Pitcher’S End, Batter’S Start [EN]: Chapter 259

Batter Up, Pitcher Down -258

In the brief moment the ball hurtled toward him, a myriad of complex emotions flashed through his mind, the foremost being, ‘Why?’

Why would he throw a curveball? Why? For what reason? What was he thinking? Did he get shot in the head? Of course, he was grateful. It was a rare, beautiful curveball, lovely just to behold.

But that was a sentiment for Lee Jungwoo, not for the pitcher. The curveball offered him no advantage. Why? Simple. Lee Jungwoo was currently, more than anyone else, even among all Major League players, considered the best at hitting curveballs.

‘So, why?’

To throw such a curveball to a player like that, to offer such a tempting pitch, was more than foolish for a pitcher; it was suicidal. It was baffling.

Perhaps the pitcher was trying to induce this bewilderment, to make him hesitate, to throw off his timing. Maybe, being a Triple-A pitcher, he didn’t fully grasp the extent of Lee Jungwoo’s bizarre level of late movement. Not having experienced it firsthand, he couldn’t comprehend it.

Or perhaps it was a surge of competitiveness. A desire to strike out Lee Jungwoo, who obliterated the signature pitches of renowned pitchers, with that very pitch, to make a name for himself.

‘Or is he testing me again? Throwing my favorite pitch to gauge my hitting form?’

That was the most likely option. Though whether the pitcher had the nerve to take such a risky gamble was another matter.

So many options existed, and countless hypotheses were formed from that single curveball.

But in the end, they all led to the same conclusion.

‘Whatever, just hit it.’

Even if he was suffering from the aftereffects of the previous day, even if his body felt sluggish and slow, even if his mind wasn’t fully cooperating, a curveball was a different story for him. No matter his condition, his body, upon encountering a curveball, would simply…

“Hnnngh-”

Move on its own.

Even as his mind raced, his body moved flawlessly. It automatically swung, aligning everything like gears meshing perfectly on the optimal trajectory.

A rather low ball. Most hitters would likely let it pass the moment they recognized the location. But as with everything, preferred locations varied greatly from player to player, and strong zones were highly relative.

And for Lee Jungwoo, that low, sharply dropping, slow curveball was…

The best hot zone he loved more than anything else.

[He hit itttttt!]

His body contorted into an L-shape. Twisting his body to compensate for the lost power with maximum elasticity, he straightened out again, sending the bat soaring high. And at its center was clearly the yellowish-brown ball.

The resounding crack of the bat, the caster’s scream-like exclamation, the fans involuntarily rising to their feet, the pitcher’s eyes, strangely contorted as if he might get a herniated disc, blankly following the ball.

And then.

“Ah…”

Lee Jungwoo threw his bat.

In that moment, with everything harmonizing together, the Phillies’ manager covered his face. Fingerprints would be smudged all over his sunglasses, but none of that mattered.

He was overwhelmed by an unbearable sense of regret.

The choice he made yesterday, that damn choice that plunged the Phillies’ image into the abyss once more…

“Fuck….”

He regretted it madly.

Had he known what would happen today, had he foreseen it even then, he would never have made such a decision.

[It’s going, going, gone! Jungwoo Lee! His 50th home run of the season! And—completing the 50-50 club in the most dramatic, most beautiful, most perfect! Home run!]

50-50. A mythical record that had never been achieved in Major League history, or even in the history of baseball. Not even for ‘Bambino’ Babe Ruth, nor the heroes of the steroid era, nor Mike Trout, Vincent Harding, or Arthur Hunter. Not even for the stellar legends who had come close, like Barry Bonds and Brady Anderson.

That which had been denied to those closest to achieving seasons with over 50 home runs and 50 stolen bases each, was now unfolding before everyone’s eyes.

‘He did it, after all.’

Perhaps everything was a series of unexpected events. He hit a home run on the first day, and on the second day, his condition peaked unexpectedly, adding two more. And today, he was just going to rest because of the aftereffects, but he went up for one at-bat for the fans, and in that one at-bat, the pitcher happened to throw a curveball.

It was as if all possible luck had come together in succession, and perhaps he had exhausted all the luck given to Lee Jungwoo with this.

It was truly a record bestowed by the heavens, so Lee Jungwoo didn’t put on a grand celebration. He simply raised his arm high into the sky with gratitude. And that was enough.

“Waaaaaaaaaaaaah!”

Originally, coolness was something that could be attributed to an otherwise ordinary action, depending on who the person was. Therefore, even that simple act of raising his hand was far cooler to the people now than any other gesture, than the charismatic poses of other models.

Well, perhaps it felt even cooler because the fireworks, prepared in advance by the club, filled the background, illuminating the sky as if it were a war zone.

The sound of the fireworks was so loud that it would normally make people frown, but since all of that was for him, and since the crowd was already shouting much louder than that, he didn’t even notice the noise.

“He finally did it.”

He was more composed than he expected.

