On The Rise As A Catcher [EN]: Chapter 156

-Strike!

“Choi Young-kyung’s pitching speed and control are excellent today. Although he gave up a hit and a walk, he’s throwing the ball with confidence.”

“Choi Jae-wan is also in good form lately. Choi Young-kyung needs to be careful.”

The second pitch is a curveball, strike.

The third pitch is a splitter, strikeout.

Choi Jae-wan lowered his head and walked away from the plate.

“Is this really the Choi Young-kyung we know? Today, he’s pitching like an ace.”

“Just adding a curveball has thrown the batters off balance. At this rate, GOT’s chances today don’t look good, do they?”

The next batter, Oh Jin-young, hit the curveball, but it resulted in a double play.

It was a change of offense and defense.

“Hoo.”

Director Ham Sung-hoon licked his lips.

He’d hoped they might salvage today’s game since Fox’s fifth starter was Choi Young-kyung, but no such luck.

It seems whenever you rely on luck, a more difficult challenge awaits.

Two foreign players will be starting for Fox from tomorrow.

The goal for the Fox series is at least one win and two losses.

The win they were aiming for against Fox was today’s game.

Just his luck, Choi Young-kyung is in top condition today.

“Jang Sung-gu is up to bat. He’s been hitting well lately, hasn’t he?”

“He’s a dangerous sixth batter. You can’t underestimate him just because he’s in the lower lineup. Looking at his stats, he could easily be in the cleanup spot [the fourth batting position, typically reserved for a team’s best hitter].”

Song Seok-hyun watched the stance of the left-handed batter, Jang Sung-gu.

He’s standing close to the plate, finding his rhythm.

That means he’s confident with inside pitches.

The breaking balls a right-handed pitcher can throw against a left-handed batter are a changeup or a curveball.

If the changeup is too flat, forget it; then the only thing left is a curveball.

The problem is that Fox has probably noticed that Lim Jin-pil’s changeup isn’t very effective.

He can’t overpower them with his fastball, and the only breaking ball left is a curveball.

It’s a headache trying to figure out what sign to give.

‘Fastball. Outside.’

If the catcher hesitates, the pitcher hesitates too.

Song Seok-hyun placed his mitt on the outside corner of the plate.

It was a sign to confidently throw a fastball.

Thwack!

-Ball. Outside.

Lim Jin-pil’s pitch misses the strike zone.

Lim Jin-pil’s control is off today.

He calls for a fastball again.

Thwack!

-Ball. Outside.

The pitches keep missing.

Song Seok-hyun quickly realized what this meant.

The pitcher knows it too.

That it’s going to be hard to beat the Fox batters with his pitches today.

Whether consciously or unconsciously, he’s avoiding the batters.

‘Curveball.’

-Ball. Low.

‘Curveball.’

-Ball. Low.

“Straight walk. Lim Jin-pil walks the lead-off batter.”

“Is his control wavering? He’s throwing wild pitches.”

Song Seok-hyun’s chest felt tight.

The pitcher was scared.

The pitcher’s confidence was broken in just one inning.

He’s experiencing the harsh reality of the pros firsthand.

In the professional world, a player with a clear strength is preferred over a player without any glaring weaknesses.

Unfortunately, Lim Jin-pil lacked a standout skill to showcase in the first team.

Walk.

Walk.

Lim Jin-pil walked the next two batters in succession, creating a bases-loaded situation with no outs.

Song Seok-hyun went up to the mound.

“He’s the ninth batter anyway. If you don’t compete here, it’ll be even harder going forward.”

“O-okay.”

“Just think of it as giving up two runs and play.”

“Alright.”

Lim Jin-pil was sweating profusely.

The next batter was the ninth batter, catcher Park Jin-hwan.

As a catcher, his defense wasn’t anything special, but his hitting was a different story.

Clang!

“To left field! Going back! Back! A hit that sails completely over the outfielder’s head! The runner on third scores, the runner on second scores, even the runner on first! A bases-clearing double!”

“This is Park Jin-hwan’s specialty. A catcher with surprising power. His ability to hit for extra bases is undeniable. He’s a catcher who can easily hit more than ten home runs a year. With so many good catchers emerging recently, Park Jin-hwan has been somewhat overlooked, but a catcher with this much power is rare.”

