Pitcher’S End, Batter’S Start [EN]: Chapter 221

The fans at the cozy Globe Life Field wore slightly awkward expressions.

The expected powerful hits didn’t materialize. Even when they conceded singles, they were short hits that should have kept the runner at first, yet a slight misjudgment allowed the runner to steal second. Although they briefly regained their energy after finishing the inning without allowing a run, it didn’t last long.

‘He doesn’t look too happy. Is he upset because he thinks I tricked him?’

In the bottom of the first, as the Texas Rangers’ batters came up, Lee Jung-woo, positioned at shortstop, clicked his tongue at Todd Baker’s slightly hardened expression.

Clearly, his positioning in the top of the first was geared towards defending against long hits. It inadvertently looked like he had tricked Baker, causing a slight twinge of conscience.

‘It’s his own fault. It’s strange to take the opposing team’s words at face value. It’s just a fielder’s misjudgment.’

Frankly, even if someone announced a home run and then hit a ground ball, failing to catch it is simply a defensive error. Fielders should be prepared for all situations, and he wasn’t.

Therefore, Lee Jung-woo simply scoffed at Todd Baker’s displeased face. He should be thankful that an error wasn’t recorded. He’s shifting the blame onto me.

‘He’s got a strong ego. Well, having pride is natural for a major leaguer. Just a bit too much.’

Lee Jung-woo rotated his ankles. He had already warmed up sufficiently, but he did it again to signal to his body that it might need to move suddenly.

‘A smart hitter wouldn’t make the mistake of hitting the ball towards me. But they might try to catch me off guard. As a right-handed hitter, if he pulls the ball, it’ll go down the left field line. The shortest distance to the fence in Globe Life Field is at both ends. Looking at the home run footage, many home runs barely cleared the foul lines. Maybe that’s why there are so many close hits, even if they’re not necessarily aiming for a home run. That’s usually the case, but it’s different now. He’s been had.’

Lee Jung-woo glanced at third baseman Poppin, who nodded as if he understood. After covering for him for so long, they knew each other’s minds quite well. Their teamwork was well-established.

‘So, naturally, he’ll try to go for a long hit in that manner again, but our pitcher is tricky. If it’s a line drive or a fly ball, there’s nothing I can do. But today is different.’

In the Braves organization, Lee Jung-woo’s positioning is like a free role in soccer. He acts on his own judgment.

The belief that his instantaneous decisions are more accurate than the bench’s orders, or rather, the instructions given based on countless past experiences. Therefore, Lee Jung-woo also has a free defensive position depending on the situation. But today, it was ordinary.

‘Deliberately orthodox.’

Lee Jung-woo’s position was about halfway between second and third base, a standard positioning that made the commentators nod.

[Well, yes. There doesn’t seem to be a shift. Shouldn’t Lee be a little closer to third base? The Texas Rangers have a lot of extreme pull hitters.]

[He probably has a plan.]

[Haha, yes, that’s true. It’s a bit ridiculous to doubt Lee’s defense.]

The commentators tilted their heads slightly, then chuckled.

It was absurd to comment on the defense of the best defensive player in Major League Baseball, or rather, a player who, based solely on defensive ability, would rank among the top three in history at his position.

Amidst these comments, the bottom of the first began. The leadoff hitter’s fifth pitch resulted in a weakly hit ball towards first base, but first baseman Peterson failed to make the catch, allowing the runner to reach base.

[A slightly unpleasant start for the Braves. Peterson isn’t known for his great defense, but he usually catches those ground balls. The location was too perfect, and the speed was high.]

[It’s officially a first baseman’s error, but it’s unavoidable. Bottom of the first, no outs, runner on first, the Texas Rangers get off to a good start.]

Peterson lowered his head in apology, but the pitcher shook his head as if to say it was okay. He immediately struck out the next batter with ease, showcasing his ability.

And up comes the number three hitter, Todd Baker. Lee Jung-woo simulated in his head. His hitting style and direction, the runner’s movements, etc.

As his experience as a shortstop grew, and it merged with his long baseball career, including his past life, he could make certain predictions. Of course, since it was a ‘prediction,’ it sometimes went wrong, but he could cover for that with his instantaneous judgment and natural athleticism.

‘The Texas Rangers. A team with excellent power hitting. Even with this home field advantage. And they reliably score runs.’

Aiming for long hits, and delivering when it counts. That’s the characteristic of Texas, considered the strongest batting lineup in the American League. But like all strengths, everything falls apart the moment a monster or a freak invades.

And in this game, the Braves had both.

A monster and a freak. Both of them.

