Perfect Agent [EN]: Chapter 20

20. A Secret Temptation (1)

I went to watch the Doubles versus Angels game.

It was the day Choi Jeong-hwan was starting as pitcher.

Having watched only Buffaloes games for weeks, games featuring other teams felt unfamiliar.

As the season was heading towards its end, many teams that realistically had little chance of making it to the postseason were giving their rookie players experience, preparing for the next year.

The Angels, whose chances of reaching the postseason were already slim, were one of those teams.

Since he would be facing players with little practical experience, it wasn’t a bad situation for Choi Jeong-hwan.

Fortunately, I was able to get a seat with a table today.

Being close to the field was nice, but the spacious table also made it easy to spread out and look at data.

“Quiet and nice.”

It was about two hours before the game started, so the stands were still empty.

Before the game, I wanted to see Choi Jeong-hwan warm up and check his condition myself.

The batters were practicing on the field.

Some were warming up with catch ball, and others were swinging in the batting cage, practicing their hitting.

Sitting alone in the stands, I blankly stared at the scene.

“I already miss it.”

Watching the players train hard suddenly made me want to play in a game too.

While I was lost in my own thoughts for a while, I saw Choi Jeong-hwan starting to warm up in the corner of the stadium.

Instantly, I wondered if any new information would appear above his head, so I got up and moved my head around.

Since I hadn’t had any physical contact with Choi Jeong-hwan today, it was unlikely that it would be updated.

But even if I wanted to check for updates, he was too far away to read the text.

“Ah, too bad.”

I decided to just watch him train.

I couldn’t find anything special during the warm-up process.

It would have been nice to see him throw in the bullpen, but I couldn’t see it from the stands because it was blocked.

“Oh? Isn’t that player Kang Hyeon-woo?”

A male fan wearing a Doubles hat greeted me.

“Yes, it is.”

“Wow, I’m a fan!”

The fan, who made eye contact with me, exclaimed as if he didn’t know what to do, then took out his phone from his back pocket and said.

“Could you take a picture with me?”

“Sure.”

It was my first time taking pictures with fans.

The fan gestured and called someone who seemed to be with him and handed them the smartphone.

“Take a good picture.”

I carefully put my hand on the fan’s shoulder.

I tried to act natural as if I had taken many pictures, but everything was awkward, from the position of my hand to my gaze that didn’t know where to go.

“Okay. I’ll take it.”

One, two, three, click.

“One more, please.”

It seemed like my hand and gaze only became natural after I heard the click sound one more time.

“Thank you. Can I upload this to social media?”

“Of course. But please give me a little bit of a ‘pposhyashi’ [a soft and bright edit, like a beauty filter].”

The fan burst out laughing at my serious answer.

“I’ll support player Oh Seok-hoon too.”

“Thank you.”

Seeing the fan enjoying the picture made me feel good too.

I wondered how happy a baseball player who is good at baseball and has many fans would be.

I thought this kind of fan service was completely unrelated to me, but it was amazing that I could have a similar experience even now.

After spending a pleasant time with the fan, the game start time was approaching.

I calmed down my momentarily floating mood and focused on the game again.

3 wins, 6 losses, 5.21 ERA [Earned Run Average].

8.7 strikeouts per 9 innings, 5.3 walks.

These were the stats that Choi Jeong-hwan was showing this season.

He had pitched almost 90 innings until the last game.

For a pitcher, filling the required innings (144 innings) had a symbolic meaning. It was only possible if you survived in the starting rotation for a season. Therefore, it meant that you were recognized as a valuable starting pitcher.

Since there wasn’t much of the season left, it was impossible to fill the required innings this year.

Although he had been playing without injuries for a season, the number of innings was lower than expected because he was taken out of the game early several times.

However, the fact that he had consistently played in the starting rotation throughout the season was a positive thing.

Especially considering that he was a 22-year-old professional in his third year.

“Play ball!”

The game started shortly after.

Ball.

Ball.

Perhaps he hadn’t gotten a feel for it yet; most of the balls Choi Jeong-hwan threw were out of the strike zone.

He gave up a walk to the first batter.

Sending out a fast runner with no outs was not a good situation for the pitcher.

Choi Jeong-hwan, who was tilting his head, took off his hat and put it back on, as if trying to regain his focus.

However, perhaps because he was conscious of the runner behind him, his control was not stable in the battle with the second batter.

Only one ball barely passed through the strike zone, and in the end, he sent out a runner with a walk again this time.

It was now a situation with runners on first and second base with no outs.

Eventually, the catcher went to the mound to talk to Choi Jeong-hwan.

Choi Jeong-hwan nodded and listened to the catcher’s words, then looked at the sky and took a deep breath.

