On The Rise As A Catcher [EN]: Chapter 61

Song Seok-hyun grinned.

“Your elbow.”

“Elbow?”

“Yes, your arm comes out a little more when you throw a slider.”

“A little? You could see that?”

“So, I marked my footprint in the batter’s box and didn’t move. If you look from the same position, you can tell whether the pitcher’s elbow is coming out more or not.”

“How much of a difference was there?”

“Um…….”

Song Seok-hyun pointed to one knuckle of his finger.

“About this much?”

“You could see that from the batter’s box?”

“I could see it because I kept watching.”

“So, you didn’t swing because of that? You were trying to figure out his habit?”

“Yes, he’s a pitcher we’re likely to face often in the future. Isn’t it worth sacrificing one game today to figure out the pitcher’s habit?”

“It’s funny to hear that from a guy who hit two home runs today.”

Kim Jung-ryul laughed out loud and patted Song Seok-hyun’s shoulder.

“He’s worth the investment. Hey, do you have any habits?”

“No way, I don’t have any habits.”

“Really? You haven’t been throwing underhand for very long, and you don’t have any habits?”

“I think I don’t have any habits because I haven’t been throwing underhand for very long. I’ll tell you if I notice any later.”

Song Seok-hyun returned to the bench and took off his gear.

As he was gathering his equipment, battery coach Kim Tae-woo approached him.

“Seok-hyun.”

“Yes, Coach.”

“You’ll have to keep your morning free tomorrow.”

“In the morning?”

“Yeah, it seems like an interview request came in for you.”

“Pardon?”

“Unless there’s a problem, the club will probably approve it, so be prepared to do an interview tomorrow morning.”

“An interview all of a sudden?”

“You did well today. It’s worth doing an interview.”

“Ah…… Yes. I understand.”

That evening.

Song Seok-hyun, Kim In-hwan, and Kim Jung-ryul had dinner together.

As they were finishing their meal, the hitting coach came to find Kim In-hwan directly.

“In-hwan, are you done eating?”

“Yes, I’m done now.”

“Good. Something came up urgently. Pack your bags and head up to Seoul now. You’ll be starting in tomorrow’s game.”

“Now?”

“Yes, pack your bags and go quickly.”

“Ah…… Yes. I understand.”

After the coach left, Kim In-hwan looked at Kim Jung-ryul.

“Hyung [older brother or respected male figure], have you ever been told to go up today instead of tomorrow morning?”

“We’re close to Seoul, so we usually go up on the same day… But other teams sometimes go up the day before.”

“Why are they suddenly calling me up? Is someone coming down?”

“I wonder. Is Dae-gyu coming down?”

Song Seok-hyun clapped lightly.

“Congratulations, Hyung. I hope you stay in the first team for a long time this time.”

“Oh, yeah. Thanks for the congratulations. It’s a bit sudden, though…….”

“Going up is a good thing. What’s bad about it?”

“That’s true, but…….”

Song Seok-hyun and Kim Jung-ryul helped Kim In-hwan pack.

Going back and forth between the first and second teams was a common occurrence, so packing was quick.

Before getting into the car, Kim In-hwan held out his hand to Song Seok-hyun.

“You should come up soon too.”

“I’ll try.”

“Yannma [Hey, you], is Hyung going to live here?”

“Hyung will come up soon anyway. Does our team ever have bullpen pitchers just hanging around?”

Kim Jung-ryul laughed heartily.

“I guess so. Well, that’s true. The problem is getting overworked, not anything else.”

“I’ll go up ahead first. Both of you come up soon.”

Kim In-hwan got in the car and left.

As Kim In-hwan disappeared from sight, Kim Jung-ryul sighed.

“Why?”

“……Hmm, something feels uneasy.”

“What feels uneasy?”

“I haven’t heard anything. If someone from the first team was coming down, they would have contacted me. It’s strange that In-hwan is going so urgently when no one is coming down.”

“Could there be an accident?”

“Then there would be an article. Ah, no. Is it more dangerous if there isn’t an article?”

“Sunbae-nim [senior/mentor], don’t say such unsettling things…….”

“Well, that was a bit unlucky. Okay, okay, let’s go in. Let’s rest for a bit and then train.”

“Yes.”

Song Seok-hyun stared at the place where Kim In-hwan’s car had disappeared.

* * *

The next morning.

Song Seok-hyun received a text message from the battery coach early in the morning.

-The club has canceled today’s interview.

A single line of text without explanation or reason.

Song Seok-hyun stared at the text for a long time before putting his phone in his pocket.

“Hey, Song. Why do you look so serious?”

Kim Jung-ryul, who had joined him for morning training, tapped Song Seok-hyun on the shoulder.

“Ah, I got a message saying today’s interview was canceled.”

“Huh? Wasn’t the interview this morning?”

“Yes.”

“But they’re canceling the interview so suddenly on the day of?”

“The club canceled it.”

“The club canceled it……?”

Kim Jung-ryul stopped walking.

Song Seok-hyun also stopped walking.