‘The runner on first is a leadoff hitter with the speed to steal 30+ bases every year. At the plate is Todd Baker, the team’s most reliable number three hitter. It’s a common situation. It usually leads to good results. But what’s different from usual is our pitcher today. And me.’

Lee Jung-woo made eye contact with Poppin again, then looked at the batter. Todd Baker, still with a stiff expression, was moving his lips, perhaps trash-talking with the catcher.

And the battle began in earnest. The home crowd, who loved their team’s strongest hitter, expected a score or a clear scoring opportunity. The starting pitcher threw the ball casually, and the batter connected. As the commentators had pointed out earlier, the ball went towards left-center, slightly closer to third base.

However, it was a ground ball, not a long hit.

[He hit it! A fast ground ball! It’s going towards left-center, can the third baseman get it?]

‘As expected. Orthodox positioning, and the opponent came out orthodox as well. And, as expected, a ground ball.’

Originally, he would have aimed for a ball that soared over the third baseman’s head. But today, the Braves’ starter, Alan O’Donnell, a bizarre freak of a pitcher, turned even well-hit balls that could have been line drives into fast ground balls.

But since Lee Jung-woo was perfectly positioned in the middle, he could catch it, though it might look a little difficult. If he couldn’t catch it, he wouldn’t have even tried.

‘I can get it. The batter and the runner too.’

Poppin stayed at third base. As Lee Jung-woo signaled, to prevent any possible collision. So, the ball was entirely his responsibility.

The moment he heard the sound of the bat hitting the ball, Lee Jung-woo darted to the left and quickly scooped up the rolling ground ball with his glove. The time it took was less than a few seconds.

‘Pull it out and throw it immediately.’

“Second!”

It was a quick play, but he had run so hard that his posture was unstable. He managed to catch the ground ball, but both the batter and the runner could be safe. Or at least one of them.

However, Lee Jung-woo, who had drastically reduced the time it took to throw the ball through offseason training, practically skipping the entire process, spun halfway as if performing a stunt, and threw the ball while falling.

Derek, already accustomed to his throws, was guarding second base, so he lightly stepped on the base as soon as he received the throw and immediately threw it to first.

[Double play! Amazing!]

[I thought it was a little far, but I was wrong. It was Lee. Yes, it was Lee again.]

[It’s just amazing that such an accurate throw can come from that position. It’s a perfect hit rate.]

[Because of that incredible control, Braves fans joke that if Lee hadn’t been injured and continued as a pitcher, he would have become a legend like Tom Glavine. I understand why.]

Super play. Todd Baker’s face, already upset by allowing a double due to a misjudgment, and now having his hit stolen, turned red, unlike when he had spoken to Lee Jung-woo before the game.

He barely managed to hold back his anger and didn’t swear, but his steps back to the dugout after being outed just before reaching first base were very rough. Unfortunately, the first inning was just the beginning.

####

The combination of the freak Alan O’Donnell and the monster Lee Jung-woo was a disaster for the Texas Rangers’ right-handed hitters, especially Todd Baker.

He could only stare blankly at Lee Jung-woo, who diligently scooped up every ball that rolled towards third base or left-center like a fisherman who had reached a divine level.

“Are you guys messing with us?”

“No, I’m not even asking for home runs, just hit it!”

“Why do you keep rolling it towards that guy? Roll it the other way! That would be better!”

As it happened again and again, the spectators eventually became furious and criticized the hitters, offering advice, but in reality, rolling it the other way wasn’t much better.

Because Derek was on the other side. And first baseman Peterson had also fully awakened.

Perhaps those two thought the unfortunate error-like hit in the first inning was their fault. After that, they built a wall in the infield with their strong defense.

However, third baseman Poppin was just standing boringly at third base as usual.

It was a ground ball festival. The home crowd was dumbfounded by the constant ground balls instead of long hits. They would have felt less bitter if Lee Jung-woo had hit a refreshing home run or a long hit as they had expected, or maybe they would have felt even more bitter. But it wasn’t, so they felt even more bitter.

‘Lightly tap. This time to the middle.’

[He hit it! It went right through the gap between the second baseman and the shortstop! A ball rolling to the middle! It’s a hit! Jung-woo Lee! His third hit!]

[His hitting is as accurate as his throws. He’s freely leaving his mark all over Globe Life Field.]

Some spectators were clutching the back of their necks, their expectations shattered, as Lee Jung-woo kept hitting short singles like a batting machine. He’s racking up hits like this…

‘Slightly pushed it. It’s up in the air. Towards the center. He can catch it easily.’

“Mine!”

[Lee! Catches it and lightly tosses it – back to first – out again! Another double play! Todd Baker! He’s really having a bad day. Usually, those would all be hits, and he would have recorded 3 hits in 3 at-bats. But he keeps getting no hits.]

