Perfect Agent [EN]: Chapter 133

Postseason Live (3)

Choi Jeong-hwan was the player emerging from the Doubles’ bullpen.

-Waaaaah- Choi Jeong-hwan! Choi Jeong-hwan! Choi Jeong-hwan!

The Doubles fans watching on the screen were chanting Choi Jeong-hwan’s name at the top of their lungs.

“Choi Jeong-hwan is on the mound now! I never dreamed I would see Choi Jeong-hwan in today’s game!”

I couldn’t believe it, even as I watched the screen.

“That’s why the postseason is so much fun. It’s a time when things happen that you would never see in the regular season. The Doubles’ bullpen is shaky, so they’re making this unconventional choice.”

So Young-joon slammed the table once and rejoiced.

“Go Ji-hoon seemed to be losing steam after throwing over 80 pitches. He could win with control and strategy, but in a postseason game like today, one bad pitch can turn the game around. It seems like the Doubles made a good call on the pitching change timing.”

I made a brief analytical comment and asked So Young-joon.

“What’s it like for a batter to face Choi Jeong-hwan after Go Ji-hoon?”

“From a batter’s perspective? It’s hard to adjust when you’re suddenly facing a pitcher throwing over 150 km/h [approximately 93 mph] after seeing a pitcher who was nibbling at the corners.”

So Young-joon’s voice was raised in excitement, finding the situation interesting.

“In that respect, it’s an even more effective strategy. It’s a strategy that maximizes the effect by immediately putting in a completely different type of pitcher. Besides, the Buffaloes probably didn’t expect Choi Jeong-hwan to pitch today!”

I added to So Young-joon’s words and turned my head to Jang Su-young.

“How should Choi Jeong-hwan pitch?”

“Like Young-joon said, Jeong-hwan just needs to take advantage of his strengths. The opposing batters are used to Go Ji-hoon’s pitches. If a much faster ball suddenly comes, it will be difficult to adjust to.”

“Choi Jeong-hwan didn’t pitch in the wild card game, so he should be less physically burdened, right?”

“Yes, and he won’t be starting like usual, but only pitching for 1 or 2 innings at most, so he’ll be able to pitch at full power.”

While Jang Su-young was answering, Scott seemed to have something he wanted to say.

I couldn’t leave him out.

“Scott, what do you think about pitcher Choi Jeong-hwan?”

“Choi’s fastball is probably the best in Korea. It’s not just fast, but the quality is perfect.”

“You’re saying it’s better to focus on fastballs in today’s game?”

“Of course, he’s not starting, so there’s no need to throw a lot of breaking balls.”

I gave Scott a thumbs up and turned my gaze back to the screen.

Meanwhile, Choi Jeong-hwan began warming up on the mound.

Thwack!

Choi Jeong-hwan’s fastball slammed into the catcher’s mitt with a satisfying thud.

“Wow, it’s intimidating even watching it on the screen.”

So Young-joon exclaimed and playfully put his hand on my head.

“What are you doing?”

“Aren’t you scared every time you see Jeong-hwan pitch?”

“Honestly, I am.”

I wasn’t confident in facing Choi Jeong-hwan’s pitches in a real game yet, even if I was okay with other players’ pitches.

└Look at that crisp fastball. It feels like my chest is opening up just by watching it.

└The Buffaloes batters must be having a mental breakdown since a completely different pitcher suddenly came up.

└Jeong-hwan, just throw strikes. No one can hit your ball.

After Choi Jeong-hwan’s practice pitches, the batter and umpire entered the batter’s box.

“Play ball!”

At the umpire’s call, Choi Jeong-hwan focused on the catcher’s sign.

Then, as soon as he received the sign, he wound up.

Thwack!

-Ball!

The second pitch, following the first, also missed the strike zone.

“The speed and power of the ball look good, but is there too much tension in his body?”

He got one strike when the batter swung, but then:

-Ball!

In the end, he walked the lead batter.

“In the late game with the score 0:0, walking the first batter is the worst situation.”

My expression and the players’ expressions darkened.

We didn’t want the game to be decided by our agency’s player giving up a run, no matter which team won.

“In this case, the Buffaloes will try to sacrifice bunt.”

As I expected, the next batter for the Buffaloes laid down a sacrifice bunt.

1 out, runner on 2nd base.

He was pitching with a runner in scoring position.

“It’s still fortunate that it’s the bottom of the lineup, even though it’s a scoring position.”

“If it were Seok-hoon or Seong-joo’s at-bat here, it would be terrible.”

Jang Su-young looked as if she was pitching herself.

Choi Jeong-hwan carefully exchanged signs with the catcher,

Thwack!

He succeeded in getting two strikes with a 153km/h [approximately 95 mph] fastball, slightly slower than usual.

And,

Whoosh-

-Strike out!

159km/h! [approximately 99 mph]

The batter couldn’t help but swing at the tremendous fastball flying high.

“Wow! Unbelievable!”

“Wow! That ball is no joke!”

Scott and Jang Su-young simultaneously exclaimed, their mouths agape.

“His control wasn’t perfect, but his stuff is so good that there was no problem striking him out.”

Now 2 outs, runner still on 2nd base.

