Pitcher’S End, Batter’S Start [EN]: Chapter 88

End of Pitcher, Start of Batter – Episode 87

Younger-than-remembered parents, a brief reunion, and watching the All-Star Game in person. After steeling himself, Lee Jungwoo returned to Atlanta and was greeted by a familiar face.

“Mark? I thought you were in Korea?”

“I finished everything. I flew right back. Good news is better delivered face-to-face, right? Lee, you look much better than the last time I saw you. Did you have a good time with your parents?”

Lee Jungwoo, stepping out of the airport, was puzzled by Mark’s welcoming face.

He chatted with him briefly, and seeing Mark’s triumphant expression, he realized that things had gone well.

Mark had left saying he would resolve the Asian Games issue.

If it had gone wrong,

no matter how much he had been told to do as he pleased, he wouldn’t be this happy.

“Looks like things worked out well?”

“Yeah, all sorted. The team didn’t say anything? The official letter should have arrived.”

“Not really? I guess they were planning to talk about it when I got to Atlanta.”

“Great minds think alike.”

Lee Jungwoo tried to act as nonchalant as possible but couldn’t hide the rising corners of his mouth.

Twenty-four months (as a public service worker) is longer than one might think. Fortunately for Lee Jungwoo, because of his shoulder injury, he wasn’t in active duty,

so he had a little more time to train on his own. But even that was too short for an athlete.

The thought that such an obstacle might disappear made Lee Jungwoo unable to suppress his smile.

“Oh, feeling confident? Like you’re going to grind everyone to dust once you’re selected?”

Lee Jungwoo didn’t bother to reply to Mark’s joking words.

Frankly, it was too obvious to warrant a response.

Of course, it wasn’t about looking down on his opponents. He wasn’t entirely sure about baseball,

but honestly, he thought he could afford to have that much confidence now.

A Major Leaguer was unlikely to screw up in the Asian Games.

“I heard you got half the prize money from the Home Run Derby. You should treat me, right?”

“Since you did a good job, I’ll buy you something special.”

“Wow, so generous. Very Major League-like now. Let’s go right away then. I drove, so I’ll pick you up and take you home.”

Thus, Lee Jungwoo felt confident in his current abilities,

and his mood, already lifted by seeing his parents, reached its peak

as he headed home.

####

As expected, Lee Jungwoo headed to the stadium and heard the news from the manager.

The club seemed to have kept his national team selection as a kind of surprise gift,

but since he had already met Mark, the excitement was halved.

Of course, it was still good news.

But there was even better news.

That was that the club didn’t oppose his selection for the national team.

Even if the club refused, there was nothing the association could do if they kept requesting him,

and that could have been used as an excuse to cancel the selection itself,

but fortunately, the Braves seemed to view him getting rid of the military service tag at a young age positively, and they fully supported him.

Lee Jungwoo was grateful for that.

Frankly, from the club’s perspective, the Asian Games weren’t that important,

yet they were being so considerate.

“Win a lot before you go. You’re still our player, after all. You need to show them you’re doing well here too.”

“Yes, I will. I’ll do my best.”

Mancini nodded with a faint smile at Lee Jungwoo’s reply,

but he was sincere.

Since the club had been this considerate, he should also fulfill his duty as a player 100%.

‘The training camp starts on August 17th. I need to play like crazy until then.’

Lee Jungwoo burned with determination even before the second half of the season started, and combined with his good mood,

he was able to maintain good momentum as he headed out on the road.

Even amidst the deafening cheers of the opposing team’s fans.

####

The Atlanta Braves’ first game of the second half of the season was an away game.

The Braves players, who flew to the opposing stadium in a cozy yet somewhat dreadful airplane, were already complaining about the packed stadium.

“Who made this schedule… We played the Phillies at the end of the first half, and now we’re starting the second half with the Cubs.”

“And at Wrigley Field.”

“Yeah, at Wrigley Field.”

“The Cubs have so much money, why don’t they tear down this old stadium and build a new one?”

Wrigley Field.

The sacred ground of the Chicago Cubs and a stadium boasting over 100 years of history. The faces of the Braves players were quite complicated as they looked at it.

In fact, the Cubs had remodeled it with massive funds,

so aside from the manual scoreboard and ivy, it wasn’t really that outdated,

but the Braves players who insisted on calling it old didn’t really hate Wrigley Field.

They just seemed to hate the Cubs’ home stadium.

