On The Rise As A Catcher [EN]: Chapter 100

-Of course. Do you think they’ll approve it upstairs? This place is already a mess, like a bomb went off.

-I guess it was my greed. I thought now was a good time to shake things up since the board was already unstable…….

Kim Hak-in began to speak.

“Chairman, our team has three cards that we want to use but can’t.”

The chairman immediately understood what he meant.

“You mean those three troublemakers?”

“Yes, Choi Dae-gyu is banned from playing until the end of the year due to drunk driving, and Lee Nak-gyun and Kang Mun-gyu are in the process of settling with the victims. They’ll be back in the second half of the year at the earliest. Even if they come back then, their game sense will be off, so we should consider them unusable this year.”

The chairman nodded.

“Okay, now you’re finally talking business. Keep going.”

“We can’t undo the trades that have already been made. Losing Park Shin-eon is a big blow, but we can make up for it to some extent with Seo Il-hyuk and Song Seok-hyun.”

Kim Hak-in watched the chairman’s reaction as he spoke.

*If he didn’t know baseball well, he wouldn’t understand what he was saying.*

Contrary to Kim Hak-in’s concerns, the chairman listened intently to Kim Hak-in’s words.

“So?”

“If we’re willing to take a loss, we can bring in the pieces to fill the gaps in the team.”

“So, what pieces do you want to fill?”

“Since our team’s cards are a mixed bag, the pieces will be flawed. So, if we only fill what’s absolutely necessary, that would be the bullpen, a power hitter, and a young prospect. Our team desperately needs these three right now.”

“So, you’re confident you can get all three?”

“It depends on the level, but if you give me permission, I’ll proceed.”

“If you get those three pieces, can we win the championship?”

Kim Hak-in thought of Ham Seong-hoon.

*He is calm, bold, and insightful.*

Above all, he doesn’t lie.

Ham Seong-hoon said that if he could get a good bullpen, they could fight for the top four.

The situation got twisted when an A-class catcher was replaced with an A-class bullpen, but if he could get the cards Ham Seong-hoon needed, wouldn’t that mean they could do better than the top four?

If they advance to the postseason, anything can happen from there.

It is said that the team that finishes first in the regular season has a high chance of winning the Korean Series [championship series in Korean baseball], but there are always variables in sports.

“I can’t guarantee it, but I’m confident. Our team isn’t weak.”

The chairman clapped his knees.

“Good. That’s how you should talk. I’m not moved unless you speak with confidence. Then go ahead. You can trade all three of those headaches for other guys. I’ll buy you more kids next year, so go wild.”

* * *

The third game against the Foxes.

Since the Gotes had secured the winning series, the atmosphere should have been lively as usual, but today it was quiet.

The sudden trade of the starting catcher was a significant shock to the team.

Even Seo Il-hyuk, who would be taking over as the starting catcher, had a gloomy expression.

“Hyung [older brother or close male friend], isn’t this something to celebrate for you?”

Outfielder Oh Jin-young, who was close to Seo Il-hyuk, asked Seo Il-hyuk.

Seo Il-hyuk sighed.

“How can I celebrate when the team is falling apart?”

“What’s wrong, Hyung? At least you can get your FA [free agency] without any trouble.”

“FA is FA. How can I laugh when our team is falling apart?”

Oh Jin-young stepped back with an embarrassed expression.

Infielder Park Jong-il grabbed Oh Jin-young’s clothes.

“Hey, do you know Il-hyuk and still say that?”

“No, I was just trying to congratulate him.”

“He’s a real Gote man. He’s the type to stay with the Gotes even if he becomes a FA. If he were a cunning guy, would the kids follow Il-hyuk?”

“……Tsk, did I make a mistake?”

“Just don’t mess with Il-hyuk. Il-hyuk must be feeling terrible right now. He’s not the type to like taking over as a starter like this.”

Training proceeded in silence.

The players were watching each other and training.

The team is going wrong in some way.

A big incident happened, but there’s no way to know how or why it happened, or what the current situation is.

