The Pitcher Just Hits Home Runs Well [EN]: Chapter 177

177. What He Needs (4)

A short time.

The couple, who had scattered to their respective places, met again at the Sports Complex Station. But perhaps because it hadn’t been three hours due to the shortened game, the lingering feeling of the game hadn’t dissipated. They were still more like fans cheering for the Marlins and Elitz than a couple.

“Today was really nerve-wracking. If it had been a little later, it would have been a null game.”

“No, what on earth was the Elitz dugout thinking? They should have kept throwing intentional walks, replaced the pitcher, and stalled for time. What’s the point of giving up runs if it becomes a null game anyway?”

“In hindsight, that’s true, but it’s hard to be that blatant. Besides, what if the rain stopped while they were stalling like that? It would be a real disaster. A 30-point difference game or something could ruin the whole year. They’re still on pace for the playoffs, though. You have to look at the season as a whole.”

“Ugh, how annoying. You’re just happy your team won.”

“That’s why you should have switched to our invincible Marlins a long time ago! Here we go! Championship!!”

“You were cursing at them, calling them ‘Colins,’ until two months ago.”

“Well, isn’t a life of constant change, of being overjoyed and then disappointed, essential for any professional baseball fan?”

Although it was a bit humid due to the rain, it was truly an exciting game result for the Marlins fans. In particular, Choi Su-won’s insane fastball show right down the middle was truly the highlight of today’s game.

“But I really think we’re going to do something this year.”

“Well… If it had been last year, the Marlins would have probably hesitated in this situation, and the game would have been nullified.”

All they wanted was to end the game quickly. So, they threw fastballs right down the middle as if daring the batter to hit it. Even though there was actually a hit, their boldness didn’t diminish at all.

Of course, it wasn’t just the fans who watched the game in the rain who were deeply impressed.

“I received a call from Eric. It’s a success.”

“Good. What’s the best way to contact Choi Su-won’s side?”

“Since everyone knows the general manager is in Korea, it would be impossible for you to do it directly. However, I can try to contact Choi Su-won’s agency through my personal connections.”

“Get the data from Eric and use that as a basis to gauge their reaction. I’ll go back and report to the team owner and talk to Mike Prostad right away.”

“Yes, I understand.”

***

“Excuse me? The New York Mets?”

“Yes.”

Hmm…

The Amazing Mets…

Honestly, it’s not appealing.

Wasn’t the luxury tax the Mets paid two years ago $80 million?

For reference, the Mets finished last that year.

I’ll emphasize it one more time so there’s no misunderstanding.

The team payroll wasn’t $80 million.

The luxury tax alone was $80 million. And they finished last.

Of course, thanks to that, they were able to bring in Alexander McDowell, but anyway, it was an undeniable fact that the Mets were running inefficiently, befitting the title of ‘Amazing.’

And behind all of that was one man.

Steve Cohen.

He became the owner of the Mets in 2020 by buying an additional 90% of the team’s shares. He wasn’t born with a golden spoon, but he wasn’t exactly from a poor background either. He’s one of the hedge fund managers who has achieved the highest returns in this era with a silver spoon.

As the wealthiest owner in Major League Baseball, the Mets have been spending money very aggressively since he took office. If the team he bought was a soccer team instead of a Major League Baseball team, wouldn’t they have grown to the point where they were aiming for league championships as easily as eating?

But unfortunately, baseball is different from soccer.

Having a lot of money is good, of course, but that much money can’t guarantee a championship.

Of course, there’s a saying:

If you can’t do something with money, check if you don’t have enough money.

However, considering that the Mets paid a luxury tax higher than the combined ‘payroll’ of the bottom three teams in Major League Baseball and still didn’t win the championship, and even in the year before last, they paid a luxury tax higher than the combined ‘payroll’ of the bottom two teams and recorded a lower score than those teams, it was clear that ‘money’ was not a condition directly linked to winning in Major League Baseball, where salary caps were heavily imposed.

Thanks to that, some Mets fans say that the owner is buying up unnecessary players out of fandom. It’s like playing OOTP [Out of the Park Baseball, a baseball management simulation game] in real life, but the player is a really bad player. They used to say the same thing.

“Well, okay. Let’s talk.”

But there was no reason to block the conversation just because it wasn’t appealing.

Even if I have a secret conversation, it will eventually be known to those around me and will be heard by other teams. And each of these things will inevitably become an issue that stimulates them.

Yeah, that was definitely the feeling.

***

“I have prepared the data you need.”

“The data I need? What are you talking about…?”

“It’s Shohei Ohtani’s data.”

Huh?

Why Shohei Ohtani’s data all of a sudden?

“Wait a minute. I think there’s some misunderstanding. Of course, I’m a two-way player, but my mechanism is a bit different from Shohei Ohtani’s, wouldn’t you say? Both hitting and pitching…”

“Ah, it’s not that kind of data. And I wouldn’t have asked to meet you separately just to get that kind of data.”

Kim Jin-gyu, was it?