“Even though it’s a two-out situation, he can still give up a run with a short hit. He needs to pitch carefully.”

I swallowed hard and watched the ball Choi Jeong-hwan would throw.

It didn’t take long for Choi Jeong-hwan and the catcher to exchange signs.

Whoosh-

The batter swung at the fastball without getting his bearings.

Tick.

He made contact with the following ball, but it was a weak hit that trickled backwards.

0 balls, 2 strikes.

It was an absolutely advantageous count for the pitcher.

-Strikeout! Strikeout!

The Doubles fans on the screen were anticipating a perfect strikeout.

Most pitchers would try to induce a swing at this point, but,

The ball Choi Jeong-hwan threw flew towards the strike zone at a high speed.

Whoosh-

The batter’s bat, completely missing the timing, swung only after the ball had passed.

-Strike out!

“Nice!”

I clenched my fist and jumped up.

“Choi Jeong-hwan is so cool!”

So Young-joon also shouted and expressed his joy.

-Waaaaah- Choi Jeong-hwan! Choi Jeong-hwan! Choi Jeong-hwan!

Choi Jeong-hwan, who shut down the inning without giving up a run, returned to the dugout to the cheers of the Doubles fans.

The Doubles’ offense ended without scoring, and in the bottom of the 8th inning, the Doubles’ defense took the field.

Choi Jeong-hwan was coming out to the mound again this time.

“It wasn’t going to end in one inning. It looks like he’s going to pitch this inning too.”

“It starts with the 9th batter. If he allows even one batter to get on base, he’ll have to face Oh Seok-hoon. It’s best for Choi Jeong-hwan to stop it with three batters.”

I desperately hoped that Oh Seok-hoon and Park Seong-joo would hit the game-winning hit, but not against Choi Jeong-hwan.

Thwack!

-Strike out!

Choi Jeong-hwan finished the inning perfectly with three batters, as if he had heard my earnest wish.

He perfectly blocked 2 innings following Go Ji-hoon.

The Buffaloes pitcher also pitched well, and the score was 0:0 until the top of the 9th inning.

The precarious game continued to the bottom of the 9th inning.

Now the closer was on the mound for the Doubles.

The Buffaloes’ offense started with the 3rd batter, Oh Seok-hoon.

The Doubles closer seemed to be in good condition, but when Oh Seok-hoon reached first base due to the third baseman’s error, he began to falter rapidly.

In the end, the pitcher threw a mistake pitch right over the center of the plate against Park Seong-joo.

Clang!

Park Seong-joo didn’t miss it and launched a long hit.

“Waaaaah! It’s a hit!”

At the same time, we all jumped up from our chairs.

“Oh Seok-hoon, run! Run! Run!”

Oh Seok-hoon ran so fast that his legs were a blur and finally slid into home base.

-Safe!

-Wowwwww!! Park Seong-joo! Park Seong-joo! Park Seong-joo!

“Walk-off! It’s a walk-off hit!”

“Park Seong-joo is amazing!”

While we were screaming and celebrating, the Buffaloes players swarmed home plate with water bottles.

Oh Seok-hoon and Park Seong-joo were drenched in water sprayed by their teammates.

“The Buffaloes! Take Game 1 with a victory!”

We all stood up and hugged each other, celebrating Park Seong-joo’s game-winning hit.

More than which team won, I was happiest that all the players in our agency had a good game.

The game ended perfectly, from start to finish.

We waved our hands at the camera and finished the broadcast.

└It was fun because it felt like I was watching the postseason with friends who like baseball!

└I recommend watching on two screens, it’s so much fun.

└Above all, the best part is that Michael Scott’s English is understandable without translation.

└Please broadcast throughout the postseason!!

Not only the fans who watched it, but also the fans who didn’t, were constantly requesting a live broadcast of Game 2.

Thanks to that, our live broadcast continued.

In the meantime, several companies requested advertising partnerships.

There were offers from chicken, drinks, and sandwich brands.

We could broadcast while enjoying delicious chicken and drinks, and the companies could increase sales, so there was no reason to refuse.

Instead, I asked them to include seasoned chicken.

It was for Michael Scott.

“What a wonderful chicken! Unbelievable!”

As expected, Michael Scott devoured the chicken as if he hadn’t eaten in days.

Thanks to that, his mukbang [eating broadcast] became as popular as the baseball broadcast.

└Look at the K-foreigner’s [Korean foreigner] enthusiasm, lol.

└I’ve never seen anyone eat chicken so deliciously in my life.

└Scott’s mukbang is no joke. I have to order it quickly.

└If you order it right now, it will arrive before the baseball game ends. Everyone, stop worrying and order quickly.

In addition to the mukbang, the players’ honest stories and behind-the-scenes glimpses of the postseason participants were also revealed.

As the episodes went on, word of mouth spread, and sports media began to pay attention to our broadcast.

At the last game of the postseason, the maximum number of simultaneous connections reached 300,000.

With the enthusiastic support of fans and the endless partnerships of companies, what started as something I did for fun had become a phenomenon I never imagined.

Every day felt like a festival.

Apart from that, I had an important task: to conduct salary negotiations, which would determine our players’ compensation for the season.