Perfect Agent [EN]: Chapter 16

16. The First Mission (5)

“Waaaaaah!”

It had been a while since I’d visited the first-team stadium.

The sun was slowly setting, painting the sky with twilight.

A cool autumn breeze was an added bonus.

The cheers of the crowd, filling the stadium even before the game started, made my heart race just listening to them.

Perhaps it was because I had been practically living at the second-team stadium recently. The sight of cheerleaders and fans cheering together felt somewhat foreign.

I took a seat at the highest point in the stands.

I had to sit in the remaining seats because I was in a hurry.

Watching the game from a high vantage point had its own charm.

It was a shame that I couldn’t see the players up close, but I could see the overall view of the fans enjoying the game.

The sight of fans filling the stadium, singing and cheering, was truly spectacular.

Some fans were wearing uniforms, so I carefully looked at their numbers, but unfortunately, I couldn’t see any uniforms of Oh Seok-hoon or Park Seong-ju yet.

Being in the second team for so long, they might have been temporarily forgotten.

First-team games could also be watched on TV and online broadcasts.

Especially today, since the seats were far away, it was necessary to watch the broadcast at the same time to see the players’ performances in detail.

I turned on the broadcast on my phone.

-Hello. We are about to start the game between the Unicorns and the Buffaloes. The Buffaloes, who are on a 7-game losing streak, have made significant changes to their lineup, haven’t they?

-That’s right. It was expected that they would easily secure a spot in the playoffs, but the batting lineup suddenly went silent, leading to a losing streak. As a result, Buffaloes’ coach Kim Tae-soo has made many changes to the starting lineup.

-The notable part is Oh Seok-hoon and Park Seong-ju, who have been named to the first-team roster for the first time this season. What do you think?

-If you were to pick the two hottest hitters in the Futures League [Korean minor league baseball] these days, it would be these players. Their recent batting averages are high, and especially their batting average in scoring position is very good. I think they can play an important role in breaking the losing streak by reviving the sluggish batting lineup.

-I see. Let’s watch together to see if the Buffaloes can break their grueling 7-game losing streak today.

The Buffaloes were currently in a bad mood due to their losing streak.

I was worried that Oh Seok-hoon and Park Seong-ju might feel pressured or burdened by the team’s atmosphere, which had fallen into a losing streak as soon as they were called up to the first team.

Fortunately, there were no changes in the defensive positions.

Oh Seok-hoon was placed as the 5th batter right fielder, and Park Seong-ju was placed as the 6th batter third baseman.

The surprising part was that they were placed in important batting positions as soon as they were called up to the first team for the first time this season.

This lineup showed how much the Buffaloes were expecting from these two, and on the other hand, how bad the current situation was.

While I was thinking about this and that, the celebrity’s first pitch ended and the game started.

-Today, the two teams’ ace foreign pitchers are starting.

-That’s right. Therefore, there is a high probability that it will be a low-scoring game rather than a high-scoring game. In games like this, you need to be careful of home runs.

-Which team will be able to take advantage of the opponent’s weaknesses?

“Play ball!”

Since it was a game between top-notch foreign starting pitchers, it started off tensely.

Both teams’ leadoff hitters tried their best to get on base by attacking the opposing pitcher, but it wasn’t easy.

Even after 30 minutes had passed since the game started, the score on the scoreboard remained unchanged at 0:0.

The score was 0, and the number of hits, errors, and walks were also all 0.

Then, in the bottom of the 2nd inning, it was Oh Seok-hoon’s turn to bat.

Oh Seok-hoon’s profile video was played on the stadium’s electronic display.

“Oh Seok-hoon! Oh Seok-hoon! Oh Seok-hoon!”

The cheers of the fans shouting his name echoed throughout the stadium.

A shiver ran down my spine.

Even though he might have been forgotten, the fans still remembered him.

Oh Seok-hoon walked out to the plate, receiving the fans’ enthusiastic cheers.

It was the first time he was entering the first-team batter’s box this season.

I couldn’t see Oh Seok-hoon’s expression because of the distance, but I felt the tension he must be feeling.

“Do well, Oh Seok-hoon!”

I shouted loudly towards him.

After shouting, I quickly lowered my head, wondering if anyone would recognize me.

If people recognized me here, I would have to give up watching today’s game comfortably.

The people around me glanced in my direction.

Fortunately, it seemed like they didn’t recognize me because I lowered my head and covered my face with my phone at the same time.

But when no one recognized me, I felt a little disappointed.

-Finally, Oh Seok-hoon, who was called up today, is entering the batter’s box.

-I heard he came up after playing in the Futures League game during the day. He has been really hot in the second team this season. Let’s watch together to see what kind of performance he will show in today’s game after being called up to the first team.

-Yes. As we speak, the Unicorns battery [pitcher and catcher] has carefully finished exchanging signs.

-Even though there are no runners on base, they need to be careful. He is a player who can hit a home run at any time.

Whack!

“Strike.”

The first pitch was a 153km [~95 mph] fastball that came in low.

It was a ball that even the best hitters would have difficulty swinging at.

Oh Seok-hoon seemed surprised by the threatening pitch that he hadn’t seen in the second team.

He seemed to be organizing his thoughts, swinging his bat a few times in the corner of the batter’s box.

Oh Seok-hoon took a breath and waited for the second pitch.

The opposing pitcher threw a fastball that exceeded 150km [~93 mph] again.

The difference from before was that Oh Seok-hoon swung his bat aggressively.

Clang!

