Pitcher’S End, Batter’S Start [EN]: Chapter 202

Pitchers Done, Hitters Up – Episode 201

“Goodbye, happy days~”

“Yeah, this is what the Major League is all about. They always schedule things like this.”

After crushing the Phillies, the Braves players boarded their private jet the next day, bidding farewell to their home with somewhat exaggerated gestures.

Since they wouldn’t be back until after the All-Star break, it felt all the more poignant.

A long home series. The Braves were armed with the stability of staying at home, but not anymore.

They had a whopping 11-game road trip leading up to the All-Star Game, against quite a variety of teams.

“And it starts in LA.”

“Damn far, damn far.”

The first stop was a two-game series against the LA Dodgers. Yes, LA, which is damn far from Atlanta.

It was perhaps the perfect opponent to signal the start of a difficult road trip. Because it was damn far.

[‘Western No. 1 vs. Eastern No. 1’ ATL vs. LAD, a preview of the NLCS [National League Championship Series]?]

[‘A showdown between likely MVP [Most Valuable Player] candidates!’ Will Arthur Hunter and Jungwoo Lee create another ‘classic game’ this time?]

[‘The race restarts?’ The league’s best superstars clash!]

Unlike the players, who were just sighing, the media was clearly welcoming this game.

Both teams were popular, had good records, and had players with connections to each other.

Lee Jungwoo and Arthur Hunter, strangely enough, unlike Harding, who didn’t have much contact with Lee Jungwoo despite playing in the NL [National League] first. The game between the two star players, who had emerged as new rivals, was just the kind of story the media loved.

It was also a game that suited the front office’s desire to attract as much attention as possible ahead of the All-Star Game. And the fans seemed to welcome the reunion of the two superstars, which had generated a lot of buzz.

‘Having a rivalry with Hunter is still a bit strange, but it’s good for me.’

Lee Jungwoo, after checking those reactions on his phone, nodded with a somewhat disgruntled expression. It seemed like they were tying him in a bit too much, but they were acknowledging him.

Arthur Hunter and Lee Jungwoo, when the relationship first formed, Hunter forcibly created the rivalry.

Now, even the media and fans were calling it a showdown between equals.

‘Not bad. Not bad. It’s amazing that a second-year player has come this far.’

Of course, there were still people who saw it as a fluke, but compared to when they met in April, there were almost none, so it wasn’t worth paying attention to.

Even if it was a bit annoying, there was nothing he could do about it, and time would solve it, so there was no need to get worked up.

‘Let’s focus on the game in front of me.’

No matter who the opponent was or what the buzz was, if he won one game at a time, those words would eventually disappear.

####

“Lee! It’s so good to see you after so long. I saw you hit a home run cycle. It was crazy… I mean, how do you do that? In one game.”

As soon as he entered Dodger Stadium and started warming up, Arthur Hunter approached, chattering away. Lee Jungwoo wanted to cover his ears, but he couldn’t.

If he did, they would criticize him for not respecting veterans.

“Are you coming to the Home Run Derby? Derek will pick you. This is going to be fun for the first time in a while, right? Let’s have a real showdown there. See who hits more. Oh, and just in case, tell Derek to look out for me too. The All-Star captain’s choice is important. But Lee, you seem a little more these days-”

‘Isn’t he warming up? Or is he warming up with his mouth?’

Lee Jungwoo stared at Arthur Hunter, who was chattering away as if he was so happy to see him, with an absurd look on his face, and gave him a rough answer. Ironically, the Dodgers fans watched the scene with a pleased expression.

“Lee definitely knows what’s up. He’s hanging out with our Hunter, not that trash who flew to the Giants.”

“That’s why he’s doing so well, because he’s so smart.”

“They must contact each other often. They seem very close.”

“Yeah, a prospect like Lee should aim to be a Dodgers hero, not a San Francisco idiot.”

For now, the sight of the two players, who were competing for the top spot in the league, seemed friendly, and they were pleased.