The team’s upper management was working so fast that the players had no way of figuring it out.

How could they know that the club president and general manager were dragged into the chairman’s office and reprimanded?

Training ended in a chaotic atmosphere.

As soon as training ended, reporters tried to ask about the reason, but club employees blocked them.

There was a scuffle between the reporters and the employees, but the employees were firm.

“It’s difficult today. Please understand.”

The reporters stepped back, clicking their tongues at the club’s response.

If the matter is too big, those at the bottom can’t know.

The reporters knew that the players wouldn’t know about this incident either.

If the players knew about the starting catcher’s trade, there would have been signs long ago.

Amid the chaos, the game time was approaching.

* * *

“This is caster Gu Jeong-yoon from SBC Sports.”

“And this is commentator Choi Jeong-yoon.”

“Today is the last game of the Gotes’ and Foxes’ three-game series. The Gotes have already secured the winning series with two wins, right?”

“Yes, that’s right. They are fiercely chasing the fourth-place Wales, maintaining a one-game difference. Since they will be playing against Wales from tomorrow, if they win today’s game, they can rise to joint fourth place. That means they can climb to sole fourth place with a three-game series against Wales.”

“You’re saying today’s game is that important?”

“Yes, that’s right.”

“But the atmosphere isn’t very good for the Gotes today. Even though they’ve secured the winning series.”

“Yes, baseball fans would have been surprised by today’s shocking news, right? They traded their starting catcher in the middle of the season. It was unprecedented, so everyone must have been dumbfounded. Of course, everyone knew that the Gotes desperately needed a bullpen, but it was too big of an event.”

“The Gwangju Bulls lost their closer and a young pitcher in this trade, but the atmosphere is that they are the winners of the trade.”

“Yes, that’s right. Go Jin-seok was a pitcher who would be a FA this year. As the Bulls have been in the lower ranks recently, Go Jin-seok’s use was ambiguous. There weren’t many situations where he could come out as a closer, so he was often idle. Getting a league A-class catcher who will be a FA next year for a closer who will be a FA this year…… It may not seem like a big gain, but it was difficult for the Bulls to get a catcher like Park Shin-eon even if they paid money. Since Park Shin-eon will be thirty-two next year, the Bulls can easily handle the second FA. The Bulls aren’t a team that lacks money.”

“The Bulls got the best defensive catcher in the league, and the Gotes got a closer. If they also got a young prospect pitcher, it seems like the Gotes didn’t have a bad trade either.”

“If we only look at the results of the trade, we can see it that way, but top-notch catchers are very, very valuable resources. If we were to pick the most valuable resources in the league, for example, talking about top-class performance, the catcher is the most valuable, followed by the starting pitcher, then the fielder, and then the bullpen pitcher. The scarcity varies by position. You can’t buy a top-notch catcher even if you want to, and you can’t raise one even if you want to. That’s why the Gotes fans are angry. Seo Il-hyuk is a good player and there’s a large rookie named Song Seok-hyun, but it’s impossible to fill Park Shin-eon’s void right away. Seo Il-hyuk, who will be wearing the mask right away, is a bottom-tier catcher in the league if you look at him as a starting catcher. It’s difficult to secure a starting position except for the Foxes. The Gotes fans are very disappointed because the league’s 2nd-3rd catcher has become the league’s 7th-8th catcher. The combination of Park Shin-eon and Seo Il-hyuk was good, and the two players could have bought time until Song Seok-hyun grew up, but now all the plans have gone wrong.”

“I see. So that’s why the Gotes fans are so angry today.”

“It’s natural that bullpen pitchers are valuable as the season goes on, but this trade is a clear victory for the Bulls. I don’t know who led this trade, but I think it was a bit hasty.”

-Play ball!

The game began.

The Gotes fans were already unfolding banners and protesting against the club and the manager, and were arguing with the security team staff.

In the chaotic situation, Gotes’ starter Lee Chang-hoon took the mound.

Amid the people protesting against the club and the people cheering for the team, Lee Chang-hoon threw the first pitch.

