Pitcher’S End, Batter’S Start [EN]: Chapter 82

End of Pitchers, Beginning of Hitters – Episode 81

I watched the first game between the Braves and the Phillies.

The same thought crossed everyone’s mind.

After dominating the mid-to-late first half and the entire second half of the Major League season since June, Jungwoo Lee suddenly emerged as the best rookie in the league, and a nightmare for opposing teams.

He overcame his brief slump and finally returned!

Anyone who watched the game had to admit it.

[Lee Jungwoo soars! In the top of the 3rd, Lee Jungwoo’s super play ends the team’s crisis!]

[He’s a real problem. Of course, I’m speaking from the perspective of opposing teams and other shortstops. Because he makes such high-level plays, other shortstops are inevitably compared to him, right?]

[His hitting still needs some observation, but his defense is already considered perfect by all experts.]

His incredible defensive skills captivated everyone first.

It wasn’t just about consistency.

It was more like wondering if anyone could ever surpass that monster.

Lee Jungwoo, an iron wall at shortstop, tormented the Phillies players and fans.

Okay, I understood that much.

Even when he showed slumps or inconsistencies, he always played good defense.

[Lee has started.]

[He’s showing Lee’s signature steal again. He keeps inducing pickoff throws from the pitcher with a long lead, and finally steals second base.]

[Sometimes Lee at the plate seems like someone who plays baseball effortlessly, but at other times, he makes it seem really difficult.]

[Yes, he’s a player who doesn’t mind getting his uniform dirty in defense or base running. In the bottom of the 5th, Jungwoo Lee records another steal, achieving 10-10.]

Next was his tenacious base running, which even opposing team fans had to grudgingly admire, and his steals that overwhelmed with pure speed.

Okay, it’s true that it’s been highlighted more recently, but his feet have always been fast.

“Lee! Just record 20-20! You’re doing great!”

“You’re doing great! Just keep it up! We always believe in you!”

“What’s 20-20? Be more ambitious! It has to be 30-30! Lee is at least as good as [Mike] Trout!”

With those feet, he reached 10 steals. In Major League Baseball, where even 20-20 isn’t really celebrated,

the 10-10 of 10 home runs and 10 steals, which isn’t even officially recognized as a record,

pleased the fans quite a bit.

Anyway, he’s always been fast.

Therefore, the biggest reason people were convinced that Lee Jungwoo had overcome his slump was, of course, his hitting.

Today, Lee Jungwoo’s hitting, unlike what he had shown in recent games, was the monster everyone remembered.

[Lee Jungwoo comes up to his 4th at-bat. He has 3 consecutive hits, including a double, and 2 RBIs in today’s game.]

After hitting a short single in his third at-bat in the bottom of the 6th, Lee Jungwoo, who came to the plate again in the bottom of the 8th, boasted about his 3 consecutive hits.

He entered the batter’s box with a confident stride.

He didn’t forget to say a word to the catcher.

“Hey, liar. You’ll be honest this time, right?”

“Just stop it, you son of a b****-”

Having lived in the United States for a long time, Lee Jungwoo knew very well the designation that Americans hated the most.

Once labeled as a liar, even the greatest hero could collapse in an instant.

Americans were sensitive to lies and considered it a disgrace to be called one.

Especially with macho or rough guys like this idiot, it was a guaranteed reaction.

Therefore, Lee Jungwoo easily scratched the catcher’s nerves, who reacted to every poke.

The catcher, who was about to unleash another barrage of curses, had been exhausted from listening to the chatter in the first and second at-bats.

He had to swallow his anger at the referee’s fierce glare.

“Lee, stop provoking him.”

“Yes, I’m sorry. The reaction is so good, I keep scratching. I’ll refrain from now on.”

Lee Jungwoo, who even bowed his head slightly, made the referee nod in satisfaction.

With his head bowed, Lee Jungwoo scratched the catcher one last time with a faint smile and looked at the pitcher.

Unlike the Braves’ mound, which remained unchanged from the beginning thanks to [Kyle] Mason’s shutout pace,

a new guy seemed to greet him every time he came to the plate on the other side.

It was 7 to 0, so it wasn’t a tight game, but the Phillies were using their bullpen a lot.

‘It’s not like they have a lot of bullpen guys left like us. Why are they doing that? Ah, well, [Takeshi] Iwakuma and [Jose] Torosso are next, so they must have thought they could save the bullpen.’

Lee Jungwoo, who had found a reason for himself, nodded slightly.

He focused all his attention on the pitcher, whose name and face he had only seen in the team’s data.

‘Four-seam, splitter, circle changeup. The speed is average at 90 mph, with a maximum of 93 mph, so it’s so-so. The quality is just average. The characteristic is that he has a consistent and identical pitching form no matter what he throws?’

Lee Jungwoo glared at the pitcher.

He didn’t know what he would throw, but he didn’t care.

Honestly, now that his hitting swing was back, he thought he would just try to get a multi-hit game today.

But he had already achieved his goal, so the remaining at-bats were all bonuses.

With such a light heart, Lee Jungwoo faced the game and soon confirmed the first pitch.

He checked his swing short on a low inside pitch to gauge the timing.

