On The Rise As A Catcher [EN]: Chapter 41

└Well, if he was good at everything, he’d be a first-round pick right away. I heard he’s only been a catcher for less than three years, so I guess it’s all about his arm strength.

└When are we ever going to develop him and actually use him?

└It’ll be a relief if we can even develop him. If he’s just got a strong arm, it might be better to switch him back to pitching.

└Still, there must be a reason they’re using him as a catcher. Let’s keep an eye on him.

└We’ve been keeping an eye on players for over 10 years, and Seo Il-hyuk is the only one we’ve successfully developed. What’s the point of watching more? We can’t develop catchers. It’s hopeless. Look at the minor league coaches. They’re all Kotes, Kotes, Kotes. All Kote [High School] alumni. They created the minor league to provide jobs for Kote kids. What are you expecting? We should just quickly switch him to pitching. We can never develop young players.

└Well, just look at Kim In-hwan…….

└He should switch to pitching.

└We don’t have any promising catching prospects. None. Just pitching. Our bullpen is already stretched thin.

Like it or not, Kote fans started paying attention to Song Seok-hyun because of his throwing video.

Soaring as a Catcher

Verification

After the Wolves game, Song Seok-hyun’s playing time gradually increased.

The manager began to assess Song Seok-hyun’s skills by assigning him the last two to three innings of games.

“He’s already at the point where he can call his own pitches [signal to the pitcher what to throw]?”

The battery coach [coach specializing in pitchers and catchers] nodded.

“Yes, I think we can increase his innings.”

“Hmm, then should we let Song Seok-hyun handle the entire next Wales game?”

“The Wales game is only a few days away.”

“Push him hard and polish his skills well until then. That’s what our Coach Kim is for.”

* * *

“Thank you. Thank you!”

Song Seok-hyun repeatedly expressed his gratitude after the meeting with the battery coach and left the room.

Kim In-hwan, who was waiting outside, grinned.

“What is it? What’s going on?”

“Ah, they said they might let me manage a game in the next Wales series.”

“Oh, already?”

“Yes, they want me to call the pitches as much as possible.”

“Congratulations. You’re starting to see the light.”

“Light? Well, it’s just one game. But I have to have meetings every day. Memorize all the power analysis data and review it… Haa. I have a lot more work to do.”

“It’s verification, verification. If you do well in one game, it’ll become two games, three games.”

Kim In-hwan and Song Seok-hyun left the office and walked around the stadium.

Kim In-hwan sighed as he walked.

“What’s wrong, hyung [older brother/term of endearment for a close older male friend]?”

As Song Seok-hyun became closer to Kim Jung-ryul and Kim In-hwan recently, he started calling them ‘hyung’ instead of ‘sunbae’ [senior/older colleague].

“Seok-hyun, do you think I can get promoted to the first team?”

“Hyung? Of course, you can. Why can’t you? Your stats are fantastic right now.”

“That’s just the stats. They’re not even competing against me properly.”

“It’s because you’re so good that they’re avoiding you.”

“Well, that might be true in the minor league, but would it be the same in the first team? Right now, they’re not even challenging me, so I don’t even know if my judgment of the ball is accurate or not.”

Song Seok-hyun stopped walking.

“Hyung, are you feeling anxious?”

Kim In-hwan sighed.

“You and Jung-ryul hyung are all doing your part, and I wonder what I’m doing. I wish I could just go to the military quickly [mandatory military service in South Korea], but the team won’t allow it.”

“…….”

Song Seok-hyun frowned and lowered his head.

Kim In-hwan glanced at Song Seok-hyun.

“Tell me honestly. Do I seem a little anxious to you right now?”

“Um…….”

“It’s okay. Tell me honestly.”

Song Seok-hyun looked around.

No one was there.

Song Seok-hyun lowered his voice and said,

“Hyung, what kind of hitter do you think you are?”

“Me?”

“Yes, what kind of hitter do you think you are?”

“I am…….”

Kim In-hwan couldn’t answer easily.

Me as I see myself.

I’m used to how others see me, but I had no idea how to objectively describe myself as I see myself.

“A hitter with many weaknesses. A hitter who is weak against breaking balls.”

“What are your strengths?”

“Well, I’m a little strong.”

Song Seok-hyun sighed.