The home crowd couldn’t help but clutch the back of their necks, even reaching a state of resignation, as the Rangers’ cleanup hitter was completely shut down. In other games, if the number three hitter had no hits and two double plays, they would have been whipped with love, but not today. Because they would be even more frustrated and upset than themselves.

‘Somehow, I’m catching everything. I wish he would compete in good faith, even if it’s just by himself. Seriously. He keeps hitting easy ones…’

It’s not like they’re all ground balls. It’s not like he hit it in his direction. Lee Jung-woo, who jumped up and caught a slightly pushed hit, ignored Todd Baker’s glare, which he didn’t even bother to hide anymore.

Lee Jung-woo, who had dashed the spectators’ expectations, steadily took care of his share. Perhaps it was transmitted to the other hitters as well. Instead of an explosive score like usual, the Braves scored points little by little, steadily. They made the experts, who thought the game would be a clash between teams famous for their powerful lineups in their respective leagues, with a combined score of nearly 20 points, feel embarrassed. They won the first game with a score of 5 to 2, a 3-point difference.

[The game ends as the Rangers’ final attack is also blocked! The Braves take the first game on the interleague road trip.]

[Jung-woo Lee is caught on camera. He was, as always, the key player in the game.]

[Yes, there were no long hits or home runs as we had hoped. But he thoroughly toyed with the opponent.]

After the game, Lee Jung-woo recorded 4 hits in 5 at-bats. None of the four hits he made went over the outfielder’s head.

####

The next day, the Globe Life Field, which had been friendly the day before, shed its welcoming atmosphere and turned into just an ordinary away game.

The rough men of Texas glared at the Braves as if they hated them, and they no longer had any friendly feelings to give to someone who had betrayed their expectations.

‘It’s not like I did anything wrong. You guys are going too far.’

Lee Jung-woo shook his head as if he felt wronged by those gazes, but the spectators glared even more fiercely, as if asking if he had done anything right to act wronged.

The game that followed in that atmosphere was different from the day before. Fourth starter Christensen was a good pitcher, but he wasn’t a freak like O’Donnell.

[Hit! It’s a hit!]

[He hit it – the center fielder – caught it, and second runner Derek is running – home! Lee’s sacrifice fly gives the Braves another point.]

[Unlike yesterday, Lee is not recording any hits today.]

In addition, perhaps because he wasn’t feeling his best, Lee Jung-woo only recorded useless ground balls, except for one sacrifice fly.

It was a situation where they were hitting each other moderately, and the score was going up. It was a completely different game from the first game, which was full of ground balls. Nevertheless, one thing that was the same as the day before was that Todd Baker was still shut down today, and the protagonist who tripped him up.

[Lee’s hitting isn’t very good today. But his defense is as solid as ever.]

[If someone were to see it, they would think Lee has a grudge against Todd Baker. He caught all the ground balls Baker recorded.]

It was Lee Jung-woo again.

As if saying, ‘I couldn’t hit a hit today, so you can’t hit a hit today either.’ The home crowd was dumbfounded as he kept catching everything like a grim reaper. It was as if the best players from each team were having a ground ball competition today.

Of course, one of them was closer to the other being dragged into that strange game by force. Unlike the day before, there were quite a few well-hit balls, but he caught them all, even diving catches. Todd Baker was just frustrated. The home crowd was just dumbfounded.

[He hit it! Third runner scores! Second runner also scores! The score is now 7 to 8! In the bottom of the 8th, with 2 outs and runners on 2nd and 3rd, the Texas Rangers take the lead!]

Thanks to the other hitters working hard, the score came out a little better, and the team even took the lead, so they felt a little better.

Soon they would know.

Why the guys next door hate that guy so much. He’s just a cool guy who hits home runs like a man, so why do they call him that X-like Korean and hate him so much?

‘Oh? It’s a curveball? Thank you.’

[He hit ittttttt! A pulled ball as it is! It’s going straight – is it going over? Is it going over? Over the right fence – it goes over! Jung-woo Lee! A go-ahead two-run home run!]

“What the X is that…”

“Th- th- that selfish bastard! Todd was shut down by him throughout the series, and he hits a home run? Th- th- that – ugh -”

“Hey! You X-like bastard!”

“Are you human? Are you human? Don’t you have any conscience!”

Watching him break the other team’s ace and then suddenly hit a home run and nonchalantly circle the bases. Watching the bat he threw roll on the floor, the Texas Rangers fans finally realized. That guy is not worth having any goodwill towards, at least not unless he becomes definitely on their side.