The Pitcher Just Hits Home Runs Well [EN]: Chapter 201

201. The Greatest Thing (1)

“Huh? What? Suwon is skipping his appearance?”

“Why? He *could* skip it. He’s a two-way player [a player who both pitches and bats], a rookie at that. Besides, they’re saying this year’s heat is the worst since 2018. It wouldn’t be surprising if he collapsed from exhaustion.”

“No, I mean, yeah, but Choi Suwon hasn’t missed a single appearance this year. And he even hit a home run in yesterday’s game.”

“Wait a minute, he hasn’t skipped an appearance *once* this year?”

Currently, the hottest player in the KBO [Korean Baseball Organization] is, without a doubt, Choi Suwon. In fact, beyond the KBO, even considering all of baseball worldwide, aside from the phenomenal Alexander McDowell, who’s dominating MLB [Major League Baseball], there isn’t anyone generating more buzz.

However, that doesn’t mean every KBO fan is meticulously tracking Choi Suwon’s stats. He’s primarily a hot topic because of his incredible, almost superhuman batting ability, not his pitching.

“Oh? Hold on. What’s with him? Why is he pitching so well? Isn’t he practically the best domestic starter, aside from Jo Changhyuk?”

20 games, 20 starts, 124 innings pitched, 49 runs allowed, 39 earned runs, 104 hits allowed, 8 home runs allowed, 34 walks, 5 hit-by-pitches, 2 balks [an illegal motion by the pitcher], 1 wild pitch, and 141 strikeouts. An ERA [Earned Run Average, a measure of pitching performance] of 2.83 and a FIP [Fielding Independent Pitching, a metric that focuses on what a pitcher can control] of 2.81.

Even his ERA+ [ERA adjusted for the ballpark and league average] is a whopping 148, and his FIP+ [FIP adjusted for the ballpark and league average] is 147.1. The only domestic pitchers with a higher FIP+ are Jo Changhyuk and Im Gwanghyuk, and even including foreign pitchers, there are only seven.

“Suwon’s fastball reaches 163 km/h [approximately 101 mph]. He also threw the KBO’s first perfect game this year. He’s a bit inconsistent, but if you only consider his potential, even Jo Changhyuk can’t compare. Jo Changhyuk was stuck in the minor leagues at 19.”

“No, that’s because he couldn’t properly prepare for the season due to those school violence allegations.”

“Anyway, where else can you find a pitcher putting up stats like this at 19? Honestly, if you erased the name Choi Suwon and just said ‘Korean pitcher A’ pitched like this at 19, there’d be an uproar, with everyone calling him a future major leaguer, right? In that sense, pitcher Choi Suwon is an unfortunate talent overshadowed by batter Choi Suwon.”

“That’s complete nonsense, but strangely persuasive…”

Basically, not every professional baseball fan watches every game. Even fans who watch all 144 games of their favorite team are considered hardcore. They usually just catch the scores or highlights of other teams’ games.

And pitcher Choi Suwon delivers amazing performances in games where he’s on, but sometimes struggles in games where he’s not. Because of that, except for the Braves fans, who suffered a no-hitter, and the Dolphins fans, who witnessed a perfect game, the other seven teams’ fans just see Choi Suwon’s pitching as a bonus from a player who can bat incredibly well and also hold his own as a starting pitcher.

“More than that, I’m worried if something’s actually wrong with Suwon’s health…”

***

“There aren’t any specific problems. He’s not experiencing any pain. However, many people are so focused on his outstanding performance that they forget Suwon is only nineteen years old. Usually, even in MLB, they impose innings limits on nineteen-year-old players. Personally, I think 20 games and 124 innings are already pushing it. Considering the player’s long-term future, I believe it’s the manager’s responsibility to ensure he gets adequate rest.”

“But with the Marines, the competition for first place is incredibly tight right now. Wouldn’t resting Choi Suwon in this situation be a huge waste? Of course, thinking about the player’s future is important, but ultimately, the team’s primary goal is to win, and the players feel the same way. If such caution leads to a critical mistake, it’ll be an irreversible failure.”

Manager Kim Daecheol smiled wryly.

“I think that’s underestimating our team. I don’t believe we’ll fall out of the first-place race just because Suwon skips an appearance. Right now, we have a 2.5-game lead over the second-place Dolphins.”

“Ah, I apologize. Choi Suwon’s performance is so dominant that I misspoke.”

“It’s alright. Anyway, let’s wrap up the interview for today.”

*Is it because he’s causing such a sensation?*

Just the news that he’s skipping one start in the rotation is causing a stir. Articles about injuries to the guy who hit a home run just yesterday were buried, and there were rumors of team discord due to his arrogant personality, or that he was being targeted by the team’s management for acting out.

Ridiculous nonsense not worth addressing.

However, a conversation he had a few days ago bothered him a little.

“Choi Suwon seems too tired. Shouldn’t we give him some rest?”

“Pardon?”

“No, why are you so surprised?”

“No, I’m just a little surprised that you’re suddenly only talking about Choi Suwon when you usually don’t comment on team operations.”

“Haha, that’s because I have so much faith in the manager. However, in Choi Suwon’s case, well, he’s a player that even the higher-ups are very interested in. You know about the Marines’ curse, right? That jinx that says you have to ruin the ace’s arm to win the championship. The higher-ups really hate hearing that story. Especially these days, with so much talk on social media. The parent company is a consumer goods company, so image is important. From their perspective, they don’t want to win the championship by destroying the arm of a promising player that MLB is keeping an eye on. Something like that.”

It was a very unusual conversation.