“I have a bad feeling about this. Starting with In-hwan yesterday.”

“Does this happen often?”

“They can postpone or change interview appointments, but they almost never cancel them. Unless the person involved does something wrong. Did you do something wrong without me knowing?”

“No. I’m always with Sunbae-nim, how could I do something wrong?”

“You didn’t do anything outside, did you?”

“I can’t think of anything like that.”

Kim Jung-ryul clicked his tongue.

“If it’s not your fault, then there’s a problem with the club.”

“With the club?”

“There’s something I don’t know about…….”

Kim Jung-ryul took out his phone.

“You go ahead. I’ll make a call and catch up.”

“Yes, will you be back soon?”

“I’ll be back soon.”

Kim Jung-ryul didn’t come back for over 30 minutes.

Instead, he sent a text message.

-Skip morning training today.

Song Seok-hyun packed his equipment and got up.

“What’s going on……?”

Kim Jung-ryul was also absent from the Sangmu second team away game that day.

When Song Seok-hyun asked the pitching coach why, he was only told that he was going to the first team today.

When Song Seok-hyun sent a text message to Kim Jung-ryul, Kim Jung-ryul replied belatedly.

-I think I’m going to the first team today. I’m busy preparing because the situation is urgent. I’ll contact you after I get to Seoul first. Play well in today’s game.

Kim In-hwan and Kim Jung-ryul’s sudden call-up.

The second team players were confused by the call-up of the two players who could be called the team’s aces.

If two go up, two must come down.

But no one has come down yet.

Neither the manager nor the coaching staff said anything.

In the midst of the confusing atmosphere, the game began.

Song Seok-hyun started as the catcher.

The pitcher was Lee Sang-cheol.

A player who alternated between the bullpen and starting pitcher in the second team.

He wasn’t originally in the pitching rotation, but he was suddenly replaced yesterday and came out as the starting pitcher.

-Play ball!

The first inning started with Goat’s attack.

Sangmu’s pitcher was Hwang Jun-pyo.

Pegasus’s promising prospect, he was the second-best pitcher in Sangmu after Kim Young-gon.

-Strike!

Hwang Jun-pyo got a strike from the first pitch and finished the first inning by handling three batters with routine ground balls.

“Okay, okay. Let’s cheer up. Focus.”

Goat’s hitting coach clapped his hands to boost the sagging atmosphere.

Despite the coach’s efforts, the chaotic atmosphere did not subside.

‘Straight ball, outside.’

Song Seok-hyun chose a straight ball for the first pitch against the first batter.

The pitcher wound up with all his might and threw a straight ball right down the middle.

Thwack.

The first batter pushed the ball as it was and made a hit.

No outs, first base.

The next batter was shortstop Bang Jung-wook.

“…….”

Song Seok-hyun looked at the ground.

The defending players weren’t shuffling their feet.

The pitcher stood blankly with his shoulders relaxed.

“Ahem, ahem.”

Song Seok-hyun got up and pretended to give a sign to change the atmosphere.

Bang Jung-wook is the best hitter in Sangmu.

You can’t catch him with a loose line.

‘Outside, forkball.’

Lee Sang-cheol was a rare forkballer in Korea.

Thanks to that, he had a spot in the second team despite his slow ball and poor control.

An outside forkball is the epitome of a swing and a miss.

Song Seok-hyun asked for a forkball, hoping that the pitcher, whose shoulder wasn’t fully warmed up, would get his bearings even if he wasted a ball.

‘Okay.’

Lee Sang-cheol nodded.

After checking the runner once, he pitched.

The ball went well to the outside, but it didn’t drop down.

Thwack!

Bang Jung-wook pushed the weakly coming ball to the outfield.

No outs, first and third base.

The pitcher scratched the back of his head.

“Hoo.”

Song Seok-hyun sighed in his seat.

Yesterday, Hong Dae-sung and Lee Baek-chan pressed down with their power even if their control wasn’t good.

Lee Sang-cheol’s power was also weak.

If his only secret weapon, the forkball, doesn’t drop, there’s no way to solve it.

The third batter stepped up to the plate.

The third batter was catcher Park Sang-yeon.

It was a different lineup from yesterday.

“Ahem, ahem.”

Park Sang-yeon glanced at Song Seok-hyun and took his place at the plate.

Song Seok-hyun looked at Park Sang-yeon’s feet and signaled for an outside straight ball.

Whack!

The ball thrown by the pitcher came low, but it wasn’t outside.

Park Sang-yeon lifted the ball as it was and sent it to the outfield.

Whoosh.

The bat thrown by Park Sang-yeon fell outside the first base line.

Home run.

It was a three-run home run.

“Nice!”

“Yeah, are you getting revenge for yesterday?”

“As expected. Park Sang-yeon is the best.”

“Home run king Park Sang-yeon is here~.”

Sangmu’s atmosphere heated up when they hit a three-run home run from the first inning.

Goat’s atmosphere gradually sank as if they had forgotten yesterday’s victory.