Pitcher’S End, Batter’S Start [EN]: Chapter 178

Pitcher Done, Batter Up – Episode 177

The match between the Braves and the Giants wasn’t exactly a high-profile one.

There wasn’t any particularly striking symbolism, and aside from the Braves knocking the Giants out of the Wild Card race last year, there wasn’t much reason for any real animosity.

So, apart from it being the last series of May, it wasn’t a particularly exciting game. However, there were two players who were grating on the nerves of Giants fans.

“Mason… he was so good, though. That damn GM should’ve spent a bit more!”

“But instead, he saved that money and brought in Harding, right? That should be enough.”

“Still, it’s a waste! If we had Mason on the roster right now, making the postseason would be a sure thing.”

“Absolutely, no doubt. Ilya as a starting pitcher, plus Mason now, and Harding in the batting lineup? That’s a dream team right there.”

The first player the fans felt sorry about losing was Mason Looper, currently the ace of the Braves.

Until two years ago, he was their player, and although he was slightly behind Ilya Danilov, he was still a beloved second starter.

The pitcher, who left for the Braves because of the team’s disappointing behavior, was doing so well that the Giants were starting to feel jealous.

He was far ahead of their pride, Ilya Danilov, and was the most prominent among the Cy Young Award candidates.

“Still, it’s a relief he’s not playing.”

“Honestly, he’s probably more familiar with Oracle Park than most pitchers right now, so if he played with his current skills… I don’t even want to imagine it.”

However, since he wasn’t playing in this series, their emotions were somewhat subdued, but Oracle Park was filled with people who looked at him with a mix of love and hate.

Of course, there were also people who just cursed him as a traitor, but since he wasn’t pitching in this series anyway, there weren’t many of them.

While Giants fans looked at Mason with a bit of lingering affection mixed with resentment, the next player who bothered them—actually, the most annoying one—they just scanned with a sullen look.

“Because of that bastard…”

“That damn son of a bitch…”

“As if he’s on the same level as Harding…”

Simply put, Jeongwoo Lee was a nuisance to the Giants. Starting with the Splash Hit [a home run that lands in McCovey Cove beyond the right field wall of Oracle Park], he dragged them down from first place. And to top it off, they barely managed to raise their winning percentage to get to the Wild Card, but there, he hit multiple home runs against the well-performing Ilya, knocking them out.

In fact, he was practically the one who put the brakes on the Giants’ journey last year. The fact that he was suddenly being treated on par with Harding, whom they had brought in at great expense, was also unpleasant, and the eyes of the spectators looking at him were grim.

As the crowd glared at him intently, Jeongwoo Lee was simply looking around Oracle Park with a satisfied expression.

“It’s a bit better today, isn’t it?”

“It was unusually bad when I came last year. It’s usually like this. Well, this is still a bit tough, though.”

Last year, Jeongwoo Lee had a slightly unfair experience due to the crazy strong winds during the first game of the Oracle away series.

‘It would have definitely gone over in another stadium. It’s still ridiculous when I think about it.’

Jeongwoo Lee, recalling the memory of having his home run stolen by Baratbaddam, was very grateful for today’s weather with only a moderate breeze.

‘Anyway, the looks aren’t very good.’

As he strolled around the stadium, Jeongwoo Lee finally realized the gazes that were following him. Quite a few people were glaring at him.

‘Do they hate me that much? I don’t remember doing anything particularly bad.’

Jeongwoo Lee, wondering if the Giants fans would retort by asking if he had any conscience, tilted his head and headed back to the dugout to prepare for the game. Soon, he spotted the player who was a key point alongside him in today’s game.

‘Harding… I wonder if he’s in good condition today?’

The player waving to the fans and stretching lightly. Jeongwoo Lee’s eyes became a bit more serious as he looked at Vincent Harding.

Besides the team’s victory, Jeongwoo Lee’s goal during this series was to narrow the gap between him and Harding. While enjoying a definite victory. And incidentally, to attract people’s attention for his plan.

‘Not enough yet. Not yet. We’re grouped together, but that’s not my real level.’

Harding and the Giants fans didn’t want to acknowledge Jeongwoo Lee’s status, which Arthur Hunter had forcibly raised, and Jeongwoo Lee somewhat agreed with them.

Because the careers they had built up were so different, no matter how well he performed, it was impossible to catch up.

But even so, Jeongwoo Lee was confident. Even if it was an exaggerated status and position, if victories were repeated a few times.

‘At some point, I’ll catch up. At least this season, it’s possible.’

With a firm belief in himself, Jeongwoo Lee turned his head as if sensing a gaze, left a mysterious smile to Harding, who was looking at him, and disappeared into the dugout.

####

As the game began and the broadcasts were in full swing, there were people watching it anxiously.

‘I need to do well today…’

The broadcasting PD [Production Director] of MBS bit his nails and hoped so.

