Pitcher’S End, Batter’S Start [EN]: Chapter 45

End of Pitching, Start of Batting – 44

After the series with the Bay Bases.

In the game against the Jackson Generals, their next opponent, Lee Jung-woo had 7 hits in 12 at-bats over 3 games.

Lee Jung-woo, showcasing his presence, was on his way to the stadium for the last game.

He was quickly surrounded by people.

“Lee!”

Even in the minors, the fans’ enthusiasm for the hitter who showed the most brilliant performance on the local team was growing uncontrollably.

Lee Jung-woo, who would have been awkward before or immediately after his demotion [regression to the minor leagues], treated the fans with a somewhat practiced ease, thanks to his previous experiences.

“Lee! Are you going to hit a home run in tomorrow’s game too?”

“Of course. I’m going to hit a big one, so keep your eyes open and tell me how far it flew.”

“Yes!”

When a cute little kid, whose cheek I wanted to pinch, ran up and asked.

Lee Jung-woo’s words, delivered with a soft smile, were just ordinary fan service.

It felt a little different to the players around him.

“A home run prediction? Now you even decide in advance? The pitchers must be sad, right?”

“You know I’m just saying it.”

“It doesn’t sound like you’re just saying it when you say it.”

Leaving the trivial words behind, Lee Jung-woo headed to the locker room.

“Jackson is in 2nd place now, right? Right below us?”

“The ranking is like that, but the game difference is much bigger. Even if we get swept, we’ll still be in 1st place, right?”

“Wow~ we’re really good.”

“To be exact, he’s damn good.”

Inside the locker room, the bustling players were predicting the opposing team while sharing their stories.

The pitcher who was prepared for today’s start also said ambitious words.

“Are you in good condition?”

“Yes, Coach. I’m very good. I can strike out more than twenty.”

“Okay, it looks like your body is starting to come up [reaching peak performance].”

The hitting coach, who glanced at the pitching coach who was encouraging the pitcher who had not been doing well recently, also approached Lee Jung-woo.

“Lee, are you in good condition too? You’ve been playing a lot lately.”

“I’m fine.”

“He’s always good. He even predicted to hit a home run to a little kid earlier, right?”

‘Desmond.’

“Why? You said that earlier, right? You said it so cool. I thought I was watching a superhero.”

Lee Jung-woo glared at Desmond, who was interjecting and saying useless things.

He soon released the tension in his eyes at the coach’s instruction to warm up.

After that, after finishing a light warm-up and preparing for the game.

Lee Jung-woo, who was heading to the ground for the start of the game, saw the starting pitcher, who was pale white.

Tobey Maxon. That must have been his name.

‘Is there something wrong? He’s sweating profusely….’

Unlike his testosterone-filled appearance, he had a quiet and introverted personality.

The pitcher, who I had never really talked to, looked like someone was sick.

He was definitely acting cheerful when I saw him in the locker room earlier.

Now he looked like he was about to collapse, so Lee Jung-woo, who was a little worried, approached him and asked.

“What’s wrong? Are you sick?”

“I just feel a little sick… It’s nothing, so don’t worry.”

Other players thought similarly.

They approached him and asked, but.

He shook his head.

The coaching staff didn’t say anything, so the players didn’t take it seriously.

The problem occurred when the game started.

####

Thwack-

“Catch it!”

Rising largely.

The ball flies to the outfield.

Lee Jung-woo, who was positioning himself for relay play, stopped walking.

The batted ball went over the fence.

‘He’s getting hit hard. Is this okay?’

Like someone who has already run out of energy.

The pitcher threw a powerless ball.

Since they all flew largely to the outfield, Lee Jung-woo couldn’t provide any help.

‘5 points from the first inning, it’ll be hard to sweep [win all games in the series].’

I guess they trusted the pitcher.

That eventually became a self-inflicted wound.

Since 5 points exploded in an instant.

Lee Jung-woo, who saw the pitcher greeting the pitching coach with a drooping face, scratched the back of his neck and looked around for a moment.

Among the gloomy spectators.

A young fan with tears in his eyes caught his eye.

Since it’s the minor league, the stadium is small, so I could see him clearly.

He was the kid I signed for before the game, and even predicted a home run for.

I didn’t feel good about him looking so sad, as if he was furious at the battered cheering team.

I felt like I had ruined a child’s dream for no reason.

‘I have to hit a home run. If possible, I have to make a comeback.’

I wouldn’t have cared if I hadn’t seen his face.

I wouldn’t feel good if the game ended like this.

As Lee Jung-woo strengthened his will. The pitcher eventually failed to record even one out.

He went down from the mound with a drooping face.

The pitcher who came up after him didn’t warm up enough in the bullpen due to his earlier-than-expected appearance.