In their expression, they were more respectful of Hunter than Harding, a moron who chose the Giants, which was satisfying.

In fact, he hadn’t played for the Dodgers long enough to be called a Dodgers hero, but whatever, they were happy to see him building friendship with a Dodgers player rather than a Giants player.

Also, the fact that they seemed to be on good terms made them have strange fantasies.

“Is he coming to our Dodgers when he’s a free agent later?”

“Did you feel it too? He seems to like the Dodgers.”

“He’s Korean. There have been quite a few Koreans who have gone through the Dodgers… maybe? Hunter seems to be friendly with him.”

It didn’t seem very likely, but it was the best-case scenario. Just as Hunter’s skills were starting to decline, Lee Jungwoo, who was in full bloom, would join.

In fact, there wasn’t a team that didn’t want Lee Jungwoo now, but the sight of the two of them looking friendly made them have such fantasies.

Thus, the goodwill towards Lee Jungwoo and the animosity towards the Giants formed a strange cooperative relationship in the MVP race.

“Hunter will definitely win, but if he doesn’t, I’d rather Lee win the MVP than Harding.”

“Of course. I’d rather have dirt in my eyes than see a Giants player win the MVP.”

“Hunter is the best, but Lee is better than Harding.”

If Hunter’s award was thwarted, many Dodgers fans would rather have Lee receive it than Harding, as they had done so far.

Of course, even if they didn’t say it, the Giants fans had the exact opposite idea.

Thus, even though it was a somewhat friendly scene at the start of the game, it became a bit complicated afterwards.

“Ugh…”

Once the game started, the home fans laughed and got angry like crazy people.

In fact, although they had the same title of first place in the division, the Dodgers were a bit more 불안불안 [anxious/uneasy] than the Braves.

They were holding on, but the Giants were chasing them by 2 games.

Even though it was still the first half of the season, they could never allow the Giants to overtake the Dodgers, so every game was crucial. The Dodgers kept running away, but the Giants kept chasing them.

“Ah…”

Lee Jungwoo.

[He hit it! A ball that hits the center fence! 3rd base runner scores! 1st base runner also scores! Hitter Lee goes to 2nd base! Jungwoo Lee’s 2-RBI [Runs Batted In] hit puts the Braves back in the lead, 6-5!]

Dodger Stadium. The Dodgers’ home sweet home. The sight of that comfortable space being invaded by someone else was not a good thing to see. Especially for hardcore fans.

Lee Jungwoo was at the forefront of the game, which was a repeat of reversals and reversals, and he could see why the two of them were often tied together this season, but he couldn’t help but feel uncomfortable.

“Do it moderately! You guys are safe!”

Before the game, they smiled happily at the sight of Lee Jungwoo and Arthur Hunter meeting and talking, but not anymore.

First of all, the victory or defeat of the game was important.

“No, they’ve already built up a lot of wins, so they should donate a little and leave…”

“Haa… the Giants are 2 games behind… tsk.”

The Braves, who were playing tenaciously even though they had plenty of games ahead of them. The Dodgers fans, who were upset for no reason, grumbled. When the first game was finally lost, they glared with both eyes. If they lost the next game, it would be really dangerous.

“We have to win tomorrow… no matter what.”

“If the rankings are tied, the Giants bastards will walk around with their necks stiff. I can’t stand that.”

Maintaining a higher ranking than the Giants no matter what. Along with winning the World Series, it was one of the Dodgers’ top priorities.

To maintain that, they needed a win no matter what, so the Dodgers fans watched the second game with a sharper look than the friendly one the day before. The result was the same.

####

[Lee, who was named the MVP the day before with 4 hits, 3 hits, 1 walk, 2 RBIs, and 1 stolen base in 5 at-bats, will he be able to show a good performance today?]

Lee Jungwoo, who looked around the stadium as the second game began, smacked his lips at the clearly different look in his eyes.

‘I thought they were looking at me with a pleased expression, but today they’re going to chew me up.’

