On The Rise As A Catcher [EN]: Chapter 276

Song Seok-hyun froze, his bat still resting on his shoulder.

Pang!

-Strike!

[Two strikes! Song Seok-hyun is completely tied up.]

[That pitch… wow… when it comes in like that, there’s just no way for the batter.]

Song Seok-hyun took a step back, trying to regain his composure.

The fastball had cut in low, right on his hands.

It clocked in at 148 km/h [approximately 92 mph].

For him to throw a pitch like that meant he was done playing nice.

“Hoo.”

He took a deep breath and stepped back into the batter’s box.

The fourth pitch was a fastball, just outside, resulting in a foul ball.

The fifth was a curveball, also outside.

Song Seok-hyun almost bit, starting his swing, but the umpire called it a ball.

2-2.

Kim Young-hoon decided to unleash his ultimate weapon, one he hadn’t used yet.

[Kim Young-hoon’s sixth pitch.]

A fastball that seemed to hug the outside corner of the plate.

Song Seok-hyun swung as if he’d been waiting for it.

The ball seemed to slow down, as if it had been waiting too.

A changeup.

Masked perfectly by the curveball, it was a world-class changeup.

He realized it too late, but his swing was already committed.

To stop it now, he’d have to slam on the brakes halfway through.

Song Seok-hyun tightened his core and squeezed his armpits.

A slightly delayed swing.

The ball connected weakly, right off the end of the bat.

[Ground ball to the second baseman! The second baseman… miffs it! Oh no, he missed it! The ball skipped low and went right through his legs. Song Seok-hyun gets a lucky hit! A lucky hit!]

[His defensive focus just lapsed there. Even though the ball was low, it wasn’t traveling that fast. He could have blocked it with his glove. He could have gloved the ball and made the throw to first, but he tried to make it too easy on himself.]

[With that, Song Seok-hyun reaches first. The GOAT [Greatest Of All Time] is in scoring position thanks to a lucky hit. Luck is on the GOAT’s side today.]

The second baseman raised his hand in apology to Kim Young-hoon.

Kim Young-hoon just smiled, signaling it was okay.

Kyung Soo-in’s expression was grim as he watched.

The next batter was Yoo Seon-ho.

Kim Young-hoon got him to pop up with a curveball on a 1-2 count.

The high fly ball carried a good distance, but not far enough to clear the fence.

The right fielder raised his glove, ready to make the catch.

[Huh?! He missed it! He missed it! Oh, he dropped it!]

[Did the wind get to it? The ball was high, but he shouldn’t have missed a routine play like that.]

[Song Seok-hyun holds at 3rd for now. The right fielder recovered the ball quickly, but that was a disappointing defensive play.]

[Their concentration is really lacking right now. This is a crucial game. Even though the Phoenix’s chances are slim, if they win both games, they still have a shot at the post-season.]

[There have been a lot of errors in Kim Young-hoon’s games lately. And they’re scoring very few runs for him.]

[I think this is the reverse effect of having an ace. When an ace is on the mound for a strong team, the players rally to win that day. But when an ace is pitching for a struggling team, they relax, thinking everything will be okay. It’s a shame. They’re not supporting Kim Young-hoon; they’re just letting him down.]

Kim Young-hoon didn’t show any anger.

He just offered a small smile.

“Hoo. As expected, deciding to retire was the right call.”

No one heard Kim Young-hoon’s quiet murmur.

No outs, runners on 2nd and 3rd.

The batter is Kim Wook.

He’s batting 6th for the GOAT today, but he’s a veteran who could bat 4th for any team.

The Pegasus Dynasty’s [referring to a past successful period of the team] former cleanup hitter.

His contact, eye, and power are all solid, but his greatest strength is his clutch hitting ability.

A cunning old fox, skilled in the art of mind games.

Kim Wook managed to send Kim Young-hoon’s curveball towards left-center field.

The left fielder sprinted and slid, extending his glove.

But.

[The ball gets past him! It gets past the left fielder! The ball is rolling behind him! The runner from 3rd is coming home! The runner from 2nd is also coming home! They’re both scoring!]

The left fielder scrambled to retrieve the ball.

The third baseman yelled for him to throw it to him, but the flustered left fielder fired it straight towards the catcher.

[Ahhh! The throw sails over the catcher’s head! It gets by! Bad throw! Pitcher covers! Pitcher covers! But Kim Wook is rounding third and heading home! Safe at home! Kim Wook with heads-up baserunning! The GOAT scores 3 runs in the 2nd inning!]

