Genius Pitcher Hides 170Km [EN]: Chapter 306

#305. New Teammate

There are pitchers who define an era.

Players like Pedro Martinez, Randy Johnson, and Greg Maddux, who dominated the league from the mid-1990s to the mid-2000s, and Clayton Kershaw, who reigned as the strongest pitcher for over a decade from the late 2000s.

For the Yankees, who endured a period of hardship for 21 years after their last championship in 2009,

there was a player who stood out for his consistency rather than overwhelming skill, a bit different from the pitchers mentioned earlier.

His stats alone didn’t quite measure up to those of his predecessors, but he was a veteran among veterans who had guarded the Yankees’ mound for over 20 years.

Adam Murphy, the former ace of the Yankees, who never reached the top in his career but accumulated impressive stats.

“So… the GM asked you to do this – to join him for a meal with Adam Murphy.”

“Yes, to be exact, Adam requested it.”

“Hmm, what’s our GM thinking? He’s not trying to bring back a 43-year-old geezer who hasn’t touched a baseball in over half a year… Is he offering him a coaching position? Well, it might be helpful when facing the Yankees in the fall.”

“Anyway, Ty, please tell me if you know anything about him.”

“What I know… Well… I don’t know him personally, but if I were to evaluate Adam Murphy as a baseball player, I could sum it up in one line: Greed.”

“Greed? Isn’t he not that kind of character? I know him as a player who consistently held his starting position without being greedy.”

“Ha! What a joke. That old man is the greediest human being I’ve ever met in baseball. A diligent man who has guarded the Yankees’ mound for 20 years without great ambition? Bullshit. That old man was always trying to be the best. He just hated showing it, so he suppressed it.”

“Hmm.”

“If that old man’s ball was just 5 miles faster, if he had won a Cy Young Award [awarded annually to the best pitchers in each league] by some stroke of luck, he would have shown off like crazy, you know? Since that wasn’t possible, he tried hard not to show it.”

Before my regression, I knew almost nothing about Adam Murphy.

He was a player who retired and completely disappeared right after I was called up to the big leagues.

But after listening to Ty Johnson’s explanation, I can roughly guess what kind of character he is.

A player who realized he couldn’t be the best no matter how hard he tried, and instead, he cultivated an image of ordinariness and consistency, a player with strong ambitions unlike his outward appearance.

“Anyway, good luck. Seeing that the GM asked you to join him for a meal, he must be planning something with that old man… Well, I don’t know if it will work out. He’s a hard man to deal with.”

“By the way, Ty, how do you know so much about him?”

“Well… um, that old man is close to Jerry Wagner. After the All-Star game, I went to a drinking session arranged by Jerry, and we started arguing after exchanging a few words. Damn, he was a human being who just didn’t click with me. So, we had a fight.”

“Suddenly?”

“I was young back then. I could see his greed overflowing, but I hated how he kept pretending not to be, so I said a few words, and he threw a punch right away.”

“Oh, really?”

“What do you mean, really? I just beat him to a pulp.”

“Looking at your expression, that doesn’t seem to be the case. It’s okay, tell me honestly. You got hit, didn’t you?”

“No! It’s just that the old man’s lucky punch happened to…”

“You got hit.”

“Haa, whatever, anyway, the article came out the next day.”

“What did it say?”

“It said we exchanged punches because our views on baseball differed, but we quickly made up, something like that. Anyway, we didn’t make up. I haven’t exchanged a single word with him since then.”

Okay, character analysis complete.

I’ll think about the rest at the dinner.

“By the way, what’s Hayashi muttering about over there?”

“What was it, um… right. He said it’s a spell to get stronger.”

“A spell to get stronger? What, like Japanese folk religion?”

“I don’t know?”

Hayashi Rentaro, today’s starting pitcher, is placing something in his locker and muttering non-stop.

After Yamamoto Genichi, who was like his nemesis, was out for the season, he became noticeably more stable, and one day he started enshrining a small Buddha statue in his locker.

I was honestly curious, but I decided not to ask.

Whatever it is, if it can help his play, that’s all that matters.

“Okay, here’s the lineup. Liam will be playing as the first leadoff hitter today, so everyone, please help him out a lot.”

“Yes, Manager!”

“Good.”

1st 2B Liam Landman

2nd 3B Han Su-hyeok

3rd 1B Ty Johnson

4th RF Chuck Clark

5th LF Jim Brown

6th DH Antonio Garcia

7th C Bruce Matthews

8th SS Josh Oliver

9th CF Kyle Shanahan

Starting Pitcher Hayashi Rentaro

Derek felt a slight discomfort in his finger in yesterday’s game, so Kyle Shanahan was put in the center field position instead.

Liam Landman, the second baseman, will be taking over the vacant leadoff spot.

Now that I think about it, Liam, Kyle, and Carlton, who we brought in from the Marlins.

Choosing those three was a really excellent choice.

Daniel’s eye for talent is definitely reliable.

Um, what is that guy planning that he called me out for?

* * *

In Hayashi’s second game as a starter, we suffered a 4-3 come-from-behind loss by one point.

We were leading 3-2 until the bottom of the 8th inning, but Dalvin Schwartz, who came on as the closer, gave up two walks and a hit, and we were quickly reversed.

Season 68 wins, 41 losses, winning percentage 0.624.

We were pushed down to 3rd place in the league’s overall winning percentage, behind the Yankees and the White Sox.

“Hmm, so what the GM is saying is…….”

“Yes, I’m considering Adam Murphy as Seattle’s closer for the second half of the season.”

After the game, I went straight to the GM’s office.

To grant Daniel’s request.

And I heard something I didn’t expect.

