On The Rise As A Catcher [EN]: Chapter 122

From the bottom of the 3rd inning onward, Jo Jin-hee found his rhythm.

-Out!

-Out!

-Out!

“Three consecutive strikeouts! Jo Jin-hee! After giving up a hit, he strikes out three batters in a row. It seems like he’s really found his edge since that home run.”

“His top velocity [maximum speed] is reaching 155km/h now, isn’t it? He usually doesn’t push his pitch count so high early on, so this is almost his peak velocity.”

“A sense of crisis seems to be the best motivation for growth. That one home run awakened Jo Jin-hee’s killer instinct.”

In the top of the 4th inning, Jung Chun-woon walked one batter and allowed a hit but managed to end the inning with a double play and a strikeout.

Bottom of the 4th.

The lead batter for Goat was Song Seok-hyun.

“Song Seok-hyun is leading off again.”

“I wonder how he’s going to respond after that home run he hit earlier. Jo Jin-hee, who has really sharpened his focus, is truly intimidating. A truly scary pitcher.”

Jo Jin-hee stomped on the mound.

The cheers of the crowd didn’t reach his ears.

He could only hear the sound of his heart pounding.

What’s been done must be repaid.

Jung Yong-wook gave the sign.

‘Fastball, inside.’

Jo Jin-hee threw the first pitch with all his might.

Thwack!

Song Seok-hyun slightly crouched.

A fastball came in a little tight, aimed towards his body.

The height of the ball was also high.

The velocity was 154km/h.

It was a fastball that the left-handed pitcher crossed into the body of the right-handed batter.

“That was… a ball, but it was an impressive pitch.”

“That’s Jo Jin-hee for you. That’s practically a beanball [a pitch intentionally thrown at the batter]. It’s a warning not to crowd the plate just because you hit a home run.”

“Isn’t today his first game back anyway? Song Seok-hyun hasn’t been hit by a beanball that long ago, so he must be quite on edge. I wonder how he’ll react.”

Even though he threw a ball, Jo Jin-hee took a deep breath.

The desired ball went into the desired location.

The second pitch was also a fastball, outside.

Thwack!

-Strike!

“The ball breaks far outside.”

“There’s nothing you can do with that kind of ball. It’s a ball you should never swing at until the count is in your favor.”

“1-1. The count is interesting too.”

Song Seok-hyun lightly gripped his bat.

He watched two pitches.

While watching the two pitches, he checked the position of Jo Jin-hee’s feet and the height of his hands.

He noted those details.

He couldn’t quantify it exactly, but he registered the subtle cues.

He committed it to memory so he wouldn’t forget Jo Jin-hee’s default tendencies.

‘Slider, low.’

After two fastballs, a breaking slider.

Jo Jin-hee put strength into his fingers and threw the ball.

Thwack!

A slider that dropped to the batter’s knee height.

Song Seok-hyun watched it again this time.

“Song Seok-hyun holds back on the breaking ball.”

“It’s amazing that he can recognize that slider. The location was good too, so you had no choice but to swing.”

“The count is 2-1. The batter has a slight advantage now.”

Jo Jin-hee tilted his head as he received the ball thrown by the catcher.

How did he distinguish it?

Wasn’t he expecting the fastball?

His slider is difficult to distinguish from the fastball.

Was he anticipating the breaking ball?

Slider? Curve?

There’s no way he’d expect him to throw the curve he hit for a home run, so slider then?

Jo Jin-hee frowned.

Jung Yong-wook sent a sign to Jo Jin-hee.

‘Four-seam, outside.’

If a pitcher overthinks, the ball loses its edge.

You have to cut off the thought process before it goes on for too long.

“Hoo.”

Song Seok-hyun let out a shallow breath.

He’s finally seen all the pitches.

Jo Jin-hee is a good pitcher.

There’s no discernible difference between the fastball and the slider.

Because the two pitches are so similar, the curve stands out even more.

There’s a reason why he’s performed at a high level in domestic and international competitions.

You can’t react in time to hit a left-handed pitcher’s fastball and high-speed slider.

You have to commit to looking for one pitch.

Four-seam or slider.

Song Seok-hyun made up his mind: the four-seam.

More than half of the pitches he throws are four-seam, so why complicate things?

“Jo Jin-hee, windup!”

Jo Jin-hee threw the ball towards the outside again.

Song Seok-hyun’s bat swung.

Clang!

The ball hit by the bat flew straight along the first base line.

“Right fielder! Towards the right fielder! Ah! Foul! It’s a foul.”

“The timing was really good just now, wasn’t it? If the contact point had been a little further out front, it would have been a fair ball.”

“It’s a foul, but it was a foul that made Jo Jin-hee’s heart sink.”

Song Seok-hyun gripped his bat again and licked his lips.

As expected, Jo Jin-hee.

The ball is faster and has more power than he anticipated.

The ball arrived quicker than the contact point he had envisioned.

Jo Jin-hee’s dynamic pitching motion makes it difficult to gauge the exact timing.

“Let’s take it easy, take it easy. How can I play in fear?”

Jung Yong-wook spoke for the first time.

“Ah… yes.”

