On The Rise As A Catcher [EN]: Chapter 101

Song Seok-hyun nodded once.

Choi Jae-wan high-fived Song Seok-hyun.

“Oh!”

“Yeah!”

“Nice one!”

“Monster!”

As Song Seok-hyun returned, the players opened their arms wide to welcome him.

Was there anything better than a home run to calm the chaotic atmosphere?

With back-to-back home runs and the KS duo [Kim In-hwan and Song Seok-hyun] in action, the fans sang their cheering song in unison.

“G.O.A.T., invincible G.O.A.T., there’s no place we can’t go. Even if everyone says it’s hard, we step and step and climb. You can only look up at us. In the end, we’re the ones who stand at the top!”

“Run! G.O.A.T.! Run! G.O.A.T.! Whoa whoa whoa whoa!”

“The atmosphere in Jamsil Stadium is heating up! Just five minutes ago, both teams were in a gloomy mood, but the G.O.A.T. fans have turned it around. It’s hot. Very hot. Hot enough to burn your hands.”

“Hahaha, as expected, a home run is the best when you’re feeling down!”

After the back-to-back home runs, Choi Young-kyung looked at his own hand.

Clearly, the pitch wasn’t bad.

The splitter [a type of fastball with a downward break] fell well.

The fact that two batters hit the splitter in a row meant… there was a tell [an unconscious habit that reveals the type of pitch being thrown].

A sign came from the Fox bench.

The sign was to mix pitches mainly with fastballs until the end of this inning.

The catcher called for an outside fastball as the first pitch.

Choi Young-kyung wound up in a daze.

Choi Jae-wan’s eyes sharpened.

Choi Young-kyung’s body leaning back became more pronounced.

It was clearly visible.

Choi Jae-wan took a deep breath.

“He throws the first pitch!”

The ball thrown by Choi Young-kyung flew toward the strike zone.

It wasn’t a ball that rode the border line, but it was a fastball that fell well to the outside.

Choi Jae-wan laid his body back with his armpits tucked in.

He pulled the bat toward his body and looked at the left fence.

Choi Jae-wan’s bat flew into the sky, spinning and falling toward the third base Fox side.

“Left fence! Is it going again? Is it going again? Left fence! It goes over! Back-to-back-to-back! Three consecutive home runs! What’s wrong with G.O.A.T. today? The G.O.A.T. lineup is on fire! Burning very hot! This is the first time I’ve seen back-to-back-to-back home runs in Jamsil while broadcasting. Is there a record of three consecutive home runs in Jamsil? I don’t think there is?”

“Following the KS duo, Choi Jae-wan also hits a home run. Choi Jae-wan was a hitter with a knack for hitting one out, but his batting average was low. Today is different. It’s different.”

“With Choi Jae-wan’s home run, G.O.A.T. has four consecutive hits and three consecutive home runs. G.O.A.T. is earning four points from the start! Lee Chang-hoon must be feeling secure today. Isn’t Lee Chang-hoon pitching well today anyway?”

“Haha, Lee Chang-hoon. We should be worried about his shoulder getting cold. The G.O.A.T. lineup is on fire today. It’s scary. It’s really scary!”

Three consecutive home runs in Jamsil.

The thought, ‘Was there a pitcher who was hit with three consecutive home runs in Jamsil…’ crossed Choi Young-kyung’s mind.

It’s not easy to be hit with even one home run in Jamsil, which is known as a pitcher-friendly stadium, but back-to-back-to-back home runs were hard to believe, enough to make you want to pinch yourself.

On the Fox bench, the manager repeatedly sat down and stood up.

You can’t take the pitcher down in the first inning.

The catcher went up to the mound.

“Young-kyung. Take a deep breath, take a deep breath.”

“……”

“There are days like this.”

“Do I have a tell when I throw a splitter?”

“……Ha, I don’t know. It doesn’t seem like it to me at all. It’s clean.”

“No matter how I look at it, I think they read my tell.”