He twisted his shoulders with a frowning face.

“Come on, come on~ It’s still the first inning! Let’s start from the beginning! Don’t worry about the scoreboard!”

Desmond, as the catcher who is the commander on the field, shouted loudly and calmed the fluctuating morale.

That’s how the players focused on the game again.

The pitcher gave up a hit once, but soon seemed to have warmed up and easily grounded the following batters.

Lee Jung-woo also lightly threw the rolling ball to 1st base and did his part.

That’s how the long first inning came to an end.

Lee Jung-woo, who returned to the bench, saw the starting pitcher drooping with a towel over his head.

No one was near him.

The batters were busy preparing for the attack, and the coaches watched him with slightly angry eyes.

‘I feel sorry for him.’

It felt like I was looking at my past self.

I didn’t feel good.

Desmond approached Lee Jung-woo, who was looking at him, and said.

“I heard he drank about three cans of energy drink. That’s what caused the problem.”

“Energy drink?”

‘Ah, then I understand.’

It often happens.

It has high caffeine and taurine.

It is also high in sugar.

If you take it before a game, it is good for increasing athletic ability and concentration.

That’s why some players consume energy drinks or espresso.

It is not prohibited by regulations, so there is no problem with drinking it.

However, there are clearly side effects, and there are many stories that it violates the doping spirit.

Most teams prohibit or refrain from energy drinks.

Of course, there are also places that feed it to players for the sake of performance.

‘So that’s why the coaches are reacting like that.’

Usually, when it’s this bad, the pitching coach is busy comforting him, but I wondered why they were looking at him like that.

I feel sorry for him for doing that much, but he has to endure the side effects anyway.

Lee Jung-woo watched him for a while and then turned his head.

####

“You’re number 5 today, right?”

“Yeah, it’s because of you. They throw at me like crazy to not give you a runner. So my batting average is dropping.”

“You can hit like crazy too.”

“It’s easy to say. Anyway, get some RBIs [Runs Batted In] today. Pass it on to me too. I’ll score for you.”

Unlike Lee Jung-woo, who is usually number 3, Desmond, who is in number 5, joked.

Lee Jung-woo shook his head as if it was impossible.

Even though it was just an empty word, I had a promise today.

I was going to hit a home run no matter what.

“Ask Robert instead. He can get on base.”

“Just know that there are no runners in front of you, Desmond. I’m aiming for a home run today too.”

“Ah~ please! You damn sluggers!”

Desmond whined.

Lee Jung-woo, who heard it with one ear and let it out the other, pressed down on his batting gloves tightly.

The old gloves easily accepted his long fingers.

‘The Generals’ starter is Paul Ramsey. Lefty with a fastball, splitter, and slider. The fastball speed is said to be 98 at its highest, right? He’ll only throw fastballs and sliders.’

Perhaps it was rumored that he had strengths in seam movement.

Recently, the pitchers who faced him used sliders proactively if they knew how to throw them.

Or they only faced him with changeups and fastballs.

He had reached the point where he forcibly reduced the number of pitches he could use.

I felt a little sad that one of my strengths had faded, but Lee Jung-woo adapted to it.

‘Sliders thrown by the same hand pitcher are a bit tricky… The angle was quite large.’

Lee Jung-woo narrowed his brows as he recalled the data.

He stood at the entrance of the dugout and watched the battle between the leadoff hitter and the pitcher.

The pitcher cooked the batter with a slider that had a large angle, as he knew.

What caught his eye more than that was the speed of the fastball.

‘Huh? 100 miles, is the data wrong? 100 miles… It’s my first time seeing it as a batter. Tsk, the slider is annoying, and even the fastball….’

Unlike the data that said 98 miles was the highest.

The pitcher knew how to throw a 100-mile fastball.

100 miles. From here, they say the feeling is different.

If you know how to throw 100 miles, most scouts drool over you, no matter what else you have.

The pitcher struck out the leadoff hitter with such a 100-mile fastball.

‘He’s even a lefty. A lefty fireballer, did they bring him from hell?’

Lee Jung-woo, who muttered a joke that wasn’t even funny, looked at the pitcher for a moment.

His confident face was unpleasant in many ways.

To be honest, if you know how to throw 100 miles, you can do that.

I had faced many fast ball pitchers, but this was my first time with 100 miles.

Lee Jung-woo entered the on-deck circle with a sullen expression.

‘There are quite a few 100 miles when you go to the big leagues anyway. I should think of it as fortunate that I’m facing it now.’

In fact, when I think about it, it was even stranger that I hadn’t met 100 miles until now.

It’s very rare, but 100 miles is not completely absent in the minor or major leagues.

