On The Rise As A Catcher [EN]: Chapter 157

Song Seok-hyun chuckled.

“You don’t need to thank me for something like that. Gu Jong-un [a senior player] developed the pitch; I didn’t do anything.”

“Still, it helped a lot. When I was on the fence, I decided to trust your word and try it out.”

“If you’ve got a reliable finisher, we can look forward to tomorrow.”

“Still, you never know. The first team is different from the second team. The angle of my knuckle curve doesn’t seem that great, but I think they were just caught off guard because it was unfamiliar.”

“You saw Choi Young-kyung [a senior player] today. Our hitters easily handled him last time, but they struggled a lot when he came out with his curve. A good curve can dominate most breaking balls.”

“I wonder if I can pitch as well as Choi Young-kyung… He was a terror in the second team and even became a bullpen ace in the first team. I’m not like him.”

“You never know until you try. And you’re a left-hander. Left-handed pitchers have a built-in advantage in baseball, don’t they? Haha.”

The two finished their short walk and returned to the dorm.

Before going back to his room, Jung Jin-oh called out to Song Seok-hyun.

“Just give up 3 runs tomorrow. I’ll take care of the rest.”

“Okay, 3 runs. I’ll try.”

“I believe in you, King of Jamsil [a nickname referring to a baseball stadium in Seoul].”

“Ah, don’t call me that nickname.”

“And a home run in Sajik [another baseball stadium, located in Busan], please.”

* * *

When Jung Jin-oh was announced as the starter for Game 2, the Goats fans grumbled even before entering the stadium.

“Seriously, why are they having a starting pitcher contest at a time like this?”

“The acting manager is just doing whatever he wants.”

“Ju Pan-seok is getting shelled, Lim Jin-pil is getting shelled, and our insides are getting churned. Ugh, why can’t we produce a decent starting pitcher?”

“It stopped after Kim Jung-ryul. Our starting pitchers have dried up.”

“Do we have to buy one again?”

“Are there any FA [Free Agent] starters coming out this year?”

“No, just some relievers.”

“Even buying them doesn’t work. We need to prepare for the next Lee Chang-hoon and Han Min-seok [famous pitchers].”

“But who is Jung Jin-oh, anyway?”

“I don’t know. What’s the point of putting up some no-name when Ju Pan-seok is getting hammered?”

Before the game started.

Song Seok-hyun caught Jung Jin-oh’s pitch with his mitt and smiled brightly.

‘Maybe today…’

-Play ball!

Jung Jin-oh took the mound as the game began.

“Today, the Goats are fielding another substitute starter. Michael Fish was supposed to start, but Manager Ham Sung-hoon says he’ll pitch tomorrow.”

“If Fish and McKinsey had pitched today and tomorrow, the Goats could have aimed for a winning series, but should we say Manager Ham Sung-hoon is sticking to his guns? He’s just going as planned.”

“Today’s starter, Jung Jin-oh, has the worst record among the three pitchers called up from the second team. But his recent performance has been good. He seems to be in good condition.”

“I wonder if the Goats can silence the Foxes’ lineup today.”

The Foxes’ leadoff hitter is Park Chan-hee.

He hit the first pitch, a high outside ball, for a flyout.

The second hitter, Kim Hyung-nam, also hit the first pitch, a high inside ball, for a flyout.

“Jung Jin-oh gets two outs with two pitches. He’s off to a good start today.”

“But his control isn’t great right now. The ball keeps going high. This is dangerous. The hitters are swinging because the ball is high, but their timing is off, resulting in flyouts. If his pitches continue to be this high, the Goats will be in big trouble.”

The third hitter is first baseman Kim Kyung-shim.

He wasn’t a power hitter, but he was a well-balanced hitter with good eye, contact, and power.

‘Four-seam. High ball.’

The first pitch was another high four-seam fastball.

Kim Kyung-shim flinched but didn’t swing.

-Strike!

“The ball went high again.”

“That’s not good. He needs to control the ball low, low.”

“Is it a control issue?”

“The Foxes have many strong hitters. He needs to be careful.”

The second pitch was a low outside course.

Kim Kyung-shim swung and missed.

-Strike!

Song Seok-hyun nodded.

“That was a changeup that went low.”