And then.

Bang!

153km [approximately 95 mph].

“Strike out.”

Bang!

155km [approximately 96 mph]!

“Strike out!”

As the number of pitches gradually increased, he seemed to be warming up little by little, throwing his biggest strength, the fastball, coolly.

As a result, he struck out the opposing team’s 3rd and 4th hitters, and induced the 5th hitter to ground out.

He had solved the crisis he had created himself.

“It’s hard to say he did well, and it’s hard to say he did badly…”

In any case, he blocked the Angels’ attack in the top of the 1st inning without giving up any runs.

The game progressed to the 3rd inning with a score of 0:0.

Choi Jeong-hwan’s fastball control was becoming more stable than in the beginning, and he was overcoming crises with the good help of the Doubles’ fielders.

Similarly, the Angels’ starting pitcher, who was also a rookie-level player, was doing a good job of blocking the opposing team’s attack.

The crack in the tight match occurred in the 4th inning.

The Angels’ 8th batter entered the plate in the top of the 4th inning.

Choi Jeong-hwan focused and threw the ball.

Swoosh-

He threw a breaking ball, but the ball didn’t spin properly and hit the opposing batter’s arm.

Because he was trying to throw a breaking ball, the speed wasn’t fast, and the batter was hit lightly on the protective gear he was wearing, so there seemed to be no problem with the batter’s physical condition at all.

Rather, perhaps because he was able to get on base with a hit-by-pitch in a situation where his hitting was not good these days, the batter had a slight smile on his face as he ran to first base.

On the other hand, Choi Jeong-hwan, who was standing on the mound, seemed to have frozen in place.

Choi Jeong-hwan, who had barely regained his senses, took off his hat and bowed apologetically, and the opposing batter also smiled and waved, so it seemed like the happening was ending beautifully.

But the change started from then on.

The balls Choi Jeong-hwan threw began to shake here and there as if the center had disappeared.

Ball.

Ball.

Ball.

He had turned into a completely different pitcher than before.

There was also a ball that flew towards the batter’s body so much that the batter had to fall over to avoid it.

The pitching coach requested a time-out and went up to the mound with the catcher to try to calm the shaking Choi Jeong-hwan, but nothing changed.

He was lucky enough to get one out count, but the number of pitches had increased tremendously, and three runners had gotten on base, making it bases loaded.

He hadn’t given up any runs yet, but now was definitely the timing to change the pitcher.

Another time-out.

Eventually, the pitching coach, who requested a pitcher change to the referee, took a new ball and went up to the mound and patted Choi Jeong-hwan on the shoulder.

Choi Jeong-hwan, who couldn’t finish the 4th inning, put on his hat and lowered his head as he came down from the mound.

The Doubles’ stands were as silent as if cold water had been poured on them.

It was fortunate that they didn’t boo.

“Hoo-”

I looked at the sky and sighed as I watched the game.

I felt like I had had too much of an impact on the life of a player with tremendous potential.

What can I do for him?

The pitcher who came up after Choi Jeong-hwan brought in two runners and then was able to finish the 4th inning.

Today, Choi Jeong-hwan’s record was 3.1 innings and 2 runs allowed.

Fortunately, the Doubles’ batters attacked the opposing pitcher and won 5:3.

The team could laugh, but Choi Jeong-hwan’s expression was dark.

Of course, my expression couldn’t be bright either.

* * *

After the game, I headed to the place where I had arranged to meet Choi Jeong-hwan.

It was a dimly lit pub.

As I carefully looked at the faces of the people sitting down and went inside, I was able to find Choi Jeong-hwan in the deepest part.

‘But who is that?’

A man I had never seen before was sitting in front of Choi Jeong-hwan.

Choi Jeong-hwan’s expression as he talked to the man was not very bright.

It wasn’t strange that the game didn’t go well today.

When I approached, Choi Jeong-hwan saw me and raised his hand and waved.

The man sitting in front of him also turned his head and made eye contact with me.

Because of the lasciviousness and greasiness I felt from his face, he was a style I didn’t want to be close to for some reason.

“Ah, Kang Hyeon-woo! I’m meeting the most famous person these days.”

As I approached, the man wearing a shiny shirt stood up and asked for a handshake.

I forced a smile and shook hands with him.

“Thank you. You had a prior engagement with Jeong-hwan. Should I come back later?”

“No. I was just about to leave.”

“That’s a relief.”

It was that moment. An information window popped up above his head.

At the same time, the smile on my face disappeared.

-Recently started operating an illegal gambling site in secret.

-Asked Choi Jeong-hwan to throw a hit-by-pitch in the first inning.

An act that should never happen in professional sports.

It was illegal gambling and match-fixing.