-Strike!

“Lee Chang-hoon’s pitch is good today. 145km/h on the first pitch.”

“It’s important for a starting pitcher to maintain his pace without being shaken in any situation.”

Excluding foreign pitchers, Lee Chang-hoon has been playing the role of the Gotes’ ace since being signed as a FA.

Even with the sluggish batting lineup and bullpen woes, the Gotes were able to fight for fourth place thanks to the constant of a stable starting pitcher.

-Strike! Out!

“Lee Chang-hoon finishes the inning with a strikeout. Lee Chang-hoon shuts out the first inning with three batters. He’s holding the center of the shaking Gotes.”

Choi Young-kyung started for the Foxes.

He was a swingman [a player who can play multiple positions] who went back and forth between the bullpen and the starting lineup, with a fastball and a splitter, essentially a two-pitch pitcher.

When he was in the bullpen, he was an ordinary bullpen with an ERA [earned run average] of around 4, but as a starter, his ERA soared to 7.

He was held back by two conditions: a monotonous pitching pattern and stamina management.

Choi Young-kyung saved his stamina in the first inning to pull off a long inning, but that often became a mistake.

This was especially true when he met aggressive hitters.

Tak!

“Seol Jin-il gets a hit! It’s a hit! Seol Jin-il, who has been hitting hard recently. His bat is fierce.”

“A new leadoff hitter has been born. Usually, leadoff hitters focus on getting on base, but Seol Jin-il is very aggressive. He hits every ball that seems to be in the zone. He’s not aiming for a single, he’s putting real power into the ball. If you go into the first batter lightly, you’ll get a scolding.”

With a runner on first base and no outs.

Kim In-hwan stepped into the batter’s box.

Choi Young-kyung put one pitch on the outside and then pondered the second pitch.

‘Splitter, inside the zone.’

The catcher asked him to put the splitter in the zone without pulling it down.

Doesn’t every team know that Kim In-hwan is vulnerable to falling balls?

Choi Young-kyung immediately agreed to the catcher’s sign.

The Kim In-hwan he knows is weaker than anyone to falling balls.

He had struck him out with a swing and a miss several times.

“The pitcher throws!”

Choi Young-kyung’s ball went towards the center of the strike zone and began to fall down.

Even though he was a two-pitch pitcher, it was no exaggeration to say that Choi Young-kyung was able to take the 5th starter thanks to his sharp splitter.

The ball fell to the bottom of the zone.

Kim In-hwan’s bat also started.

Choi Young-kyung felt a chill down his spine at Kim In-hwan’s bat, which started late.

Did Kim In-hwan originally hit the ball with his shoulder closed like that?

“Right fence! Right fence! Right fence! It goes over! Kim In-hwan! Two-run home run! Kim In-hwan hits a two-run home run!”

“He completely aimed for that, right? Did the ball not fall properly? The splitter that comes into the strike zone was dangerous. He should have been more careful with a home run hitter like Kim In-hwan.”

“Kim In-hwan’s home run makes the Gotes fans cheer!”

“After all, the best medicine to make fans happy is a home run. Everyone is happy with one home run.”

Choi Young-kyung lowered his head.

Should I have taken out one more ball and watched the reaction?

Was I complacent?

Song Seok-hyun stepped in front of Choi Young-kyung, who was in self-reproach.

He’s the 3rd batter, but the most dangerous batter in the Gotes.

Choi Young-kyung decided to take out one ball from the first pitch with a splitter.

He was going to check if his ball was working while taking out one ball.

Song Seok-hyun stood in an open stance and took a shallow breath.

Choi Young-kyung’s first pitch was a falling splitter.

To be successful as a catcher

The best thing to do when you’re feeling down is to hit a home run

“So you’re saying there’s a tell [a subtle movement that tips off what pitch is coming] in the fastball, not the splitter?”

“Yes, it’s funny, right?”

Before the game, Song Seok-hyun talked about Choi Young-kyung with Kim In-hwan.