But unfortunately, he didn’t hit the ball properly, and the mis-hit ball soared high.

It was a ball that the opposing team’s outfielder could easily catch.

It was a hit that anyone could easily predict would be an out, but Oh Seok-hoon sprinted to first base until the end.

But there was no upset.

As expected, the opposing fielder caught the ball without difficulty and he was out.

Oh Seok-hoon, who had almost reached second base, returned to the dugout slowly, looking disappointed.

-Oh Seok-hoon’s result is disappointing, but his confident approach is good.

-It must have been very nerve-wracking for his first at-bat in the first team, but his swing just now was impressive, wasn’t it? He took his swing even against the ace pitcher. We can look forward to his next at-bat.

Immediately following, Park Seong-ju stood at the plate.

Park Seong-ju also confidently swung his bat and hit the ball, but unfortunately, the mis-hit ball was caught by the shortstop and he was out.

After that, the 0’s continued for a long time.

Both teams’ pitchers suppressed the opposing team’s hitters as if they were going to pitch a perfect game.

The score remained 0:0 until the bottom of the 5th inning.

Unlike the first at-bat, where the opposing pitcher was competing with fastballs, he was gradually mixing in changeups.

Even the Buffaloes’ 4th batter was unable to get a feel for it and was helplessly struck out.

Then, the 5th batter Oh Seok-hoon’s turn came again.

Clang!

With the ensuing hit, I had no choice but to jump up from my seat along with the fans next to me.

-Ah! It’s stretching out. The hit falls inside the right field line. The ball rolls to the farthest corner of the field.

“Waaaaaah- Run, run!”

Not only me, but the Buffaloes fans cheered for Oh Seok-hoon’s sprint in unison.

-The right fielder has finally caught it. At Oh Seok-hoon’s speed, he might even make it to 3rd base?

-He’s running. He keeps running! He steps on 2nd base and sprints straight to 3rd base. He’s running at full speed without looking back!

-Safe at 3rd base! Oh Seok-hoon’s triple explodes.

-What an amazing speed. I can’t believe what I’m seeing. Amazing.

-Oh Seok-hoon marks his first hit in the first team this season with a triple in an important situation.

Finally, 1 hit was recorded on the scoreboard, which was full of 0s.

It was the Buffaloes’ first hit and the first hit of the game.

The Buffaloes fans, unable to contain their excitement, and the Unicorns fans, who were disappointed, were in stark contrast.

I high-fived the fans next to me and enjoyed it before finally sitting down.

But I had no choice but to get up again right away.

Clang!

“Waaaaaah-”

With Park Seong-ju’s powerful hit, the ball was flying towards the fence at a high speed.

-It’s a good hit. Is it going to go over, is it going to go over?

As the ball hit by Park Seong-ju flew closer and closer to the fence, there was a brief moment of silence in the stadium.

-Ah. That’s too bad! The left fielder catches it in front of the fence.

It would have been a home run in another stadium. I resented that the Buffaloes’ home stadium was too wide.

While Park Seong-ju was feeling disappointed, Oh Seok-hoon, who was on 3rd base, ran towards home base.

-Since the hit flew so far, he will be safe without any problems.

-Safe! 1:0. The balance of 0 is finally broken in today’s score.

The left fielder threw the ball towards home with all his might, but Oh Seok-hoon had already stepped past home base.

“Park Seong-ju! Park Seong-ju!”

Following Oh Seok-hoon, Park Seong-ju’s name echoed throughout the stadium.

Oh Seok-hoon, who was returning to the dugout after passing home base, gave Park Seong-ju a thumbs up.

Park Seong-ju responded by sending Oh Seok-hoon a finger heart [a Korean gesture of affection].

“Awesome!”

I couldn’t come to my senses because of the two players’ performance.

The spectators around me were all stomping their feet and rejoicing.

Perhaps the opposing pitcher was awakened by giving up a run due to Oh Seok-hoon’s triple and Park Seong-ju’s sacrifice fly, and regained his threatening appearance.

The following batters repeatedly swung in vain and were helplessly out.

A 1-point difference is a score that can be tied at any time with a single home run.

From the 6th inning onwards, both teams’ pitchers pitched with even more caution.

A pitching battle that unfolded tensely, as if to show what an ace is like.

As the game went into the later innings, the Unicorns had a mis-hit single, but it did not lead to a score.

And in the bottom of the 8th inning.

The Buffaloes were still leading 1:0.

The number of pitches by the Unicorns’ starting pitcher had exceeded 100.

At the plate was the 5th batter Oh Seok-hoon, who had hit a triple earlier.

As Oh Seok-hoon entered the plate, swinging his bat around, the Unicorns’ pitching coach went up to the mound with the interpreter.

The pitcher, catcher, pitching coach, and interpreter were gathered and talking.

-Ah, it looks like they’re going to make a substitution.

-It’s a shame about the run he gave up in the 5th inning, but he showed a really good performance today.

-Huh? It doesn’t look like they’re making a substitution?

-Do you think he wants to face Oh Seok-hoon again?

-What kind of result will this choice bring?

The pitching coach nodded and went down the mound at the pitcher’s strong insistence that he would throw more.

Seeing this, Oh Seok-hoon also sprayed his bat and re-entered the plate.

“Please, please!”

The Buffaloes fans, hoping that he would show something again this time, and,

“Strikeout, strikeout!”

The Unicorns fans, hoping to avenge the earlier triple, cheered in unison.

Then, Oh Seok-hoon and the opposing pitcher glared at each other and stood at their respective positions at the plate and on the mound.