On The Rise As A Catcher [EN]: Chapter 18

The bat came out for a longer time, a stance he used when attacking pitches near his body.

Thwack!

Kim In-hwan’s hit flew towards center field.

This time, it flew straight to the warning track [the area just before the outfield fence].

“Nice.”

Song Seok-hyun didn’t say anything.

This was the point where he had to realize things on his own.

Kim In-hwan was a first-round pick.

You can’t be a first-round pick just by being strong or having good baseball sense.

Thwack!

Thwack!

Every ball Kim In-hwan hit flew towards the fence.

* * *

Song Seok-hyun was lying on the bed, exhausted.

Kim In-hwan’s diligence was astonishing.

He would hit the ball and ask Song Seok-hyun, then hit the ball again and ask Song Seok-hyun again.

Facing Kim In-hwan’s passion, he couldn’t help but feel drained.

“Did you have a good workout today?”

“Ah, Senior. You’re here?”

Kim Jeong-ryul returned to the dorm late in the evening.

“Yeah, did you train hard?”

“Yes, I did.”

“Did Hyeong-seok throw some pitches? And you caught them well?”

“No. The training schedule was a bit messed up today.”

“Slacking off from the start since I’m not here, haha.”

“No, it’s not that… Anyway, today was tough in a different way.”

Kim Jeong-ryul sat on the bed.

“I had a tough day too. I went to Fukuoka.”

“Fukuoka? Ah, so you met that coach?”

“Yeah, I met him. Luckily or unluckily, he’s preparing a personal training center.”

“Ah, that’s good. So, what did you decide?”

“I decided to hire him as a coach for a month.”

“Really? A whole month? Wow! Congratulations, Senior. Is Hiroto Coach coming here?”

Kim Jeong-ryul let out a hollow laugh.

“Wow, this training camp seems to be costing the most money. He’ll be here tomorrow or the day after. He was curious when I mentioned you, asking how you knew him. Thanks to you, the conversation went well.”

“He’s a capable coach, so he’ll definitely cure your yips [a sudden loss of fine motor skills] , Senior.”

“He has to. If I can’t return this year, I’ll be forced to retire. If your hyung [older brother/senior male friend] goes up again, he’ll pull you up too, right?”

Song Seok-hyun laughed along.

“Yes, of course. Please pull me up. I’ll be pulled up well.”

“You rascal, you’re so cheeky for a young guy. Hahaha, what did you do today? Anything special?”

“Ah, nothing special, but today I trained with Kim In-hwan, and…”

Rising to Fame as a Catcher

Hiroto Coach

“Nice to meet you. I’m Kawabata Hiroto.”

The man Kim Jeong-ryul introduced was young.

Even if he was older, he wouldn’t be more than forty.

Broadly speaking, he looked the same age as Kim Jeong-ryul or even younger.

“You even called an interpreter?”

Kim Hyeong-seok was more interested in the interpreter, who looked clueless, than in Hiroto Coach being young.

“I have to call an interpreter. How else would I get coaching?”

“You spent a lot of money…”

“Don’t worry, I’m not asking you to pay for it.”

“I don’t have any money to pay anyway.”

Hiroto Coach shook hands with each person.

“I heard that the people here are professional team players. Is that correct?”

Kim Jeong-ryul answered instead.

“Yes, that’s right.”

“While I’m here, I’ll focus on fixing Kim Jeong-ryul’s yips, but if I have time, I’ll help you guys too. Feel free to ask for help anytime.”

Before training, Hiroto Coach briefly explained his background.

He was 34 years old. He used to be a conditioning coach for the SoftBank Hawks’ second team and is currently preparing a personal lesson shop.

He was a player who reached the professional first team but retired early due to injury and entered the path of coaching.

He joined the pros as a pitcher but later changed his position to outfielder.

“Um… then, let’s have our Hwang Coach look after In-hwan and Hyeong-seok, and Seok-hyun can help me when Hyeong-seok and I are throwing. How’s that?”

“Yes, I’m fine with that.”

“Great. Then let’s make the most of it from today!”

Hiroto Coach first called Kim Jeong-ryul and Song Seok-hyun and ordered them to pitch.

Kim Jeong-ryul threw the ball underhand as he had been practicing.

“Strike!”

Song Seok-hyun raised his voice loudly, encouraging Kim Jeong-ryul.

Kim Jeong-ryul threw five more balls in a row.

The balls all entered the strike zone.

“Stop. I’ve seen enough.”

Hiroto Coach walked towards the mound.

The coach, after talking to Kim Jeong-ryul for a few words, gestured for Song Seok-hyun to come over.

“Yes, what’s the matter?”

“What does it look like from the catcher’s perspective? Does the ball look good?”

“Me? Yes, it looks like the ball has power at the end.”

“Hmm, it looks good to me too. You said he has the yips, but what’s the problem?”

Kim Jeong-ryul said.

“Right now, my arm and shoulder are okay, so I can throw the ball, but I keep failing to properly grip the ball because of the pain. So I can’t get the ball properly into the zone.”

“Then it’s more of an injury problem than the yips.”

“Even though I don’t have any pain now, gripping the ball is a bit… like that. I can’t grip it properly.”

“It’s like an injury trauma. Can’t you throw the ball if there’s a batter?”

“I haven’t done live batting yet, so I don’t know what it’s like now.”

“Then shall we try it once? Can you bring a batter?”

Song Seok-hyun called Kim In-hwan.

Kim In-hwan listened to Hiroto Coach’s story, then picked up a bat and entered the batter’s box.

“You don’t have to hit the ball. Just stand in the batter’s box and take a stance as if you’re going to hit.”

“Okay.”

Kim Jeong-ryul stood on the mound against a batter in the batter’s box for the first time in a while.

