On The Rise As A Catcher [EN]: Chapter 251

“If he can hit a home run out of the park with that stance, he should go to the major leagues.”

Not long after Kim In-hwan’s home run, another followed.

This time, Song Seok-hyun was the star.

“Yanmar!” (A Japanese exclamation of surprise or victory, often used in baseball.)

“Sorry, haha.”

Song Seok-hyun’s pushed ball easily cleared the fence. (A “pushed ball” is a hit where the batter guides the ball rather than swinging with full force.)

It was literally just a tap, so the players watching were dumbfounded, staring at the fence.

“Song Seok-hyun is something else. If he hits a home run by pushing a low ball that fills the outside corner, where should the pitcher even throw?”

“It’s not even you hitting, why are you complaining so much?”

“I’m just scared, man, scared. He doesn’t seem to have any weaknesses in his form. How can he hit like that? His lower body has such a narrow stride, but his power is… Ugh.”

“Seok-hyun’s upper and lower body separation should be in the textbooks.”

“Exactly. His lower body is already turning, but his upper body stays fixed until the end. How flexible and solid is his core?”

“You can’t imitate that form even if you tried. Because his upper and lower body separation is so good, his inside-out swing comes naturally. His swing angle is small, so the point where the ball and bat meet is wide. His accuracy is much better than most contact hitters.”

“Seeing him swing that heavy bat inside-out shows his wrist strength is no joke.”

“He’s a former pitcher. He must have trained his wrist a lot.”

“Does being a pitcher mean you automatically train your wrist? He’s just a natural.”

“A successful guy is different for a reason.”

The next batter was Kim Wook.

The pitcher was also changed to Han Min-seok.

Han Min-seok threw a 140km/h (approximately 87 mph) fastball as his first pitch.

Kim Wook laughed as soon as he saw the first pitch.

“Hey! Take it easy on me!”

Han Min-seok’s second and third pitches were sliders.

Kim Wook dodged the balls that were continuously breaking inside.

“Wow, look at the rookie hazing.”

Kim Wook smiled and stepped back into the batter’s box.

The decisive pitch was a fastball on the outside corner.

Kim Wook accurately hit the ball with a smooth swing.

Han Min-seok clicked his tongue with a disappointed expression.

It was a hit that pierced through right-center field.

“Kim Wook is the real deal. His swing is textbook perfect.”

“There’s nothing specific to point out, right? It’s fundamentally sound.”

“His swing is really clean. Why didn’t the Pegasus grab him during the draft?”

“I don’t know. We’re thankful, though.”

“Ah, I’m jealous. You guys got Kim Wook too. We don’t have enough money, so signing free agents is out of the question.”

“You just need to perform well. Or Kim Young-hoon could come back. Is he still in rehab?”

Kyung Soo-in picked up his bat.

“It’s my turn. I’m up.”

“Hey, yeah. Hit a home run.”

As the internal scrimmage was coming to an end,

A taxi stopped near the baseball field.

A large man wearing training clothes instead of a baseball uniform emerged.

The man walked onto the baseball field.

“Hyung (older brother/senior).”

“Oh, you came?”

Kyung Soo-in turned around, delighted.

The players who were waiting also turned around.

It was a man with a thick beard, sunglasses, and a baseball cap.

Everyone tilted their heads, unable to recognize his face.

“Introduce yourself. This is Seon-ho. You know Seon-ho, right?”

“Of course. Hello, senior.”

The man took off his sunglasses and bowed.

Yu Seon-ho reached out his hand and looked at Kyung Soo-in.

“Yeah, nice to meet you. But what’s your name?”

The man shook Yu Seon-ho’s hand and raised his head.

“It’s been a while, senior. I’m Kim Young-hoon.”

Instantly, the players next to Yu Seon-ho screamed like fans meeting an idol.

Lee Chang-hoon, who was preparing to throw the ball, stopped in surprise at the sudden screams.

“Young-hoon? Kim Young-hoon?”

Kim Young-hoon smiled, even taking off his hat.

“Yes. It’s an honor to meet you like this.”