“Good. He needs to go low like that.”

Kim Kyung-shim, now with two strikes against him, shortened his grip.

He was determined to get on base.

Jung Jin-oh’s pitch was high again.

Kim Kyung-shim swung.

-Strike! Out!

“A three-pitch strikeout! A three-pitch strikeout!”

“Just now… the hitter seemed impatient. The curve came into the strike zone, but he was too eager.”

Jung Jin-oh, coming off the mound, held out his fist to Song Seok-hyun.

Song Seok-hyun bumped his fist and gave a thumbs up.

“See? It works.”

“Yeah, haha.”

Top of the 1st, the Goats’ attack.

On the mound was the Foxes’ starting pitcher, Brent Naive.

The leadoff hitter was Lee Ji-sung.

“He’s a pitcher who’s contributing to the Foxes’ recent rise, right? Brent Naive is starting today.”

“The Foxes fans had high expectations because of his fast fastball and high release point, but his performance hasn’t been as good as expected. His recent games have been better, but his record is still not great.”

“Choi Young-kyung did well yesterday, but the key is whether Naive can secure a winning series for the Foxes today.”

Lee Ji-sung walked to first base after getting a walk from Naive.

As Lee Ji-sung, now on first, shuffled his feet and attempted to steal, Naive made repeated pickoff attempts.

On the fourth attempt, the ball got away, and Lee Ji-sung advanced to second.

“Ah, that’s not good. It’ll be hard to get a double play now.”

“That’s Naive’s problem. He has good pitches, but something always trips him up.”

Thwack!

“A hit! A hit! The runner on second is coming home! The batter is going to second! The Goats score the first run!”

“That was a lightning swing by Seol Jin-il. A high fastball like that to a hitter who likes it is no different from batting practice.”

Naive roared after striking out the next hitter, Kim In-hwan, after a full count battle.

When Song Seok-hyun stepped into the batter’s box, catcher Park Jin-hwan didn’t say a word this time.

‘Four-seam. Inside.’

Even if they can’t walk Song Seok-hyun, they can intimidate him.

Since Naive’s control isn’t good, they’ll just have to accept it if the inside pitch misses.

Naive nodded and threw the ball with all his might toward the mitt.

Thwack!

“Left field fence! Left field fence! Left field fence~~~~ It’s over! A two-run home run by Song Seok-hyun! The Goats score 3 runs in the first inning! Thanks to Song Seok-hyun’s two-run home run, the Goats are off to a refreshing start today.”

“It was right down the middle. I don’t understand that kind of pitch to Song Seok-hyun at all.”

Catcher Park Jin-hwan stood up and shook his head.

Song Seok-hyun returned to the bench, looked at Jung Jin-oh, and held up three fingers.

Jung Jin-oh smiled brightly and gave an okay sign with his fingers.

“It looks like we can do this today?”

Ham Sung-hoon nodded at the words of the Goats’ pitching coach, Yeon Woo-shik.

“Still, you never know until the game is over.”

“Jin-oh’s pitches are surprisingly good. There was a reason why Seok-hyun said he was good.”

“Using a high fastball with a speed of less than 145km/h… It’s a gamble, but it worked.”

Ace Catcher

The Wall of Pro (4)

2nd, 3rd, and 4th innings.

Neither team scored.

“Surprisingly, it’s turning into a pitching duel. After the Goats’ score in the top of the 1st, both teams’ lineups have been quiet, as if they had made a promise.”

“Today’s game is unexpectedly flowing in an unexpected direction. Substitute starter Jung Jin-oh is pitching well, and Brent Naive, who was even being considered for a foreign player replacement, is also pitching well.”

“Is the Goats’ substitute starter strategy working today?”

“Jung Jin-oh’s pitches are going high, but the hitters can’t time them well because his fastball has power. And his curve doesn’t drop much, but the angle seems sharp. It’ll be hard for hitters to attack unless they’re looking for it.”

“Manager Ham Sung-hoon’s gamble of enforcing a substitute starter despite yesterday’s crushing defeat has paid off.”

“The Goats are also bringing up good players from the second team. This is why you have to invest.”

After the bottom of the 4th, Manager Ham Sung-hoon gathered the players.

“Naive’s pitch count is increasing. His stuff is also declining. Ji-sung, what do you think?”