‘The vertical and horizontal movements are both normal. There’s no particularly sharp feeling, so it’s really just average.’

The four-seam was just average enough that he could get a rough feel with one check swing.

If he threw a circle changeup or a splitter with the same pitching form, other hitters might be a little shaken, but Lee Jungwoo didn’t care.

‘If the pitch with a good course is a fastball, hit it lightly. Ignore the changeup. And gratefully accept the splitter.’

Lee Jungwoo, who had briefly set up his hitting plan for this at-bat, glared at the pitcher and spun his bat around.

At his provocation, the pitcher was angry, but also looked at the catcher with a pleading look, as if he was a little burdened.

After a brief discussion between the battery [pitcher and catcher], the pitcher made a firm expression.

Lee Jungwoo watched the ball he threw.

‘Is it going out?’

“Strike. Do you have a problem?”

“No.”

Lee Jungwoo, who glanced sideways at the umpire who firmly called the strike, shook his head at the blunt answer.

Two strikes, no balls.

It was an absolutely disadvantageous count for the hitter, and he had just come up with only two pitches.

The catcher, thinking he had seized the momentum, couldn’t help but speak.

“It’s a splitter this time. How is it, good? You like that too, besides the curve, right?”

“Stop lying. You have to use your tongue like a human. Why do you keep using it like a snake’s tongue?”

Lee Jungwoo scoffed at the catcher as if it were absurd, and he didn’t actually believe his words.

‘I think he’s going to try to catch me off guard once, but even though there aren’t as many samples as the curve, my batting average against splitters is also quite high, so he might just be saying that.’

There were quite a few pitchers who threw curves, so it was quickly known that he was strong against curves,

but it was still a bit unclear whether that was the case with splitters.

Clearly, his stats themselves were good, but because there were few samples, some people thought it was uncertain.

To be exact, it was amazing that he was strong against one type of pitch, but many people couldn’t imagine that it would be more than one.

That’s why he often threw splitters while holding back on curves until the end, and he thought that might be the case this time as well.

But Lee Jungwoo was aiming for the four-seam.

‘That’s how you can catch him off guard. If I aim for the four-seam and a splitter comes, I’ll hit that. If it’s a changeup, let’s just strike out.’

He trusted himself this time as well, and he clearly saw the ball that the pitcher threw with a still firm face.

First of all, it’s not a splitter like that liar said.

It wasn’t that kind of feeling.

From the moment it came out of the pitcher’s fingertips, he just had a feeling. That wasn’t it.

Then it’s either a fastball or a changeup, but Lee Jungwoo didn’t wait and unleashed a bat speed faster than the pitch’s speed.

He swung his bat like lightning.

[He hit it again! This time, the batted ball flies quite far!]

[Yes, this makes it clear. Lee’s hitting is back.]

‘Good, good.’

Lee Jungwoo, who stepped on second base as if he was walking, clapped hard as if praising himself.

Today’s game was so good.

His condition wasn’t perfect, but everything just clicked together simply and perfectly.

‘We’ve practically won today’s game. The problem is tomorrow.’

Lee Jungwoo, who mouthed “liar” to the catcher at home plate, soon thought about the next game.

Unless something happens, Takeshi Iwakuma, the Phillies’ ace, is the next opponent, and he threw a ball that Lee Jungwoo had never seen before.

‘Will the forkball work too? It’s definitely a vertical movement, but…’

If his strange talent works on that too, the game will be even more fun than today.

‘Let’s look forward to it.’

####

The first game ended with a 9-0 victory for the Braves, and the Phillies fans tasted anger and frustration.

The Braves fans tasted the joy of victory, but what made them happiest was Lee Jungwoo.

Thanks to the lovely rookie who quickly returned to the way they loved, the smiles never left their faces, but the Braves players groaned.

“Iwakuma is really tricky… and he’ll be in full condition, right? He kept his rotation thoroughly.”

What captivated the players was Takeshi Iwakuma, the Phillies’ starter for the second game.

A four-seam fastball with an average speed of 95 mph and a maximum speed of 99 mph. A two-seam fastball that is a little slower than that, which he calls a shoot [a type of fastball with late movement].

And the forkball, which accounts for 40% of his pitches and made him a top-class pitcher in the league.

Finally, a decent changeup that he occasionally throws and received a score of 50 in the scout evaluation.

He induced hitters to swing and miss like a machine with his well-blended four pitches, and he was a player who boasted his peak skills, having been nominated for the Cy Young [award for best pitcher] final vote last year and finishing third.

As the nickname of the last Japanese ace suggests, he is also a player who is the pride of Japanese baseball.

The hitters never liked him.

“Ah, I get so many strikeouts when I meet him…”

“I really wish he wouldn’t throw that weird mutant splitter.”

Because the forkball had been almost extinct in the baseball world for a long time, the Braves players referred to Takeshi Iwakuma’s forkball as a mutant splitter.

The reason why he threw the forkball, which has a high injury rate and requires a lot of talent, was a bit unique.

‘I think he said in an interview that it was his father’s secret weapon? That’s what I remember.’

Lee Jungwoo was curious.

