On The Rise As A Catcher [EN]: Chapter 188

Kim Jung-ryul greeted him, but Hwang Si-an responded with indifference.

Hwang Si-an muttered in a low voice.

“Hey, hey. Just go. The team atmosphere isn’t good right now.”

“Huh? Why?”

“Why? There’s a widespread rumor that the manager will be replaced if we don’t make the postseason this year.”

“So, everyone’s feeling down?”

“If we don’t make the postseason, the parent company will cut support. Our salaries are on the line.”

“That’s rough.”

“Just head out for today. Let’s talk outside next time.”

“Okay, *hyung* [older brother or respected male figure]. I’ll contact you later.”

Kim Jung-ryul returned to the Goat’s bench.

The pitching coach scolded Kim Jung-ryul for wandering around.

“Giving me grief for chatting a bit? That’s the norm, Coach.”

“You’re always wandering around, that’s why.”

“I’m checking the atmosphere and gathering information. You’re being too harsh.”

“Information? What did you find out?”

“The Wales guys are desperate? If they don’t make the postseason this time, the manager is out and salaries will be cut?”

“Everyone knows that.”

“I didn’t?”

“You’re not resourceful. You find out what everyone knows and act like it’s a big deal. Don’t go to the Wales bench during this three-game series. They’re on edge. Don’t cause trouble.”

“Okay, okay. Geez, you’re just nagging more and more.”

“Coach-nim. Call me Coach-nim [Coach, with a respectful suffix].”

“Yes, yes, I understand, Coach-nim.”

Kim Jung-ryul took out a drink and grumbled.

“Why are they so worried about Wales?”

* * *

5-1.

The scoreboard after the bottom of the third inning read 5-1.

Wales 5, Goat 1.

Goat’s starting pitcher, Jung Chun-woon, kept his head down, his cap pulled low.

The commentator and announcer shook their heads.

“Goat isn’t showing any strength today.”

“That’s right. Goat’s lineup is completely shut down by Robert Eugene. Four strikeouts in three innings.”

“On the other hand, Jung Chun-woon doesn’t have a single strikeout yet.”

“He’s given up two home runs today. Jung Chun-woon is called the league’s best fifth starter, but that also means he’s unreliable. His inning-eating ability is good, but his ERA [Earned Run Average] and performance are disappointing. Of course, you can’t expect too much from a fifth starter, and Jung Chun-woon is doing better than expected.”

“Goat has already taken out starting pitcher Jung Chun-woon. Goat’s team color is to go long, but today is different.”

“There are less than 30 games left. Each game is precious. There are no games to throw away. They have to win every game they can.”

“No Jin-hwan is on the mound. He’s been a good chase pitcher for Goat.”

“Lee Jae-hoon is at the plate. He’s the star with a .300 batting average and 40 stolen bases. He’s also the national team’s right fielder. He has power, speed, and a good arm. He’s a pillar of Wales.”

The new pitcher, No Jin-hwan, gave up a hit and then a stolen base to Lee Jae-hoon.

“No Jin-hwan, you’ve already given up the stolen base. Forget about it and focus on the battle with Kim Jae-hong. Be careful of Kim Jae-hong’s power.”

No Jin-hwan went to 2-2 against Kim Jae-hong, but his slider didn’t break.

Thwack!

“The ball is heading towards the left field fence! It’s going! It’s going! It’s gone! Kim Jae-hong’s two-run home run! Wales is bombarding Goat.”

“7-1. This score is not easy. Even considering Goat’s explosiveness, it’s not easy to come back from.”

“Wales is throwing salt on Goat’s already difficult path.”

“Wales is also in a hurry. If Goat loses today, their gap with Pegasus could widen to three games. If the lineup doesn’t explode, today won’t be easy for Goat.”

Song Seok-hyun clenched and unclenched his right fist.

No Jin-hwan pitched the 4th inning without giving up any additional runs, but he looked tired after throwing thirty-three pitches.

The Goat’s offense in the bottom of the 4th inning started with Kim In-hwan.

Kim In-hwan stepped up to the plate, and Song Seok-hyun was in the on-deck circle.

Robert Eugene on the mound looked at Kim In-hwan and adjusted his rosin bag.

“Okay. Come on.”

* * *

Rising Whale (2)

Strike!

Kim In-hwan chuckled at the fastball that was thrown outside.

Curses erupted from the Goat’s bench.

“How can they call that a strike?”

“It’s too much. It was at least two balls outside.”