“As a catcher, I see you a little differently. It’s true that you have many weaknesses and are weak against breaking balls, but your strength is your reaction time, not your power.”

“Me? Reaction time?”

“Yes, if you look at your hitting stats by pitch type, your batting average against fastballs is over .400. Your OPS [On-Base Plus Slugging] for fastballs in the strike zone is over 1.000. But the problem is that most of the fastballs pitchers throw to you are balls. Fastballs that fall outside the strike zone.”

“I’m that strong against fastballs……?”

Kim In-hwan tilted his head as if he was surprised.

“I feel like I hit fastballs well, but I didn’t know it was that much.”

“You’re standing close to the plate to hit outside breaking balls, right? You’re also closing your stance towards your body. Then you’re weak against inside pitches but strong against outside pitches. You’re completely giving up on inside pitches.”

“Well, yeah.”

“This works now, but will it work in the first team? That’s your concern, and you’re asking me about it.”

Kim In-hwan nodded.

“Do you think it’ll work?”

Song Seok-hyun shrugged.

“Since the pitchers aren’t really competing against you, I can’t tell if you’re really strong or weak against outside breaking balls. But one thing is for sure.”

“What is it?”

“You’ve given up your greatest strength, which is fastballs in the strike zone. You’ve made an extreme choice to deal with your weakness, which is outside breaking balls.”

“Well…… wasn’t that what you advised me to do?”

Song Seok-hyun shook his head.

“There are other ways besides that method. Instead of taking an extremely closed stance, you can just go with a square stance and still hit outside pitches well enough.”

“Then I can’t hit breaking balls that are right on the outside edge of the plate?”

“No. You can hit them. You can’t hit balls that are really far outside, even based on the umpire’s strike zone. You’re trying to hit those balls, aren’t you? Aren’t you?”

Kim In-hwan tried to say something but hesitated.

“I guess so.”

“Just give up on balls that are really far outside. Acknowledge that the pitcher threw well and move on. Even if you give up 1/5 of the outside of the strike zone, you can still make a living with the remaining 4/5.”

“Even if I want to give it up, can I do it…… My body just reacts without me knowing. If I could do that, I wouldn’t be worried about this.”

“Keep your elbows in and swing. If you train and consciously focus on hitting the ball, your bat won’t reach the balls that are too far outside, so your bat won’t go out there anymore.”

“Um…….”

Song Seok-hyun licked his lips.

“You can just laugh it off since a distant junior is saying things without knowing his place. You have your own style, hyung.”

“No, no. It’s not like that.”

“I’m just telling you what I think you need from a pitcher’s and catcher’s perspective. If you can perfectly attack outside pitches, you should stick with what you’re doing. But if not, shouldn’t you consider other methods? You know best whether the problem is a lack of training or just the direction itself.”

After parting ways with Song Seok-hyun, Kim In-hwan walked and walked alone.

He even forgot dinner.

He walked until the moon and stars came out.

“What kind of hitter am I……?”

* * *

“Here.”

Battery coach Kim Tae-woo handed Song Seok-hyun a USB drive.

“It’s data on Wales’ starting pitcher Gu In-seon and other players. First, look at it, analyze it, and summarize the results. We’ll analyze it together again the day before the game, but you have to study it yourself.”

“Yes, I understand.”

“As you know, you can’t let this out, right? Only look at it in the data analysis room, okay?”

“Yes.”

Song Seok-hyun plugged the USB he received from the battery coach into the computer.

The data was filled with player characteristics, strengths and weaknesses, pitching videos, and career records.

Song Seok-hyun first looked at Wales’ starting pitcher Gu In-seon.

-Name: Gu In-seon.

-Position: Pitcher

-Age: 30 years old.

-Key points: Left-handed, maximum speed 152km/h [94 mph], currently the best card among Wales’ 4th to 5th starters.

-Control: Medium-low

-Pitch types: Four-seam fastball (62%), slider (25%), splitter (13%)

-Strengths: Inning eater [can pitch for many innings]. Good velocity. Good deception.

-Weaknesses: Control fluctuates depending on condition.

-Points to attack: Slider and splitter are well-regarded. Attacking early in the count is effective.

It was a power analysis report that could be used directly on the field, unlike a scouting report.

Turning the page, speed, pitch selection by count, vertical movement, horizontal movement, pitching zone, career records, etc., were listed.

“Wow…… the pros are on another level.”

