Perfect Agent [EN]: Chapter 201

201. Can I Endure It? (4)

The tension in the stadium was palpable as everyone realized Donald Watson was the player who’d been hit in the back.

Donald Watson stood motionless for what felt like an eternity.

-It certainly looks like that pitch was intentional.

-Ever since yesterday’s game, the Vikings have been making plays that seem designed to provoke Watson. They should really stop that now.

“Why is that pitcher doing that?” Olivia asked, her expression a mix of worry for Watson and resentment toward the pitcher.

“Sigh… Did they really have to go this far?” I couldn’t help but direct a resentful look toward the Vikings’ dugout.

Watson looked ready to charge the mound, and a bench-clearing brawl seemed imminent, but Seo Sungmin intervened and calmed him down.

Seo Sungmin, who had been waiting in the on-deck circle, rushed to Watson’s side, speaking to him in soothing tones.

Watson nodded, appearing to regain his composure at Seo Sungmin’s words.

He signaled to the trainer, who had hurried out, concerned about the hit-by-pitch, that he was alright.

Then, he shot a sharp glare at the pitcher on the mound before heading to first base.

“Watson! Watson! Watson!” The Jaguars fans erupted in supportive cheers.

-Watson is handling this situation without escalating it.

-It’s always best to let your baseball skills do the talking, rather than getting caught up in a war of nerves.

The game resumed as Watson took his place at first base and Seo Sungmin stepped up to the plate.

I thought the incident would end there, but the psychological warfare continued even with Watson on base.

Thump!

“Safe!” The pitcher threw to first, checking on Watson.

Thump!

“Safe!”

Thump!

Thump!

The opposing pitcher checked Watson at first five times in a row.

Any other runner would have shortened his lead toward second base by this point, but Watson maintained the same distance he’d started with.

Watson’s pride was something else.

“Wooooo-”

“How long are you going to keep checking!”

“Are you scared? If you’re scared, just go home!” The Jaguars fans relentlessly booed the pitcher.

Even the umpire gestured for him to speed up the game.

Just as the pitcher was about to deliver a pitch toward the plate…

“He’s running! He’s running! He’s running!” Watson took off for second.

By the time the catcher received the ball, Watson was already more than halfway to second.

“Safe!” The catcher could only watch, unable to even attempt a throw.

“Wowwww-”

“Watson! Watson! Watson!” The Jaguars fans roared their approval as he successfully stole second, retaliating in a satisfying way.

Watson, in response, displayed his emotions more openly than usual, with exaggerated gestures.

Clang!

Moments later, Seo Sungmin delivered a clean RBI [Run Batted In, a statistic crediting a batter for making a play that allows a run to score], bringing Watson home.

Watson was greeted with a hero’s welcome as he returned to the dugout.

The game continued, feeling like we were walking on thin ice.

And then, in the top of the 4th inning, with the score at 0-1, Michael Scott took the mound for the Jaguars’ defensive turn.

The Vikings’ fourth batter stepped up to the plate as the leadoff hitter of the inning.

Scott’s eyes narrowed, his demeanor noticeably sharper than before.

The exchange of signals with the catcher took longer than usual.

Then, he unleashed a pitch with everything he had.

“Huh?” Scott’s 155 km/h (approximately 96 mph) fastball sailed toward the batter’s head.

It was a pitch that would have hit him squarely if the Vikings batter hadn’t thrown himself to the ground to avoid it.

Unlike the batter, who glared fiercely at the mound, Scott maintained a peaceful expression, as if nothing had happened.

Scott’s second pitch followed.

This time, it sailed behind the batter’s back.

The batter, startled, fell over again as he ducked.

Boos now echoed from the Vikings’ stands.

But cheers erupted from the Jaguars’ side.

“Scott! Scott! Scott!”

“Scott, just hit him!”

“They hit Watson anyway! Let’s fight!”

The fallen batter looked at Scott with a dumbfounded expression before turning to the umpire to argue his case.

Eventually, the umpire summoned the Jaguars’ interpreter and headed to the mound together.

-Scott’s fastball has gone toward the batter’s body twice in a row. And one almost hit his head. If he actually hits him, Scott will be automatically ejected.

-The umpire needs to defuse this situation.

-If Scott gets ejected in the 4th inning, the Jaguars’ pitching strategy will be severely compromised, and it will also hurt Scott’s chances in the race for the most wins title.

Scott nodded as he listened to the umpire’s explanation.

But his eyes betrayed no change from when he threw the first pitch.

He threw the third ball.

Scott’s release point was different this time.

The 157 km/h (approximately 97.5 mph) fastball hurtled toward the batter’s back.

“Agh!” The Vikings batter, struck in the shoulder blade by Scott’s pitch, screamed and collapsed to the ground in pain.

Then, he leaped to his feet, threw down his bat, and charged toward Scott.

-Scott’s ball went straight for the batter’s body. He hit his shoulder blade squarely.

-This looks like retaliation for Watson getting hit earlier.

-The atmosphere in the stadium is getting really tense.

Scott, still on the mound, tossed aside his glove, ready to fight, and charged at the approaching batter.