“Wow, why did you grow your beard so long? I didn’t recognize you. How have you been?”

“Yes. Thanks to your concern, I’ve been doing well. I’ve been watching your performance on TV. This season was really amazing, wasn’t it? Congratulations on the championship.”

“What do you mean *I* won the championship? These guys did all the work. Ah, you’re not close with these guys, right? Hey, hey! Stop and come here for a second. This is Kim Young-hoon, *the* Kim Young-hoon. Say hello first.”

At the mention of Kim Young-hoon, the players stopped the game.

Song Seok-hyun jumped up from his seat and took off his catcher’s mask.

Kim Young-hoon.

At the mention of Kim Young-hoon, Song Seok-hyun swallowed hard and walked over.

“Ah, hello. I’m Song Seok-hyun, senior.”

As Song Seok-hyun greeted him, Kim Young-hoon reached out his hand.

“Oh, yeah. Triple Crown winner. Nice to meet you. You *are* the Triple Crown winner, right? Catcher Golden Glove, Korean Series MVP, Rookie of the Year. Am I missing anything?”

“Do you know me?”

“Of course, I know you. You’re a hot superstar these days.”

“No, I’m not a superstar.”

“I wanted to face you while watching TV. Your swing is good. How about we warm up a bit?”

The atmosphere froze at Kim Young-hoon’s suggestion.

The showdown between Kim Young-hoon and Song Seok-hyun.

The players gripped their pounding hearts without realizing it.

Catcher’s Rise

Stove League (5)

“I’ll take care of the catching.”

Yu Seon-ho raised his hand.

“I’ll watch the catching, and I’ll be the umpire too. Okay?”

Song Seok-hyun put on the catching equipment for Yu Seon-ho one by one.

While putting on the catcher’s mask, Song Seok-hyun asked.

“But are you sure you’ll be okay?”

“I’m okay. I just need to catch the ball.”

“Kim Young-hoon throws 160km/h (approximately 99 mph), are you sure your hand will be okay?”

“I have to see it. There’s no one else here who can catch. I’ve caught a few balls before. Don’t worry. Just hit well. Got it?”

Song Seok-hyun took a deep breath.

“Yes, I understand.”

“Then I’ll go talk to the pitcher about the signs.”

Yu Seon-ho approached Kim Young-hoon, who was talking to Kyung Soo-in in one corner.

Kim Young-hoon smiled when he saw Yu Seon-ho.

“Are you sure you’ll be okay?”

“You’re asking that too. I’m okay.”

“Have you ever caught senior’s ball before?”

“I’ve caught some.”

Kim Young-hoon hesitated for a moment and then put on his glove on his left hand.

“Are you going to throw with your right hand?”

“Yes. I’m just thinking of it as a light warm-up. My condition is only at 50%, so I shouldn’t overdo it.”

“What about your shoulder? Is rehab all done?”

“Yes. I had a hard time working my butt off in the United States. I went to the United States and then to Japan. I didn’t know rehab was this hard.”

“Rehab is the most boring and difficult thing. So, are you okay now?”

“I’m still building up my body, so I don’t know how much I can do. But so far, it’s been going smoothly.”

“Okay. Should we decide on the signs?”

“Let’s keep the signs simple. Fastball, curveball, changeup. Let’s go with 1, 2, 3.”

“Are you only throwing those three?”

“Yes. I’m not ready to throw other breaking balls yet.”

“Okay. How fast are you throwing now?”

“With my current condition, about 135km/h (approximately 84 mph)? I’m going to aim for about 130km/h (approximately 81 mph) today.”

“Will that be enough? Seok-hyun is no joke. Don’t underestimate him.”

“I’m not underestimating him. That’s why I’m doing live batting practice. But I need to be careful because I’m slowly building up my condition.”

“You might become batting practice.”

“What if I become batting practice in practice? It’s just for fun.”

“It won’t be fun if you get hit hard.”

Yu Seon-ho patted Kim Young-hoon on the shoulder.

“Catching Kim Young-hoon’s ball. It’ll be fun. Let’s go.”

