Perfect Agent [EN]: Chapter 64

Season Opener (3)

As Go Ji-hoon’s pitch came in perfectly, tempting the batter to swing,

the batter couldn’t resist the urge.

Tick.

Because the ball dropped slightly in front of the batter, the bat could only hit the upper part of the ball at an angle.

The ground ball was easily caught by the third baseman, who threw it to the first baseman.

“Out!”

He easily got the first batter out with a single pitch.

‘If I’m throwing around 80 pitches today, I need to average less than 13 pitches per inning to last until the 6th.’

-Go Ji-hoon is showing a very aggressive pitching style from the first batter.

-He was always better at getting batters out by inducing ground balls rather than strikeouts, and that hasn’t changed.

-If the pitcher is coming out aggressively, the batters shouldn’t just wait around. Because he has such good control, it gets even harder after two strikes.

The strategy didn’t change for the 2nd and 3rd batters who came up to bat next.

Based on his precise control that targeted every corner of the strike zone, he threw perfect pitches.

In a situation where the ball count was against them, the batters swung their bats with difficulty, but it didn’t look like they could make a proper swing.

-Go Ji-hoon is getting ahead with first-pitch strikes against all three batters he faced in the first inning.

-To get a first-pitch strike, you need to have good control, but more than anything, you need guts. If you’re afraid of getting hit, it’s hard to pitch like that.

-The first-pitch strike must be very important for a pitcher, right?

-Of course. It’s no exaggeration to say that half the battle is decided by whether the first pitch is a strike or a ball. You can also gain a strategic advantage when playing mind games with the batter.

-That must be why Go Ji-hoon is considered a good pitcher.

“Go Ji-hoon! Go Ji-hoon!”

The fans cheered as he finished the inning cleanly.

Go Ji-hoon returned to the dugout with a serious expression.

And with Go Ji-hoon’s stable game management, the Doubles were able to hold their opponents scoreless through the 5th inning.

As the bottom of the 5th inning ended, officials came out to reorganize the field during cleaning time.

Lee Sang-hak, the pitching coach, approached Go Ji-hoon, who was sitting quietly in the dugout.

“Ji-hoon, how about only pitching until here today?”

“Pardon?”

“It’s the first game of the season, and you’ve already met the requirements for a win, so there’s no need to overdo it, right?”

The current score was 2:0.

They were leading, but it was a score that could be overturned at any moment with one swing.

And more than anything, he had only thrown 63 pitches so far.

His condition wasn’t bad, so it was a shame to be replaced here.

“Coach, I’ll pitch one more inning.”

“I don’t think you need to overdo it so much from the beginning of the season.”

Lee Sang-hak asked cautiously, looking worried.

“I’ve only thrown 63 pitches. I’m fine. I’ll tell you right away if it gets tough.”

“Hmm….”

Lee Sang-hak flipped through the data with the opponent’s batting order written on it and pondered for a moment.

“Then go up in the 6th. But if a crisis situation comes up, we’ll replace you, okay?”

“Yes, I understand.”

As Go Ji-hoon nodded, Lee Sang-hak, finally showing a smile, patted him on the shoulder and walked away.

The Doubles’ attack in the top of the 6th inning was coming to an end.

‘Haa…. It’s a little uncomfortable.’

Go Ji-hoon, who was preparing to go on the mound, stopped getting up and rubbed his waist.

In fact, lower back pain was nothing special for Go Ji-hoon.

It was a pain that all underhand pitchers had.

‘Has the effect already worn off…? I need to tell my agent tomorrow.’

“Senior, the inning is over.”

A junior who was watching the game approached Go Ji-hoon and informed him.

“Thanks.”

Go Ji-hoon tapped the junior on the shoulder once, picked up his glove, and went back to the field.

-Go Ji-hoon is defending the mound in the 6th inning as well.

-He’s only thrown 63 pitches right now. It’s early in the season, but it doesn’t seem like it would be difficult for him to handle about 6 innings.

-He was a player whose biggest weakness was that he couldn’t handle many innings, but this year might be different.

-Well, he’s got free agency coming up. That’s enough to make him find strength he didn’t even know he had.

The opposing batters, who had been retired with ground balls and fly balls in their first at-bats, were no longer trying to force a quick win.

Whack.

“Ball.”

Even when he threw the ball so that it barely caught the strike zone, they didn’t come out easily.

Then I have to change my strategy.

Slider for right-handed batters, sinker for left-handed batters.

Whoosh-

“Strike out!”

They naturally had to swing and miss at the ball that came in like a strike and then changed.

I thought I was going to finish today’s game perfectly.

Clang!

-That was a good hit. He’ll get to second base without any trouble.

-That pitch was right down the middle. Because his speed isn’t that fast, a mistake pitch inevitably leads to a long hit.

The batter arrived at second base with ease.

It was a two-out situation, but for the first time in today’s game, a runner was in scoring position.

The Unicorns fans, hoping for additional points, erupted in a huge roar.

Then Lee Sang-hak ran out of the dugout.

Catcher Yang Hee-chan was also approaching.

-Finally, there’s movement in the Doubles’ dugout.

-Go Ji-hoon showed a really great performance in today’s game. It was a great pitch that makes us look forward to this season.

‘He said he’d change me if a crisis situation came up.’

Go Ji-hoon turned his head in disappointment and checked the opponent’s batting order on the scoreboard.

‘So far, I’ve thrown 74 pitches, and the next batter is the 7th batter….’

“Ji-hoon. You’ve done a great job. Let’s just do it up to here today.”