“Ugh, I feel like my energy gets sucked out every time I come here. I wish the Cubs and Phillies would join hands and go to the American League.”

“Yeah, I’d rather have the White Sox.”

The Chicago Cubs are one of the most popular teams in Major League Baseball.

They boast truly national popularity,

and there’s even a saying that there are Cubs fans in every region of America.

Their fans seemed to be dwindling slightly due to their continued poor performance,

but after breaking the Curse of the Billy Goat [a legendary curse said to prevent the Cubs from winning], they regained their immense popularity to a maddening degree,

and as such, their home stadium, Wrigley Field, was always packed with spectators.

In fact, the Braves are also a team that boasts national popularity,

so in terms of popularity, they weren’t far behind the Cubs,

but the problem was the fans’ tendencies.

They were very passionate,

and to put it a bit negatively, the slightly crazy Cubs fans had the effect of draining those who watched them.

Being in a position where they had to face those strange people filling the stands at Wrigley Field as enemies,

everything in the world could only look bad.

That was the same for Lee Jungwoo.

‘The media was making a fuss about it before the game. I knew this would happen.’

Looking at the noisy stadium,

especially the hairy guys shouting at him,

Lee Jungwoo smiled as if he had resigned himself.

He had roughly expected it.

[Rivalry between Rookie of the Year Candidates!]

[The Decisive Battle for This Year’s Rookie of the Year?]

[A Showdown between Jeff Shelton with 19 Home Runs and Lee with 13 Home Runs! Who Will Be the Winner?]

[Jeff Shelton Is Currently Dominating! Can Lee Turn the Tables in This Series?]

[Jeff Shelton: ‘It’s Annoying to Be Compared to a Player Who Has Only Played for a Little Over a Month. Rookie of the Year? Everyone Knows Who’s Going to Get It.’]

From the moment articles like that came out,

he knew damn well.

What kind of reaction he would get at Wrigley Field.

He was quite used to this kind of reaction,

so he tried to act as calmly as possible.

He knew that the more he reacted, the more they would shout.

“You’ll never be Rookie of the Year!”

“Why? Because Jeff Shelton is here!”

“Mwahahaha, welcome to hell, kid!”

The hairy guys shouted, dripping beer from their beards,

and Lee Jungwoo, who was blankly watching them, asked Derek.

“How is this any different from the Phillies?”

“It’s pretty similar… But Cubs fans don’t usually curse.”

“Isn’t it more accurate to say they just don’t curse *as much*?”

“Well, that’s true too.”

The reason they were so passionate was because of Jeff Shelton, the current starting center fielder for the Cubs.

He debuted in September of last year and hit 6 home runs in a month, raising fans’ expectations.

This year, he started in the opening game in April

and recorded a batting average of .345 with 19 home runs during the first half of the season.

He was a solid presence in the Cubs’ outfield with his excellent defense,

and was virtually the Cubs’ new franchise star.

Lee Jungwoo was competing with Jeff Shelton for Rookie of the Year,

and unlike other Rookie of the Year contenders, Lee Jungwoo was the only batter,

so he was perfect for attracting the Cubs fans’ aggro [aggression or hostility].

Jeff Shelton seemed to know that too,

and he didn’t hold back on interviews before the match to suppress Lee Jungwoo’s momentum.

‘No, it’s only July. Who knows who else will come out, why are you guys already giving me crap?’

He was used to the guys shouting at him, but

he was a little hurt by the sight of even young children booing at him,

so Lee Jungwoo let out a hollow laugh,

but he still tried to ignore them as much as possible

and focus on the game itself.

‘Chicago Cubs. Our situations are similar, for now.’

He was very bothered by the ‘uncles’ who had taken off their shirts, written “Cubs” in red letters on their large chests, and were shaking their hideous bodies while shouting at Lee Jungwoo,

but Lee Jungwoo tried to ignore them and looked at the situation objectively.

In fact, excluding popularity, the Cubs are a somewhat ambiguous team.

Perhaps they were trying to continue the curse after solving it. Since 2016, they had been far from winning, and although they seemed to be rebounding recently,

they were at about the same level as the Braves, around 2nd place.

Of course, they were much better than the Braves, who hadn’t won a single championship in almost 40 years, since 1995.

‘No, is it because they’re so ambiguous that they’re more enthusiastic about prospects? Like the Braves fans are to me.’

Because their situations were similar,

he thought that might be the case,

but Lee Jungwoo tried to shake off the distracting thoughts.