“Usually, pitchers think that they throw the fastball most comfortably, so there’s no tell in the fastball. They think that the tell comes out when they throw a breaking ball. Of course, that’s natural at the beginning of baseball, but it’s the opposite at the professional level. They try to refine the breaking ball form as beautifully as possible to eliminate the tell. They artificially refine the form like a fastball, so the fastball stands out in reverse. For example, the movement becomes bigger or the hand goes further behind the head when throwing a fastball. Because that’s comfortable.”

“So Choi Young-kyung is that type too?”

“It’s a bit subtle…… Park Shin-eon also hinted at it. He said that the form is subtly different between the fastball and the breaking ball. So I looked at it and thought the fastball form was a bit different, so I watched it a bit. I’m not sure, but I think his body leans back slightly when he throws a fastball. I guess it’s a natural movement to put power into the ball, but I don’t think he does that when he throws a splitter…… Well, it’s not 100%, but it’s just my feeling?”

“You’re saying there’s a tell in the fastball?”

“Watch it once. You’ll know if it’s really different or not if you watch it.”

“Then I should tell the others that there might be a tell.”

“It’s not accurate, so wait. I might just be embarrassed. Let’s verify it once, and it’s not too late to talk about it then.”

Kim In-hwan watched Choi Young-kyung’s form closely from Seol Jin-il’s first at-bat.

When he was in the waiting batter’s box, he couldn’t distinguish between Choi Young-kyung’s fastball and splitter form.

When he stepped into the batter’s box and watched the first pitch, the fastball came in.

Kim In-hwan put the fastball’s pitching form in his head and waited for the next ball.

Wince.

He felt like Choi Young-kyung’s body stopped briefly before throwing the ball.

It was a very small difference, but it was clear.

It felt like he was deliberately setting his waist up more to throw.

Kim In-hwan decided to watch the ball.

As Choi Young-kyung’s ball came near the strike zone, Kim In-hwan swung while watching the ball.

Tang!

“That’s it.”

Kim In-hwan clenched his fist as he watched the ball go over the right fence.

He had only watched the ball and hit it, but he rarely succeeded in hitting it with a plan.

So this is how it works.

When he stepped on the base and returned home, he saw Song Seok-hyun.

Kim In-hwan reached out and high-fived Song Seok-hyun.

“Is that why you hit so well?”

“Pardon?”

“You’re right.”

Song Seok-hyun understood what Kim In-hwan meant.

There’s definitely a tell.

Song Seok-hyun also guessed with his eyes, but it was as expected.

He wouldn’t have known if Park Shin-eon hadn’t mentioned Choi Young-kyung in his notes.

He was reminded of how valuable Park Shin-eon’s notes were to him.

“Hoo.”

Song Seok-hyun stood straight and looked at Choi Young-kyung.

I have to get a feel for it.

The difference between the fastball and the breaking ball.

The difference between feeling foreign and not feeling foreign.

Song Seok-hyun was sure as soon as he saw Choi Young-kyung’s first pitch.

It felt like his waist was unusually fixed.

The ball went towards the bottom of the strike zone, but Song Seok-hyun swung his bat.

Kwang!

“Left fence! Left fence! Left fence! It goes over! Back-to-back home run! Song Seok-hyun hits a solo home run!”

“He completely lifted the fallen ball and hit it! It was completely a ball?”

“Song Seok-hyun hits a home run by lifting the ball like he’s playing golf!”

“Choi Young-kyung looks at the fence as if he can’t believe it. Back-to-back is a very unbelievable thing for a pitcher in Jamsil [stadium known for being difficult to hit home runs in]. Especially in the top of the first inning.”

“Park Shin-eon, who left, is a pity, but the Gotes have Song Seok-hyun. The Gotes fans’ *Seok-hyun앓이* [Seok-hyun sickness, a term for being obsessed with a celebrity] will deepen.”

When Song Seok-hyun came in, the next batter, Choi Jae-wan, was waiting.

Choi Jae-wan asked Song Seok-hyun.

“Is it as In-hwan said?”

Kim In-hwan must have told him about the tell in the meantime.