The atmosphere was quite grim due to the aftermath of the previous series, which had been lacking compared to what they had hyped up.

On top of that, doping suspicions had crossed the sea, and combined with poor performance, bad things were being said. The broadcast itself started cheerfully, as if forcibly ignoring such an atmosphere. But there were many 불안 [anxiety-inducing] factors.

[The first game of the Braves and Giants series is starting. The Giants will want a kind of revenge match, right?]

[Yes, it’s their first match since the Wild Card game last season, so they’ll want to seize the momentum.]

[The recent head-to-head record between the two teams is…]

It stemmed from the style of the broadcast. While the American broadcasters commentated in a somewhat dull and dignified tone, the Korean broadcasters used similar words, but the nuance was slightly different.

[E- Jeongwoo Lee showed a bit of a slump in the last series…]

[Jeongwoo Lee’s record against the Giants is quite good, you know? So, in this game as well…]

[For viewers who don’t know, there’s a unique record at Oracle Park. It’s called Splash Hit, and last year Jeongwoo Lee…]

Yes, it was all about Jeongwoo Lee.

The story revolved around Jeongwoo Lee from before the game, they mentioned Jeongwoo Lee during the game, and even in other batters’ at-bats, they shouted Jeongwoo Lee.

That was the formula for Korean broadcasts.

-Here we go again.

-Can’t Korean broadcasts talk about anything other than Jeongwoo Lee? It’s all Jeongwoo Lee, Jeongwoo Lee, even when talking about pitchers. Let’s get some objective information.

-Why are they hyping up that drug addict so much? Typical drug-loving Korea! KBO [Korean Baseball Organization] is also full of drug scandals, Jeongwoo Lee must be Korean!

-Jeongwoo Lee is a strong hitter? No! He’s clearly a ‘drug’-enhanced hitter! The commentators should know something before they talk!

Of course, the reaction wasn’t all positive, and there were many people who were cynically linking it to the recent suspicions. But the PD diligently gave a thumbs up to the commentators.

While it wasn’t a big attraction in the United States, it was a highly anticipated game in Korea.

[‘Following Hunter, even Harding?’ Jeongwoo Lee’s Royal Road!]

[‘Korea’s Greatest Talent’ VS ‘MLB’s Best Hitter’]

The phrases were so cheesy and absurd, but they also reflected what Koreans expected from this game.

Although there were many opinions in the United States that he was overrated, in Korea, it was already an established fact that Jeongwoo Lee was the best player. Many fans wanted him to beat even Harding, who was one of the ‘real’ best.

Of course, it was difficult to directly compare them as it was a battle between hitters, but at least people wanted Jeongwoo Lee to have a good record against Harding.

The Jeongwoo Lee-centric broadcast, which further heightened such expectations, was the most effective method, even if it was somewhat blatant.

“Is this okay? There are many reactions saying it’s too much… and there’s also the recent drug controversy… Should we focus on other players now?”

“Most of our viewers don’t know much about baseball anyway. They’re just watching because of the name Jeongwoo Lee. We’re just catering to the viewers’ tastes. And drugs? It hasn’t been revealed yet, right? It’s all just bait anyway. Let’s just look at the ratings. They’re still rising, we need to at least maintain them.”

The PD, unconcerned by the assistant director’s cautious words, simply raised his hand with a satisfied expression. Meaning to raise the tension even more.

The caster, as if understanding, nodded and began to liven up the atmosphere, and the commentator, now accustomed to it, awkwardly followed along.

[Yes, Derek Hunt is at the plate as the leadoff hitter for today’s game. Many people misunderstand, right?]

[Since his last name is similar to Arthur Hunter, there are many people like that. Although he’s not a huge power hitter like Arthur Hunter, he’s a player who often shows great leadoff skills. His on-base percentage is very good. Considering that Jeongwoo Lee is the next batter, there’s great synergy.]

[It’s almost one of the Braves’ winning formulas these days. Derek Hunt’s on-base and Jeongwoo Lee’s clutch hits often lead to scoring. Especially since both players are fast…]

-Why did the story suddenly shift to Jeongwoo Lee after talking about Derek Hunt?

-Just go with it. Are you still complaining after watching this far? It’s always like this.

-The caster and commentator seem to have caught the same disease. A disease where they die if they don’t put Jeongwoo Lee in every sentence.

The PD smiled at the appropriate broadcast that raised the atmosphere with suitable give-and-take and gathered expectations from the very beginning of the game, but on the other hand, he bit his lip.

‘Certainly… Jeongwoo Lee’s share in the broadcast is too big. If something goes wrong… the ratings will plummet.’

Although he was trying to ignore it, he was also a little worried. Even Kwak Hyung-sun, whom he had trusted, had eventually fallen out of the starting competition, and the MLB broadcast was practically maintained by Jeongwoo Lee.

