Peaceful Bullpen Life [EN]: Chapter 24

※ 24. Please Don’t Go

[We will challenge for higher places!]

As soon as the team secured 4th place, a large banner was erected in front of our team. Seeing the banner’s message, I was reminded.

What if we had lost?

It seemed I was the only one thinking such a random thing. The players were excited about reaching the post-season for the first time in six years. The coaching staff was trying hard to calm their elated spirits.

Even though the game had ended a long time ago, the fans remained in the stadium, singing along to each of the players’ cheers.

The last game of the season and the last game at home. A victory so precious that it secured the team’s place in the post-season.

It was the driving force that allowed our side, always steeped in defeat and close to becoming saints, to show such a *moseup* [appearance/form].

“Next, we will announce the regular season club MVP!”

Lord… no, the team owner’s congratulatory remarks. The manager’s pep talk. The captain’s short words passed by.

The awards ceremony was held for the players who won each title within the club, along with a small prize. And finally.

“Kim Han-wool!”

“Waaah—!!”

“Han-wool *hyung* [older brother/male senior]!!”

I was even selected as the club MVP. I blinked my eyes at the unexpected announcement, and Seung-joo nudged my side, directing me towards the stage.

As I headed to the stage, the club announcer revealed my achievements this year and the details of what I would receive as a result.

“Even though baseball is a team game, it’s not impossible for a single person to change a team. This year, Kim Han-wool is the one who played that role for Wonha Challengers.”

Wow… I did that?

“He appeared in a whopping 58 games, regardless of whether it was as a starter or reliever, and with an ERA of 1.47 over 71 innings, he emerged as the league’s top bullpen ace, not just within the team.”

58 games, 71 innings, 1.47 ERA, 10 wins, 1 loss, 35 holds, 10 saves, 71 strikeouts, 36 walks, 0 hit-by-pitches, WHIP 1.16.

While standing on the stage and having the team owner place the medal around my neck, I glanced at the electronic display. My stats for this season. It’s hard to believe that I was struggling with an ERA in the 6s or 7s until now.

League Hold King. League’s lowest ERA among bullpen pitchers, 1st in wins, 1st in strikeouts, 1st in WHIP.

These were the titles I had won.

“…Therefore, let’s hear Kim Han-wool’s *sogam* [thoughts/impressions]!”

I was saying something or other, but I wasn’t really listening, and when the microphone came to me, I naturally picked it up. Since it was about *sogam*, I guess they wanted something like my thoughts on this season.

Yol럽 이저 와!! 알드 칻! 폴딩 이저 할!! 팔!!

The home fans were singing my entrance song at the top of their lungs.

To be honest, the pronunciation of Koreans singing English at the top of their lungs was terrible. Completely unintelligible pronunciation. But I fully understood the feeling.

“Um… thank you. I didn’t really know there would be an awards ceremony like this, and I wasn’t thinking about it, so I feel good to receive it. It’s the first time we’re advancing to the post-season, so I’m excited and nervous.”

My teammates watching me from around, the fans looking down at me from the stands.

Everyone was silently focusing on what I was saying.

“I don’t know how far we can go, but even if we fall early, there’s always next time. It won’t be that far. I hope you’ll watch over us. Thank you.”

I hadn’t prepared anything, so I rambled on about things that even I didn’t know what I was saying, and then shyly held the panel with the words ‘Club MVP’ written on it above my head.

On the panel, the large letters ‘Club MVP’ and the words ‘Prize money of 5 million won’ below made me excited.

Hehe, 5 million won.

I felt good about the 5 million won and came down from the stage. My salary this season is 45 million, so I was naturally happy to receive a bonus of more than 1/10 of my salary.

As soon as I came down from the stage, Eun-seo, a club employee, ran up with a camera.

“Kim Han-wool *seonsu* [player]!”

“Ah, why. I’m in a good mood.”

“If you were to evaluate yourself this season, what score would you give yourself!”

“Clichéd.”

