Pitcher’S End, Batter’S Start [EN]: Chapter 46

“Strike! Out!”

Game over.

The Mississippi Braves lost the game.

It started with Lee Jung-woo’s solo home run.

The batters showed off their powerful swings.

The Braves chased tenaciously, threatening the Generals, but the early, significant score difference proved too much to overcome.

The pitchers also struggled to find their rhythm.

Lee Jung-woo added two more home runs, racking up 6 RBIs, but it wasn’t enough to turn the tide.

“Ah, our winning streak ends here.”

“I thought we might get close to 10 consecutive wins.”

“Still, it’s a winning series, right? We should be satisfied with that.”

Starting with a sweep against the Beavers, the Braves achieved a record of 7 consecutive wins, but this game brought the streak to an end.

The players murmured, seemingly disappointed.

Lee Jung-woo, who had been somewhat hopeful that a chance might come at the end, also seemed disappointed, fiddling with his bat.

‘Tsk. It didn’t come to me.’

They chased persistently, but he was a little bothered that they ultimately failed to make a comeback.

But he quickly shook off the lingering feelings, because the atmosphere wasn’t bad.

‘Still, the fans’ reactions are good. Well, the game itself was fun, after all.’

Lightly applauding or chanting the players’ names, the spectators left the stadium with bright expressions, putting him more at ease.

‘And the team atmosphere isn’t bad either.’

The players chatting amicably didn’t look like a team that had just lost or had their winning streak broken.

Lee Jung-woo had been worried that the team’s morale might drop and the atmosphere might worsen, because that wouldn’t be good for him in many ways, but fortunately, that didn’t seem to be the case, so he put aside his disappointment.

After washing away the sweat and dirt from the game with a shower, he returned to the locker room and gathered his belongings.

The other players were also preparing to leave. Most of them seemed eager to enjoy a well-deserved break after a long stretch of games.

“Good work today, everyone. Get plenty of rest during the off-day.”

“Yes Sir!”

“And Maxon, could I have a word with you for a moment?”

“…Yes.”

With that, the coaching staff left their seats.

The players were busy exchanging stories with each other. From a light drink to women, which are indispensable for a group of guys, the locker room buzzed with various topics.

“Nick! Want to go to Jackson with me tomorrow? I know a place with good water [a place to relax and have fun].”

“Jackson? Sounds good, where is it? Should I drive my car for once?”

“If you’re bringing that old junker, just forget it.”

“Anyone up for a drink tonight! I’m feeling down, so I need to unwind. Lee! You should come with us today. Stop holding back.”

“Sorry, but I don’t drink during the season. Let’s have a drink in the winter.”

‘Actually, I don’t really like alcohol in the first place.’

Even before his regression [return to the past], Lee Jung-woo wasn’t fond of alcohol, only occasionally drinking carbonated drinks as a treat.

Frankly speaking, even as he got older, he didn’t understand what people found appealing about it.

Very rarely, when he was utterly defeated, he would drink a few bottles of soju [Korean distilled rice liquor] alone to help him sleep.

But now that he had returned to a healthy and young body, he wanted to avoid even those occasional drinks for the sake of managing his condition as much as possible.

Lee Jung-woo politely declined and packed his bags alone among the regretful players.

Then, someone caught his eye.

‘He looks dejected. Well, he must feel incredibly guilty. And his self-esteem must be low too.’

Having finished his meeting already, or so it seemed, the day’s culprit, starting pitcher Toby Maxon, returned to the locker room and silently packed his bags.

His face looked like he was about to die. He probably got an earful, or perhaps he was notified that he would be sent down [demoted to a lower league].

‘I feel a little bad for him.’

Drinking three cans of energy drink in quick succession was probably an action that stemmed from a desire to do well.

Like many players he had seen before the regression, in this league and that league, since it ultimately backfired, Lee Jung-woo thought that he must be feeling terrible inside.