Perhaps the emotion was dulled because he already knew and firmly believed that he would achieve the record someday. And he wasn’t the type to overreact in the first place.

Therefore, his heart was as calm and quiet as the sea at a resort on a windless day, but as he passed first base, passed second base, passed third base, and had only home plate in sight.

As if the peace until now had been merely an ebb tide, a flood tide surged into the calm sea of his heart. Along with the giant tsunami visible beyond.

‘He did it. He really did.’

His skin prickled, goosebumps erupted all over his body, and the hairs stood on end, but they were soon pressed down again. Because the moment he stepped on home plate, all his teammates rushed in and piled on top of him.

“Waaaaaaaaaah!”

“You crazy bastard! You monster!”

“You’re sick? You’re sick? You’re not in good condition? Get the hell out of here! How the hell can a sick guy hit such a beautiful home run?”

“Easy, easy-”

The moment the great first step of the 50-50 club was achieved was as splendid, bustling, and noisy as everyone had expected. And it was happier than any other moment.

####

Immediately before the defense, Lee Jungwoo was promptly replaced by a defensive substitute and returned quietly to the dugout, where the players revered him as if they were worshiping an idol. That atmosphere continued even after the game ended.

‘Why am I the MVP? What did I even do?’

He was chosen as the MVP. He only played one at-bat, and even though he hit a home run with that one at-bat, it didn’t have a significant impact on the game itself; it was just a confirmation kill for the Phillies, yet he was still chosen.

Honestly, it was absurd, but Lee Jungwoo, speechless at the sight of his teammates and fans smiling contentedly, reluctantly gave an interview with a reporter who had countless questions to ask and eyes shining brightly.

“First of all, congratulations, Lee. You set an amazing record today. I still can’t believe it.”

“Yes, I suppose so. Actually, even I, who made it myself, feel that way, so how much more would others?”

“Haha, first, I’d like to ask for your impressions on the record—”

Lee Jungwoo, who dutifully answered the reporter’s barrage of questions, sighed after the long interview, only to immediately need another breath. This was just the beginning.

“Lee, an interview—”

“Lee Jungwoo! From Korea—”

“Despite the push-off intentional walk [a walk is awarded to a batter with the intent of getting them off the plate] the day before, you hit a home run today—”

After the game was completely over, reporters swarmed him. He was already well-liked by the media, but this was even more intense than during the explanation of the drug use reversal. Instinctively overwhelmed, Lee Jungwoo tried to push through as usual, but the crowd was too dense, and he couldn’t.

After squeezing out every word he could to barely appease the reporters, Lee Jungwoo returned home. He sat on the sofa and turned on his phone, only to drop it in surprise.

“What? Is it broken?”

The phone was vibrating like crazy. He had turned it off to concentrate on the game, so he couldn’t imagine how many messages had piled up. They were accumulating so fast that the notifications were hard to read.

Has it been about 30 minutes? The phone, which had finally stopped vibrating, seemed noticeably older in that short time. Lee Jungwoo could only laugh in vain at its sluggish performance, despite being the latest model.

‘…If I were to read them all, I’d be scrolling through my phone until the opening game of next season.’

Lee Jungwoo shook his head at the enormous number of saved messages, which seemed to exceed the displayed number of 9999+, and pushed his phone aside for a moment, staring blankly at the ceiling.

Just when he hit the home run and returned to home plate, his legs were shaking with excitement. But now, for some reason, the sense of reality had disappeared. It all felt like it was happening in a dream.

’50-50. I really did that.’

Lee Jungwoo realized that his emotions, like the phone that seemed to have gone crazy from exceeding its limits, had also gone haywire. The feelings strangely didn’t come alive even when he muttered quietly.

Would it come back if he slept and woke up? He tried to force himself to lie down, but he didn’t feel particularly sleepy, perhaps because he only played one at-bat.

So, Lee Jungwoo ended up turning on the TV and gulping down water, only to forcibly swallow the water that was about to be spewed out at the face filling the TV screen.

“This… it’s a news channel.”

Not a sports channel, not something related to him, not even something similar, just a regular news channel. A channel that only plays news 24 hours a day. That channel was filled with Lee Jungwoo’s face, even with the title ‘First Ever 50-50 Club Achievement’.

The sight was so surreal that it felt like cognitive dissonance [the state of having inconsistent thoughts, beliefs, or attitudes], and his head went blank again. The dead emotions went even crazier. He already couldn’t believe it, but seeing the absurd scene again made him feel even stranger.

However, contrary to the lost sense of reality, something instantly struck him.

‘The best season ever, it must be true. If they’re talking about me even in places that have nothing to do with it.’

He thought it was a bit embarrassing and felt unnecessarily shy, but now he had to clearly acknowledge and accept it himself.

That, at least for a single season, I am the best ever.

####

[Lee Jungwoo, ‘Finally 50 Home Runs!’ Joins the 50-50 Club for the First Time in the World!]