Kim Jeong-ryul flicked rosin [a sticky resin used by pitchers] onto his hand.

“Why am I so nervous?”

Kim Jeong-ryul tried to change the atmosphere with a smile, but no one laughed.

“Hey, don’t hit a home run.”

“I won’t.”

“Don’t even hit a single.”

“I won’t.”

Kim Jeong-ryul, after exchanging a chilly joke with Kim In-hwan, wound up.

Song Seok-hyun held out his mitt in the middle of the zone.

Whoosh!

Kim Jeong-ryul’s arm brushed the ground as he threw the ball.

The ball seemed to rise for a moment before sinking and entering the zone.

“Strike.”

Song Seok-hyun called a strike, watching Kim In-hwan’s reaction.

“Hmm.”

Kim In-hwan nodded.

“Good. Shall we throw three more?”

As the coach requested, Kim In-hwan threw the ball in succession.

“Good!”

“Good!”

“Good!”

Song Seok-hyun made his voice louder as he caught the ball.

The batter might feel bad, but considering Kim In-hwan’s personality and the situation between the two, it didn’t seem like Kim In-hwan would feel bad.

“Wait, just a moment.”

Hiroto Coach went back to the mound with the interpreter.

Song Seok-hyun headed to the mound this time even though Hiroto Coach didn’t call him.

Kim In-hwan also went to the mound, taken by surprise.

“Looking at you throwing the ball now, I can’t believe you have the yips. It’s slow, but the ball is good and the balance is good too.”

“Is that so?”

A smile bloomed on Kim Jeong-ryul’s face.

“So far, you’ve taken a perfect rehabilitation course. Now, all that’s left is to gradually raise your arm and go back to the overhand throw. There’s nothing to criticize so far.”

“Ah, is it that good? Haha.”

Kim Jeong-ryul adjusted his hat.

His face was beaming, and his cheekbones were twitching.

Hiroto Coach turned his head and looked at Song Seok-hyun.

“You suggested this training method?”

“Yes, I happened to find it while reading a book. After that, I searched the internet for detailed information.”

Hiroto Coach closed his mouth and exhaled.

“Thank you.”

Song Seok-hyun waved his hand in embarrassment at Hiroto Coach’s greeting.

“Yes? No, I didn’t do anything…”

“No one in Japan pays attention to it, but I never thought that a high school baseball player in Korea would be interested in my theory. I’ve been attached to teaching someone, but it’s the first time someone has asked me to teach them. Thank you so much.”

“No. I’m grateful to you for telling me such a good method.”

Hiroto Coach gave a bitter smile.

“In Japan, I was only doubted, but in Korea, even a young player like this believes in my method. I may be lacking, but…”

Hiroto Coach didn’t add any more words.

Song Seok-hyun could guess what Hiroto Coach didn’t say.

A player whose professional record is mostly in the second team.

A player whose position was not even solid in the first team.

A conditioning coach, not a hitting, fielding, or pitching coach.

A young age of 34.

Perhaps even in Korea, if there was a coach of the same type, they wouldn’t listen to the advice.

Song Seok-hyun was only interested because of the rare drill called yips overcoming training.

If he published a book despite his lack of fame, he was likely thirsty for recognition from someone.

“Since this is also a connection, I will do my best to help!”

Under Hiroto Coach’s direction, Kim Jeong-ryul’s training continued.

Kim Jeong-ryul repeated basic training such as arm swing and weight transfer rather than throwing the ball.

For several days, Kim Jeong-ryul was with Hiroto Coach from morning to evening.

Song Seok-hyun trained with Kim Hyeong-seok and Kim In-hwan, but Kim Hyeong-seok often took breaks during training.

A day of rest after four days of training.

Song Seok-hyun headed to the cafeteria in the morning to eat breakfast.

“Oh, ohayo gozaimasu [Good morning].”

Song Seok-hyun stuttered when he saw Hiroto Coach, who was not accompanied by an interpreter.

“Ohayo [Morning].”

Hiroto Coach smiled and pointed to the table with his hand.

The interpreter was already sitting where Hiroto Coach pointed.

“Ah… haha, that’s a relief.”

Song Seok-hyun, who was clueless about what to say without an interpreter, laughed.

The two received their meals and returned to their seats.

“Seok-hyun, you woke up early even though it’s a day off?”

Song Seok-hyun hesitated and answered Hiroto Coach’s question.

“Yes, I was going to do some light running today and look around here, it’s my first time in Japan.”

“Training even on a day off?”

“It’s better to run a little than to just rest. It’s not enough to call it training.”

“Hmm… is that so?”

Hiroto Coach looked at Song Seok-hyun while eating his soup.

“Then shall I watch your training today?”

“Me? You’ll watch me?”

“Yes, I said I’d watch you guys, but none of you asked separately. You’re the youngest, so you probably couldn’t do it because you were conscious of others. It’s a day off today, so there shouldn’t be a problem if I help you, right?”

Song Seok-hyun looked at the interpreter instead of speaking.

The interpreter would have been happy that it was a day off, but suddenly he was doing extra work.

There wouldn’t be a problem since he was paid on a period basis rather than an hourly basis, but he was conscious of it.

“Since it’s a day off, how about we just do it for a little while in the morning?”

Hiroto Coach didn’t look at the interpreter’s reaction.

The interpreter silently lowered his head and focused on eating.

“Then… I’d like that.”

“Really? That’s good. I really wanted to watch you once. Shall we go eat quickly?”

The two headed to the training ground as soon as they finished their meal.

The interpreter, who had been dragged along, looked tearful.

“You said you haven’t debuted in a professional game yet?”

“Yes, not yet.”

“Can you participate in spring camp [pre-season training camp]?”

“…It’ll be difficult.”