Perfect Agent [EN]: Chapter 113

All-Star Game (3)

So Young-joon prepared to hit, shaking his hips wildly.

Each time he moved, the skirt he was wearing fluttered in the wind.

Jingle, jingle, jingle.

The bells attached to it rang out in unison.

The pitcher, forced to watch this spectacle, seemed unable to concentrate and struggled to throw the ball.

Seeing the pitcher’s expression, So Young-joon shook his hips even more vigorously than before.

The sound of the bells echoed even louder.

-Every time So Young-joon moves, the sound of the bells can be heard all the way to the commentary box.

-With such flashy attire that can’t help but catch the eye, and the ringing of bells, the pitcher can’t properly focus.

-So Young-joon is really putting on a show.

The pitcher finally managed to throw the ball after a visible struggle.

Crack!

As soon as the bat connected, So Young-joon raised both arms, jumped up and down, and ran towards first base.

It was a celebration worthy of a batter who had just smashed a massive home run.

However, the ball didn’t travel far and was easily caught by the center fielder.

“Out!”

So Young-joon covered his face as if in disbelief at the umpire’s call, and then dramatically collapsed to the ground and rolled around.

The fans couldn’t stop laughing at So Young-joon’s antics.

-Judging by So Young-joon’s motion alone, I thought it was definitely going to be a home run.

-If you didn’t know better, you’d think he was acting like that because he narrowly missed hitting a home run.

Now, as the teams switched sides and So Young-joon came in to play defense, he didn’t disappoint this time either.

-Is that a player in a mascot costume coming in? Who is it?

-Judging by the fact that he went to shortstop, it seems to be So Young-joon. Looking at the jersey number, it’s him, it’s So Young-joon.

-How can he even see in front of him while wearing such a large mascot costume?

Unlike before, So Young-joon, now sporting a large mascot costume, grabbed the heavy head and moved it quickly from side to side.

The costume was so bulky that it was difficult to stand properly unless he supported it with his right hand.

“Play ball!”

As the game resumed, So Young-joon took a defensive stance with a somewhat serious expression.

Coincidentally, the batted ball was rolling quickly towards where So Young-joon was positioned.

So Young-joon dove as usual, but the mascot costume lost its balance, momentarily blocking his vision.

“What? I can’t see anything.”

While he was fumbling to adjust the mascot costume, the ball hit So Young-joon’s shin head-on.

“Agh!”

Even though it was just a bouncing ball, getting hit by a baseball really hurt.

Ignoring the pain for the moment, he picked up the ball and threw it towards first base with all his might.

“Out!”

Of course, the umpire’s call didn’t alleviate So Young-joon’s pain.

So Young-joon grabbed his shin and lay down on the ground.

He tried to soothe the pain by rubbing it, but it wasn’t easy.

“What are you doing? Get up quickly.”

A player next to him came over and tried to help So Young-joon up.

“This one really hurts.”

“We all know you’re faking.”

The opposing player didn’t pay any attention to So Young-joon’s words and gestured for him to get up.

-So Young-joon is lying down and putting on an act again.

-He’s really providing non-stop entertainment today.

The pain was so severe that his shin would probably be bruised if he lifted up his uniform, but no one at the stadium seemed to believe he was genuinely hurt.

“This time it really hurts…….”

It was as if he had become the boy who cried wolf.

In the following game, the players, living up to their All-Star selection, showcased their impressive skills to the fullest.

The pitchers struck out batters with pinpoint control, and the batters countered with powerful swings.

The fielders drew gasps from the crowd with their diving saves.

Crack!

Park Byung-hoon, who had competed against Park Sung-joo in the home run derby finals, also hit a massive home run with an aggressive uppercut swing.

“Waaaaah-”

It was the team’s first run and a home run that reversed the score in one fell swoop.

“Park Byung-hoon! Park Byung-hoon! Park Byung-hoon!”

Park Byung-hoon, circling the infield bases, raised both hands high and incited cheers from the crowd.

-The go-ahead home run finally explodes in the middle of the game.

-Not just anyone can reach the home run derby finals. He launched a home run just as big as Park Sung-joo’s.

-If this happens, the Mr. All-Star competition will be exciting until the very end.

On the other hand, Park Sung-joo, who was playing third base and watching the flying batted balls, had a look of anxiety on his face.

It seemed like he was just waiting for his turn at bat to come.

As the teams switched sides and Oh Seok-hoon stepped up to the plate, Park Sung-joo was also preparing to hit in the on-deck circle with a tense expression.

Oh Seok-hoon created an infield hit with his quick feet despite a mis-hit ball.

Park Sung-joo stepped up to the plate immediately.

While Park Sung-joo was watching the ball thrown by the pitcher at the plate,

“Second base! Running to second base!”

Oh Seok-hoon didn’t hesitate and stole second base.

“Safe!”

He succeeded in stealing without difficulty.

Oh Seok-hoon didn’t stop there and immediately attempted to steal third base.

The catcher, who hadn’t expected the steal to third base, panicked and threw the ball,

“Safe!”

Oh Seok-hoon showed off his blazing speed.

-Oh Seok-hoon’s speed is amazing as always today.

-He’s a player who’s so good at stealing from second to third base like that.

The player who capitalized on the situation after Oh Seok-hoon distracted everyone with his stolen bases was none other than Park Sung-joo.

Crack-

Park Sung-joo threw his bat high into the air and stretched both hands to the sky, as if to say, “Finally!”