“Let’s go with fastballs for now. We’ll know by mixing in splitters one or two at a time and seeing how they react. Let’s focus. Okay? There’s still a lot of game left.”

Choi Young-kyung looked at his fingers.

Could it be that they know because I spread my fingers in advance?

If you spread your fingers in advance and grip it deeply, the glove opens a little.

Sharp-eyed hitters can tell whether it’s a fastball or a splitter by looking at the glove before the pitcher throws the ball, but Choi Young-kyung has been paying attention to this and throwing it.

Could it be that I’ve unknowingly developed the habit again?

Or is the release point different when I throw the ball?

Or what is it?

In Choi Young-kyung’s mind, the imagination of tells that could occur when throwing a splitter grew.

There’s something wrong with his splitter, so the hitters are distinguishing between the splitter and the fastball.

What is it? What is it? I have to find it.

It’s only the first inning.

There are still many innings to go.

“Hit! Choi Young-kyung allows another hit!”

“Choi Young-kyung can’t concentrate. Those ambiguous fastballs won’t do. Right now, he should be grateful that it wasn’t an extra-base hit.”

“Usually, when home runs start coming out like this, the hitters’ swings naturally get bigger, but Oh Jin-young lightly taps it.”

“That’s Oh Jin-young’s strength. He’s calm. It’s more important to continue the batting order somehow than to increase the out count by swinging big here. The basic condition for a big inning is not hitting a lot of home runs, but continuing the batting order without increasing the out count.”

The G.O.A.T.’s lineup has not traditionally been strong.

As a team that uses Jamsil, they specialize in singles, tactics, and doubles rather than home runs.

The hitters who joined G.O.A.T. and have grown up have level swings and pushing the ball to the opposite field ingrained in their bodies.

G.O.A.T. scored 7-0 in the first inning alone, completing a full cycle of the batting order.

Fox gave up on putting in another pitcher altogether.

7-0 in the first inning alone.

The score difference is too vast.

Choi Young-kyung changed direction to pitching as many innings as possible.

No professional team has difficulty with a pitcher whose self-confidence has collapsed, whose mentality has collapsed and whose tell becomes clearer when throwing a fastball, and whose only breaking ball, the splitter, is sealed.

G.O.A.T. recorded hits by all batters for the first time in a long time.

The KS duo combined for 3 home runs and 4 walks.

G.O.A.T. fans abandoned thoughts of Park Shin-eon during the game.

They stopped criticizing the club and blaming the manager.

Home run, home run, home run.

The special medicine to heal the hearts of injured baseball fans was a home run.

“G.O.A.T., invincible G.O.A.T., there’s no place we can’t go. Even if everyone says it’s hard, we step and step and climb. You can only look up at us. In the end, we’re the ones who stand at the top!”

* * *

“12-0. It’s scary. G.O.A.T. is scary. Fox has completely collapsed today. It will be more shocking than being swept [losing all games in a series].”

“Yes, that’s right. They didn’t even score 1 point. When the mound collapsed, the lineup also collapsed. If this happens, Fox will be chased to within 2 games of Phoenix. Phoenix has been doing well lately, right? If this happens, Phoenix may be able to escape 8th place.”

“Fox’s dark age is getting longer.”

“These games are also a big scar for the fans. You can lose. But you shouldn’t lose powerlessly. You have to fight to the end and then lose. Today, both the pitching and the batting are failing.”

“G.O.A.T. has won 7 out of the last 9 games. But surprisingly, there were two sweeps. Aside from one losing series against the Wolves, they swept two teams.”

“They definitely get the points they can get. This is important. G.O.A.T. has a lot of external pressure and internal troubles these days, right? The more this happens, the more you have to be faithful to the basics. Anyway, the weight of victory is the same no matter which team you play against. 7 wins in 9 games. It’s a great record.”

“Today, as Wales lost to Pegasus, G.O.A.T. rises to a tie for 4th place with Wales again. The next game is against Wales. If they win against Wales, they will move up to 4th place alone.”