As he hesitated for a moment, looking at Toby Maxon, Robert, the team’s cleanup hitter [the batter who bats fourth in the lineup, typically a power hitter] and starting first baseman, tapped him on the shoulder.

“Lee, what are you doing? Aren’t you leaving?”

“I’m going; it’s a break after a long time. I’m just going to get some sleep.”

“Oh, sorry, but it might be a little noisy tomorrow; are you okay with that? Do you have somewhere to go?”

“Why?”

The player, who had hit a home run and a double in today’s game, becoming the spark for the chase along with Lee Jung-woo, wore a faint smile as if he was happy with his performance. He asked in a subtle voice.

“My girlfriend is coming tomorrow. She’ll be here in the morning and stay until evening, I think….”

‘Ah, so that’s what he’s happy about.’

Realizing that it wasn’t today’s performance but a different kind of joy, Lee Jung-woo looked at him with cold eyes.

There were often players who secretly brought their girlfriends to the dorm. In principle, entry of outsiders other than agents is prohibited, but unless they were bringing in call girls to the dorm, the club would turn a blind eye to some extent to the happiness of the off-day in order to boost the players’ morale.

It seemed that Lee Jung-woo, who happened to be Robert’s next-door neighbor, would suffer a bit.

“Your bones will rot [you’ll overexert yourself]. Take it easy.”

“Hehe, I’m not weak enough to rot from just that. Anyway, sorry.”

Even as he said that, Lee Jung-woo let out a long breath at his face, which didn’t seem sorry at all.

####

Lee Jung-woo headed to the stadium early in the morning.

He often trained on off-days, but today he wanted to leave the house even more, because the giggling voices had started to be heard from across the wall.

‘It’s quiet because there’s no game.’

The area around the stadium, which always had dozens of people or more, was quiet. The tranquility he felt after a long time was quite pleasing. After greeting the stadium manager with a pleasant feeling, Lee Jung-woo entered the quiet training field and tilted his head.

“Hiss-”

Thwack-

The sound of breathing and the sound of hitting leather. Someone was already there.

‘Who is it?’

Since the minor league road trips are tough, most of the starting players usually rest or relax on off-days.

There are usually people at the training field around the afternoon. Thanks to that, Lee Jung-woo, who doesn’t sleep in, could train quietly and peacefully on off-days, but unlike usual, Lee Jung-woo, seeing someone already in the cage, approached slightly and checked him.

‘Did someone new get called up? That guy is… Maxon?’

He was standing with his back turned, so his face wasn’t visible, but Lee Jung-woo recognized him by his impressive golden beard.

Not a player who was newly called up or sent down, but the protagonist who started as a starting pitcher in yesterday’s game and was taken out in the first inning.

It was Toby Maxon.

‘He barely completed an inning, but he also started yesterday… He should rest if possible.’

Like most of the body, the parts that pitchers use are heavily worn, so they should be spared as much as possible.

Therefore, unless they are raw rookies who want to impress the manager, most pitchers thoroughly rest.

Especially for starting pitchers who have to endure long innings, rest is more important than anything else.

However, Lee Jung-woo tilted his head for a moment when he saw the pitcher throwing balls on a sweet off-day, looking around, it wasn’t just one or two.

But he soon stopped caring.

‘He’ll take care of himself.’

Before the regression, if it were Korea, he would have said a word or two as a senior, because that’s natural and almost an obligation.

Rather, if you don’t say anything and get caught by the coach or manager later, you’ll get scolded for not stopping him.

But not in America.

If you say a few words, you might get on their nerves, or you might be called arrogant or nosy.

‘If you think about it, even the coaches don’t interfere, so it’s ridiculous for a fellow player to make a fuss.’

Didn’t he become awkward after being nosy in Single A last year?

Lee Jung-woo, who rearmed his mind with that experience, erased the pitcher from his mind. He simply picked up a basket of balls and went to the empty cage.

‘I’ve been hitting so many home runs that my swing is getting too big these days.’