That secret weapon, the forkball that even the best hitters in Major League Baseball find annoying.

“What does the forkball feel like when you see it in person? I’ve seen a lot of videos, but I can’t get a feel for it with that.”

“Ah, the forkball. Is that what it’s called? I think I’ve heard of it. Anyway, it’s weird. It’s definitely like a four-seam fastball, and it flies straight like a four-seam fastball, but suddenly in front of home plate, or sometimes right in front of the catcher’s mitt, it drops as if someone slammed it down.”

[Derek] shuddered as if he didn’t even want to think about it, and Lee Jungwoo nodded.

‘It sounds like some kind of magic ball just from talking about it. I’ll have to see it in person to get a feel for it.’

While Lee Jungwoo was wondering about the opposing team’s ace and his main pitch, two countries in Northeast Asia were in an uproar.

####

[Last Samurai vs. Crazy Rookie Showdown! Lee Jungwoo VS Takeshi Iwakuma! Live broadcast from 06:00 tomorrow morning]

[Lee Jungwoo, a showdown with the pride of Japanese baseball!]

First of all, a massive number of articles poured out in Korea.

The number of Korean major leaguers has increased, but on the other hand, there were no pitchers to be proud of.

In the meantime, Japan produced a top-notch pitcher, so the inferiority complex about it was severe. Coincidentally, Lee Jungwoo, who can be said to be at the forefront of Korean major leaguers, faced him.

For the media, there was no better story than this.

They were eagerly fanning the flames, lest the embers go out, and most baseball fans were looking forward to it, but as always, there was some backlash.

[Honestly, aren’t you ashamed? Lee Jungwoo is good, but a showdown with Iwakuma is…]

[Iwakuma is a Cy Young candidate this season, and Lee Jungwoo is just a good rookie. They’re not even in the same class from the start.]

[These nationalistic people are really disgusting. Seriously, comparing Lee Jungwoo to Iwakuma? LOL. Even a dog passing by would laugh.]

[Did the nationalistic people get shot in the head?]

[It’s you anti-nationalistic people who got shot in the head. Do you know that Lee Jungwoo hit 12 home runs? If you only look at his current stats, he’s almost MVP level?]

[Cy Young candidate LOL. You’re talking like it’s an award you get by waiting in line with a number. There’s still the second half of the season left, you idiots.]

[Yes, we know your candidate is great. But Lee Jungwoo has also hit a home run against a Cy Young winner, right?]

[Are you comparing [Mike] Danilov, that washed-up bastard who got hit by a rookie, to Iwakuma?]

[Do you know that that washed-up guy is currently #1 in the NL [National League] in wins, win rate, ERA [Earned Run Average], and WHIP [Walks plus Hits per Inning Pitched]? He’s 3rd in strikeouts.]

The reason for this was that even though he was Japanese, Takeshi Iwakuma was a veteran major leaguer and a top-class player.

He had fans even in Korea.

They were unhappy with the act of bringing a rookie who had just debuted to such a pitcher and talking about him as if he were in the same class.

There were also some people who just hated Korean players.

While such opposition and Lee Jungwoo’s personal fans and baseball fans who liked Korean major leaguers themselves were fighting, the Korean internet was noisy.

Japan seemed quiet but was very conscious.

[Takeshi Iwakuma, the last game of the first half for the Last Samurai.]

[Takeshi Iwakuma ‘Lee of Atlanta? After he grows up a little more…’]

[Takeshi Iwakuma, perfect game aiming complete! Thinking of running all the way to the championship as it is!]

Takeshi Iwakuma was, in short, like the last classic of Japanese baseball.

In today’s Japanese baseball, which has changed by using terms similar to those in the United States or throwing balls in a similar way, in line with the overall flow of baseball, he proudly threw a forkball and continued to call the two-seam a shoot, and he was even a right-handed orthodox fastballer like in a cartoon.

He was an absolute presence in Japan.

Such a pitcher was about to face a noisy hitter who happened to be Korean.

While talking as if he was not worth dealing with, on the one hand, he couldn’t help but be very conscious.

[Iwakuma-san, do you know that a Korean hitter is playing in this game?]

[Korea? I don’t know such a country? I know North Korea or South Korea.]

[Why are you bringing such a kid to Iwakuma? Ignore him, ignore him. [Freddie] Freeman is the problem, not him.]

[But that hitter wwwww What kind of power are his stats wwwwww Pro (baseball game) level? This is absolutely dangerous!]

[What do you think our shogun is? Such a kid can’t even compete with Iwakuma.]

[Let’s show South Korea properly this time. The Asian Games are coming up soon, and if they see how their strongest hitter is crushed, they won’t dare to say anything about winning a gold medal.]

As if they were not interested at all, they could not hide their inner thoughts.

Lee Jungwoo’s name went around various Japanese communities, and Japanese baseball fans were worried.

It was unlikely, but what if Takeshi Iwakuma was beaten by Lee Jungwoo?

What if he even got hit by a home run?

They didn’t even want to think about it.

When the eyes of many baseball fans in Northeast Asia were focused like this, the second game between the Atlanta Braves and the Philadelphia Phillies began its magnificent prelude.