“G.O.A.T. has changed. Even in the midst of the team shaking, there is a starting pitcher and a lineup that holds the center. The weight of the lineup has been lacking, but the KS duo, which replaced the Lee-Choi-Kang cleanup, has completely washed away the G.O.A.T. fans’ disappointment.”

“Kim In-hwan, a left-handed hitter who is said to be the best slugger of all time, and Song Seok-hyun, a right-handed hitter who hits home runs outside of Jamsil. Maybe, just maybe, we are lucky enough to see the best home run hitters in G.O.A.T. history in the same era.”

Succeeding as a Catcher

Puzzle

There were people who couldn’t be happy even with the team’s big win.

G.O.A.T.’s front office staff were plagued by phone calls even after the big win.

The president and general manager were summoned by the chairman and were running around busily, and the operations team leader sat down with Manager Ham Seong-hoon to fit the missing pieces of the puzzle.

“I’m sorry, Manager. Taking up your time like this on a day like today.”

“If it’s a meeting for a trade, I welcome it.”

“I was going to call the power analysis team, but since these things are all about speed and maintaining secrecy, I only received the data. More than anything… I thought you would already have a plan. Am I right?”

“I have something in mind too.”

“I knew it. When you suddenly mentioned Lee-Choi-Kang, I was convinced that you had a plan.”

The operations team leader stretched.

“Then that’s a relief. It seems like we can start discussing in earnest.”

“Did the president approve it?”

“Someone higher than that approved it.”

Manager Ham Seong-hoon paused for a moment.

“When you say higher, do you mean a high-ranking group executive?”

“Higher than that.”

“……?”

“The chairman directly called me and instructed me to succeed in the trade, even if I had to use all three cards [referring to Lee, Choi, and Kang]. Of course… he also asked if winning the championship was possible.”

“He’s telling you to take responsibility for the trade.”

“Yes, well, you don’t have to feel too burdened. I guess he’s just telling us to be sincere.”

“Even if I were the owner, I’d be angry if I traded a 20 billion FA [Free Agent] player and didn’t aim to win the championship. I can’t tell the chairman, but if you ever see him, please tell him. I’ll step down if we don’t win the championship.”

“……Isn’t your term up this year anyway?”

“Yes, that’s why I’m saying it.”

The operations team leader chuckled.

“You know how to joke.”

“Was it funny?”

“It was a little absurd.”

“That’s a shame, I thought it was a surprise attack. I guess I’m not good at jokes. ”

“Let’s stop joking around. There’s not much time. We have to finish the trade within the next week. Considering the time it takes for the other party to consider and adjust our proposal, a week is woefully insufficient.”

“Yes, that’s why we’re at a disadvantage. If it’s a proposal with a lot to think about, there’s a high possibility that it will be delayed and fall through. We have to present good conditions to the other party, even at the risk of losing. Conditions that the other party can snap up.”

“……The backlash from public opinion will be no joke, right? If we openly do business at a loss, the other party will make even harsher demands on us. Time is not on our side.”

“We shouldn’t be in the position of being ‘ul’ [the weaker party] in the negotiation. Negotiations should be at least equal, right? It would be even better if we were ‘gap’ [the stronger party].”

“That’s why I’m telling you it’s difficult.”

“Just because we offer good conditions doesn’t mean we’re ‘ul’. The conditions are also favorable to the other party.”

“I don’t understand very well……?”

Ham Seong-hoon held up seven fingers.

“Excluding us, there are seven other parties to trade with. Lee Hyuk only has Fox and Bulls, but the Lee-Choi-Kang trio are resources that Pegasus would also covet, right?”

“You’re offering Lee-Choi-Kang to a team that will compete with us?”

“Anyway, none of them are going to be active this year, right? It’s not bad for us.”

“It could be a boomerang for us next year.”

“I don’t know if I’ll be here then.”

“……Are you serious?”

“There’s half seriousness in this.”

The operations team leader laughed loudly.

“This time it was really funny.”

“It’s funny even though I’m serious?”

“It’s funny because you’re serious. I thought you were a saint, but you’re a person with emotions.”