In any case, the Cubs, who were such an ambiguous team, were faltering a bit from the start of the second half.

To be exact, from the end of the first half.

‘Ace Woody Homer is out.’

The Cubs’ ace, Woody Homer, was a player who recorded similar stats to the Braves’ ace, Mason, overall,

and his performance this season was almost the same, but

he won’t be able to play during this series.

He was hit by a batted ball in the game against the Diamondbacks at the end of the first half and was notified that he would be out for 4 weeks.

So he would be able to pitch at least in the next series, or maybe the series after that.

Therefore, comparing the Cubs without their ace to the Braves with their ace pitching from the start,

it was clear that the momentum was leaning slightly towards the Braves.

“Alright, I agree that it’s distracting, but let’s focus on the game! And you know they’re nothing special, right?”

“That’s true. Aidan isn’t here either.”

“On the other hand, our ace is in full condition.”

“Yeah, everyone knows it, so just do what we did against the Phillies.”

“Yes Sir!”

The grumbling players focused on the game as Derek lightly reminded them,

and Lee Jungwoo also raised his concentration.

Thus, the first game of the second half slowly began.

####

After the game started,

the Braves continued their good momentum from the first half

and began to beat up the Cubs, who were a bit shaky due to the absence of their ace, from the top of the first inning.

The Cubs fans still shouted passionately,

but it was true that their momentum had waned a bit, and Lee Jungwoo, who came to the plate in the midst of that, had a slightly unexpected experience.

[Jungwoo Lee is coming up to bat.]

[He’s the hero of this Home Run Derby.]

[Yes, he’s practically the player who led the Home Run Derby’s success. It was a touching sight.]

[His stats in the first half were quite good. It remains to be seen whether he can continue that into the second half. It will be revealed in this at-bat.]

Top of the 1st inning.

One out, runner on 1st base.

The Braves’ atmosphere, which had scored 2 points from the 1-2-3 hitters’ clean hit parade in the 1st inning, was so intense that even Peterson’s swinging strikeout couldn’t stop it.

Lee Jungwoo, who came to the plate as the 5th hitter as usual, wanted to continue that.

‘Wesley Patrick. The Cubs’ second starter, but… he seems to be out of it today.’

Thankfully, the opponent was also good.

Wesley Patrick was the Cubs’ second starter, and he was definitely a decent starting pitcher throughout his career,

but for some reason, he was very shaky from the start.

Of course, the Braves hitters were also doing well, but whatever it was, he didn’t seem normal,

so Lee Jungwoo wanted to take advantage of him as much as possible before he came to his senses.

‘Four-seam, curve, changeup. He sometimes throws a cutter, but the usage rate is in the single digits, so there’s no need to be conscious of it. The fastball speed is a bit fast, averaging 98 mph and peaking at 102 mph… but today he’s generally only throwing around 95-6 mph, so that’s not a problem either.’

Lee Jungwoo glared at the pitcher with provocative eyes.

He wondered how he would react when a rookie looked at him with those eyes.

But Wesley didn’t react at all; he was just busy wiping away the sweat.

It was right to say that he didn’t have time to pay attention to Lee Jungwoo because a bigger problem than having a strong mentality was bothering him.

“You’re doing well. Take it easy today. You must be tired from throwing the ball.”

“If you’re tired from that, you shouldn’t be a player.”

“Well, that’s true. But what bat are you using? It’s really long. It’s amazing to see you get bat speed even with that. Oh, but do you like the food? Is this your first time in Chicago? Can I recommend a good restaurant?”

The catcher glanced at him

and soon started talking non-stop, so Lee Jungwoo also had a hard time focusing on the pitcher,

and only after a surprise pitch was slammed into the zone did Lee Jungwoo look at the pitcher again.

“That’s too much. Talking and then throwing the ball.”

“I didn’t ask for it. He threw it on his own. He seems a little tired. But it’s a relief that he’s not shaking too much because he’s still timing it the same way.”

‘So that’s his style.’

Lee Jungwoo could gauge the catcher’s style from that.

He’s also a trash talker.

However, trash talk isn’t about cursing or threatening,

but about shaking the opponent’s mind by talking a lot.

In fact, it’s easier to ignore or retort curses, so this type is more annoying.

The non-stop chatter often easily scatters concentration.

‘I think someone said something about what to do if the catcher talks too much. What was it?’

