On The Rise As A Catcher [EN]: Chapter 43

Song Seok-hyun immediately stood up.

The pitcher, Jeong Jin-oh, looked flustered, and the bench was buzzing.

“What’s going on? Why is he going to the mound already?” someone asked.

“I don’t know. The timing seems off,” another replied.

“Is it because the signs didn’t match?”

“Come on, no way. How many years has he been in the league? He’s not a rookie.”

The manager, pitching coach, and battery coach all crossed their arms, looking clueless.

Song Seok-hyun went to the mound and covered his mouth with his mitt to speak privately with Jeong Jin-oh.

“Hyung [older brother or respected senior], can you just throw whatever you want, even if you don’t like my signs?”

“What?” Jeong Jin-oh asked, surprised.

“Hyung, your pitches are great today. Let’s capitalize on this momentum and compete quickly. Your momentum was good earlier, but the time between pitches got too long, so the batter read you and got a hit. But your pitches are great today, really.”

Jeong Jin-oh frowned.

Song Seok-hyun repeated, “Throw as soon as you receive the ball from me. I’ll give you the signs right away.”

“If you don’t want the signs to be stolen, you have to mix in fakes before and after the signs,” Jeong Jin-oh countered.

“If we compete right away, there’s no time to steal signs or even relay them. Why are you hesitating on a day like today when your pitches are so good?” Song Seok-hyun asked, trying to encourage him.

Ignoring Jeong Jin-oh’s words, Song Seok-hyun turned and headed back to his position.

Jeong Jin-oh shook his head and tapped the mound with his foot, muttering, “Right away…?”

Song Seok-hyun returned to his seat, thinking about Jeong Jin-oh’s tendencies.

Jeong Jin-oh doesn’t have outstanding velocity or pinpoint control, and he lacks a true ‘out’ pitch [a pitch that consistently gets strikeouts]. He’s always careful, as if walking on thin ice, and often gets lost in thought before throwing each ball.

When the pitcher’s thoughts drag on, the batter’s thoughts also have more time to develop. Although it’s the same amount of time, the batter’s and pitcher’s perception of that time is different.

The batter gains information from every action of the pitcher. If the pitcher keeps shaking his head, it means the signs don’t match what the catcher is calling. If the signs don’t match, it means he doesn’t like the signs they usually use.

If you know the pitcher’s usual pitching style, the batter can narrow down the possibilities.

‘If velocity or control improved by overthinking, there wouldn’t be an easier position than pitcher,’ Song Seok-hyun mused.

Nothing gets better by thinking alone.

If the pitcher’s pitches aren’t overpowering, you have to make them *seem* good.

The only option is to increase the pitching tempo and create unconventional pitching patterns.

‘Outside, high fastball,’ Song Seok-hyun signaled.

Jeong Jin-oh paused, surprised by the unexpected sign.

Song Seok-hyun shook his mitt once, urging him on.

“Tsk,” Jeong Jin-oh clicked his tongue, but despite thinking it was an absurd call, he lifted his leg and delivered the pitch.

*Thud.*

The batter, as if caught off guard, weakly connected with the high fastball. The ball didn’t leave the infield, floating high into the air before landing harmlessly in the second baseman’s glove.

Out.

Jeong Jin-oh let out a hollow laugh at the consecutive first-pitch out, now with two outs in the inning.

Words also spread on the opposing team’s bench.

“That’s not the pattern Jin-oh usually throws.”

“I agree.”

“We should assume it’s the catcher calling the game, right?”

“Yes, it seems so… Tsk.”

“The signs are all over the place, but they’re working.”

The manager put his hands behind his back, observing the situation. “A creative catcher… I have nothing against it, but I don’t know if our first-team manager will like it.”

Success as a Catcher

Simultaneous Progress (1)

-Out!

“Yes!” Jeong Jin-oh clenched his fist, feeling a surge of confidence.

Center fielder fly out.

Although he allowed a hit to Shim Soo-kyung, he ended the inning with runners on base by retiring three consecutive batters with routine plays.