“It’s a question from the fans.”

“The clichéd is the best.”

I’m the kind of guy who can’t resist capitalism.

“Out of 100 points, how many points?”

“About 32,000 points.”

“Pardon?”

“Why.”

“…….”

If you look at me with such a contemptuous look…….

* * *

The regular season has ended. The post-season will be contested by four teams: Sangsoo, Dongsung, KP, and our Wonha.

The *jun-playoff* [semi-playoff] against KP Stars, based in Sajik Stadium in Busan, will begin on October 6, five days after the end of the regular season on September 30.

With decent rest days in between, it seemed obvious that Hyuk-joon would be the starter for Game 1.

Fortunately, there were no problems with the spot where he was hit by the batted ball in his last appearance. It was just a light bruise. Miraculous.

From my perspective, I was able to definitively relieve the fatigue from pitching quite a bit during the regular season for five days.

“You were really… *meosisseosseoyo* [cool/amazing]…….”

Sparkle, sparkle.

It was only five days, but the plans for that time were decided faster than expected.

Since we had to leave for Busan in the afternoon of the last day, the 5th, I planned to do nothing that day and get plenty of rest. So, the actual rest was 4 days.

“How can I… I still can’t believe it.”

Bright-eyed.

The first day was spent resting. As soon as the game ended the day before, the club held a *hoesik* [company dinner] together. Even though it was a *hoesik*, there was no obligation and no oppressive atmosphere, just a *jeul거운 hoesik* [enjoyable company dinner] for everyone.

A *jeul거운 hoesik* for everyone?

I thought the combination of those three words was usually impossible, but it was possible. Under the hope of reaching the post-season for the first time in six years, everyone raised their glasses and cheered.

“Wonha definitely does its job well. I was worried they might give the club MVP to another player.”

Burning eyes.

I drank so much alcohol and barely crawled home, then slept soundly. For the first time in a while, I turned off all the alarms and slept in. And I woke up at 4 PM.

I started the day by relieving my stiff neck from sleeping for so long, and at the same time, soothing the outside and inside of my throat, which was sore from drinking.

“Other players did well too. Kang Sung-hyun, Hwang Hyuk-joon, Han Gyu-jin, and Lee Hyo-jae also worked really hard.”

Grinning.

I started playing in earnest from the second day. After a long time, I logged into the baseball game Full Count, which was no exaggeration to say had made me who I am today, and went all out.

It felt strange that I met 7 opponents who were using ‘me’ while playing about 10 games in a row. It was like I was playing against myself.

Another me, my rival is me, is that it? Ugh.

“Still, it’s Han-wool *ssi* [Mr./Ms.]. It’s not that the other players didn’t do well or were lacking. But… if you ask what has changed the most since last year, it’s definitely Han-wool *ssi* who has changed the most, and it’s also true that the team has changed because of that.”

Burning eyes.

And today, the third day. Around midday, I had lunch with Min-young *ssi* and came to a café a little further away to talk.

Mostly, Min-young *ssi* was doing the talking and I was listening. Listening to her rich emotional expressions made me feel strangely focused.

“When you were being interviewed at the end…….”

“Yes.”

“You said you didn’t know how far you could go, right?”

“Did I say that?”

“Yes.”

If Min-young *ssi* said so, then that’s what I said.

“Um… really, realistically. How far do you think we can go?”

“What about Min-young *ssi*?”

“Um…….”

The *jun-playoff* is played in a best-of-five series.

Two games at the home stadium of the 3rd-place team, a day of rest, two games at the home stadium of the 4th-place team, and if it goes to the 5th game, the series will conclude at the home stadium of the higher-ranked team again.

The advantage of the home stadium is enormous. Batting last, the cheers of the home fans, familiarity with the home stadium’s ground, fatigue from the away team’s travel, and so on.

“I’d be satisfied as long as we don’t get eliminated early in the *jun-peul* [semi-playoffs]?”

“Eh?”