It doesn’t matter right now because he’s still getting good results even with a big swing, but it will definitely become a problem later.

Major league pitchers will easily try to exploit it.

Lee Jung-woo, recalling the problem he found while watching game videos, carefully adjusted his posture. Soon after, he slowly tee-batted.

Since there’s nothing better than this for getting into position, Lee Jung-woo trained carefully and stopped training only after emptying the basket completely.

He was wiping the sweat from his forehead with a towel around his neck when he turned his head at the feeling of being watched.

‘What is it?’

Toby Maxon, who had been throwing balls hard until just now, was stuck to the cage, watching him. A slightly serious look.

Lee Jung-woo opened his mouth first to him, who was startled when their eyes met.

“Why? Do you have something to say?”

“Oh? Oh, no, I just thought you were working hard even though you’re doing well.”

“I always have to work hard. How could I waste a chance I got again?”

Like those words, Lee Jung-woo cherished this moment. A new life starting, a chance he never even thought of.

If he wasted even this and repeated his failures again, he didn’t think he could forgive himself.

That’s why he was pushing himself more harshly than before the regression. Of course, the experience of a long professional life wasn’t going anywhere. He accurately kept the limits of his body, though.

Lee Jung-woo said that with that in mind, but Toby Maxon took it in a slightly different sense.

“Ah, come to think of it, you said you switched from pitcher to batter….”

Because of the injury, Toby Maxon swallowed the rest of his words. He didn’t have any particular friendship with him, so it wouldn’t be good to bring up such a sensitive topic.

He closed his mouth tightly and watched Lee Jung-woo intently. He is a genius who shines brighter than anyone else right now, but he must have gone through difficult times as well.

His performance is getting worse day by day. He ruined the game again with foolish actions he had never done before.

The thought suddenly occurred to Toby Maxon that things like being pushed out of the starting pitcher competition and losing confidence as a result might be nothing compared to giving up a job he had been doing his whole life and preparing for a new challenge.

But still, he overcame everything and soared powerfully. The sight of him training silently even after finding some stability gave Toby Maxon an indescribable feeling.

Should he do that too?

Silently, without being bound by anything, just moving forward.

“In the end, that must be the answer. No matter what situation or what happens. Just walking my own path.”

Toby Maxon, who muttered in a low voice, met Lee Jung-woo’s eyes. His calm face was very heavy. It gave him a great sense of pressure.

It felt like he was looking at a veteran player who was much older than him.

‘I can guess what he’s thinking… but it’s not a very good look.’

Lee Jung-woo felt a little uncomfortable with Toby’s gaze. It wasn’t a very good experience to have a hairy adult man staring at him. He seemed to have some big worries, but it was still a little awkward from the perspective of someone who was directly facing his gaze.

Fortunately, he realized his rudeness, his eyes widened, and he waved his hand.

“Ah, sorry for making you feel uncomfortable. Keep training. Should I bring you a basket of balls?”

“It’s okay, you do your training.”

“Ah, yeah. I should. I need to train… I need to train. Thanks, I got a sense of it thanks to you.”

Toby nodded briefly and walked away.

Lee Jung-woo, who stared at his broad back for a moment, tried to focus on training again, but he ended up saying a word.

“Rest, if possible.”

“Huh?”

“You threw about thirty pitches yesterday, right? So take a break today. If your body is itching, do some running or weight training. You have to last a long time. You’re not going to end your baseball career right away, are you?”

With that, Lee Jung-woo turned his gaze and picked up the scattered balls.

He wasn’t exactly thinking of him. He just thought that if his shoulder broke down like that, he would feel a little bad from the perspective of a bystander.

It felt like it would stay in his head for no reason. He just didn’t like that. His mood getting worse because of someone else. That was all he meant.

But the other person seemed to have accepted it gladly.

“Yeah, that’s right. I have to last a long time. Thanks, Lee.”

The back view of him walking away with low words was a little more solid than before.