“Hyung, see? I told you your pitches were good today, right?” Song Seok-hyun said, giving Jeong Jin-oh a thumbs up as he entered the bench.

“Haha, it’s really strange today. I don’t think there’s ever been a day like this,” Jeong Jin-oh admitted, still somewhat surprised by his own success.

“See? The batters can’t catch the timing and are getting jammed.”

“It seems like it. No, is that really it?”

“Hyung, and also…” Song Seok-hyun lowered his voice, and he and Jeong Jin-oh moved to a corner to talk privately.

The battery coach smiled as he watched them. “It looks good.”

The pitching coach also nodded. “Jin-oh is going aggressively today for the first time in a while.”

“Seok-hyun is young, but it’s good to see the catcher leading the pitcher,” the battery coach added.

“I agree. I thought he’d be clueless, but he has leadership.”

“If he keeps performing well in the second team, it might be worth calling him up to the first team?”

“Well, isn’t the catcher position already too full? Shin Eon played over 120 games last year, and Il-hyeok would be a starter right away if he went to a team with a weak catcher.”

“I know that, but even just looking at his hitting, it’s worth bringing Seok-hyun up.”

“We think it’s worth bringing him up because we see it from the sidelines, but would the first team think that way? They’ll probably think we’re just pushing our own guys. They haven’t listened to us in the first team for a long time.”

“Tsk, that’s…” The battery coach sighed.

“Even if we recommend the kids with good intentions, they don’t trust us.”

“It can’t be helped. Everyone’s got their own rice bowl to protect [their own job security]. The more our kids go up to the first team, the more the second team coach will be recognized as doing a good job.”

“Hoo, that’s the problem. If you bring in a manager from another team, they bring their whole crew and pack them in, so there’s bound to be a power struggle.”

“Even if it’s hard right now, won’t they bring Seok-hyun up after the summer at the latest? Seok-hyun is still young, so he can wait patiently. If Seok-hyun breaks all the second team records, they’ll bring him up because of public opinion.”

The battery coach put his hands behind his back, watching Song Seok-hyun swinging his bat in the on-deck circle.

“In the end, we have to beat the first team kids with the bat…”

The pitching coach clicked his tongue. “If the pitcher wasn’t Gu In-seon today, the results would have been good again today, right?”

“Gu In-seon is a top-class pitcher even in the first team.”

“You need a lot of experience to hit Gu In-seon’s forkball. But there won’t be many opportunities for Gu In-seon-level pitchers to come down to the second team in the future, so Seok-hyun will raise his batting average steadily, steadily. Right, Coach Kang?”

The hitting coach licked his lips. “Seok-hyun has good eyes, so if he waits and stays patient, he’ll eventually go up.”

“Oh, are we out again? It’s already two outs.”

“Gu In-seon is really good.”

The opposing pitcher, Gu In-seon, retired two batters in a row with routine plays.

The batter who was out came to the bench, shaking his head. “His forkball is too good. It drops like a hook.”

“That’s his bread and butter, so his pitches have to be good.”

Song Seok-hyun stepped up to the plate.

The catcher scanned Song Seok-hyun up and down, analyzing his stance.

A stance slightly wider than shoulder width, a hitting position at shoulder height, and knees that rhythmically move with his feet slightly turned outward.

‘Outside forkball,’ the catcher signaled.

Gu In-seon nodded in response to the catcher’s sign.

It’s not common to call for a forkball on the first pitch, but the opponent is a rookie. He wouldn’t be thinking of taking a long count against a forkballer, so he judged that he would come out swinging aggressively from the first pitch.

“Seok-hyun will have a hard time,” Kim Jeong-ryul predicted, watching from the bench.

Kim In-hwan pressed his lips together and looked at the ground, concerned.

*Whoosh!* The sound of the uniform fluttering in the wind as the ball sped toward the mitt.

A forkball with a maximum velocity of 140 km/h [approximately 87 mph]. The forkball that starts at the batter’s belt height and then drops sharply down was the number one reason Gu In-seon became a reliable starter in the first team, despite not having pinpoint control.