But what’s more important than that is skill.

If the 1st-place team only played at the 8th-place team’s home stadium, would the 8th-place team be able to easily beat the 1st-place team?

“I’d be very satisfied if we lost 2-3. If we lost 1-3, that’s understandable. If we get swept, well… that’s about it.”

“Aren’t you being too harsh?”

“This is being generous.”

A self-deprecating smile appeared.

“I want to go up too… There are a lot of incentives, like bonuses and next season’s contract. But realistically, it’s difficult. Realistically.”

“Why……?”

You don’t have to get so teary-eyed…….

“We’re not good enough. Realistically. Our team relies too much on a few people. On the pitching side, there’s Hyuk-joon, Gyu-jin *hyung*, me, and Lee Hyo-jae *seonbae* [senior/mentor]. On the hitting side, there’s Sung-hyun, Jin-hyung, and Seung-joo. Oh, and Gi-sung too. On defense, there’s Sung-moon and Gyu-hak. Okay, who else is there?”

“Um…….”

Min-young *ssi*, who is a lifelong Wonha fan, knew the team’s situation all too well. She couldn’t really refute my words.

“I’m tired…… Honestly. The starting members are tired, so even my non-existent skills won’t be able to perform properly, and if the kids get tired and drop out, the prospects who have to fill those spots are still not very good… Well, I think we’ll win the first game with Hyuk-joon pitching and lose the remaining 3 games and be done.”

“Hing…….”

“Give up this year. Then you’ll feel better.”

“But, but……!”

How dare you try to use *kingchiman* [but/however (cute/whiny)] on me.

“Look to the next time instead.”

“Next time?”

“Yes. You know how each team has its own characteristics? Do you know what characteristics Wonha is in charge of?”

Absolute powerhouse Sangsoo. The eternal runner-up Dongsung. KP with its explosive hitting. Bisco with its bullpen, Gaya, the den of thieves, Sungwoon, which Wooseok hard carries alone, and Hanseong, which just can’t do anything.

Like this, the teams in the KBO [Korean Baseball Organization] each have their own color.

If you think of starting pitchers, which team comes to mind! If you think of hitting, which team comes to mind!

Our Wonha also has something like that. Two things, in fact.

“Um… what is it?”

“What do you think it is? A quiz. If you get it right, I’ll give you my autographed ball. This is the ball that secured the victory in the last game of the regular season.”

“Ah, ah! Ah! Aaaah!”

Suddenly, when a prize was at stake, Min-young *ssi* went into a frenzy. She grabbed her head and muttered, ‘What is it? What is it? What is it?’ She was almost scary.

“Okay… 10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5…….”

Failure.

“Heong…….”

She really wanted to get it right, and she looked up at me with tears welling up in her eyes. Even though she was older than me, she looked quite cute, and I grinned and took a ball out of my bag.

“Huh?”

“I was going to give it to you as a gift anyway.”

“Wow, waaa…….”

I told you not to get teary-eyed.

At this point, I wondered if she was a fanatic. She couldn’t hide her joy at just one ball.

“So, what’s the answer?”

“Defense. And the fact that the kids are young.”

“Um…….”

Two things that aren’t easily noticeable. You can’t know if you just like baseball as a sport.

But if you see baseball as a field of study, you can know. How important these two factors are.

“The first condition of a strong team is defense. If your defense is weak, you can never be a strong team. Look at KP. They’re always called a strong team, but why do they only stay in the middle? What’s the point of scoring 10 points on offense if you give up 15 points on defense?”

“If you give up 15 points on defense, you can just score 16 points on offense, right?”

“Points are easier to prevent than to get.”

“Um…….”

She doesn’t seem to understand well.

“Hitting .300 is a good hitter, and getting on base .400 is an A-class hitter, right?”

“Right……?”

“In other words, even the best and most successful hitters fail 70% or 60% of the time.”

“That’s true?”