The left fielder stared blankly at home plate.

The catcher trembled with anger, his fists clenched.

Only the pitcher just smiled ruefully.

Kim Young-hoon returned to the bench after the inning.

“Agoogoo [a Korean expression of discomfort or pain].”

As soon as Kim Young-hoon reached the bench, he groaned and headed out to the hallway.

He didn’t want his teammates to feel uncomfortable watching him.

Today might be his last game.

Even if it was tough, he wanted to finish the game with a smile.

“Hey.”

As Kim Young-hoon left, Kyung Soo-in lowered his voice.

The atmosphere on the bench immediately turned icy at the words of Kyung Soo-in, the captain and team legend.

“Are you guys going to pull yourselves together?”

“…….”

“This… ha.”

Kyung Soo-in took a deep breath and exhaled slowly, deliberately.

“Today… no, this season is Young-hoon’s last.”

“…What?”

“Young-hoon is retiring at the end of the season.”

“…What?”

The players were shocked and stammered in disbelief.

“I didn’t tell you until now because I didn’t want to put any extra pressure on you. But seeing how you’re playing, I don’t think this is right. Are you going to let Young-hoon go out like this? It could be his last game; are you going to play like this?”

“Ah, no.”

“Winning or losing isn’t entirely up to you, but you have to play the game the right way. It’s not just about making the post-season. Do you want to end his last game like this? Do you want Phoenix to be remembered as *that* kind of team for the rest of Young-hoon’s life? Huh?”

“No!”

“Let’s do it right. Let’s play properly. Baseball, let’s play baseball the way it’s supposed to be played. Huh? I’m asking you. Let’s really play baseball properly, even if it’s just for today.”

When Kim Young-hoon returned, the bench was silent.

Kim Young-hoon, unaware of what had transpired, sat down next to Kyung Soo-in.

“The atmosphere is completely shot.”

Kyung Soo-in placed his hand on Kim Young-hoon’s knee.

“You’ve been through a lot.”

Good bye (4)

“Why are you saying that all of a sudden?”

Kim Young-hoon stretched languidly.

“It’s fun, even when it’s hard. Right?”

At Kim Young-hoon’s words, the players bit their lips tightly.

Kim Young-hoon looked around at the somber atmosphere.

“No, what’s wrong with everyone today? Why is it so gloomy? It’s not like we’re giving up runs because of errors for the first time. Ah, why are you all so down when the pitcher says he’s okay? Hyung [older brother/senior]. Did you scold the kids?”

Then second baseman Park Sung-min stood up from his seat.

“I’m sorry, sunbaenim [senior/mentor]! I’ll really focus on defense in the next inning.”

Then left fielder Jang Se-wan also stood up.

“I’m sorry. I’ll really get my act together.”

Kim Young-hoon laughed, looking at the two of them.

“No, why are you both acting like this, seriously? Let’s all smile today! Happily! Happily! Let’s play baseball as excitingly as we can today.”

Second baseman Park Sung-min’s lips trembled.

The shortstop, who was watching, nudged Park Sung-min’s rear, and Park Sung-min pulled his hat down low.

“…Yes. I understand. I’ll do as sunbaenim says.”

“Okay. Why are you so scared? I won’t give up another run from now on. Let’s have a fun game, a fun game. Come on, come on. Let’s be energetic and have fun. Fighting, fighting!”

Park Sung-min shouted loudly.

“Fighting!”

Kim Young-hoon was startled and widened his eyes.

“Ouch, geez. I thought my ears were going to fall off.”

After the Phoenix’s attack in the bottom of the 2nd inning went scoreless, the top of the 3rd inning began.

Kim Young-hoon first went to the front of the bench and clapped his hands.

“Come on, come on. Energetically, energetically! Let’s have fun playing baseball. High five! Good. Let’s go, let’s go!”

“Let’s go!”

The players went out one by one, slapping Kim Young-hoon’s glove.

The last one to go out, second baseman Park Sung-min, lowered his head to hide his teary eyes.

[Top of the 3rd inning, the GOAT’s at-bat. The score is 3-0.]

[The Phoenix needs to find a way to counterattack, but they haven’t been able to get anything going against PC’s pitches yet. It looks like it will be tough until the batting order turns over.]

