is aiming for its first championship in eight years since 2019. Fans who have been in despair for a long time are finally starting to smile again.

The team’s mound situation is still lacking, especially the weak starting resources.

Considering that, he absolutely cannot be missing.

In the end, Lee Man-sik chose rehabilitation instead of surgery and succeeded in returning to the mound before the start of the hellish 14-game series.

Twice during this 14-game series, and at least twice more if he advances to the fall baseball season.

A total of four starts.

He still has something to do.

No, there are people who need him.

That fact was putting a smile on the old man’s face, not despair.

“Hyung [older brother/respected senior], just pitch to contact. I’ll catch them all.”

The guy who was so aloof and only knew himself when he first saw him comes up to him with a worried expression and speaks first.

In fact, the reason why Lee Man-sik chose rehabilitation instead of surgery, and the reason why he decided to bet everything on this season, is entirely because of this guy.

Han Su-hyeok, who is challenging the Korean record as a hitter, and who has skills that he cannot even dare to reach as a pitcher,

Han Su-hyeok, who completely destroyed the WBC and brought home the championship trophy.

If he follows that guy, can he also taste the last championship before retirement?

Lee Man-sik, who thanked Han Su-hyeok, slowly began to practice pitching.

Anyway, the decision has been made. There is no way to turn back.

Whoosh

Poong

The injury that occurred during the WBC break, the unexpected misfortune that came from changing his pitching form to increase his speed.

Thinking about it now, it may have been a good thing.

What if he had endured without getting hurt at that time and it had exploded at the end of the season? So what if he had to play fall baseball without himself?

The veteran who has devoted his life to the Warriors team thought.

Maybe this was the destiny that was originally given to him.

“Play!”

The game resumes and Changwon’s top hitter steps into the plate.

The old man, who unknowingly had a smile on his face, slowly began to wind up.