There are even some pitchers who clock up to 105 miles when you go to the major leagues.

So Lee Jung-woo thought it was a good experience.

Soon after the 2nd batter was also out, when he entered the plate.

He withdrew his thoughts.

“Strike!”

‘Is he crazy?’

It felt like something had passed.

The ball lodged into the catcher’s glove was so fast that I was confused as to whether I had seen it correctly.

‘Can I hit this?’

I sincerely thought so.

While I was blankly looking at the pitcher.

The pitcher, who took an interval, hammered in 100 miles again.

“Ball.”

Fortunately, the umpire said in an indifferent tone to the ball that went out.

Lee Jung-woo, who watched the catcher for a while and shook his head, came out of the plate and swung a few times.

‘Let’s look at it objectively. I’ve hit 98 miles before, right? It’s only a 1~2 mile difference. It’s nothing. Draw the trajectory the same as usual. Just move the hitting timing forward a little and hit it.’

Thinking that way made me feel much calmer.

Lee Jung-woo, who came back to the plate, looked at the pitcher in the same posture as usual.

The pitcher, who had been confident, had a slightly stiff face.

Soon after, he continued to throw the ball.

The ball flies in nicely to hit.

But Lee Jung-woo endured it.

‘There are still plenty of counts [balls and strikes].’

Lee Jung-woo, who stopped without moving, chased the ball with his eyes as much as possible.

The ball, which was coming to the center nicely, suddenly broke and went out of the zone.

Slider. If I had swung, I would have suffered a disaster.

‘Good, one and two. This is even better for me.’

“Why are you holding back all the swings? You usually swing mindlessly, right? Is his ball a little hard to hit?”

“Why don’t you go up to the mound and chatter at that time? I don’t think he’s dialed in [found his accuracy]. If this continues, he’ll get on base with a walk.”

Lee Jung-woo, who slightly laughed at the catcher who had fallen without finding his advantage, seriously thought about what he had said.

‘Come to think of it, I don’t think he’s dialed in? The slider seems to have been trying to bait a swing, but. The fastball is all over the place. It flew strangely when he threw it to the other guys too.’

It was just a word I said to provoke the catcher, but. Somehow, it seemed like I had accurately hit the mark.

‘Yes, I thought it was strange that the speed suddenly increased. He’s still lacking the control.’

When I thought that far.

The pitcher on the mound looked like a paper tiger.

The 100 miles felt like a defective product.

A well-controlled 95 miles is more threatening than an uncontrolled 100 miles.

The ball that flies randomly, not just missing the strike zone, is insignificant.

It’s hard to predict, and there’s a problem that it can suddenly fly into your body.

Lee Jung-woo was not a scaredy-cat enough to be intimidated by just that.

‘And I think I’ll get a feel for it if I see it one more time.’

Lee Jung-woo swung the bat around exaggeratedly as if to provoke the pitcher.

As if to say do more.

Then the pitcher’s face turned red and he shook his head.

Only after hearing the catcher’s sigh did he nod.

‘It’s coming, fastball. It’s fast this time too….’

Tick-

Lee Jung-woo swung briefly, and the ball that was mis-hit flew to the side and rolled on the floor.

Foul, Lee Jung-woo, who cut the ball, habitually looked at the scoreboard.

There was exactly 100 miles displayed there.

‘The timing is coming together. I can hit it.’

Lee Jung-woo raised the corners of his mouth.

I got a feel for this level of fastball, though it was half-baked.

Maybe it’s because his batting speed is fast.

After that, Lee Jung-woo improved the feel by cutting or letting the ball pass several times.

The pitcher, who had been pitching with all his might to deal with him, had a slightly tired face.

“Just go, I’ll just give you a walk, so get out of here.”

“It’s not enough to get here and get a walk. Either strike me out, or give me a home run. Choose one.”

Lee Jung-woo laughed.

Now that I’ve completely grasped the timing, who would say that a walk is enough?

Lee Jung-woo, who took a new bat to replace the one that was slightly cracked from cutting, looked at the pitcher.

It was a face that seemed like he was going to go to the end.

Lee Jung-woo sincerely wanted it.

I wanted him to face me head-on.

‘Come on.’

The pitcher’s windup.

He released the ball from a slightly shaking posture as if he was tired.

The speed was the same as before.

Lee Jung-woo’s bat went around to the full power that he threw without backing down.

The timing is already locked in.

All that’s left is to send the ball over.

A clear hitting sound rings.

Lee Jung-woo, who lightly tossed the bat, turned around the base and moved his eyes to the seat he had seen earlier.

The guy with teary eyes was guarding the promise he made with him.

He was following the trajectory with his two eyes as long as his neck could stretch.