“What kind of zone is that?”

Robert Eugene smiled brightly and caught the ball thrown by the catcher.

Kim In-hwan stood closer to the plate and waited for the next pitch.

Tap!

“Foul! Kim In-hwan fouled off the changeup.”

“That pitch was a bit outside, but Kim In-hwan touched it.”

“0-2. Robert Eugene is having a good day.”

Kim In-hwan stepped away from the plate and sighed.

Yu Seon-ho muttered from the bench.

“What’s with the umpire today? I’ve never seen such a wide zone.”

A player replied.

“He always gives the outside corner, especially for that guy.”

“Still, there’s a limit. How are we supposed to hit like that?”

Robert Eugene then threw two consecutive balls, but induced a ground ball with a falling changeup to increase the out count.

“Kim In-hwan is out. Goat’s offense isn’t connecting from the KS duo today.”

“The core of Goat is the cleanup hitters, KS. If KS doesn’t solve it, it’s difficult to score. That’s Goat’s strength and weakness. KSY is known as one of the best cleanup trios of all time, but the reliance on them is also high.”

Kim In-hwan shook his head and returned to the bench.

“There’s no hope today. They’re even calling pitches that would hit a right-handed batter a strike.”

As Song Seok-hyun stepped up to the plate, Goat fans stood up and sang his cheer.

Robert Eugene smiled as he listened to the cheer.

“Intentional walk, intentional walk. They’re giving an intentional walk with the score at 7-1.”

“Song Seok-hyun also looks surprised. Is there a need to give an intentional walk here?”

“Song Jung-nam’s decision is questionable.”

As Song Seok-hyun walked to first base, Goat fans booed the opposing pitcher, Robert Eugene.

Robert Eugene simply shrugged his shoulders and showed no other reaction.

Yu Seon-ho moved right up to the plate as soon as he stepped into the batter’s box.

“*Sunbae-nim* [senior/mentor], you’ll get hit.”

Wales catcher Jo Jin-yeol joked with a smile, but the response was cold.

“Shut up, you. Be quiet.”

The catcher looked at the bench.

The sign from the bench was outside.

Robert Eugene threw an outside curve as the first pitch.

Tap!

“Right fielder, right fielder~ catches it. Right fielder flyout. Yu Seon-ho swung with a plan, but it went too high.”

“That swing was too big. If you swing like that, it’s either a hit or an out, isn’t it? Why would a veteran like Yu Seon-ho take such a swing?”

Yu Seon-ho muttered as he picked up his bat.

“It worked for Su-in, why not me?”

Sixth batter Choi Jae-wan hit Robert Eugene’s pitch and created runners on first and second with two outs, but Robert Eugene immediately finished the inning with a ground ball.

“Hoo.”

Manager Ham Seong-hoon leaned his head back and massaged the back of his neck.

The coaches were no different.

They looked at the field with various expressions, such as annoyed, frustrated, and irritated.

After the 5th inning, it was cleaning time [mid-game break].

The scoreboard read 8-3.

Goat’s lower lineup scored an additional run, but the atmosphere on the bench was heavy.

“We’re completely screwed.”

The players nodded at Yu Seon-ho’s words.

“That guy is playing with the umpire.”

“Umpire Yu Il-jae is usually generous with the outside corner.”

Lee Ji-sung opened his mouth.

“More than that, Robert Eugene is good. He’s been throwing the ball outside little by little since the first inning, and now he’s getting strike calls on pitches that are more than one ball outside. That’s the pitcher’s ability, I guess.”

“At this rate, Robert is going to complete the game. How do we get him out?”

The players’ eyes turned to Yu Seon-ho.

“We have to do what we’ve been doing. If we do something we haven’t been doing, it’ll be worse. Are we only playing baseball today?”

Robert Eugene came to the mound in the 6th and 7th innings as well.

7.1 innings, 3 runs, 7 strikeouts, 3 walks.

Wales fans applauded Robert Eugene.

Thwack!

“Center fielder! Center fielder! Behind the center fielder’s head! Ah, he caught it! Nice play by Jung Ki-soo!”

“Kim In-hwan tried to turn the game around with a big swing, but it was no use.”

“11-3. Wales leads the game against Goat with a score of 11-3.”

“Today, Goat was completely tied up by Robert Eugene, and the KS duo was silent. Wales completely avoided competing with Kim In-hwan, the third batter, and gave Song Seok-hyun two intentional walks. Song Seok-hyun reached base in every at-bat today, all walks. It was practically avoiding the KS duo.”