-Oh! It’s flying again. It’s going far! I wonder how far it will fly?

-Home run! Park Sung-joo hits another massive home run. It’s a consecutive home run!

Park Sung-joo’s expression now showed relief.

This time, Park Byung-hoon, who was on first base, looked at the flying ball and burst into laughter as if conceding defeat.

Park Sung-joo enjoyed the moment by mimicking driving a car while circling the infield diamond.

And before they knew it, the All-Star Game had reached the 9th inning.

The pitcher who took the mound in the top of the 9th inning with a score of 5:4 was Jang Soo-young.

Just like he had consistently delivered solid 9th innings for Angels fans during the season, Jang Soo-young didn’t allow a single runner to get on base.

And now it was the bottom of the 9th inning.

-It’s already the bottom of the 9th inning. Choi Jung-hwan is taking the mound in this inning, which will be the last of this All-Star Game.

-The score is only one point apart. If a player manages to hit a game-winning hit among the batters coming up, he is very likely to become Mr. All-Star.

Choi Jung-hwan stood on the mound.

Although it wasn’t a real game, it was his first time pitching in the bottom of the 9th inning.

Moreover, the score difference was only one point.

It wasn’t just a save situation; it was a high-pressure save situation.

Could he succeed in the closing role for the first time?

Choi Jung-hwan himself was curious.

Whack!

155km/h [approximately 96 mph].

Whack!

157km/h [approximately 98 mph].

Unlike other pitchers who were throwing casually, Choi Jung-hwan showed a pitch that resembled a real game.

The batter stood there blankly, as if dumbfounded by the unexpected fastball.

-He’s throwing the fastest ball in today’s game by far.

-I don’t think I’ve ever seen anyone pitch so hard in an All-Star Game like it’s a regular season game.

-The batters can’t even think about hitting. They can’t hit a 157km/h ball after seeing 130km/h [approximately 81 mph] balls until just now.

Whack!

“Strike out!”

It only took Choi Jung-hwan three pitches to get the first out with a strikeout.

It was no different against the next batter.

Whack!

After easily getting a strike with a fastball.

‘Should I try to challenge him with a breaking ball?’

He threw a forkball [a type of pitch that drops sharply] with all his might, hoping it would drop sharply in front of the batter.

‘Ah. I made a mistake.’

Crack!

However, the ball, which didn’t drop as much as he wanted, was hit for a double.

-A double is hit in a one-run situation. Is it really going to be nail-biting until the end?

-One hit here is enough to tie the score.

With a tight one-run lead, the runner was on second base.

It was a situation where one hit would tie the score.

Moreover, there were still two outs needed to finish the game.

What if this were a real game?

Could I overcome this crisis?

Choi Jung-hwan stepped back onto the pitcher’s plate.

‘Let’s just throw the balls I’m confident in.’

After all, he was a player with no experience as a closer [a relief pitcher who specializes in pitching the final inning of a game].

Above all, he didn’t want to shy away from a direct confrontation, even in the All-Star Game.

Let’s face it head-on.

Whack!

“Strike out!”

Choi Jung-hwan threw all three pitches as fastballs.

-Choi Jung-hwan is throwing his best stuff without wavering, even in this situation.

-The last inning is like watching the bottom of the 9th inning of the Korean Series [the championship series of the KBO League, South Korea’s top professional baseball league].

-Will Choi Jung-hwan be able to lead the game to victory without giving up a run?

Now, two outs in the bottom of the 9th inning.

Choi Jung-hwan continued to pitch without paying any attention to the runner on second base behind him.

Whack!

The fastball passed through the strike zone cleanly as expected.

Tick!

This time, the batter swung his bat and barely managed to make contact, but it was difficult to get the ball into fair territory.

It was the last ball that could be thrown.

Choi Jung-hwan threw the ball with all his might.

Whack!

The batter’s bat swung through the air.

“Strike out!”

-Strike out! Choi Jung-hwan gets the final out of the All-Star Game and secures the victory.

-The main game of the All-Star Game also ends with a thrilling one-point game like this.

-Will we be able to see another All-Star Game with so much to see and such fierce competition?

-We look forward to seeing our players compete wonderfully in the remaining season games as well.

All the events of the All-Star Game were over, and only the awards ceremony was left.

So Young-joon received the Performance Award by unanimous vote.

This year’s Mr. All-Star was Park Sung-joo, who hit a massive home run and a game-winning hit that led the team to victory.

A recently released SUV was provided as a prize.

As the car entered the stadium, Park Sung-joo jumped up and down like a child receiving a birthday present and approached it.

Park Sung-joo held the Mr. All-Star panel and posed on the hood of the car.

After the photo shoot, Oh Seok-hoon and So Young-joon came over and showed interest, looking around the car.

“Wow, the car is really nice.”

“Seok-hoon, I’ll give you a ride. Senior Young-joon, get in too, I’ll drive.”

Park Sung-joo said, rubbing the hood of the car with his hand.

“Do you have a license?”

“I can get it now. It’s easy to get a license, right?”

At Park Sung-joo’s words, Oh Seok-hoon and So Young-joon shook their heads and turned away.

The All-Star Game, where players and fans could put aside the pressure of the ranking competition and enjoy themselves together, came to an end.

After the remaining days of rest, they had to return to the intensity of the regular season battles.

Of course, just because it was a day off didn’t mean that baseball business had stopped.

Outside the stadium, issues that could be considered a mini-stove league [the off-season period when teams negotiate and make player transactions] were being prepared.