As the cynical netizens said, the entire broadcast was suffering from a disease. A disease where they couldn’t do without Jeongwoo Lee.

And that was gradually getting worse. The increasingly negative public opinion was the same in Korea. As those who didn’t like Jeongwoo Lee began to rise, there were many people who cast a cynical eye.

-Korea’s best talent? Do they count drugs as talent these days?

-Isn’t it a real disgrace to the country? If Jeongwoo Lee’s doping is revealed to be true.

-The Braves, no, the MLB will never accept Korean players again. Who would use them? They might take drugs again.

Even looking at the people who were still trolling while the game was in progress, it was like that.

The number was increasing day by day, and as a PD who constantly saw such viewer reactions, he knew how serious it was.

In this situation, if the suspicions were really revealed and a heavy penalty was imposed by the league office, preventing him from playing, the broadcast was likely to plummet as well.

He knew that well, but he couldn’t find another way.

‘There’s no alternative. A new path? It sounds good, but who would be satisfied now…’

“With their eyes so high…”

The PD’s staff pretended not to hear his sighing words, but he was sure they were thinking the same thing. Only the weight they felt was different.

Perhaps it was a self-contradiction.

As the PD himself had said, many of the people watching Jeongwoo Lee’s games didn’t have much knowledge of baseball, and many didn’t know the MLB well.

And those people take it for granted that a Korean hitter hits home runs, that his batting average and on-base percentage are crazy, and that he does 세리머니 [ceremony/celebration]. No, they take it lightly that he’s playing full-time as a starter.

‘It would be better if there was even one 공갈포 [a hitter who can hit home runs but doesn’t have a high batting average]… there’s not even a similar player…’

A player who boasts overwhelming power, hitting long hits almost every time he comes to the plate. A hitter who makes home runs so easily that it’s hard to believe he’s Korean.

People were already seriously accustomed to such plays. On top of that, Jeongwoo Lee was definitely a popular product as a hitter, but 수비 [defense] Jeongwoo Lee was also a product that guaranteed a certain amount of screen time.

Jeongwoo Lee when he was fielding was almost as often on the screen as most pitchers.

Other media were making a fuss about how the ratings were rising due to that, saying that baseball’s popularity was increasing. But the PD knew well. That all of it was the influence of the player Jeongwoo Lee.

‘Just looking at the fact that no other broadcast besides Jeongwoo Lee’s gets good ratings…’

Compared to the rise in baseball’s popularity, the ratings for Korean professional baseball or occasional broadcasts of other Korean MLB players hadn’t increased significantly. There were just many people who only watched Jeongwoo Lee.

People who only knew Jeongwoo Lee and a few Braves players, and the game plays were also tailored to him. Even if they found another path, would it catch their eye? No, is there even a player who can take up this much screen time who isn’t a pitcher?

‘No. Absolutely not.’

That’s why the PD couldn’t let go, even though he knew it wasn’t good.

‘It’s a drug, a drug. I can’t let go even though I know it’s a problem, is there anything else that’s 뽕 [a slang term for something that is exciting and addictive]? This is 뽕…’

If even a little crack appeared in this atmosphere, or if someone woke up from the hypnosis, it could all collapse.

Even so, the PD couldn’t stop. Like someone addicted to drugs, he couldn’t let go of the player who filled the screen, the young player who was only in his early twenties.

There were various suspicions, expressions of displeasure, cynicism, and people who hated him…

‘One hit, one hit is enough. Then everyone will shut up anyway. Please, just hit one! One-‘

“He hit-”

[He hit it! Jeongwoo Lee! To the right field fence! To the right field fence! Ah! The ball hit the fence and fell! But- the runner is in! The batter is up to second base!]

[It was a typical refreshing long hit. It was a timely hit that cleanly washed away the slump of the previous series.]

-He got it!

-This is Jeongwoo Lee!

-I feel like I’m going crazy~ I feel like I’m going crazy~ I feel like I’m going crazy~

-Why are you all making such a fuss? It’s natural for Jeongwoo Lee. Jeongwoo Lee always does that much. Don’t make a fuss.

-Let’s go for a home run in the next at-bat! No, let’s go for two! Then he’ll have hit 10 home runs in a month!

-Just be on drugs! Be on drugs! It’s okay if a baseball player is damn good!

The 뽕 [addictive excitement] taste was still certain. Just looking at the comments and communities that were cheering enthusiastically even while pretending not to, he could tell. And watching that, the PD desperately wished once more.

‘Please, let’s just keep going like this.’

He hoped that the current atmosphere would continue.

‘No, let’s go a little higher. MVP [Most Valuable Player]? World Series? Let’s get them all! Damn it, we’ve come this far, let’s get crazy ratings.’

However, since he was human, he added a little more greed at the end.