The Jaguars’ first and third basemen, who had rushed to the scene, blocked and protected Scott.

Seeing this, the Vikings players poured onto the field.

Not to be outdone, the Jaguars players burst from their dugout.

Both teams’ pitchers, who had been waiting in the bullpen, also sprinted onto the field.

-Oh, a bench-clearing brawl has erupted! The players are all converging near the mound!

-The players need to stay calm! There are a lot of fans watching!

-There are too many hotheads out there. This situation is going to get ugly.

The players from both teams, unable to contain their anger, grappled with each other near the mound, engaging in a fierce physical confrontation.

The Vikings players surged toward Scott, while the Jaguars players surrounded and shielded him.

At that moment, my gaze shifted to Donald Watson.

Watson, who had been in the outfield, glared at the Vikings players with intense eyes and sprinted toward the mound.

Seeing this, Seo Sungmin hurried to intercept Watson.

But Seo Sungmin alone couldn’t restrain him.

Watson shoved Seo Sungmin aside and charged toward the mound like a raging bull.

-Donald Watson is clearly fired up. It looks like his Jaguars teammates can’t stop him.

-Could this escalate the situation even further?

As Watson reached the mound, everyone on the field tensed.

Everyone naturally assumed that Watson would attack the opposing starting pitcher who had thrown the beanball [a pitch intentionally thrown at the batter] at him.

But his target was a little different from what everyone expected.

-I hope there won’t be any more physical altercations here.

-Wait, Watson is heading for Scott?

Watson began to forcefully push aside the Vikings players who were trying to get to Scott.

He possessed tremendous strength, fueled by the anger that had been building since he was hit by the pitch, and no one could stand in his way.

“Ugh.”

“Agh!” The Vikings players who came into contact with Watson went down like dominoes.

Thanks to him, no Vikings player could get to Scott.

After a while, the situation was brought under control only after both teams’ coaching staffs intervened.

The players from both teams, except for those needed to continue the game, returned to their dugouts, and the four umpires gathered to confer.

After a brief meeting, they approached the Jaguars and Vikings dugouts and signaled both teams’ starting pitchers to leave the field.

-An ejection has been declared. Michael Scott will not be allowed to continue playing in the game.

-This is a major blow for the Jaguars, who are in a tight race for the top spot.

-Having to manage the remaining 6 innings with bullpen pitchers will be a heavy burden.

Jaguars manager Kim Min-guk, unable to accept Scott’s ejection, stormed onto the field and began to protest the umpire’s decision.

But the umpire stood firm and reaffirmed his ruling.

Scott, shaking his head in disappointment, had no choice but to leave the mound.

The game could only resume after a new Jaguars pitcher hurriedly warmed up and took the mound.

Even though the game wasn’t over, articles about the incident were already flooding the internet.

└Shouldn’t this be sanctioned? Throwing a fastball over 150km/h at someone’s head is like trying to kill them.

└You guys hit Watson first. You need to win with skill. Isn’t it cheap to try and win by provoking the other team?

└Exactly. I felt a surge of satisfaction when he threw it at his body.

└This is team play. Are we supposed to just stand there when our teammate gets hit?

└The Vikings got completely wiped out when Watson started pushing them ㅋㅋㅋ

└Even if it’s team play, isn’t it a huge risk to throw a beanball and get ejected when you’re in the running for the most wins title?

└Even if he doesn’t get a win today, Scott will still win the most wins title this season. From now on, the Jaguars hitters will go crazy every time Scott pitches.

└Still, throwing at the head is too much. At least aim for the back.

└You guys said yesterday that it’s okay as long as you don’t hit the head. He didn’t hit his head, so it’s fine.

└If you act like this, are we supposed to go to war every time we play the Jaguars in the future?

└I think you’re only saying that because Donald Watson was patient this time. If a bench-clearing brawl breaks out like in the US, some of your players will be out for the season. Don’t mess with us if you’re not confident.

└That’s a fact bomb [a statement of undeniable truth] right there. Vikings, come at us.

After that, the Jaguars pitchers who took the mound delivered flawless performances, pitching more innings than usual without allowing any runs.

As if responding in kind, the hitters displayed a fierce fighting spirit, as if they had made a pact.

Even when the Vikings hitters made solid contact, the Jaguars players dove to make plays and prevent any runs.

They also steadily added runs on offense, widening the gap.

The finishing touch to the precarious lead was, of course, a home run.

Clang!

The ball rocketed off Watson’s bat and soared through the sky.

“Waaaaa-”

“Watson! Watson! Watson!”

This time, he didn’t move an inch until the ball cleared the fence.

“Home run!”

Only after confirming the umpire’s call did he start to move.

Then, as if to show off, he slammed the bat to the ground.

After touching home plate, he glared at the Vikings players and returned to the dugout.

After that, the Jaguars played as one.

They completely shut out the Vikings, winning 0-7.

In the top of the 9th inning, the Jaguars players secured the final out and celebrated their victory to the enthusiastic cheers of the fans.

Donald Watson pointed in our direction and grinned.

I, Thomas, and Olivia, who were watching, applauded him without reservation.