“A saint? I’m a person who is faithful to the five desires and seven emotions [a Buddhist concept referring to basic human desires and emotions].”

“I’m glad to hear that. I’ve been really sorry all this time.”

The operations team leader leaned forward.

“Good. Anyway, the general manager will take the blame externally, and I’ll actually take it, but I’ll just take it. Our chairman has a fickle personality, but he’s cool, right? Even if we hand over Lee-Choi-Kang to another team, he’s the type to spend even more money on more expensive kids, so he’ll forgive everything if the results are good.”

“So, in the end, you’re saying that I’m holding your lifeline?”

“My lifeline depends on this trade. We need to find the perfect puzzle for us, Manager. So, what is your puzzle?”

Manager Ham Seong-hoon took out a pen.

The operations team leader handed over a blank piece of paper.

“Thank you. Now, let’s write down what our team needs most. Our starting lineup is average up to the 4th starter, so I think we’re strong enough to compete with Pegasus for 1st or 2nd place. There’s no overwhelming ace, but the average ERA [Earned Run Average, a measure of pitching performance] of the four is in the 3-point range, except for Han Min-seok, who has recently risen to the low 4-point range. It’s great. But the 5th starter, bullpen, and lineup are question marks. The 5th starter is excluded because no team has a proper starting pitcher. Then the bullpen and the lineup remain… We won’t be able to get a hitter with both offense and defense while selling the Lee-Choi-Kang trio. Our infield and outfield defense is good right now anyway. In the end, we need a hitter who is guaranteed to have offensive power, even if he can’t defend.”

The operations team leader smiled.

The operations team leader also took out a pen and wrote three names.

Manager Ham Seong-hoon and the operations team leader made eye contact.

“You were already thinking about it, Team Leader.”

“Actually, it’s difficult, but it’s the best card for us.”

“That’s right. In fact, when I called the Lee-Choi-Kang trio through a trade, I also thought of this friend as a trade item. If it wasn’t for Lee-Choi-Kang, I wouldn’t even be able to bring up the trade with this friend as the target.”

“Both you and I have to rack our brains to solve this problem.”

“This is something for the team leader to worry about. How to bring him is up to the team leader.”

Ham Seong-hoon smiled.

The operations team leader answered with a sigh.

“Good. Then let’s do this with the lineup… What do you think about the bullpen?”

“We’ve already taken everything from the Bulls… I was aiming for Jeon Byung-seop from Fox, but I saw that he had a lot of mistakes this time. So… I think this is the only team we can do it with, Wales.”

“Isn’t that the team we’re competing with for 4th place and the most difficult team to trade with?”

“Anyway, if we’re going to trade, there are only the top 4 teams left. If we give a reason, it’s difficult to trade with all of them. But if you think about it, Pegasus and Scorpion, who are competing for the championship, wouldn’t leak their bullpen in this situation. The Lee-Choi-Kang positions are also solid enough. You know that we can’t trade with the Wolves at all… Then the only one left is Wales.”

“Phoenix?”

“……You’re joking too much. Where are the pitchers in Phoenix?”

“I tried to joke, but you’re serious.”

“You joked too much.”

The operations team leader picked up a pen and circled each name on the paper he received from the power analysis team.

“Then can we pick the candidates like this?”

“Yes, the key is here, these two. If we’re greedy, it would be nice to get these three more.”

“It won’t be easy…… Um.”

“We have to get these two no matter what. Absolutely.”

“Okay. Then I’ll report to the general manager and move immediately.”

* * *

Daegu Stadium.

It was long after the game ended, and in the deserted stadium, a huge man was sweating profusely, hitting the balls from the pitching machine.

Thwack!

Thwack!

Thwack!

Every time he twisted his whole body and swung the bat with all his might, his swing was fierce, as if he would split the ball.

“Haa, haa, haa.”

The man, who had been hitting the ball for a long time, sat down on the floor and wiped his face with a towel.

The practice field was filled only with the man’s breathing.

The man leaned against the wall and stared blankly at the ceiling.

“What are you doing, really.”