Perfect Agent [EN]: Chapter 60

Spring Camp (7)

As I got closer, I could tell who it was.

His back was turned, so I couldn’t see his face, but I could see the information window [a game-like interface displaying character details].

-Wants to be evaluated to see if he can become a pitcher.

So, he’s been training in his spare time like this.

I quietly stood behind and watched Lee Ju-hyuk practice.

*Thwack.*

Starting with the windup, all the way to the stride, stretching his leg with the weight shift.

“Oh.”

He had the basics down.

Looking at his grip when he threw, he was practicing all the basic pitches: four-seam fastball, slider, changeup, and curveball.

However, his physical condition wasn’t that great, so his velocity and power were a bit lacking.

He was so engrossed in training that he didn’t even notice I was watching from behind.

It seemed like he ran out of balls in his bag, so he put down his glove and started picking up the balls.

I also went over and picked up the balls with him.

“Who… oh?”

Lee Ju-hyuk was surprised and stuttered when he realized the person who suddenly appeared was me.

“Do you train here every day?”

“Not every day… I just do it whenever I have time.”

Lee Ju-hyuk said, wiping away the sweat.

“I watched you for a bit, and you have the basics down.”

“I looked up videos on YouTube and followed along. My friends who are players sometimes give me one-point lessons, so it’s been a big help.”

“That’s really amazing.”

“It’s nothing.”

Lee Ju-hyuk smiled awkwardly.

“You should seriously try out for the pros.”

“Me?”

“Of course. I’ll help you.”

“I’d be grateful if you could help me… but do you think I’m good enough to try out for the pros?”

To be honest, I couldn’t guarantee at that moment that he could become a first-string player.

But if he’s come this far with his own efforts, wouldn’t there be a high possibility that he could develop even further?

“You want to try, don’t you, Ju-hyuk?”

“Yes…? I guess so.”

“If you really want to try, you should. There will come a time when you can’t even try, and what if you regret this moment then?”

Lee Ju-hyuk listened to me and thought for a moment before asking me.

“Then what should I do? I don’t even know if the way I’ve been doing it is right.”

“Don’t worry about that. I’ll help you.”

A slight smile appeared on Lee Ju-hyuk’s face.

“But are you going to stay in the States?”

“No. After I graduate, I’m going to wrap things up and go back to Korea.”

“That’s great. Then let’s train together when you come back to Korea. There will be a lot you can learn from training with our company’s players.”

“Really? Would it be okay for me to train with the players?”

“Of course. Why wouldn’t it be?”

“Thank you so much. Thank you so much.”

Suddenly, Lee Ju-hyuk bowed to me.

“Let’s start practicing again for now.”

I picked up a ball from the ground and handed it to Lee Ju-hyuk.

“Try throwing a ball.”

And I took out my smartphone from my pocket and turned on the camera.

I stood to Lee Ju-hyuk’s right and switched to slow-motion mode.

“I’m going to film you. It’s best to talk while watching it directly.”

“Yes.”

Lee Ju-hyuk smiled brightly and prepared to throw the ball.

“Hoo-”

He took a deep breath and powerfully lifted his leg.

*Thwack.*

As expected, it was the problem I saw from afar.

I approached Lee Ju-hyuk and showed him the filmed video.

“The problem with your pitching form right now is the hand holding the glove.”

I replayed the video and stopped it at the moment he threw the ball.

“You’re throwing the ball with your right hand and pulling the glove towards your body with your left hand, right?”

“Yes.”

“Because you’re throwing like that, your power is being dispersed.”

“Isn’t that how you’re supposed to do it?”

Lee Ju-hyuk’s eyes started to sparkle.

“Instead of pulling the glove towards your body, try to think of your body going towards the glove.”

I took a stance as if I were throwing a ball and showed him directly.

“Ah-ha!”

“If you pull your left hand like that, the power of your throw will weaken. Your center of gravity needs to move forward to receive the force, but your left hand is applying force in the opposite direction. If you don’t pull it and push your body, your velocity will probably increase, and your control will become much easier.”

I took out a new ball from my bag and put it in Lee Ju-hyuk’s glove.

“Try it again.”

“Yes.”

“Hoo-”

*Thwack.*

“It’s much better than before. Can you feel it?”

“Yes. It feels like it’s easier to throw just by changing this one thing.”

“And now you need to do flexibility training as much as weight training. Flexibility is really important to make your waist and shoulder rotation happen at the right timing.”

Lee Ju-hyuk took out his smartphone and started writing everything down.

That’s how my training with Lee Ju-hyuk continued until late at night.

I didn’t even realize how time was passing because there was a student who was so eager to learn.

* * *

I had a hard time getting up the next day because I trained together until late.

I barely opened my eyes and went to the Doubles camp.

Today, a practice game between the Buffaloes and the Doubles was scheduled.

Since the two teams had set up camp close to each other, the practice game could be arranged without difficulty.

The player who took the mound as the starting pitcher for the Doubles was Go Ji-hoon.

It was my first time seeing his pitching in person.

Go Ji-hoon is an underhand pitcher who bends his waist and throws the ball from below.

Due to the characteristics of his pitching form, his velocity is slow, but he is a player who competes with various breaking balls and excellent control.