The power analysis report that the catcher saw was more detailed than Song Seok-hyun had thought.

Song Seok-hyun watched Gu In-seok’s pitching and compared it with the contents of the report.

“Hmm.”

Song Seok-hyun scratched his chin.

Excluding foreign players and the local ace, the evaluation that he is the best pitcher in Wales means that he is the local second starter.

If you rank based on domestic starting pitchers, he is a pitcher in the 20th to 30th place range.

He has many strikeouts despite not having good control, and he is considered the local second starter.

He maximized his strengths despite having clear weaknesses.

Click.

Click.

Click.

Song Seok-hyun watched the same pitching video over and over again.

After watching one video, he repeatedly watched another video.

“His pitches are good…….”

The scene of Gu In-seok throwing the ball was reflected directly in Song Seok-hyun’s eyes.

* * *

“Did you study it well?”

“Yes, I studied it hard.”

The battery coach called Song Seok-hyun to the meeting room separately before the game.

“So, what do you think? How are you going to lead our pitcher, and what are the strengths and weaknesses of the opponent’s battery?”

“First of all, our team’s starting pitcher, Jung Jin-oh, has various pitches, but he doesn’t have a definite strikeout pitch. He doesn’t have many strikeouts or many walks. Since Wales has few power hitters and many contact hitters, I think it’s good to actively use the shift [defensive realignment] and be aggressive.”

“You mean, let’s encourage them to put the ball in play?”

“Yes, teams that lack home runs are bound to have many runners left on base. It’s better to speed up the game without worrying about giving up hits.”

“What if they get runners on base and then hit a home run?”

“Baseball is a game of probability anyway. If it happens, it can’t be helped. If our advantages and the opponent’s advantages are clear, we have to be willing to grind it out.”

The battery coach laughed.

“I like that you’re straightforward. I don’t know if you’ll do what you say when you go out there, but it sounds good to hear.”

“I have something I was thinking about. Jung Jin-oh sunbae’s pitching interval is a bit long. I don’t know if it’s possible, but it would be good if we could shorten the pitching interval a little more. Can’t we intentionally shorten it to about 10 to 15 seconds?”

“Yeah, yeah. Good idea.”

The battery coach snapped his fingers.

“It looks like you’ve prepared hard.”

“I’m still lacking a lot.”

“If you’ve dug this deep on your own, I don’t need to see the rest. Let’s do another power analysis tomorrow morning and then go into the game. How about it?”

“Yes, that’s good.”

Song Seok-hyun entered the meeting room with the players and coaches for the first time and participated in the team’s official power analysis.

Not all players enter the power analysis room and participate.

All players receive the power analysis data, but only a few starting players participate in the meeting in the power analysis room.

The power analysis time was a free discussion regardless of age and experience.

The hitters left short comments on the opposing pitchers, hitters, and fielders from the hitter’s point of view, and the pitchers did the same.

Since each other’s perspectives were different, the parts they had not seen could be revealed through discussion.

It was a power analysis that was done every time, and it was a team that met often, so it didn’t take long.

It was a time to check the things they knew and confirm the precautions.

Clap, clap.

“Okay, let’s fight hard today.”

“Thank you for your hard work.”

Song Seok-hyun took a deep breath.

Incheon Wales.

Famous for their salty baseball [conservative, defense-oriented style], befitting a seaside team.

They were famous for their solid defense, organization, tactics, and pitching, but they always had a shortage of home run hitters.

Since the recent draft, they have been sweeping up power hitters from the upper rounds.

It was a bold attempt to overcome their weaknesses, but there was still no tangible change.

A tight-knit team without a big bat.

I wondered if the minor league team would be as tight-knit as the first team.

“Let’s do it. I can do it.”

Song Seok-hyun tapped his cheeks.

Soaring as a Catcher

First Start

“Let’s do well.”

“Please take care of me.”

Song Seok-hyun bumped fists with starting pitcher Jung Jin-oh.

Jung Jin-oh had the advantage of being a young left-handed starting pitcher, but he only briefly stayed in the first team.

He was performing well in the minor league with an ERA [Earned Run Average] of 3.00, but it didn’t translate to success in the first team.

His control was okay, but his fastball in the low 140km/h range [87 mph] and lack of a finishing pitch held him back.

A pitcher with no big weaknesses but no big strengths.