I was confident that I wouldn’t bat an eye at most things,

but honestly, I was a little surprised this time.

Even if our team’s closer position is vacant, are you going to bring in a 43-year-old retired player who hasn’t touched a baseball in half a year and put him in that position?

“Putting everything else aside… is that even possible? Can he even throw the ball properly?”

“Of course. Frankly, he’s already passed the first test.”

“Test?”

“Yes, his fastball speed is about 87 miles, not much different from his last start last season. He seems to have hired a personal trainer and continued to practice pitching. Perhaps because he rested well, all the minor injuries have disappeared, and the conclusion is that there is no problem with his physical strength to play for about half a season.”

“Hmm.”

Perhaps because my reaction was a bit lukewarm, Daniel immediately added an explanation.

“Do you know why Adam Murphy declared his retirement?”

“I know roughly. There was talk of a trade as part of the team’s reorganization.”

“That’s right.”

Adam Murphy is a man who immediately secured a starting pitcher position for the Yankees after spending two years in the minor leagues and has consistently endured for over 20 years.

He was never the best. But he was always a player who did his part.

Whether the Yankees were at the bottom of the league or were launching an all-out effort for a new leap forward, he always guarded the Yankees’ mound as a starting pitcher.

But what awaited him was the club’s cold attitude.

The Yankees, who had successfully signed long-term contracts with key players such as Lucas Anderson and Tyson Basham, began preparing for a counterattack, ending the long period of darkness.

Old players were sold off one by one, and fresh faces brought in from other teams filled their places instead.

In front of the major premise of rebuilding, the name of an old player who had guarded the mound for over 20 years was not very important.

The Yankees offered Adam Murphy two choices.

To retire honorably as a one-club man, or, if he didn’t like that, to arrange a trade to another team.

Adam Murphy, groaning in betrayal and humiliation, chose the path of retirement after leaving these words to the club and the fans.

‘I can still throw. But since the club doesn’t need me, I won’t show a pathetic figure either.’

Adam Murphy, who even refused the retirement ceremony offered by the club, disappeared from people’s sight.

“But you know what? That wasn’t an empty word. That word that he can still throw.”

“Hmm… so he was really thinking about returning.”

“That’s right. Well, shall we get started? I’ll take you in my car, player Han Su-hyeok.”

The conclusion was that.

Adam Murphy was forced to retire, and he has been managing his body with a lingering attachment to baseball.

And Seattle needs a new closer to crack down on the unstable bullpen.

“Adam Murphy… hmm.”

In the car heading to the restaurant where we were supposed to meet, the only thing I was worried about was.

Adam Murphy’s skill?

If he maintains his form from last season, as the GM said – that is, a fastball of around 87 miles with stable control, and stamina that can’t pitch many innings but seems to be able to handle the closer position…

For Seattle, whose bullpen has been completely breached, it would be quite a plausible card.

But,

not in his late 30s, but approaching his mid-40s,

can he handle the grueling schedule for the remaining three months at that age?

Even if it’s a little lacking, shouldn’t we give the young pitchers on the current team a chance?

As if reading my thoughts, meaningful words flowed from Daniel’s mouth.

“Perhaps you’re worried about whether Adam Murphy can endure the remaining schedule this season. Let’s meet him first. Then you’ll know.”

* * *

[Seattle Mariners, making final reinforcements ahead of the trade deadline, acquire former New York Yankees starting pitcher Adam Murphy]

[Adam Murphy, who retired from active duty after his last start in September 2029, makes a surprise return in a Seattle uniform]

[Mariners GM Daniel: “Through several meetings, I read Adam Murphy’s firm will. He is a wonderful player with the tenacity and veteran know-how that our team’s mound lacks.”]

[Can a player who has been away from the ball for almost a year stand on the Big League mound again? Adam Murphy, who will wear the Seattle uniform: “I haven’t rested a single day since my retirement announcement. Rather, my physical condition is better than last year. I’m going to run my body to the ground for the Seattle club that chose me.”]

[Seattle Mariners, who have signed knuckleballer Mike Warren, left-handed fastball pitcher Hayashi Rentaro, and veteran Adam Murphy, now have to harmonize with the existing pitching staff]

Adam Murphy’s return to active duty was carried out like lightning.

This is because Daniel had already completed all the preparations for his acquisition.

There was only one thing left.

Confidence in each other.

The reason I was at the dinner yesterday was for that.

Adam Murphy said.

That he was thrown away like trash despite dedicating himself for over 20 years. That he was waiting for a chance to repay that humiliation.

That’s why he wanted to meet me. He wanted to hear a promise from Seattle’s new leader that he would take him and crush the Yankees.

My answer was already decided.

‘Even without you, I’m going to crush those Yankees old men no matter what. I really don’t like those guys.’

At those words, a cool laugh burst out from the man who had reigned as the Yankees’ ace for over 20 years.

This time I asked.

If he was confident that he could endure the remaining three months of the league schedule, the difficult times when he had to be on standby every day.

Another big laugh flowed from his mouth.

That he had been preparing with all his might for the past six months for that very reason.

That was the end of it.

We shook hands, and between that evening and this morning, all the necessary processes, from player contracts to registration, were processed in an instant.

“Hey, everyone, please take care of me. There, Ty. Yes, you. Hmm, it’s been a few years, but you’re not still sulking, are you?”

“Damn it, old man. If you’ve retired, just go watch your grandchildren. What are you even trying to do by coming back?”

“What am I doing? I have to crush the Yankees.”

“Hmm, that’s a sound I like. Okay, let’s forget the past, old man.”

“That’s what I wanted.”

A new reinforcement has been added to us ahead of the last game of the three-game series against Oakland.