“With Park Jin-hwan’s bases-clearing double, Fox takes the lead 3-0. Will it be a slugfest again today?”

“The possibility of a slugfest is definitely there. Sajik Stadium is going to be rocking today.”

Lim Jin-pil gave up an additional run, ending the bottom of the second inning.

Four runs, bases loaded, and no outs.

Lim Jin-pil, returning to the bench, sat in a corner and covered his face with a towel.

“…….”

GOT’s bench was silent for the first time in a while.

When the pitching faltered, the batters would usually step up and score runs, but today it wasn’t easy.

In the top of the third inning, they only managed to get one walk against Choi Young-kyung.

Eventually, in the bottom of the third inning, Lim Jin-pil gave up two consecutive walks and was taken out of the game.

“Let’s go with Pan-seok.”

Lim Jin-pil left the bench looking utterly defeated.

On the mound was Joo Pan-seok.

He was a pitcher who was said to easily reach 150 km/h [approximately 93 mph] with his recently improved velocity.

“GOT is not having an easy day today. Both the pitching and the batting lineup are struggling.”

“Lim Jin-pil was ultimately overwhelmed by Fox’s batting lineup. Fox’s hitters are a tough challenge.”

“Joo Pan-seok, who just came in, is said to be GOT’s secret weapon. A pitcher who throws over 150 km/h.”

“He’s a completely different type from Lim Jin-pil. A power pitcher. A player like Joo Pan-seok might have more success against Fox’s batters.”

Thwack.

Thwack.

The ball shook Song Seok-hyun’s mitt during the practice throws.

Joo Pan-seok’s stuff was definitely different.

His control was erratic, but it’s unreasonable to expect a pitcher who’s just turned twenty-one to have perfect command.

“Choi Jae-guk, the fourth batter, is coming up to bat.”

“Choi Jae-guk is also a player with tremendous power, isn’t he? If you exclude Kim In-hwan, there aren’t many players who are stronger.”

“A battle between a fastballer throwing 150 km/h and the cleanup hitter. It’s going to be exciting, isn’t it?”

Song Seok-hyun signaled Joo Pan-seok for an outside fastball.

Joo Pan-seok powerfully lifted his leg and threw the ball, but it went right down the middle.

Choi Jae-guk took the pitch.

-Strike!

Song Seok-hyun took the ball out of his mitt, deep in thought.

With this level of control… will this work?

Success as a Catcher

The Wall Called Pro (3)

August 13, 2013.

Sajik, Fox vs. GOT, top of the 6th inning.

The score is 15-4.

The Busan fans stood up and sang with excitement.

In contrast, the GOT fans were quiet, as if cold water had been poured on them.

“Ah, GOT is having a really tough day today. Neither the starters nor the bullpen are effective at all.”

“Lim Jin-pil, who came out as a spot starter, struggled too much. This is why the starting pitcher is so important. You can’t just keep changing the starting pitcher.”

“He had good results in the minor leagues, but is the gap between the minor leagues and the first team too wide?”

“It’s hard to take the minor league results at face value. The first and second teams are completely different. The minor league results are just a preview.”

“With Joo Pan-seok collapsing after Lim Jin-pil, GOT’s pitching has completely fallen apart today. Joo Pan-seok was also very disappointing today, wasn’t he?”

“The ball was fast, but just having a fast ball isn’t enough. Fox’s batting lineup is at least league average, no matter how conservatively you rate it. Fastballs that aren’t controlled aren’t difficult for Fox players.”

On GOT’s bench, Lim Jin-pil and Joo Pan-seok were sitting side by side.

Both of them were hanging their heads and sighing repeatedly.

The two of them gave up a total of 11 runs today.

Joo Pan-seok completely lost it, even giving up a grand slam.

Lee Baek-chan, who came out next in the bullpen, continued to give up runs.

The final score was 22-6.

It was a crushing defeat for GOT.

* * *

“Ugh, I’m going to die.”

Kim In-hwan, who had finished showering, came out, patting his waist.

Song Seok-hyun was watching TV.

“Aren’t you going to shower?”

“I’ll shower after watching this.”

