Perfect Agent [EN]: Chapter 262

262. Promise and Trust (1)

While our agency’s tryouts were underway, the baseball season was drawing to a close.

With over 100 games played, the major league standings were becoming clearer.

The Jaguars and Buffaloes, still in 1st and 2nd place respectively, were fiercely competing for the championship, separated by a mere single game.

Michael Scott, with 16 wins and a 2.20 ERA [Earned Run Average, a measure of pitching performance], was spearheading the Jaguars’ efforts.

Donald Watson was batting .315 with 18 home runs and 90 RBIs [Runs Batted In], virtually guaranteeing he would surpass his performance from the previous season.

Moreover, his outfield defense, once overly aggressive, was demonstrating much greater consistency.

Thanks to these two standout players, it was common to see Major League scouts at the Jaguars’ games.

For catcher Han Kyo-jin, the perfect game had completely transformed his standing within the team.

In the wake of the perfect game, an increasing number of pitchers wanted to team up with Han Kyo-jin.

He was naturally becoming recognized as the starting catcher.

However, a sudden increase in his playing time could lead to stamina issues, so the coaching staff had to carefully manage his appearances.

And when he stepped up to the plate, including games where he played as a designated hitter, he displayed his power without holding back.

Seo Sung-min, playing both second base and first base depending on the situation, exhibited unwavering defense and faithfully fulfilled whatever role the team required.

At the plate, he boasted a .285 batting average, 15 home runs, and 70 RBIs, already exceeding his performance from the previous season with 40 games still remaining.

Jung Min-woo had clearly demonstrated his improvement since he began working with Han Kyo-jin.

He was consistently pitching over 5 innings and maintaining an ERA of 3.45.

Furthermore, he appeared in every scheduled rotation without fail.

Thanks to Jung Min-woo’s solid performance as the 5th starting pitcher, the Jaguars’ starting pitching lineup was considered among the best in the league.

The Buffaloes were also fiercely chasing the Jaguars, clinging to their championship aspirations.

Go Ji-hoon was anchoring the team’s pitching staff as the ace, recording 14 wins and a 2.80 ERA.

Oh Seok-hoon was dominating the league with a .360 batting average and a .580 slugging percentage, leading in both categories.

Moreover, he had already hit 21 home runs, reaching the 20-home run mark for the first time in his career.

The strategy of conceding stolen bases to focus on his hitting was clearly paying dividends.

Park Sung-joo was leading the league with 33 home runs and a .295 batting average.

With 40 games still left in the regular season, it seemed possible for him to hit 40 home runs for the first time since his debut, provided he maintained his current pace.

Na Jun-ho of the Dragons was batting .303 with 26 home runs, continuing his outstanding performance this season.

However, due to injuries plaguing the Dragons’ key players throughout the season, opposing teams were focusing on Na Jun-ho more intensely than ever.

Considering his performance under those circumstances, it was no exaggeration to call it a career year.

However, his solo efforts were insufficient to elevate the team to the top ranks.

They were likely to finish the season in 4th or 5th place.

Choi Jung-hwan was solidifying his position as a top-tier closer with 29 saves and a 1.80 ERA.

This meant that if the Doubles were leading after the 8th inning, they could secure the win without much difficulty.

If the Doubles had been in the upper echelon of the league, Choi Jung-hwan’s save count would undoubtedly have been much higher.

Jang Su-young of the Angels was also reliably protecting the 9th inning with 25 saves and a 2.37 ERA.

The unfortunate reality for both players was that their teams’ poor performance made it unlikely they would advance to the postseason.

It was a shame that they weren’t getting the opportunity to handle the pressure of the 9th inning in the postseason.

So Young-joon of the Pelicans was putting on a stellar performance, despite his team’s failure to contend for the postseason.

He recorded a .310 batting average, surpassing his target of .300, and had already hit 22 home runs, fully showcasing his power-hitting prowess.

Both his batting average and home run totals were on pace to exceed his career-high season from the previous year.

The rumors of other teams pursuing a trade for him persisted throughout the season.

With free agency [FA] approaching, they must have been making offers, believing the likelihood of acquiring him was increasing.

However, So Young-joon was virtually indispensable to the Pelicans.

Consequently, the Pelicans were demanding several key prospects in return, making a deal improbable.

Teams seeking to bolster their infield were eagerly awaiting the moment when So Young-joon would become eligible for free agency.

Choi Woo-jin, drafted by the Jaguars, was demonstrating improvement with each game.

His fastball was gaining velocity, approaching an average of 145 km/h [approximately 90 mph], along with near-perfect control and a diverse repertoire of pitches, including a changeup.

He was even being evaluated as having improved since being drafted.

It seemed he was outclassing his competition in high school baseball.

Rumor had it that the three teams that passed on drafting Choi Woo-jin were deeply regretting their decision.

* * *

From the regular season games of existing agency players to the training regimens of players who joined through tryouts with professional teams, and managing the players training at the agency,

The days were passing by in a blur.

Bzz- Bzz-

It was a call from Lee Soo-min.

“Yes, Soo-min.”

– Representative Kang, is this true?