I heard that on days when Go Ji-hoon is in good condition, you can’t help but exclaim in admiration when you see the way the ball moves from the batter’s box.

So, I was very excited to see what it would be like to see it up close.

And I looked around for a long time to see if a Major League scout was watching the game today, but unfortunately, I couldn’t find one.

“Play ball!”

The practice game started at the scheduled time.

*Whoosh.*

“Strike out!”

The Buffaloes batters’ bats turned helplessly at Go Ji-hoon’s breaking ball.

The slider that moved further and further away from the right-handed batter, the changeup that came in like a strike and then dropped sharply downwards, the curve that rose in reverse, and even the sinker and two-seam fastball that flew in fast but never in a way that was easy to hit.

Even though he was throwing as if testing all the breaking balls he had, the batters couldn’t hit the ball easily.

Considering that it was the beginning of the season when the batters’ hitting feel hadn’t come up yet, it was still amazing.

“Wow… his breaking balls are no joke.”

Lee Ju-hyuk, who had been watching Go Ji-hoon’s pitching intently, couldn’t hide his surprise, his mouth wide open.

Of course, I felt the same way.

And then the 3rd batter, Oh Seok-hoon, came up.

Usually, left-handed batters had an advantage against right-handed sidearm or underhand pitchers.

I wondered how this match would turn out.

He had a taste of a home run against Michael Scott in the last game, so he must have regained some confidence.

Go Ji-hoon seemed to be conscious of Oh Seok-hoon, and unlike the previous at-bat, he carefully exchanged signs with the catcher.

*Thwack!*

“Strike.”

The first pitch was a two-seam fastball that curved and fell to the outside of the left-handed batter.

The velocity wasn’t fast, so it might seem easy to attack, but it wasn’t at all.

It didn’t come in a straight line and changed at the end, so it was really difficult to hit the bat accurately.

Oh Seok-hoon nodded, watching the course the ball came in, as if he was just going to wait and see the first ball.

And it didn’t take long for the next ball Go Ji-hoon threw to fly towards the catcher.

*Whoosh.*

“Strike.”

Oh Seok-hoon, who had swung his bat with force, shook his head, realizing he had been tricked.

The fastball thrown from below flew up as if it were rising.

A fastball flying in a high course was a good ball to make the batter swing his bat unconsciously.

Moreover, the illusion was much stronger because it was thrown from below.

And finally.

It was a changeup that flew in like a strike, then fell downwards and slowed down.

It was a good ball to steal the batter’s timing.

*Whoosh.*

“Strike out!”

As expected, Oh Seok-hoon, who had his timing completely stolen, swung before the ball arrived.

Oh Seok-hoon couldn’t hide his disappointed expression.

It was Go Ji-hoon’s perfect victory.

That’s how the Buffaloes’ first inning attack ended.

The Doubles players who had finished their defense ran towards the dugout.

Go Ji-hoon went in, touching his waist with his right hand.

“His ball is really good.”

“Even if you hear that his prime has passed, he’s still a player who was selected for the national team, so he’s different.”

If he finishes this season well, there will definitely be more than one or two teams trying to sign him when he becomes a free agent [a player who is free to sign with any team].

He’s 32 years old this year, so he’ll be 33 next season.

Unlike batters, pitchers are in a position that is greatly affected by age.

It was an old age for a pitcher’s first FA, but he seemed competitive enough.

The Doubles’ attack, which wasn’t very long, ended, and the Buffaloes’ attack inning returned.

The score was still 0:0.

As expected, Go Ji-hoon went back to the mound.

This time, the opponent was the 4th batter, Park Seong-ju.

Park Seong-ju was also a right-handed batter, and his record against sidearm and underhand pitchers wasn’t bad.

Go Ji-hoon’s eyes shone even more sharply.

He seemed to want to test his condition against the opposing team’s 4th batter as well.

Go Ji-hoon finished exchanging signs with the catcher, stretched his leg, bent his waist, and released the ball from almost touching the ground.

His confidence could be felt in his unwavering appearance.

Park Seong-ju’s bat, who was in good condition, was also coming out from the first pitch to hit the ball without hesitation.

But the slider moved further and further away from Park Seong-ju.

*Whoosh.*

It sharply broke away to the point where it was difficult to touch the bat.

“Both his changeup and slider are perfect.”

He was fearless even against Oh Seok-hoon and Park Seong-ju, who were in the core batting order.

Was this what they commonly called FA-roid [a sudden improvement in performance before free agency], where players improve drastically before free agency?

Park Seong-ju, who was at bat, also seemed to be dragged along.

Park Seong-ju didn’t lose his composure and continued the match tenaciously,

But in the end, Park Seong-ju’s hit was mis-hit and resulted in a ground ball to the infield, leading to an out.

The matches against the 5th and 6th batters who came up to bat next were no different.

The batters swung and missed repeatedly, and the balls that barely hit the bat were mis-hit and couldn’t even get out of the infield.

He took out three outs so comfortably.

Go Ji-hoon was returning to the dugout, receiving cheers from his teammates as if nothing had happened.

Was it just my imagination that his back looked cool?