Lee Sang-hak was about to take the ball out of Go Ji-hoon’s glove,

“Coach. There’s only one batter left. Can’t I just finish with the next batter?”

Go Ji-hoon gripped the glove holding the ball.

“Ji-hoon. I understand that you might be impatient, but there are many games left. You did really well today, so that’s enough.”

“The next batter couldn’t time my pitches today. I think it would be better for me to compete.”

Lee Sang-hak’s expression darkened at Go Ji-hoon’s words.

Lee Sang-hak turned his head and looked at Yang Hee-chan.

“What do you think?”

“…He couldn’t time them.”

When he didn’t get the answer he wanted from the catcher either, Lee Sang-hak sighed deeply.

“Then just the next batter. If you give up a run this time, then there’s no choice.”

“Yes. Don’t worry.”

Go Ji-hoon answered Lee Sang-hak and immediately made eye contact with Yang Hee-chan.

“Let’s go with that for the final decision pitch.”

“Yes, Senior.”

Yang Hee-chan, who immediately understood the signal Go Ji-hoon sent, nodded.

And Lee Sang-hak and Yang Hee-chan left Go Ji-hoon on the mound.

-Huh? I guess they’re not thinking of replacing him.

-Now is the time to replace him. Hmm…. Is there really a need to overdo it like this from the beginning of the season?

-It looks like Go Ji-hoon said he would pitch more.

-Even so, shouldn’t the coach stop him? Regardless of the outcome, this decision doesn’t make sense.

Go Ji-hoon focused all his concentration on his hand.

Whack.

Whoosh.

He even induced a swing and miss with his unique razor-sharp control and got ahead with two strikes first.

And show him one to the low course for now,

“Ball!”

1 ball and 2 strikes.

It was a count where it was okay to show him one more ball.

It was also a moment when the batter might get impatient.

Now was the moment to throw the game-deciding pitch.

The catcher thought the same thing.

Go Ji-hoon hid his hand in his glove and changed his grip to the pitch he had promised the catcher earlier.

‘Hoo….’

He took a breath,

and put all his strength into the final, decisive pitch.

Whoosh-

“Strike out!”

-Wow! It’s finally out.

-I was wondering when Go Ji-hoon’s hidden card, the rising curve, would come out. He uses it so perfectly in this important situation.

-The reason Go Ji-hoon refused to be replaced and stayed on the mound was this.

-That ball is really chilling every time I see it. How is a batter supposed to hit a rising ball like that? Isn’t that too much?

-Go Ji-hoon shut them out for 6 innings.

“Go Ji-hoon! Go Ji-hoon! Go Ji-hoon!”

The Doubles fans shouted at the top of their lungs towards Go Ji-hoon, who was returning to the dugout.

The Unicorns fans, who had been expecting to score, covered their faces and slumped down in their seats.

In the end, the Doubles won the game 3-0.

Go Ji-hoon, who shut them out for 6 innings, was awarded the MVP [Most Valuable Player].

* * *

Im Ye-ji’s face was full of smiles as she looked at Go Ji-hoon.

“Go Ji-hoon, you looked good in yesterday’s game.”

“Thank you.”

Go Ji-hoon took a sip of the tea that Im Ye-ji handed him.

“This season, it’s okay to expect 170 innings, right?”

“I’ve prepared hard, so it’ll be possible.”

In Go Ji-hoon’s career, he had only pitched more than 170 innings in a season once.

It was an inevitable weakness because he was an underhand pitcher who consumed a lot of stamina.

Even if he was selected for the national team and ranked in the top 10 in ERA [Earned Run Average, a measure of pitching performance], the criticism that he always lacked innings followed him like a tag.

He wanted to shake it off this year, ahead of free agency.

“Ji-hoon, you just need to show your performance on the field. You know that you don’t have to worry about the contract, right?”

“Of course.”

Im Ye-ji’s lips curled up slightly as she watched Go Ji-hoon answer confidently.

Go Ji-hoon said to Im Ye-ji.

“And there’s one thing I’d like to request.”

“Yes, please tell me.”

“I think it would be good to increase the number of hospital treatments. Would that be possible starting this week?”

“Is your back still not good?”

Im Ye-ji’s eyes sparkled sharply as she put down her teacup.

“It doesn’t seem perfect.”

“Is it to the point where it will be difficult to play full-time this season?”

“No. It won’t be that bad. It’s not pain that will prevent me from pitching right away. I think I can endure it.”

“Then that’s a relief.”

Im Ye-ji breathed a sigh of relief and continued.

“I’ll make a reservation as soon as possible. We need to prepare before it hurts.”

“Thank you.”

After hearing Go Ji-hoon’s answer, Im Ye-ji picked up her teacup again and took a sip with ease.

Then Go Ji-hoon opened his mouth again.

“And….”

“…?”

“I heard that the agency has prepared a training facility. Can I use it too?”

“Of course. As much as you want.”

As Im Ye-ji answered coolly, Go Ji-hoon’s expression relaxed.

“Can I have room and board there too?”

At Go Ji-hoon’s words, Im Ye-ji tilted her head as if she was wondering.

“Are you okay with living apart from your family? I think it would be better to just use the training facility.”

“I want to focus more on training this year.”

“Really? If that’s what the player wants, we should support him as much as possible.”

“Then when will it be possible?”

“I’ll tell Hyun-woo right away. You can go in whenever it’s convenient for you, Ji-hoon.”

“Thank you.”

Go Ji-hoon nodded.