If there was a traitor in the Dodgers’ loss the day before, it was Lee Jungwoo, and as he hit the game-winning hit and was named the MVP, no one among the home fans looked at Lee Jungwoo with a friendly eye.

Lee Jungwoo, who felt that for sure, showed a flying performance in the second game as if he had decided to become a definite jerk anyway, feeling unfairly wronged.

[Lee! Super catch! A super save that frustrates the Dodgers’ attack!]

[Lee’s defense is really amazing, there’s no other way to explain it. I guess my vocabulary is too lacking.]

[Haha, I agree. When referring to Lee, only similar words come out.]

First, he scratched their nerves with his defense. Even though they should have applauded the beautiful diving catch that ruined the opportunity, the home fans just glared and shook their legs anxiously.

He relieved their minds by recording rare strikeouts in the first and second at-bats, but even that was ruined from the third at-bat.

‘Inside, high. Lightly- tap.’

[He hit it! It fell in front of the center fielder- hit! Runner scores! 1 RBI single, and the score is tied again!]

[I think he read the timing a little when he struck out in the previous at-bat. It was a good match, he read it properly.]

[Yes, it was an accurate contact.]

[Arthur Hunter looks a little disappointed.]

[Haha, he just regained the lead, but Lee quickly chased after him, so he has no choice but to be disappointed.]

A 1-RBI single in the third at-bat. A walk and a stolen base in the fourth at-bat. And in the last fifth at-bat…

[The right fielder fumbled! Lee continues to advance! All the runners are already home! And- safe at 3rd base! In the top of the 9th, Lee’s sweeping hit from 1st and 2nd base runners- puts the Braves ahead!]

[Ah… it’s really disappointing for the Dodgers. It was a game they almost caught. In the end, they allow a comeback.]

[With yesterday’s loss, they are now one game behind the Giants, and the Western Division standings will change depending on today’s game.]

A 2-RBI go-ahead triple. A subtle jeer followed Lee Jungwoo, who stole third base coolly while the right fielder fumbled for a moment.

Compared to the Phillies, who were his previous opponents, it sounded like a choir’s harmony, so the jeers themselves didn’t have a big impact on Lee Jungwoo. The real weapon was separate.

‘In the end, I turned the Dodgers into enemies too. Tsk.’

Lee Jungwoo scratched the back of his head for no reason at the sight of the Dodgers fans, who were busy glaring at him, unlike before the game the day before.

Like he had done to other teams, he made the Dodgers, who were relatively friendly, hate him even more.

In the end, the Braves won the second game as well. As news from other stadiums was reported, the Giants, who won, caught up with the Dodgers, and their eyes became even more intense.

With 4 hits, 2 hits, 1 walk, and 3 RBIs in 5 at-bats. Lee Jungwoo recorded a tying hit, a go-ahead hit, and a game-winning hit, so the Dodgers fans felt a little more anger towards him than usual.

Lee Jungwoo didn’t know why they were doing this, but some of them were sending him a look as if they had been betrayed.

“Damn it…”

“In the end, they caught up. So they should have done it moderately…”

“I know why the Phillies hate Lee. He just throws a wrench in everything throughout the game. Ha, we almost caught both games…”

The Dodgers’ home fans were able to understand the Phillies, who hated Lee so much, today, and so they glared at Lee Jungwoo with eyes similar to theirs. Lee Jungwoo, who felt bad for a moment for no reason, soon came out shamelessly, as he did to others who hated him.

‘Well, what can I do? If you wanted to be better than the Giants, you should have widened the game gap as overwhelmingly as we did.’

If the Dodgers fans had heard him, they would have grabbed him by the collar and shaken him, but Lee Jungwoo nodded in response to Arthur Hunter, who winked at him while looking at the fans’ faces after the game, and hurriedly left Dodger Stadium as if running away.

The road series continues until the All-Star Game. Lee Jungwoo added another enemy from the very beginning of the difficult journey, as he always did, and went back on the road.