Lee Jungwoo thought for a moment

and soon remembered. How to shut up a noisy catcher.

It was a bit questionable whether it would work in America,

but anyway, there was a way.

“Oh, but isn’t it a bit hot today? It’s best to turn on the air conditioner and stay home on days like this. It’s a pity that we’re both baseball players, so it’s hard for both of us. Oh, I wish the baseball stadium would install air conditioning now-”

“Hey, do you know what happens when an almond dies?”

“Oh, please. Don’t tell me. Isn’t it what I’m expecting? Isn’t it? Right?”

The catcher was horrified by Lee Jungwoo’s words, and the umpire looked at him with slightly excited eyes.

It seemed to be his taste.

‘Here it comes, is this… going out?’

Lee Jungwoo briefly put aside the grumbling catcher and watched the pitcher who had thrown the ball in a surprise attack this time without missing it,

and held back his swing at a slightly ambiguous course.

“Ball.”

‘It went out.’

There was no room for doubt, so the catcher didn’t protest and threw the ball to the pitcher.

Lee Jungwoo said again to him, who was about to open his mouth again.

“Phew. Let’s focus on the game nicely. I won’t talk anymore either. So you shouldn’t say such corny things-”

“I asked you. Do you know what happens when an almond dies?”

“Please, don’t say diamond. You shouldn’t do that. Please don’t say diamond.”

“When an almond dies, it becomes a diamond.”

“Ah! Please! I asked you! Why are you making such jokes! Are you from the World War era? Why are you making such jokes!”

Seeing the catcher shouting in a frenzy,

he realized that the method of making the catcher shut up by making him corny was not very effective,

but he still liked it.

Rather, the louder his voice became, the more focused he became,

and he was quite satisfied with the thought that he had given him a blow.

Lee Jungwoo looked at the pitcher with a much more relaxed mind.

The pitcher seemed curious as to why his partner was running around in such a frenzy.

It seemed like he was asking with fierce eyes, ‘Is it because of you?’

‘Just throw me one good one.’

Lee Jungwoo shamelessly asked such a pitcher and waited for the ball he would throw,

and soon the pitcher, who took a deep breath, wound up and shot the ball this time.

The sweat beading on his forehead from his dynamic movements was clearly visible even from the plate,

and Lee Jungwoo mustered his strength.

‘Fastball… but a changeup.’

Slightly late. Lee Jungwoo’s waist, which rotated as it was, sent the incoming ball back again in accordance with the slow speed.

The catcher grumbled,

but Lee Jungwoo had already thrown his bat and was running, so he couldn’t hear it.

‘This is quite deep. Joey isn’t slow, so he’ll get an RBI [Runs Batted In].’

Lee Jungwoo ran like crazy as he watched the ball flying deep to the right,

and so did Joey, who was the first base runner.

Seeing the direction of travel, it was quite deep, so they were likely to score again.

The two men moved their bodies without rest, and before the right fielder could catch the ball that had flown to the fence with a tremendous sprint,

Lee Jungwoo passed 2nd base and Joey passed 3rd base

after achieving their respective goals,

but they had to quietly go back again at the umpire’s declaration after seeing the right fielder waving his hand.

“Ground rule double!”

“Huh?”

“Dammit. It was a triple… Lee, thanks for running anyway.”

Lee Jungwoo tilted his head at the umpire’s declaration, and the 3rd base coach was annoyed as if he was disappointed

and soon encouraged Lee Jungwoo.

But even in the midst of that, Lee Jungwoo couldn’t understand.

Ground rule double?

It was clearly a ball that would hit the fence hard, and the last time he saw it, it was almost about to hit the fence.

What the heck is this?

Did it hit the fence and fall down, bounce high, and go over again?

Lee Jungwoo, who was imagining ridiculous things, soon realized.

‘It went into the ivy.’

Of course, he had never experienced it,

but he knew that it often happened at Wrigley Field.

If the ball goes into the ivy and doesn’t come out, according to the ground rule double rule,

it counts as a double.

‘I lost an RBI with my eyes open.’

Lee Jungwoo, who had his RBI and a base stolen with his eyes open, was upset

but trudged to 2nd base, and Joey, who was high-fiving with the other players, headed back to 3rd base with an embarrassed face.

Lee Jungwoo, who stepped on 2nd base, which he had already passed long ago, thought.

‘I have a bad feeling. It’s not going to keep happening, is it?’

He had a bad feeling for some reason.