Perfect Agent [EN]: Chapter 287

287. Team Korea (8)

A hush fell over the Korean stands, thick with anticipation, before a wave of cheers erupted once more.

-Korea! Korea! Korea!

“If we can keep them from scoring here, we’ll have a good chance to counterattack. Plus, the Japanese starting pitcher is getting close to his pitch limit.”

“Our players can definitely shut them down and pull off another dramatic comeback!”

I raised my voice, trying to project confidence.

The pitcher on the mound checked the catcher’s signals, then glanced at the runner on first, faking a throw.

Then, he wound up and threw the ball with everything he had.

-Tick!

The weakly hit ball dribbled harmlessly, not even making it past the infield.

And once again, the ball was heading straight for So Young-joon.

So Young-joon dove and managed to snag it.

“So Young-joon makes a great catch!”

“Take your time, Young-joon. No need to rush the throw.”

So Young-joon threw the ball with all his might towards first base, but…

“Ah!”

The ball, released from So Young-joon’s hand, sailed high and wide, far beyond the reach of the first baseman.

It went past him, bouncing into foul territory.

“Ah…”

I couldn’t help but sigh in disappointment.

In the meantime, the runner on third base touched home plate, and the runner on first easily reached third, while the batter advanced to first.

An awkward silence descended upon the Korean stands and dugout.

The score changed to 0-3.

“Two consecutive errors here. The lead widens by another run.”

“It’s a shame they gave up two points due to errors in a situation where the inning should have ended.”

So Young-joon knelt with his hands on his knees, his head bowed in frustration.

Finally, Coach Kim Sang-moon emerged from the dugout and walked to the mound.

He gathered all the infielders and began to talk to them.

“Coach Kim Sang-moon is out on the mound himself. That means the situation is critical.”

“What’s done is done. I hope our players will focus on the remaining innings.”

After finishing the conversation, Coach Kim Sang-moon patted So Young-joon on the shoulder and left the mound.

The game resumed with the umpire’s call.

It was still a dangerous situation with two outs and runners on first and third.

The pitcher on the mound threw the ball with all his remaining strength.

-Whack!

-Strike out!

Thanks to the pitcher’s all-out effort, they finished the inning without giving up any additional runs.

“The long 6th inning has finally come to an end. It’s a shame that the score difference widened to 0-3 in this inning, but it’s not an insurmountable gap.”

“Of course. Our batters can definitely catch up!”

The top of the 7th inning immediately followed.

It was Korea’s turn to attack.

The Japanese starting pitcher’s pitches were still sharp and powerful.
Han Gyo-jin, the first batter of the inning, couldn’t avoid another swing and a miss.

“Another strikeout is recorded. This time, he swung at the same breaking ball.”

“Han Gyo-jin must have been expecting it, but it’s hard to adjust to such a fast ball with such a sharp drop.”

“The pitcher on the mound has now thrown over 80 pitches. I think he’ll probably have to face us until this inning, right? I hope our players can get a good hit.”

With one out, So Young-joon stepped up to the plate.

“So Young-joon had some disappointing plays in the last defensive half-inning. I hope he shows a good performance on offense now.”

“So Young-joon, you can do it!”

I clenched my fist and cheered for So Young-joon.

-Whack!

-Ball!

“That was a 158 km/h [~98 mph] fastball. So Young-joon fouled it off.”

“It was such a good pitch, and he must have been anxious, so he could have swung. But he held back well.”

The second ball immediately left the pitcher’s hand.

This time, So Young-joon swung his bat with all his might.

-Clang!

The ball rocketed off So Young-joon’s bat, flying sharply into the outfield.

After the swing, So Young-joon sprinted towards first base with all his strength.

But this hit was heading right towards where the center fielder was positioned.

The center fielder was able to catch the ball without moving much.

-Out!

So Young-joon, who was rounding first base and heading to second, stopped and shouted in frustration when he saw the umpire’s call.

“So Young-joon continues to make solid contact. But luck isn’t on his side with the placement of the hits.”

“He’ll get another chance at bat. With this kind of hitting, he’ll definitely get a good hit eventually.”

So Young-joon, returning to the dugout, shouted at the sky again, frustrated with himself.

The game continued as the next batter stepped up to the plate.

The batter at the plate tried desperately to create an opportunity, but…

-Whoosh-

-Strike out!

The Japanese starting pitcher’s pitching was powerful until the very end.

-Woooah-

As the Japanese pitcher left the mound, raising his fist in triumph, enthusiastic cheers erupted from the Japanese stands.

“7 innings, no runs allowed. He’s putting on a perfect pitching performance against the Korean lineup. He’s an opponent, but I can’t help but admit he’s amazing.”

“I’m so glad he can’t pitch anymore because of the pitch count limit.”

The bottom of the 7th inning was defended well, and they moved on to the 8th inning.

From the top of the 8th inning, they would face a new Japanese pitcher.

The Korean batters desperately fought to create an opportunity.

One batter succeeded in getting on base, raising expectations.

However, the opportunity was squandered due to a double play made by the sharp Japanese defense.

The 8th inning ended scoreless.

A heavy silence fell over the Korean stands and dugout as the sense of defeat grew stronger.

Bottom of the 8th inning.

The score remained unchanged at 0-3.

The Korean pitcher was replaced by Jang Su-young.

“Jang Su-young is now on the mound for us. It’s not a lead situation, but it’s the last game, and we need to prevent any further runs, so he’s been brought in.”

“In baseball, a 3-point difference is a score that can definitely be overturned. Moreover, the 9th inning starts with Oh Seok-hoon, the lead-off batter. If we can cleanly defend this inning, we can definitely create an opportunity in the last inning!”