*Whack.*

Ball, low.

The catcher looked up at Song Seok-hyun while holding the ball in his mitt. Song Seok-hyun’s bat hadn’t even twitched.

The catcher and pitcher were both puzzled.

“Interesting,” Gu In-seon said, a slight smirk appearing on his face as he noticed Song Seok-hyun hadn’t moved at all at his forkball.

He couldn’t have seen the forkball and taken it. It was clear that he had read the catcher’s strategy and decided to let the first pitch go.

“Hoo, hoo,” Gu In-seon put rosin on his hands and blew on them, preparing for the next pitch.

The catcher called for an outside fastball.

Gu In-seon shook his head.

‘Forkball?’ the catcher signed again.

Gu In-seon nodded. Since he didn’t move at all at his forkball, he was trying to lure him in.

“Hap!” Gu In-seon threw the ball with a powerful shout.

A forkball that started one or two balls inside from the outside corner. From the batter’s perspective, it wouldn’t appear to be in the middle of the plate, so it would look like a fastball slightly away from the center, not a mistake pitch.

Would the bat not move again?

*Whack!*

Ball, low.

“Wow! He takes that one too!”

“Seok-hyun is quick-witted?”

The Goat’s bench was buzzing with excitement. It’s rare to throw forkballs on the first and second pitches in a row, but the batter didn’t even start his swing. What’s more, the pitcher is a pitcher in the 3rd or 4th starting tier even in the first team.

Gu In-seon on the mound wore his hat low to hide his frustrated expression.

“Seok-hyun definitely has a good sense of strategy. Right?” the battery coach asked, looking for confirmation.

The other coaches nodded in agreement.

Gu In-seon chose a fastball for the third pitch, but it came in too far inside, resulting in a ball and a count of three balls and no strikes.

‘Another forkball?’ the catcher wondered.

‘Let’s go with the forkball,’ Gu In-seon decided.

His pride was wounded by the fact that a young rookie hadn’t even flinched at his signature pitch.

*Flap!* The uniform made a whooshing sound in the wind as he delivered the pitch.

A forkball that went right down the center of the plate.

Ball, low.

Song Seok-hyun didn’t move and earned a walk.

“Wow, damn it,” Gu In-seon muttered, unable to contain his frustration.

Song Seok-hyun put down his bat and walked to first base.

Applause erupted from the Goat’s bench.

“He’s taking Gu In-seon’s pitches!”

“He has good eyes.”

“Isn’t it more that he has a good sense of strategy rather than just good eyes?”

When Song Seok-hyun reached first base, Gu In-seon checked on him three times in a row, trying to keep him close.

Song Seok-hyun was only a few steps away from the base each time, so he returned without difficulty.

“Gu In-seon is pissed, really pissed off,” someone on the bench observed.

“Hehe, he’s going back to the first team soon, so he’s probably in a terrible mood.”

The inning ended when the next batter hit a routine ground ball.

Gu In-seon, who returned to the bench, took off his glove and rubbed his head. “Ah, it’s annoying.”

The catcher sat next to Gu In-seon. “That young guy is quick-witted.”

“Right? He’s quick-witted, right?”

“So what are you going to do about it?”

“No, no. Never mind.”

Song Seok-hyun returned to the bench and looked for Jeong Jin-oh.

“Hyung.”

“Oh, what’s up?”

“How about going with a lot of high fastballs today?”

“High fastballs? Me?” Jeong Jin-oh asked, surprised.

“Yes, especially inside high fastballs.”

Jeong Jin-oh narrowed his brow, hesitant.

“Inside fastballs are too dangerous…”

“There aren’t many guys who can hit for extra bases anyway. How about going aggressively at times like this?”

“Hmm…”

“Hyung, your pitches are good today, I’m telling you.”

Jeong Jin-oh thought for a moment and then laughed. “Okay, you say my pitches are good today, so let’s go for it.”

“Trust me. It’ll really be good today.”

As promised, Song Seok-hyun called for a high inside fastball from the very first pitch of the next inning.