Perfect Agent [EN]: Chapter 214

The Frozen Ground Showdown (2)

With a crucial game looming, Oh Seok-hoon, Park Seong-ju, and Go Ji-hoon ate breakfast with tense expressions.

Even Go Ji-hoon, usually unflappable, showed signs of strain.

“Are you all this nervous? It’s just a regular season game,” I said, trying to lighten the mood.

“I’m not nervous, but you guys seem to be,” Park Seong-ju said, attempting a nonchalant air, but the stiffness around his mouth betrayed him.

“Seong-ju, you look the most on edge.”

“Representative, what are you talking about? I don’t get nervous about things like this.”

“That smile looks forced. Should I record it and show you?”

“Hahaha. No need…….”

Park Seong-ju tried to smile again, but the awkwardness remained.

“Everyone’s been doing great so far. Try not to get too worked up. It’ll all work out.”

“I wonder how Jun-ho *hyung’s* [older brother/senior male figure] condition will be today?” Go Ji-hoon asked, crossing his arms with a serious expression.

“Ha… From what I’ve seen of Jun-ho *sunbae’s* [senior colleague/mentor] hitting this season, he rarely has off days,” Oh Seok-hoon replied, shaking his head.

“How long is that *hyung* going to keep this up?” Go Ji-hoon asked, shaking his head in exasperation.

Seeing their interaction, I chuckled. “It’s fun to watch from a fan’s perspective. I’m curious to see who will win when the best spear and the best shield clash.”

“What’s amazing about that *hyung* is that after signing a free agent (FA) contract, he could have relaxed, being human and all. But he doesn’t seem to have let up at all. And it’s been two years. How is that possible?”

“But… isn’t that the same for *sunbae*?”

I thought it was a bit rich coming from a player who was having a career-best season after signing his own FA contract and moving teams.

“Well… it’s debatable when you put it that way,” Go Ji-hoon said, smiling awkwardly, as if embarrassed.

Then, Park Seong-ju grabbed Go Ji-hoon’s hand, his eyes burning with intensity. “No matter how well Na Jun-ho *sunbae* does, if *sunbae* is in his current form, he can win easily. Jun-ho *sunbae* isn’t perfect at everything.”

“Everyone knows Jun-ho *hyung’s* weakness is breaking balls that drop inside. It’s just hard to execute.”

“*Sunbae* can throw it. If you keep hitting the corners and then drop it perfectly at the end, even Na Jun-ho *sunbae* will swing and miss helplessly,” Park Seong-ju said, clenching his fist, thrilled at the thought.

“I probably shouldn’t say this, but I want to see it at least once in today’s game,” I admitted. I felt a little bad for Na Jun-ho, but it was a matchup I was eager to witness.

We continued talking for a while.

*Click. Click. Click. Click.*

Suddenly, we heard the sound of the door opening.

Who could that be at this hour? We weren’t expecting anyone.

“Oh, you haven’t left yet! That’s a relief!” It was Choi Woo-jin, bursting in as if something urgent had happened.

“Oh, Woo-jin!” Oh Seok-hoon greeted him enthusiastically.

“Woo-jin, what brings you here so early? Shouldn’t you be at school for training?”

“I told the coach I’d be a little late today.”

“Wow, Woo-jin can get away with things like that now?”

“Representative, I’m a recognized player at school now. They’re understanding,” Choi Woo-jin said, shrugging, which made me smile.

“But anyway, training’s in the afternoon, why are you here so early?”

“Oh, right, I came to give you this.”

Choi Woo-jin opened his bag and rummaged around.

“What is it?”

“Please have some, *sunbaes*. And representative too,” Choi Woo-jin said, pulling out individual packets of red ginseng and handing them out.

“Red ginseng?”

“It’s an important game today. The Buffaloes have to outperform the Dragons. But it’s a secret from Na Jun-ho *sunbae*,” Choi Woo-jin whispered, holding a finger to his lips.

“How does a high school student afford something like this?”

“I asked my dad to buy it for me. He bought a lot because I said I was giving it to our agency *sunbaes*.”

Only three boxes of red ginseng emerged from Choi Woo-jin’s bag.

“I guess I have to pitch well, thanks to Woo-jin,” Go Ji-hoon said, tearing open a packet and downing it in one go.

“*Sunbae*, you’ve been really cool lately. I watch the representative and *sunbae’s* games dozens of times. I wish I could pitch like that too,” Choi Woo-jin said, giving Go Ji-hoon a thumbs up.

“I’m glad you’re watching my games, but shouldn’t Woo-jin be studying left-handed pitchers’ games?”

“I’m still weak at managing games. But the representative said that *sunbae* is the best at managing games on the mound,” Choi Woo-jin said, looking back and forth between me and Go Ji-hoon.

“If Woo-jin joins the Buffaloes in two years, I’ll have to stick with him every day and teach him?”

“Heok! That’s my dream. If I could become a player who can rotate with *sunbae* in the starting lineup, I wouldn’t ask for anything more,” Choi Woo-jin said, his face ecstatic.

“You don’t want to play with me?” Park Seong-ju asked, unable to hide his disappointment.

“Of course, I want to play with you. Who would score points if Seong-ju *sunbae* wasn’t there?”

“Right? I have to be there,” Park Seong-ju said, finally cracking a smile.

It was time to leave.

I clapped my hands once and stretched my hand out to the center. “Okay! Let’s all cheer together and head out!”

Oh Seok-hoon, Park Seong-ju, Go Ji-hoon, and even Choi Woo-jin put their hands on top of mine.

“Let’s each do our best in today’s game, and leave the results to fate.”

