Perfect Agent [EN]: Chapter 128

Fierce Battle for Rankings (1)

Now, besides Seo Seongmin, another player was pouring intense energy into his training at the training ground.

Whew. Whew. Whew.

It was Go Jihun.

Even with just two players training, the heat radiating from the training ground was palpable.

Seo Seongmin volunteered to help Go Jihun, assisting with his training.

Both of them took everything seriously, from warming up to intense physical conditioning.

After the basic training was over, they went outside to continue their regimen.

It was a scorching day where sweat would pour down just from standing still, but they seemed unfazed.

Perhaps because they had been teammates for so long, they seemed to understand each other instinctively.

Thanks to that, I was able to comfortably observe their training.

Go Jihun started with light catchball at a close distance and gradually increased the intensity of his pitching.

He gradually moved his standing position further away, and in the end, they were throwing the ball back and forth from a distance of 100 meters [approximately 328 feet].

Thump.

Thump.

Every time Go Jihun threw the ball, Seo Seongmin caught it with ease.

As a player who also trained hard as an outfielder, Seo Seongmin was also highly accurate when throwing the ball from a long distance.

Finally, they continued pitching from a distance of 30-40 meters [approximately 98-131 feet].

Thump.

Thump.

Looking at Go Jihun’s flexibly moving body, he seemed no different from when he was in peak condition.

Then, their training paused for a moment.

“Seongmin hyung [older brother/senior], let’s take a break.”

“Okay. Let’s drink some water.”

As the two players approached to hydrate, I also got up and approached them.

“Sunbae [senior], how is your physical condition?”

I asked, handing Go Jihun and Seo Seongmin cool bottled water.

“Perfect. I don’t feel any pain while throwing, and the ball feels great.”

Go Jihun smiled brightly, seemingly satisfied, and drank the water.

He playfully bumped his shoulder against mine.

*I feel good because I don’t feel any pain while throwing the ball.*

I had been worried that he might be overlooking some subtle pain, but I felt relieved after confirming his condition with the information window [a game-like interface showing player stats and conditions].

“You heard that Jeonghwan is starting the day after tomorrow, right?”

“Yeah, the pitching coach told me yesterday.”

“Are you going to do bullpen pitching today too?”

“Yeah. I think it’s better to do it even a little.”

Seo Seongmin, who was listening to my conversation with Go Jihun, took a sip of water and asked cautiously.

“Jihun, if it’s okay, can I stand in the batter’s box when you’re pitching?”

“I’d be happy if hyung stood in the batter’s box. It’ll be like live pitching.”

“Thanks.”

Seo Seongmin’s expression brightened only after hearing a positive answer from Go Jihun.

“Which side of the batter’s box will you stand on?”

“If I were facing you in a real game, I’d have to stand as a left-handed batter, but I’ve been training as a right-handed batter lately. Should I stand as a right-handed batter this time?”

Seo Seongmin turned his gaze to me and asked.

“Representative, would that be okay?”

“Yes, I think that would be good.”

When I responded with a bright smile, a smile also appeared on Seo Seongmin’s face.

Go Jihun took a deep breath while drinking water and said.

“It would be really difficult to face hyung as an opposing team. I’d have to think about whether he’s a left-handed or right-handed batter.”

“I’ll try to get back into the Doubles [likely referring to a team or league].”

Unlike Seo Seongmin, who answered with a smile, Go Jihun tilted his head.

“I might not be in the Doubles next year. You never know what might happen.”

“Is that so?”

It was an ordinary conversation between the two, but it gave me an important clue.

*He doesn’t necessarily want to stay in the Doubles.*

Anyway, let’s put that aside.

I thought I might get heatstroke if I kept standing in this hot sun.

“Sunbae, let’s do live pitching inside. It’s too hot outside.”

“I was just about to say that. Let’s go in quickly. It’s too hot.”

We hurried to the indoor training facility.

I finally felt a little better after being in a place without sunlight and feeling the cool air conditioning.

Go Jihun and Seo Seongmin’s training continued for a long time even after entering the indoor practice field.

* * *

I visited the stadium after a long time.

It was a match between the Buffaloes and the Doubles, who were fiercely fighting for the rankings.

As intense as the ranking competition was, the ticket reservation war was also fierce enough to resemble the postseason.

There were so many spectators at the stadium that it took a long time to move from the entrance to the seats.

When I finally sat down and looked at the stadium, it was truly a spectacle.

Just watching the full crowd cheering made me feel a sense of grandeur in my chest.

-We are facing an important match in the process of the season heading towards the end. It is the match between the 3rd place Buffaloes and the 4th place Doubles.

-The game difference between the two teams is only two games. If the Doubles sweep this 3-game series, the ranking could change immediately.

-In that respect, today’s game, which is the first start of the 3-game series, seems to be even more important, right?

-That’s right. Choi Jeonghwan will be pitching for the Doubles. Since his recent performance has been good, we can look forward to it. The problem is that the Doubles’ bullpen pitchers are shaking a lot. Whether the bullpen pitchers can protect the lead in a lead situation will be the main point of today’s game.

The first inning started with the Doubles’ attack, but it ended quickly because there was no significant offensive.

And now, Choi Jeonghwan, the starting pitcher for the Doubles, took the mound.

Choi Jeonghwan took a deep breath on the mound and started pitching.

Thump!

155km/h [approximately 96 mph].

Thump!

156km/h [approximately 97 mph].

-You can tell how important today’s game is just by looking at the speed. Choi Jeonghwan is raising the speed to almost the maximum from the first inning.

But,

Thump!

“Ball!”

Thump!

“Ball!”