Jung Yong-wook’s eyes went to Song Seok-hyun’s bat.

The problem is the bat that’s one inch longer than others.

Even though he’s standing far away from the plate, most balls are within his reach.

‘Four-seam, inside.’

This time, he aims for the body again.

Jo Jin-hee put his weight into it and threw the ball with all his might.

Clang!

“Left field fence! Left field fence! Left field fence! Ah! It goes off the pole! Foul! This time, a huge foul.”

“That was a little dangerous, wasn’t it? I think the ball was a little too centered.”

“The confrontation between power and power is amazing. Song Seok-hyun seems to have made solid contact, but it went foul.”

“It just means Jo Jin-hee’s pitching is that good.”

“Today’s game is really exciting. If you’re a baseball fan, you should definitely watch this match today.”

Song Seok-hyun stepped out of the plate and swung his bat once.

Left-handed fireballer Koo In-sun’s ball was also excellent.

He’s a top-class left-handed pitcher on a good day, but compared to Jo Jin-hee, he’s still lacking.

Koo In-sun’s heavy and sharp four-seam is also a level below compared to Jo Jin-hee.

It’s heavier and sharper.

If he had used a light bat, the bat would have broken.

Song Seok-hyun’s grip throbbed.

Gulp.

Jo Jin-hee swallowed hard.

Consecutive fouls.

Fouls that barely missed being fair.

His back hair is standing on end.

‘Slider, low.’

The count is 2-2.

One breaking ball for a strikeout.

Jo Jin-hee tried to induce a swing with a slider.

Clang!

Song Seok-hyun stepped out of the plate.

“Foul. Foul towards 3rd base.”

“He barely got a piece of that one. It was dangerous.”

“Song Seok-hyun is persistent. He’s really persistent.”

Jo Jin-hee picked up the rosin bag.

He made his best pitch a foul.

Clearly, the contact point was behind.

It should have been a ground ball, not a foul, so how did it go foul?

Is Song Seok-hyun’s power so great that he can overcome his pitch?

Jo Jin-hee’s head was swimming with questions.

“He’s a scary guy.”

Lee Ji-sung muttered.

Song Seok-hyun’s batting just now was so similar that he could say he was imitating his posture if he only looked at the lower body separately.

A swing that kicks off the ground with the back leg as if jumping.

If Lee Ji-sung swings as if jumping to compensate for his lack of upper body strength, Song Seok-hyun borrowed the explosive power of his lower body to get the ball out at a late timing.

Same movement but different use.

Lee Ji-sung smiled bitterly.

“He uses that in that way….”

As Song Seok-hyun managed to foul off the decisive pitch, Jo Jin-hee rolled the ball in his hand.

Was it a coincidence that he fouled off the slider?

Jung Yong-wook called for an outside fastball.

Jo Jin-hee’s four-seam fastball cut through the inside of the strike zone.

Clang!

“Center left! Hit! It’s a hit! Song Seok-hyun steps on 1st base and heads to 2nd! To 2nd~~ He slides in comfortably.”

“Did Jo Jin-hee’s concentration waver? The ball was a bit too hittable just now.”

“Song Seok-hyun gets a home run and a double against Jo Jin-hee today.”

It was a slightly centered ball.

Not by much, it was a ball that was only about one ball’s width more inside the strike zone.

If it were another player, the ball hit off the end of the bat would have gone foul due to the pitch’s movement.

Song Seok-hyun managed to keep it fair.

Jo Jin-hee tried to control his expression.

What good would it do to get angry at Song Seok-hyun, who took off his protective gear and gave it to the coach as if nothing had happened even after hitting a double? He would only be embarrassing himself.

“The next batter is Yoo Sun-ho.”

“He got on base with a walk earlier, but his bat timing was a bit slow.”

Jo Jin-hee threw a fastball towards Yoo Sun-ho’s body.

A left-handed pitcher’s fastball that comes inside on a left-handed batter.

Yoo Sun-ho couldn’t move.

-Strike!

Yoo Sun-ho took a breath.

A fastball that felt like it exceeded 160km/h.

Yoo Sun-ho anticipated an outside four-seam fastball.

Thwack!

-Strike!

“Another fastball towards the body. Two strikes.”

“He’s bold. Jo Jin-hee is pitching aggressively.”

Yoo Sun-ho stepped out of the plate and swung his bat once.

“Hey, you. It’s a comeback 기념 [commemoration], won’t you give your friend a ball?”

“That’s why I threw it to you. What’s the point of a guy who can’t hit two straight balls even if I serve them up?”

“How can I hit that ball?”

“That’s your problem.”

Jung Yong-wook and Yoo Sun-ho, who are the same age, exchanged words with each other.

“One curve. Curve.”

“Okay. I’ll give it to you.”

Yoo Sun-ho anticipated an outside slider.

He’s been brushed back with two inside pitches in a row.

It’s a common strategy to follow up with an outside pitch after throwing inside.

He’s sure to expect the outside ball, so he’ll swing at a slider.

If he swings, it’s a strikeout, and if not, it’s one ball.

If the slider comes in flat, he swings as it is.

“……?”

Yoo Sun-ho swung at the incoming ball.

Thwack.

-Strike! Out!