“Besides, it’s not over when you get on base. You have to go around 1st, 2nd, and 3rd base and then come home to score 1 point. Scoring one point is not as easy as you think.”

“Ah…….”

Min-young *ssi*, who knew quite a bit about baseball, seemed to quickly understand what I was trying to say.

“Then what about the fact that the players are young?”

If a 29-year-old graduates from high school and immediately enters the pros, and immediately plays as a starter in the first team, he has been rolling around in the pros for 10 years. He is a player who is more than worthy of being called a veteran.

But let’s think about the typical case.

High school graduates are 20 years old, and college graduates are 24 years old at most. If a college student has taken a year off, they enter at 25 years old. Even if such a player becomes 29 years old, they can’t even be considered a mid-level player, let alone a veteran.

Baseball is a sport of repetition. It’s also called a sport of experience. Even if it’s the same situation with a one-point difference and two outs with the bases loaded, and the opposing batter is the cleanup hitter, all situations are different in detail.

The compatibility between the pitcher and batter, the defensive skills of the fielders, the running ability of the runners, the thoughts of the managers, the condition of the stadium, and so on.

A player grows by experiencing all kinds of situations. You have to move your body before your head to become a true first-team player.

Even in the same situation with the same bounce coming, there are situations where you have to throw to 3rd base now, but yesterday you threw to 1st base.

In that sense, our team is very young. I’m only 29 years old, but I’m in the middle or higher of the veteran level on the team.

There are surprisingly few *seonbae* above me. It’s the time when the players who were gathered during the dark ages are slowly growing up.

“I think I made it to the post-season faster than I thought? Rather.”

“Isn’t it good to do it early?”

“It’s good. It’s not that it’s bad. But I thought we’d barely make 4th place in two years. But I didn’t expect to go up this year. So, now that we’ve experienced the post-season, the kids will know. How to win.”

You only need to be ahead by 1 point. Whether you win by 1 point or win by 10 points, it’s the same 1 win.

If you dig into the details, there’s no end to it, but let’s just look at the surface for now.

In the bottom of the 9th with a tie score, there’s no need to try to score 10 points. If you score just one point, the game ends in victory. Our kids don’t know that well. They’ll learn over time.

“Um…….”

Min-young *ssi* doesn’t seem satisfied with my explanation. She understands, but that’s why she doesn’t like it more.

That’s right, the person she’s cheering for the most is right in front of her, and instead of saying that her goal is to win the Korean Series!, I’m coldly hitting her with facts.

“That’s that, and…….”

“Yes.”

She must have more to say with her pouting lips.

“What about next year?”

“Next year?”

“You’ll be a FA [Free Agent] again when this year ends, right?”

“Um…….”

Ah, there’s this too.

The league’s #1 bullpen ace, who will be 30 years old when he signs a contract and enters the season. A control-oriented style based on control that is possible down to the cm unit.

The team’s evaluation of his pitching defense scale is 10 out of 10. His ability to check runners is also quite decent. But his salary is only 45 million won.

But for the previous 9 years, he was a bullpen pitcher with a negative WAR [Wins Above Replacement]. He has had three surgeries and has pitched more than 50 innings every year for the past 9 years.

His average fastball speed in the 2017 season was in the low to mid 130km/h range, which is not fast, but his stuff is not outstanding either, just about that speed range.

He met the FA requirements, but he didn’t voluntarily apply. He knew better than anyone that he would be *sae-doel* [bird-brained/foolish] if he applied, so he stayed still. Therefore, the contract was automatically extended for 1 year, and this year, when that contract ends, he can apply for FA again.

“Don’t go…….”

“Do you think I want to go?”

A self-deprecating smile appeared again. A different kind of self-deprecation than before.

“But… I don’t think the team will let you go.”

“Oh!”

I suddenly thought of Young-jin *ssi*, who always took care of me. I wondered what he was doing now.

“I’ll probably stay. The team unexpectedly likes me.”

Just as I thought it was time to get up, I organized the cups and got up from my seat.