A Korean scout working for the Mets.

In fact, it wasn’t uncommon for team employees working in Japan to be Japanese, and employees working in Korea to be Korean in Major League Baseball.

Why, didn’t they say that Americans distinguish Asians as Japanese, Korean, and Asian? Anyway, the not-so-uncommon Korean scout handed over a USB-C with a confident expression.

“It’s Shohei Ohtani’s physical training data.”

“Excuse me? Shohei Ohtani’s physical training data?”

Wow, I was honestly surprised.

No, of course, I knew they were good at their jobs, but I never imagined they would suddenly present me with the exact data I needed.

Physical training.

So, building the body wasn’t really a big concern. I thought it was something I had already done once and knew the tricks to, so I just had to eat well and work out hard.

But after talking to trainers in the United States and physical trainers in the Marlins, I realized that it wasn’t as easy as I thought.

The reason is simple.

The pitcher and the batter are actually grouped together as the same sport of baseball, but the physical requirements are somewhat different.

It’s like long-distance runners and sprinters are grouped together as the same sport of running, but the physical requirements are different.

If you increase the overall volume for hitting, it can cause problems with pitching due to flexibility.

If you strengthen the muscles in a specific area for pitching, the hitting balance can be disrupted.

This is actually a problem without an answer.

You can only move forward little by little, groping your way.

Yeah.

If there wasn’t a pioneer named Shohei Ohtani.

Fortunately, there was already someone in Major League Baseball who had gone far ahead of me while groping his way. Of course, the natural talent is different, the size of the body is different, and the quality of the muscles is also different. But having reference data and not having it is like heaven and earth.

And that’s a fact that Shohei Ohtani and everyone involved with him knows. So, I thought the point at which I could get this kind of data would be a few years from now, when Shohei Ohtani was starting to think about retirement.

I couldn’t help but get excited.

Ah, but wait a minute.

But the Mets, not the Angels, brought this data?

“Is this data from his time with the Angels?”

“No. This is data from his NPB [Nippon Professional Baseball, the highest level of baseball in Japan] days.”

“Hmm…”

As quickly as I got excited, the speed at which I cooled down was also fast.

No, of course, NPB data was better than nothing.

But this is like… before Shohei Ohtani became the real deal. So, it’s only about the data when he was laying the foundation before the big explosion.

No, of course, Ohtani had a good build for a Japanese player when he was with the Nippon Ham Fighters.

So, about the same as me now?

Did he feel my expression turn cold?

Kim Jin-gyu quickly continued.

“Ah, of course, we are currently negotiating for data from his time with the Angels as well. So, please think of this as a gift to commemorate our first meeting.”

“I see.”

“Please take today’s meeting as a sign of how sincere we are to Choi Su-won.”

“Sincere… Well, I’ve learned that sincerity in the pros is a bit different. But I understand.”

Sincerity in the pros is inevitably a number, just like my value is my performance, not my ambition. Kim Jin-gyu smiled awkwardly and replied to my words.

“Hahaha. This is… Of course, it’s true that we can’t show our greatest sincerity right now due to the team’s circumstances. But there’s no team in Major League Baseball with better financial circumstances than us right now.”

“Well… Isn’t the Mets a team that has to give 30 million to give the same money when others spend 20 million?”

“That may be the case now. But wouldn’t it be a little different in three years?”

“Judging by how the owner is doing, I don’t think that will be the case… Anyway, thank you for the gift.”

I took the USB-C that Kim Jin-gyu handed me.

I didn’t think it would be that helpful, but it was still the footsteps of a successful pioneer, so I could refer to the direction.

“However, if you really want to convince me, I think you need something more powerful than just talking about negotiations.”

“Of course. We will finish everything soon and contact you again.”

***

“Really? They expressed it that strongly?”

It was clear that Choi Su-won was a player that had to be signed.

Therefore, the conviction that Joshua Pagman needed was not a conviction about Choi Su-won as a player, but a conviction about whether the $10 million bait was really a bait that Choi Su-won would be tempted by.

“Schedule a meeting with the team owner. Uh, right now. As soon as possible.”

Ten million dollars.

It’s a large sum of money that exceeds five times Joshua Pagman’s salary, and it’s definitely not a small amount.

It’s too huge of an amount to make a decision to use it to purchase materials that are not player recruitment and that recruitment is not certain.

“What is it? You came all the way here because of just 10 million dollars? How many times do I have to say it? If it’s something you need, move first. If it’s a good item in the general manager’s eyes, it’s a good item in other people’s eyes. Move now! Quickly!!”

And for Steve Cohen, who earned $2 billion in ‘personal income’ last year, it was just about a daily wage.

***

“Oh, I received the data you sent. But what is this? Where did you get it?”

“I just got it well. So how is it? Is it useful?”

“Uh, I need to look into it a little more, but it definitely seems like it will help.”

NBM Center in New York, which refined my pitching last fall.

There, my younger brother, Jack Washington, who was in charge of physical training, told me good news.