“His hand got a little twisted, but now I can hit him.”

“They saved a lot of bullpen arms yesterday, so they’re likely to replace Naive as soon as he falters. Let’s attack him before Naive goes down. Swing aggressively from the first pitch in the 5th. Just be careful of the double play.”

“Yes, I understand.”

Top of the 5th.

The Goats’ lineup started with Oh Jin-young at number 7.

Naive’s first pitch was a four-seam fastball.

A fast ball with a speed of 151km/h came right down the middle.

-Strike!

“Oh Jin-young missed that one.”

“He’s regretting it himself. He should have hit that. You can’t miss a mistake pitch.”

Ham Sung-hoon sighed deeply with his hands behind his back.

“Did Pyo Dae-il say he was okay?”

At Ham Sung-hoon’s question, hitting coach Kang Yeon-tae answered.

“Yes. Dae-il isn’t that big, but he has power. His defense is still lacking, but his growth rate is fast.”

“Will he be competitive in the first team?”

“His second team record is good, but… If he comes up to the first team, he’ll need an adjustment period.”

Ham Sung-hoon tapped his feet.

“How about Lee Dae-sung?”

“Dae-sung also has some power. But his defense isn’t very good. He’s even more lacking than Dae-il.”

“Is that so… There’s no one to replace Oh Jin-young, is there?”

Oh Jin-young struck out on four pitches.

The next hitter, second baseman Jung Dong-gyu, hit the first pitch with all his might, but it was a flyout to center field.

Ninth hitter, shortstop Jung Young-soo, walked after a full count battle.

“Hmm.”

Song Seok-hyun groaned.

“The seniors are being a bit cautious…”

Kim In-hwan nodded.

“When the bat stops hitting, it’s hard to swing.”

“I don’t think there will be more scoring chances if Naive goes down.”

“The batting order is good, so we’ll score.”

Lee Ji-sung hit Naive’s first pitch, creating runners on first and second with two outs.

Kim In-hwan picked up his bat and went to the on-deck circle.

He was about to warm up when Seol Jin-il grounded out on the first-pitch changeup.

Change of offense and defense.

“It’s not working, it’s not working.”

Song Seok-hyun shook his head.

Yu Sun-ho also clicked his tongue from behind.

“We should have scored here. Ah, it’s getting twisted.”

Bottom of the 5th.

Song Seok-hyun headed to the field with Jung Jin-oh.

“Let’s get a win today, us.”

“Hoo, I wish we could, but I don’t know if we can.”

“Your pitches are good today. Pitch with confidence.”

Jung Jin-oh forced a smile.

“Yeah, yeah. Let’s do it.”

Jung Jin-oh stood on the mound.

The Foxes’ attack started with Choi Jae-guk at number 4.

Three outs to meet the requirements for a win.

Jung Jin-oh licked his dry lips.

‘Curve, low.’

Song Seok-hyun called for a curve that dropped below the zone from the first pitch.

Jung Jin-oh took a breath and threw the first pitch.

Whoosh!

-Strike!

“A swing and a miss. Jung Jin-oh induces a swing and a miss with his curve.”

“Jung Jin-oh’s curve is really sharp. It’s like watching a slow but sharp slider.”

“Are you talking about a slurve [a type of breaking ball]?”

“No. The speed is that of a curve, so it’s not a slurve.”

‘Changeup, outside.’

A changeup that a left-handed pitcher throws to the outside of a right-handed hitter.

Choi Jae-guk swung, but he couldn’t hit the ball as it moved further away and dropped to the outside.

-Strike!

Choi Jae-guk briefly stepped out of the batter’s box.

Two consecutive swings and misses.

He shook his fingers once and stepped back into the batter’s box.

‘Four-seam, high.’

As the pitcher threw the ball, the catcher stood up.

The ball headed over the hitter’s shoulder.

Thwack!

“He hit it! The ball is flying to the center! High in the air! Center fielder~ Center fielder~ Catch! The center fielder caught it!”

“It went high, but it didn’t go far. That means Jung Jin-oh’s pitch has power.”

“It doesn’t seem like Jung Jin-oh’s high fastball today is a mistake. He’s getting a lot of outs with that high fastball today.”