[Conversely, they gave up runs too easily, right? They gave up 3 runs due to consecutive errors. Starting pitcher Kim Young-hoon, who has a 0 ERA [Earned Run Average], has already given up 3 runs. At this rate, it would take about 4-5 games for him to give up that many runs normally.]

[The Phoenix players need to focus. They need to support their ace.]

Kim Young-hoon fiddled with the rosin bag.

The batter is number 1, Kim Jung-deok.

[Kim Jung-deok has really become one of the best lead-off hitters this year.]

[He’s a perfect lead-off hitter and center fielder. He hits well, sees the ball well, hits for power, and has great range in the outfield, as well as a strong arm. He’s truly a lead-off hitter who has it all.]

[He showed promise with the Bulls, but he’s become a completely different player since joining the GOAT.]

[Synergy effect, perhaps. He’s definitely taken his hitting to another level. His swing has become more consistent.]

Kim Young-hoon’s first pitch was a fastball, aimed inside.

Kim Jung-deok swung with everything he had.

Bang!

Thwack!

“Ah!”

Kim Jung-deok collapsed, screaming in pain.

[Ah, the foul ball hit his foot.]

[Looking at it in slow motion… ah, it hit him right on the ankle. That area has no muscle or padding, so the pain must be excruciating.]

[Kim Jung-deok is raising his hand. The trainers need to get out there quickly.]

Song Seok-hyun shook his head.

“Never swing at a low fastball inside. If you’re going to hit it, break the bat instead. If you try to hit it squarely, something really bad can happen.”

Other players agreed with Song Seok-hyun.

“Didn’t someone get carried off in the last game against Japan?”

“I think they got hit in the ankle then too.”

“Kim Young-hoon seems really angry that he gave up 3 runs because of those errors….”

“Everyone be careful. You know what happens when Kim Young-hoon hits someone with the ball, right? If you want to make it to the post-season healthy, take care of yourselves.”

“Yeah, yeah. We already scored 3 runs anyway. Don’t be greedy and just try to draw walks.”

Kim Jung-deok was carried back to the bench on the coach’s back.

The players frowned as they watched Kim Jung-deok groaning in pain.

“Phew. I feel a little bad.”

Kim Young-hoon took off his hat.

The batter who came in as a pinch hitter stood far away from the plate.

-Strike! Out!

-Strike! Out!

-Strike! Out!

[Three consecutive strikeouts! Kim Young-hoon is putting on a strikeout clinic!]

[That combination of fastball and curveball on the outside corner is unhittable, even if you know it’s coming. His command of the corners is truly a work of art.]

[The GOAT players look like they know there’s nothing they can do. Against pitches like that, there’s nothing a batter can do.]

The Phoenix’s at-bat in the bottom of the 3rd inning.

The lead-off hitter is number 9, Jang Se-wan.

He was known as a bad-ball hitter, but he had hit over 20 home runs this season.

Against a batter with home run potential, the pitcher usually throws a cautious pitch on the outside corner to gauge the batter’s timing, but PC [pitcher’s name] boldly challenged the 9th hitter.

Thwack!

[Right-center! Right-center! Right-center~~~~]

The ball rocketed off the bat.

PC quickly turned to watch.

The ball sailed towards the fence, splitting the gap in right-center.

[The ball is heading towards the warning track! It didn’t go over the fence, but it was a long drive. The batter is easily reaching 2nd base.]

[Giving up a long hit to the 9th batter isn’t a good sign. I think the pitch was a little too hittable this time, even if it wasn’t a mistake.]

[Now it’s back to the top of the order. The batting lineup is in a good position.]

1st batter Kang Young-ho crowded the plate.

PC frowned.

Song Seok-hyun called for an outside pitch, but the pitcher shook his head.

PC, stung by his pride, decided to throw a fastball inside.

PC delivered the pitch, but the batter didn’t flinch, even as he twisted his body.

Pang!

-Ball.

PC exhaled sharply.

[Kang Young-ho isn’t backing down at all. Is he saying he’s willing to get hit by the pitch to get on base?]

[Still, PC’s fastball is reaching speeds of over 150 km/h [93 mph]. You have to be careful. He’s risking serious injury by doing that.]

Song Seok-hyun called for an outside curveball, but PC threw another fastball inside.

-Ball.

Kang Young-ho didn’t avoid it this time either.

“Why is he doing that? He’s usually careful because he hasn’t been feeling well.”