-Whack!

-Ball!

-Whack!

-Ball!

“We have to acknowledge that the umpire’s strike zone is tight today. If Jang Su-young is too focused on painting the corners, he may run into trouble.”

Jang Su-young took a deep breath and carefully started pitching again.

-Tick!

He induced a weak ground ball, raising the out count.

He succeeded in inducing a fly ball in the following at-bat.

With two outs, he faced a known home run hitter.

Because there was always a possibility of giving up a home run, Jang Su-young threw the ball with even more caution.

-Whack!

-Ball!

-Whack!

-Ball!

When the fourth ball came in, the umpire signaled the batter to take first base.

“A walk here.”

“It wasn’t easy to challenge him in the strike zone because he’s such a powerful hitter. Anyway, the umpire is really tight today.”

I struggled to hold back a sigh.

“There’s no need to be too hasty because it’s a two-out situation. If the score difference widens here, the pressure felt by our players will inevitably increase.”

“I hope we can defend well and try to make a difference in the final 9th inning.”

I watched the game with my hands clasped together, praying for a miracle.

Two outs, runner on first.

Then the next batter stepped up to the plate.

The play was proceeding as usual.

Jang Su-young, after checking the catcher’s sign, was about to take a breath and pitch again when,

“Uh oh?”

The umpire, who suddenly stopped the game, signaled the runner on first base to advance to second base.

-Woooah-

Cheers erupted from the Japanese stands as the runner on first headed to second.

“What’s going on now?”

It took a moment to understand the situation because it was so sudden.

“It looks like the umpire just called a balk [an illegal movement by the pitcher designed to deceive a runner] ?”

Jang Su-young, who was on the mound, raised both hands in disbelief.

At the same time, catcher Yang Hee-chan jumped up and started protesting vehemently to the umpire.

The replay of Jang Su-young’s pitching motion was being shown on the stadium screen.

“Let’s take another look at what happened.”

“Is this a balk? I don’t see it no matter how much I look. In what way is Jang Su-young’s pitching a violation of the rules? Are there rules I don’t know about?”

Even putting aside my subjective perspective, I couldn’t understand the call at all.

“I wish we could know at which specific point the balk call was made.”

“The umpire isn’t doing us any favors today. It’s a really frustrating situation, but the ball count and balk calls are the umpire’s sole authority… It’s unfair, but the truth is, there’s nothing we can do about it right now.”

But in the meantime, catcher Yang Hee-chan’s protest became increasingly heated.

Unable to contain his rising anger, he ended up throwing his catcher’s mask on the ground.

Then, the umpire’s expression changed instantly, and he pointed at Yang Hee-chan and then pointed towards the exit of the stadium.

“Uh oh! The umpire just declared an ejection! Catcher Yang Hee-chan has been ejected!”

“A new, and unwelcome, variable has emerged here. The starting catcher is no longer able to play in this important situation.”

Immediately, Coach Kim Sang-moon and the head coach, along with the interpreter, rushed out of the dugout.

While the head coach, who had rushed over, was trying to calm Yang Hee-chan down, Coach Kim Sang-moon was talking to the umpire.

But the umpire didn’t budge and shook his head firmly.

Eventually, Yang Hee-chan had no choice but to leave the field, escorted by the head coach.

“Yang Hee-chan has been ejected. So, I guess Han Gyo-jin will have to put on the catcher’s gear?”

In the dugout, Han Gyo-jin was busily putting on his equipment.

Meanwhile, the infielders came to the mound and talked to Jang Su-young, trying to relieve his tension.

As soon as Han Gyo-jin, wearing the catcher’s equipment, ran onto the field, he started practicing his signals and receiving pitches with Jang Su-young.

“I think it’s the first time Jang Su-young and Han Gyo-jin have worked together as a battery [pitcher and catcher] in an official game. Will it be okay?”

“Han Gyo-jin has done a lot of research on Jang Su-young’s pitching style. There probably won’t be any major problems.”

Jang Su-young and Han Gyo-jin’s practice session finished, and the game restarted with the runner on 1st base now on 2nd base.

“Even though the runner is on second base, there are two outs. If they can just focus on the batter at the plate now and get the final out, they can end the inning.”

I hoped they would finish the inning cleanly, but…

-Whack!

-Ball!

-Whack!

-Ball!

The pitches released from Jang Su-young’s hand rarely passed through the strike zone.

-Whack!

-Ball!

Eventually, four balls were called in a row.

“Jang Su-young walks the batter, putting another runner on base.”

“Jang Su-young doesn’t usually give up many walks. It seems like the current situation is weighing heavily on Jang Su-young.”

Meanwhile, the batter who had been putting on his equipment moved to first base.

At the same time, Choi Jung-hwan was shown warming up in the bullpen [area where relief pitchers warm up].

“Choi Jung-hwan is warming up, but I don’t think they’ll replace Jang Su-young right away. The best-case scenario is for Jang Su-young to finish this inning.”

“That’s right. It’s more physically and mentally demanding than you think for the closer [relief pitcher who specializes in pitching the final inning] to come on earlier than planned in the 8th inning in a crisis situation. And because Han Gyo-jin moved from designated hitter to catcher, the pitcher will also have to bat when their spot in the lineup comes up. It’s a situation where every out is crucial, so you have to use a pinch hitter [substitute batter] at that time. In many ways, it’s difficult to put Choi Jung-hwan on the mound right now.”

“We’ll have to hope that Jang Su-young can pull through and defend well here.”

Now, it’s two outs, and the runners are on 1st and 2nd base.

Jang Su-young, after checking Han Gyo-jin’s sign, nodded and took a deep breath.