“Isn’t this what Goat often experiences when they’re not doing well? Only competing after avoiding the core lineup KS. This strategy hasn’t worked recently, so why did it work today?”

“Avoiding the KS duo didn’t work because Yu Seon-ho came in, and Lee Ji-sung and Seol Jin-il started holding on in front. But today, Yu Seon-ho and Seol Jin-il were both sluggish.”

“Is there a reason why the two players were sluggish?”

“Yu Seon-ho is a player with a firm zone of his own. That’s why his career on-base percentage is over .400. But that also means that he’s in trouble when he meets an umpire with a wide zone like today. As for Seol Jin-il, he likes the first pitch and hits it well, but he’s weak in strategy. It’s not easy to attack the first pitch when you meet a player like Robert Eugene who uses the zone widely.”

“With this, Wales takes the victory, narrowing the gap with 4th place. On the other hand, Goat has increased the number of games with Pegasus to 3, casting a cloud over their quest to regain first place.”

“The line between 1st and 2nd place and 4th and 5th place may be clearly drawn in this three-game series.”

* * *

After the game, at Jamsil.

Song Seok-hyun didn’t go home and entered the practice field with his bat on his shoulder.

He stood in front of the pitching machine, simply holding the bat for 10 minutes.

Song Seok-hyun put down the bat and crossed his arms.

“Look at this, look at this. What are you doing?”

“*Sunbae-nim*, you haven’t left yet?”

Yu Seon-ho entered the practice field with a bat in one hand.

“I was wondering where you were. Were you swinging the bat here?”

“I was just… here.”

“Didn’t hit any balls? I don’t see any balls.”

“No. I was just here.”

“Just? Geez. Why? Do you have a wife at home? Don’t want to go home?”

Song Seok-hyun waved his hand.

“No. It’s not that.”

“If it’s not that, then what is it?”

“I was just thinking about this and that.”

“What are you thinking about?”

Song Seok-hyun picked up the bat and took a batting stance.

“Actually, I had a lot of worries today. Whether to hit the ball or not. Robert Eugene’s pitch was a bit outside, but I could have hit it because my bat is long. But I didn’t hit it because I was afraid my batting form would be ruined. But our team lost so badly today. I’m the fourth batter, so I should have gotten RBIs [Runs Batted In] somehow, but… I don’t know. Did I do the right thing?”

Yu Seon-ho tapped Song Seok-hyun’s butt with his toe.

“Is this the postseason now?”

“Huh?”

“Are we playing in the league now?”

“Yes, that’s right.”

“Unless it’s the postseason, never touch your batting form during the league. No, don’t touch your batting form even in the postseason if you can help it. It takes a long time to create your own zone, but it can collapse in an instant.”

“Um, um, even in a game like today?”

“Yeah, if we lose, we lose. How many games can you win by carrying the team alone? One game? Two games? Are you going to throw away the rest of the games to win that?”

“Ah.”

Song Seok-hyun finally smiled a little.

“I didn’t do anything wrong.”

“What do you mean wrong?”

Song Seok-hyun pointed to Yu Seon-ho’s bat.

“But why did *Sunbae-nim* come here today? Are you going to practice?”

“I didn’t swing the bat much today either. So I came to hit some balls because I felt stuffy.”

“Should I help you?”

“No, thanks. I like doing it alone. Why? Are you going to do it too?”

“No. After listening to *Sunbae-nim*, I think it’s better not to swing the bat today. Even for tomorrow’s game.”

Song Seok-hyun bowed to Yu Seon-ho.

“Thank you every time, *Sunbae-nim*. I learn a lot thanks to *Sunbae-nim*.”

“The listeners would laugh. I should be learning from you, what can you learn from me?”

“Who else would I learn from if not the living legend? Hehe.”

Yu Seon-ho chuckled.

“You’re flattering me.”

“If *Sunbae-nim* isn’t going to be here for long, should I wait? How about we eat something delicious together…?”

“No. I’m going to lightly swing and go home to sleep well. Eating a meal makes me sleep late.”

“Ah. Yes, then can I go first?”

“Yeah. Go on. Go quickly, sleep well, and wake up.”

“Yes. Then I’ll go first.”

“Okay. See you tomorrow.”

After Song Seok-hyun left, Yu Seon-ho turned on the pitching machine.

Thwack!

Thwack!

Thwack!