[Lee’s Home Run Perfectly Turns the Push-Off Intentional Walk That Targeted Him into a ‘Foolish Act’! Season 50th Home Run!]

[Lee Jungwoo (李貞玗) Showed Asian Power in the Middle of America! ’50 Home Runs, 50 Stolen Bases’]

[Philadelphia Phillies Manager, ‘If I Could Go Back to the Day Before, I Would Have Shot Myself to Prevent the Intentional Walk’ Expresses Shame with a Face Full of Self-Reproach!]

[Atlanta’s GDP Soaring Madly? Excited Fans Light Up the Entire City Like Daytime!]

The shock wasn’t just happening within Lee Jungwoo’s view. Outside, there was an enormous, no, even greater wave than what he directly witnessed. Numerous internet communities around the world suspected a DDoS attack [Distributed Denial of Service attack, an attempt to make an online service unavailable by overwhelming it with traffic from multiple sources] due to the soaring traffic.

If it had just been achieved normally—no, normal was impossible from the moment the name 50-50 was attached—but anyway, if it had just been achieved, it would have been less impactful than this.

Immediately after creating the all-time shock and horror of a push-off intentional walk at the moment before 50-50, he achieved it with a single pinch-hit [a substitute batter], as if to screw over the opponent who made that choice, so the symbolism was more than just 50-50.

[Jungwoo Lee, ‘I Want to Dedicate This Record to My Parents, Who Always Support Me, All the Fans, and My Colleagues.’]

-Lee did it! Lee did it! Lee did it! Lee did it! Lee did it!

-Ha… Just the fact that Lee says that, even if it’s just lip service, is just damn good. I feel like I’m going to pee my pants. No, I think I actually peed a little…

-You dirty bastard. But I understand, just for today.

-Honestly, I leaked a little as soon as I saw it go over. If my wife finds out, she’ll throw me in a nursing home, saying I already have dementia at this age.

The Braves fans were simply in ecstasy, and some people trembled as if they were experiencing extreme pleasure, leading to incidents across the United States where family or acquaintances mistook it for a seizure and reported it.

There were even a small number of people who were grown up and now at an age where their hair was falling out, secretly washing their underwear without their families knowing. That alone was enough to know how the Braves fans accepted this record.

Also, as Lee Jungwoo himself realized, acknowledged, and accepted, the fans who had been cautiously behaving no longer cared about what others thought.

[The Best Season Ever, Jungwoo Lee Also Seized the Last Master Key to Reach It.]

-Can we confidently say that Lee is the best ever this season now? Honestly, if he did 50-50, he deserves it, right? Yankees, you cheapskates, what do you think? Are you still unhappy that Lee is Asian, but damn, he’s so damn good?

-Why are you asking? Even the guys who brought up race every time Lee did well are all washing their underwear together. I even secretly spied on them, and the Phillies guys admit it too.

-It’s not just admitting it, they’re actually arguing even harder than us? That way, they’re a little less embarrassed because they got beaten by the best player ever.

-Hold your heads up, Phillies! You have nothing to be ashamed of. You got screwed by the best player ever.

-Ruth already has a lot, right? So, just hand over the best single season to Lee.

They boasted that they had pushed aside even the person who was called the god of baseball, and the praise for Lee Jungwoo continued, and it wasn’t limited to just Braves or baseball fans.

As always, even the picky experts who always gave harsh evaluations when a new face did well, especially if that new face had quite a few demerits (race), now really gave up with both hands and feet.

Even people with seriously racist views, even those who didn’t change their minds despite being heavily criticized for it, could now only say ‘YES’ when asked if Lee Jungwoo’s 35 years were the best ever.

[A Stranger Who Crossed the Pacific Planted His Flag at the Top of the 150-Year-Old Major League.]

Of course, even while acknowledging it, they added words like ‘stranger’, which unnecessarily earned them criticism, but fortunately, it was able to pass safely because the Braves fans had a Saint’s mindset from the moment Lee Jungwoo achieved 50-50. And countless congratulations continued, so there was no need to listen to such trivial words.

[WAS-Lee, congratulations on 50-50. I’m not even a Braves fan, but I screamed when I saw the home run. I hope you do well in the next series. Don’t raise the win rate and run away again.]

[NYY-Why did Ruth’s successor appear in a strange place… But it was a really great home run, Lee.]

[LAD-He ended up doing 50-50. Why is he in the National League?]

[SFG-I know, can’t the Braves just get out of the NL and go to the AL? We’ll meet again in the postseason this year, following last year.]

[NYM-We must have contributed a lot of home runs to that. I’m damn proud, damn it.]

[PHI-Damn it, you son of a bitch, but congratulations, you bastard.]

The entire league, the entire baseball world, was enthusiastic about the record achievement and sent praise, and even the victim (?) Phillies joined the applause. Seeing this suddenly opened heartwarming scene of great harmony, someone said this.

The sport of baseball itself was dyed with the name Lee Jungwoo.