The highlights of today’s baseball game between GOT and Fox were being broadcast on TV.

“Why are you watching something like that?”

“If I don’t watch it now, when will I watch it?”

“Still, you’re watching that on a day like today?”

The TV was showing scenes of Lim Jin-pil and Joo Pan-seok being tormented by Fox’s batters.

The highlight was Joo Pan-seok’s grand slam.

A close-up of him turning his head to look at the ball as if he had lost everything.

“I expected it wouldn’t be easy today, but it was worse than I thought.”

“I roughly expected it. I thought today was going to be rough.”

“Why?”

“Why else? Jin-pil and Pan-seok aren’t ready for the first team yet. It was manageable even before I changed my batting form, what.”

“Still, both of them are doing well in the minor leagues, and they have their own strengths.”

“That’s how it is. How many guys haven’t stood out in the minor leagues? The kids who come up to the first team have all dominated the minor leagues at least once. Even those kids come to the first team and just freeze up and get buried. You have to go back and forth between the first and second teams a few times to adapt to the first team later. Someone who adapts to the first team right away… Ah, there are guys like you.”

“There are good things to say, but why ‘guy’?”

“Anyway. Our team’s minor league system is all flash and no substance. What’s the point of having good results in the minor league if there aren’t enough players to use in the first team? Especially the pitchers. They take all the pitchers as free agent [FA] compensation players, so there’s no way any decent pitchers are left.”

“Why do they only take pitchers? Are our team’s hitters that bad?”

“Every team is always short of pitchers. In Korea, it’s pitchers over hitters.”

Song Seok-hyun crossed his arms and turned his gaze to the TV.

“Fox’s batting lineup is no joke. Wow, they were scary today. Tomorrow and the day after won’t be easy either.”

“Jin-oh is coming out tomorrow, right?”

“Yes, Jin-oh is doing well these days. His recent results are the best of the three.”

“The manager is amazing too. If it were me, I’d put Chun-woon and Fish in right away. We have to get two wins from Fox.”

“I think he’s planning to push them hard when he pushes them.”

“Sajik will be a sea of fire tomorrow too. Sajik sea of fire~ carried on this wind~ [a popular cheer for the Lotte Giants, whose home stadium is Sajik].”

“Ah, seriously, hyung [older brother or male friend]. Don’t be ominous.”

“If you hit about six grand slams tomorrow, we can win. Seok-hyun, fighting!”

Song Seok-hyun finished showering, left the dorm, and walked.

He was walking with his head down when someone recognized him.

“What are you doing here?”

“Um? What are you doing here, sunbae-nim [senior player]?”

The person who spoke to Song Seok-hyun was Jung Jin-oh.

“I’m just… well… you?”

“I was just walking too.”

“Aren’t you sleeping?”

“I can’t sleep.”

“Why can’t you sleep?”

Song Seok-hyun scratched his cheek.

“I don’t know. A little upset? On a day like today, I’m not even a pitcher, but I’m getting fired up inside.”

“Well… hoo… the pitchers have nothing to say today.”

“Ah, no. I’m not talking behind the sunbae-nims’ backs. Really.”

“Who said you were? I was also upset today. I wish I didn’t have to play tomorrow, but the coach told me to go out. Ha.”

Jung Jin-oh shook his head.

“I didn’t know I’d hate standing on the first team mound this much.”

“You’ll do well, sunbae-nim. Your recent results are good.”

“No matter how well you do in the minor leagues, it seems different from the first team. Jin-pil and Pan-seok are aces in the minor leagues, aren’t they? But did you know they’d explode like that?”

“Your recent results are better, sunbae-nim.”

“That’s luck, luck. Ah, right.”

Jung Jin-oh snapped his fingers.

“I owe you a lot.”

“Me?”

“Yeah, the knuckle curve is working really well. You told me to throw it as a knuckle curve.”

“Ah, the knuckle curve is working well?”

“One hundred percent in the minor leagues. They can’t even get a read on it.”

“Oh, congratulations. You’ve developed a killer pitch.”

“That’s right. Your contribution is huge. I was going to say thank you, but I had to see you in person to say it. I have to perform well in the first team to show you my gratitude.”