“I will run so hard today that my body will be destroyed,” Oh Seok-hoon said with a determined look, as if he was heading into battle.

“Seong-ju, give us a big cheer.”

“We can do it! We can do it! *Aja aja* [fighting/go for it], let’s win!” With Park Seong-ju’s shout, we finished our meal and got up.

I packed the luggage that had been prepared in advance, and Oh Seok-hoon, Park Seong-ju, and Go Ji-hoon left the *sukso* [dormitory/lodging] with Choi Woo-jin.

I went out to the front gate to see them off.

There were still about 6 hours left before the game started.

It was a match between our agency’s players, but as a baseball fan, I was looking forward to the game that would unfold tonight.

* * *

-The match between 2nd place Dragons and 3rd place Buffaloes is scheduled to take place. The difference between the two teams is only 0.5 games! The ranking could change depending on the outcome of today’s game.

-That’s right. The fight for 2nd and 3rd place between the Dragons and the Buffaloes is important, but the chase from 4th place Jaguars is also scary. If a team suffers a losing series in this match, they will have to work hard to shake off the Jaguars’ pursuit immediately.

-What to watch out for is that Buffaloes’ starting pitcher today is Go Ji-hoon.

-Since he is still competing with Michael Scott for the most wins with 15 wins, today’s game is very important for both team performance and personal records.

-From the fierce competition for 2nd and 3rd place to the 4th place Jaguars, who are constantly chasing behind. Which team will be the winner of this series, which is more important than ever?

As befits an important game, there were no empty seats in the *gwanjungseok* [spectator seats/stands] today.

Because it was the Buffaloes’ home game, Go Ji-hoon headed to the mound to pitch first.

“Waaaaa-”

“Go Ji-hoon! Go Ji-hoon! Go Ji-hoon!”

A heated cheer erupted from the Buffaloes’ *gwanjungseok*.

While Go Ji-hoon was practicing pitching, the Buffaloes’ fielders also moved to their respective positions and began to warm up.

-Go Ji-hoon, who is currently tied for first place in wins, is on the mound.

-He has already pitched 152 innings as of the last game. He will be able to pitch at least three more games, so he will be able to digest his personal best innings.

-In addition to an ERA [Earned Run Average] of 2.97, his WAR [Wins Above Replacement] is 5.93. Apart from this, each of Go Ji-hoon’s detailed indicators shows almost the highest level.

-Usually, there are many cases where players experience sluggishness in the first year after signing a FA contract. This was not the case for Go Ji-hoon at all.

-Who do you think will be the winner of today’s game?

-Both teams have solid power, and they know the importance of today’s game. The team that doesn’t make mistakes will take the lead. In particular, it is clear that the Buffaloes are at an advantage because Go Ji-hoon is pitching. Therefore, they must win this game to have a chance of winning.

Go Ji-hoon, who had finished practicing pitching, took a deep breath and slowly went up to the mound.

“Go Ji-hoon, fighting!”

Go Ji-hoon had a faint smile on his face, as if he felt more relaxed after hearing Park Seong-ju’s support from 3rd base.

“Play ball!”

Finally, the umpire’s call was heard and the game began.

Go Ji-hoon exchanged signs with the catcher and finally started pitching.

*Thump!*

“Ball!”

*Thump!*

“Ball!”

After two consecutive pitches missed the strike zone, Go Ji-hoon took a moment to catch his breath and threw the ball with all his might once again.

*Thump!*

“Strike!”

He threw a strike before being pushed to 3 balls, and he carefully continued his next pitch with a little more leeway.

*Thump!*

“Ball!”

*Thump!*

“Ball!”

In the end, he allowed the runner to get on base with a walk.

-He allows the first batter to get on base with a walk. Was Go Ji-hoon nervous?

-It looks like he has a lot of strength in his shoulders. It’s still the first inning, so it’s best to play the game slowly.

-Looking at this season alone, today is the first time he has given up a walk to the first batter since the game started.

The match with the second batter continued immediately.

*Thump!*

“Strike!”

Fortunately, this time he was able to start with a strike.

*Thump!*

“Ball!”

The batter was not fooled by the *诱人* [enticing/tempting] ball that went out of the strike zone.

The batter’s bat turned on the third ball.

*Tick!*

The mis-hit ball soared high into the sky.

Because the launch angle was high, right fielder Oh Seok-hoon was able to go to the landing point with plenty of time.

“Out!”

The first base runner had no choice but to go back to second base.

With the out count going up, Go Ji-hoon was able to have a little more leeway.

The match continued with the third batter.

*Tick!*

*Tick!*

As the batter actively played the game, Go Ji-hoon tried to throw a breaking ball that broke sharply.

“Ah…….”

He couldn’t create as sharp an angle as he had expected.

*Clang!*

“Waaaaa-”

The Dragons fans burst into cheers as soon as the ball hit the bat.

The cleanly hit ball fell in front of the center fielder.

The first base runner and the batter runner arrived at the next base with ease.

-In the end, he will face Dragons’ 4th batter Na Jun-ho with one out and runners on 1st and 2nd base.

-Since it is a meeting between a left-handed batter and a right-handed underhand pitcher, Na Jun-ho has been better in the past head-to-head record as well as this season. The Buffaloes are in crisis from the first inning.

“Na Jun-ho, blow it away!”

“Na Jun-ho, home run!”

The Dragons fans started shouting at the top of their lungs.

“Strikeout! Strikeout! Strikeout!”

On the other side, the Buffaloes’ *gwanjungseok* could hear different cheers.

And finally, Na Jun-ho was approaching the plate.