“Yes, let’s go.”

As Kim Young-hoon went up to the mound, the players lined up behind him, swallowing hard.

A sensation.

Kim Young-hoon’s appearance was a storm in Korean baseball history.

He achieved stats that would be called cheat codes even in a video game.

He even led the Phoenix to victory, so what more needs to be said?

The switch pitcher position was unfamiliar, and it was amazing that he was top-class on both sides of the plate.

His story of debuting late at the age of twenty-eight after living as a regular person for over 10 years was so overused by broadcasting stations that the whole nation knew it.

“He’s throwing with his right hand.”

“Is he going to compete with control?”

“His changeup and curveball are good, right?”

“His curveball is a real scam. It’s like a 7-stage transforming robot.”

“His changeup is unbelievably good. It feels like it suddenly stops.”

Amidst the players’ comments, Kim Young-hoon began his practice throws.

He threw the ball like a toss, and the speed was around 120km/h (approximately 75 mph).

“His form is still good.”

“His body seems to have gotten better during rehab?”

Only after throwing ten balls did Kim Young-hoon nod.

Song Seok-hyun, who was outside the batter’s box, licked his dry lips and stepped into the batter’s box.

“Please take care of me.”

Song Seok-hyun bowed to Kim Young-hoon before batting.

Kim Young-hoon smiled and waved his hand.

“Take it easy, take it easy. Don’t be too scary.”

Yu Seon-ho shouted loudly, hitting his mitt.

“Alright, alright! Play ball!”

Yu Seon-ho’s shout was the starting signal.

Instantly, only the sound of the wind was heard in the baseball field.

Kim Young-hoon dusted the rosin bag on his hand and took his stance.

The pitching, which started with a slight lift of his leg, gradually increased in speed and quickly led to a pitch.

Song Seok-hyun flinched while trying to time his swing.

The ball that left Kim Young-hoon’s hand accurately caught the outside corner of the zone.

“Strike. Good. Clean.”

Yu Seon-ho caught the ball and threw it back to Kim Young-hoon.

Kyung Soo-in muttered while watching.

“That course is hopeless. If you’re looking for that, the changeup comes in mysteriously.”

Kim In-hwan said.

“You can’t hit it even if he throws only fastballs in that location. How can you hit it when his corner work is so good?”

Then Kyung Soo-in and the other players chuckled.

Kim In-hwan blinked, not knowing why.

“Why?”

“He always throws like that. So, you can’t hit it even if you know it’s coming.”

Kyung Soo-in stroked Kim In-hwan’s head.

“In-hwan, you’ll experience it next season. You’ll see people go crazy.”

After the first pitch, Song Seok-hyun took a breath.

The ball was in the early to mid 130km/h (approximately 81-84 mph) range.

The control was good, but the ball was slow.

It was a slow ball, but it felt like it was over 140km/h (approximately 87 mph).

Kim Young-hoon’s form was textbook, but the ball was hard to see from the batter’s perspective.

It would be understandable if he was deliberately hiding the ball.

There are pitchers who turn their bodies so much that their numbers are visible to the batter, making it harder to see the ball.

However, Kim Young-hoon’s number was barely visible, but that was similar to other pitchers.

What is it? What’s different?

Kim Young-hoon’s second pitch.

It was the same location this time.

Song Seok-hyun swung, and the ball hit the end of the bat, resulting in a foul.

“The timing is late.”

The other players nodded at Kyung Soo-in’s words.

“Why can’t he hit it?”

“Is he too nervous?”

Song Seok-hyun realized what was different after seeing it twice.

It was fortunate that he was a former pitcher; other hitters wouldn’t be able to grasp it at all.

Before throwing the ball, the pitcher strides and unwinds his waist while swinging his arm.

Most pitchers unwind their waist appropriately as they stride, but Kim Young-hoon’s waist is tightly locked.

Because his waist is twisted at a greater angle compared to other pitchers, his pitching timing was different from other pitchers, and the ball felt like it was appearing later.

The later you see the ball, the faster the batter feels the speed is.