-In the end, he walks the first batter. Was his body tense because it was an important game? His control seems to be shakier than usual.

-Putting strength into one ball is a good choice, but above all, giving up a walk is something you really need to avoid. It’s even more important if you want to pitch a lot of innings in today’s game.

After the leadoff batter reached first base on a walk.

Whether Choi Jeonghwan had found his focus, he started pitching aggressively again.

Thump!

The speed was 3-4km/h [approximately 2-2.5 mph] lower than the beginning, but the power was the same.

Tick!

It seemed difficult for the batter to handle Choi Jeonghwan’s power.

Eventually,

Whoosh-

“Strike out!”

The Doubles fans cheered at the satisfying strikeout.

Now, Oh Seokhun, the Buffaloes’ 3rd batter, stepped up to the plate.

He was recording the league’s highest batting average and was also a fast player, so the Doubles players were busy exchanging signs.

Choi Jeonghwan didn’t waver this time either and went for the fastball.

Oh Seokhun also swung his bat at the first pitch.

Tick!

But the ball soared high into the sky.

Oh Seokhun, sensing that the ball was mis-hit, expressed his disappointment and ran towards first base.

The third baseman caught it without any problems, and the out count went up.

Now, 2 outs, runner on 1st base.

Without any time to relax, the next batter, Park Seongju, stood at the plate.

The runner on first base tried to provoke Choi Jeonghwan as if he was going to steal at any moment.

But Choi Jeonghwan didn’t care about his antics at all and pitched his own game.

Thump!

The fastball passed through the strike zone even against the 4th batter.

Whoosh-

The slider sharply curved.

And finally, he throws a fastball into the center,

Thump!

“Strike out!”

Park Seongju, caught off guard, had no choice but to stand there motionless.

“Wow!”

The Doubles fans cheered at the refreshing pitches that seemed to purify their eyes.

In the following Doubles’ attack inning.

As if responding to Choi Jeonghwan’s good pitching, the Doubles batters swung their bats boldly.

Clang!

“Run! Run! Run!”

Not only did a powerful long hit explode,

Clang!

“Wow!”

“Home run!”

A home run that soared over the fence also exploded.

The Doubles dugout and the stands couldn’t hide their great expectations for getting closer to 3rd place.

Choi Jeonghwan also responded to his fellow batters’ impressive hits,

Thump!

Thump!

Whoosh-

“Strike out!”

He continued the game by throwing powerful balls with all his might.

Before they knew it, it was the 7th inning, and the score was 7:2.

Choi Jeonghwan’s pitch count in today’s game was over 100.

It was a point where he could have started to tire.

Clang!

Clang!

The Buffaloes batters didn’t miss the opportunity and swung their bats fiercely.

-Choi Jeonghwan seems to be losing power in his pitches as his pitch count increases.

-He has been throwing the ball with all his might from the beginning, so he will have more physical burden than usual. The Doubles bench should also consider a substitution.

With a runner on 1st base, the Buffaloes’ 4th batter, Park Seongju, entered the plate.

Park Seongju seemed to have sharpened his knife to wash away the humiliation of being struck out looking.

Eventually,

Clang!

The ball hit by Park Seongju’s bat soared high into the sky.

“Ah……”

Choi Jeonghwan, sensing a home run the moment the ball was hit, simply slumped his shoulders.

On the other hand, a cheer that seemed to tear down the stadium erupted from the Buffaloes cheering section.

“Wow!”

“Park Seongju! Park Seongju! Park Seongju!”

-The Buffaloes’ 4th batter, Park Seongju, hits an important two-run home run that ignites the chase.

-Choi Jeonghwan fails to overcome Park Seongju’s wall.

-Now the score is 7:4. They have chased right up to the chin.

With that, Choi Jeonghwan recorded 4 runs in 6.1 innings, ending his time on the mound with the match against Park Seongju as his last.

Now, the Doubles’ bullpen pitchers were also preparing to take the mound.

Fortunately, the Doubles bullpen managed to hold the Buffaloes in the 7th inning and succeeded in creating a larger lead by scoring additional points for the Doubles batters.

-With the score at 9:4, the Doubles are ahead as they face the bottom of the 8th inning.

-In fact, considering the recent shaky performance of the Doubles bullpen, you can say that the real game starts now. Moreover, in baseball, a five-point difference can be reversed in an instant.

-Can the Doubles bullpen pitchers secure the remaining 6 out counts?

Finally, the Buffaloes’ attack in the bottom of the 8th inning began.

However, despite the desperate cheers of the Doubles fans hoping that they would protect the 5-point lead,

Clang!

Starting with Oh Seokhun’s double that brought the leading runner home,

Clang!

Even Park Seongju’s two-run home run exploded, scoring 3 points in this inning alone.

In an instant, the score narrowed to 9:7.

The Doubles began to put in all available bullpen pitchers.

Several pitcher changes were made in one inning.

Thanks to that, they succeeded in barely holding off the Buffaloes’ attack.

And in the 9th inning, with 2 outs,

Tick!

The batted ball hit by the Buffaloes batter soared high into the sky but did not leave the infield.

“Out!”

As the Doubles’ last out count went up with difficulty,

“Wow!”

“We love you, Invincible Doubles!”

The Doubles fans’ magnificent cheers filled the stadium.

-The Doubles finish today’s important game with a victory!

-Now the difference between the two teams is only 1 game. Neither the Buffaloes nor the Doubles can be sure of anything. Which team will go directly to the [unclear text – likely refers to a playoff or championship round]?

It was a tough win, and it was too important to give up the fight for 3rd place until the end.

The fate of the battle for 3rd place now rested on the shoulders of Go Jihun, the starting pitcher for tomorrow.