“What are you talking about all of a sudden?”

– There’s an article about Dream Agency that’s been posted. I think you should check it out.

“What’s it about? Alright.”

I immediately hung up and searched for Dream Agency on a portal site.

└I knew something was fishy. YJ Agency isn’t stupid; why would they suddenly release key players all at once?

└Kang Hyun-woo is something else. To poach all the famous players at once, start an agency, and act as the representative.

└How can you stab in the back the president who took you in when you had nothing to do after retirement? That’s why you shouldn’t trust those kinds of people.

└But is this actually possible? No matter how close you are to the players, can you suddenly terminate a contract that’s already in place?

└They must have literally threatened them. Using their closeness as a former player to cause a strike or something.

└Still, YJ Agency is the top company in the domestic sports scene. Aren’t they super powerful? It doesn’t make sense that they would be threatened like this.

└Sigh. I’ll just stay neutral and wait and see.

To summarize the article,

It claimed that I had exploited my friendship with the players to lure them away from YJ Agency.

It was utter nonsense, completely baseless.

It was a misunderstanding stemming from the fact that they were unaware of what had transpired with Im Ye-ji at the time.

The only people privy to that information were me, Im Ye-ji, and Kim Min-hwan.

So, it was perhaps understandable that misunderstandings would arise.

I chuckled and closed the article.

Shortly after, the door burst open, and Jung In-gyu and Lee Joo-hyuk entered.

“Representative, what’s going on?”

Jung In-gyu asked, taking a seat in front of me.

“Looks like everyone’s already seen the article.”

“What happened?”

“It’s completely baseless. Don’t worry about it.”

I nonchalantly turned my attention back to the monitor screen.

However, Jung In-gyu seemed to disagree.

“The online communities and the teams are in an uproar right now. I don’t think we can just ignore this.”

I turned back to face Jung In-gyu and Lee Joo-hyuk.

“Logically speaking, would Representative Im Ye-ji have terminated the contracts simply because I threatened her? If that were the case, this kind of speculation would have surfaced a long time ago.”

“Then… what did you do?”

Jung In-gyu hesitated for a moment before asking.

“What do you mean, what did I do?”

“It’s true that you signed all of our players at once as soon as you started the company.”

“That’s right.”

“Seok-hoon, Sung-joo, Young-joon, Su-young, Ji-hoon, and Jun-ho. They were all under contract with YJ Agency… How were you able to sign them as soon as you founded the company?”

Jung In-gyu asked me cautiously.

“Don’t tell me you two actually believe what’s in that article?”

“Of course, we trust you, Representative. But with the agency being flooded with calls, we need to know exactly what the controversy is so we can respond accurately.”

“Hmm…”

Was it the right decision to tell them about what had happened with Im Ye-ji back then?

Judging by the expressions on their faces, it seemed difficult to claim that they had no doubts about me whatsoever.

Alright, there was no need to keep it from them any longer.

I briefly recounted what had transpired back then.

However, I omitted Im Ye-ji’s actions towards Go Ji-hoon and glossed over the situation, saying there had been some disagreements with the players.

“Ah… so that’s what happened.”

“But this has to stay between the two of you. It must never be leaked to the public.”

“Yes.”

Jung In-gyu and Lee Joo-hyuk nodded in agreement.

“But where did this story originate in the first place?”

“Most of the media outlets released articles around the same time, so it’s difficult to pinpoint the exact source yet.”

Lee Joo-hyuk replied, glancing at his smartphone.

“We need to find this out first. If we approach the person who initially brought up this story, we might find the answer.”

“Yes, I’ll start looking right away.”

Lee Joo-hyuk was about to get up, but

“Representative, wouldn’t it be better to take a more cautious approach rather than complicating things?”

Jung In-gyu looked at me with a serious expression.

“Is there another way?”

“Tell the truth as it is.”

“The truth being…?”

“Tell them why our players had no choice but to leave YJ Agency.”

“I told you, that information must not be disclosed to the outside world.”

I replied without hesitation.

“Representative, who do you think created this rumor?”

“The person who created the rumor…?”

“This is something that only a very few people know. So, it seems like there wouldn’t be many people who could leak this.”

There were only three people who knew the whole truth.

Me, Kim Min-hwan, and Im Ye-ji.

Excluding me, they were all people associated with YJ Agency.

“Are you suggesting that YJ Agency is behind this?”

“It’s the most likely possibility.”

“But why would they suddenly bring this up now?”

“Even if I were Representative Im Ye-ji, I wouldn’t be too happy seeing Dream Agency, which is also a competitor, thriving.”

“Hmm…”

It wasn’t an unreasonable assertion, but

“I won’t make any statements until we find solid evidence that YJ Agency is involved. In the meantime, please find the source of this article.”

“Understood.”

Jung In-gyu couldn’t argue with my firm response.

After that, all the agency’s employees began scouring the internet to find the source.

Bzz-

Bzz-

From the afternoon onward, my smartphone was constantly ringing to the point where it was difficult to use.

All the calls were inquiries about the truthfulness of the article.

Due to the sheer volume of calls, I had no choice but to turn off my smartphone.