Of course, Jeon Sangik, the Marines’ general manager, was a graduate who had some experience with MLB, though not as much as Kang Jiwoo and Charlie Kim of the Griffins, and he emphasized a front office-driven approach to baseball. However, that was only regarding team composition, not team operations.

Furthermore, what made him even more uneasy was a strange rumor he’d heard, though it hadn’t been reported in the news yet.

The rumor was that there was a side deal between Choi Suwon and the Marines, related to posting conditions [the process of allowing a player under contract to a foreign league to negotiate with MLB teams] and ‘winning the championship.’

“And anyway, the real championship in the KBO is the Korean Series championship. Who cares that much about winning the regular season? Don’t you think?”

His head was starting to spin.

Manager Kim Daecheol shook his head.

He was a baseball manager.

In his opinion, a baseball manager’s job is to manage players and lead the team to victory. Such political maneuvering and scheming are things for those higher-ranking people to worry about.

If the general manager’s words are absurd, he doesn’t have to listen. However, he could also agree that Suwon needed a rest, regardless of the intention.

Game 1 against the Hawks.

Baek Hamin, who pitched in the game where Choi Suwon was originally scheduled to pitch, performed fairly well, pitching scoreless through the 4th inning.

And then, the 5th inning.

-Clang!!

A home run.

-Clang!!!!

And another home run.

Two home runs broke Baek Hamin.

[Ah, Nayoungjun with back-to-back home runs!! The tight score of 0:0 suddenly widens to 3:0.]

[Has Baek Hamin been a little shaken since the previous home run? Nayoungjun doesn’t miss the ball that was slightly over the plate.]

Manager Kim Daecheol’s face showed no change in expression.

However, that was just his outward expression. His heart was churning. When he thought about it, Baek Hamin was only one year older than Choi Suwon. This was his first year as a starter in the pros. Like Choi Suwon, he’d played in 20 games, starting 19 of them and pitching 119.1 innings. As of now, he’s played in 21 games and pitched 123.2 innings. Of course, unlike Choi Suwon, he doesn’t pitch and bat, and he had enough rest during the All-Star break, but he’s a different build and has different talent than Choi Suwon. An ordinary player would naturally be exhausted.

Should he make a substitution right away?

The score is still 3:0.

They can definitely catch up.

But he pitched well for 4 innings, and his pitches still have life. The previous 2-run home run was just because the batter made good contact, and Nayoungjun’s home run might just be because he was rattled for a moment after giving up the first one.

A choice with no easy answer.

“Coach.”

“How are you feeling? Can you pitch more?”

“Yes, I’m still fine.”

He was covered in sweat, but his good looks couldn’t be hidden. He spoke seriously with such a face, making him even more trustworthy.

The pitching coach who visited the mound returned.

“His eyes are still sharp. He still has plenty of grip strength left. Let’s trust him a little longer.”

Manager Kim Daecheol made a choice.

He decided to trust the twenty-year-old pitcher a little more.

-Clang!!!

And the first pitch that followed was a two-base hit.

“Contact the bullpen.”

Baek Hamin: 4.1 innings, 4 runs allowed.

And despite Choi Suwon’s solo home run, they suffered a disappointing 7:4 loss.

Game 2.

Choi Suwon’s name was not on the starting list.

***

“What’s going on? Why isn’t your boyfriend playing? Is there really something wrong? He was supposed to pitch yesterday.”

“Sehee, he’s not my boyfriend. And there’s nothing wrong. It’s just Suwon’s routine.”

“No, I know, but that routine was to rest the day after pitching. He didn’t pitch yesterday, so there’s no reason to rest, right?”

Originally, she started watching baseball because she was curious about the ‘alumnus’ that Park Eunji, the older sister she was closest to on the team, was always watching.

But was it because she unexpectedly liked the atmosphere of the baseball stadium and the flow of the game? Or maybe it was because she liked the way the team she was cheering for, just because the ‘alumnus’ belonged to it, was stubbornly winning and eventually taking first place in the league.

Lee Sehee had become a casual fan who occasionally watched baseball even if Park Eunji wasn’t there and checked the standings every day.

“Sehee, you also have a jinx where you have to wear that lucky bra when you appear on variety shows, right? Baseball players’ routines are a bit similar to that. It’s better to stick to the routine if possible. Besides, skipping a start is to give him a physical rest.”

“No, I know, but the timing is bad. The winning streak was broken in yesterday’s game, so we need to turn the atmosphere around right away.”

“Well, the Marines’ manager must have his reasons.”

“‘Stonehead’ [a derogatory nickname for the manager] Daecheol has reasons? I’d rather believe that Phoenix will win the championship.”

“Hey!! What’s wrong with our Phoenix!!”

“No, your boyfriend is the Marines’ franchise player, the number one candidate for the Marines’ permanent retirement, but why are you still our Phoenix!! It’s time to switch to the Marines!!”

The words, ‘No, our Suwon isn’t going to do anything like become a Marines’ franchise player and go straight to the majors!!’ rose to her throat, but she barely held them back.

How pathetic.

How did she become a fan of a team like the Marines and even try to get others to join her in being a Marines fan? They’ll do well for a while this year because they have Suwon. But in return, she’ll have to endure being in last place for the next 30 or 40 years.

On the other hand, how promising is Phoenix’s future? Choi Eudeum and Oh Minyeop. And Jeong Byeongcheol, the catcher who will be responsible for the team for 20 years, and Seo Gyutak and Kim Jeongmin have been pitching very well in the minor leagues recently.

While the Phoenix fan, who has the second most last-place finishes in KBO history, was pitying the Marines fan, who has the most last-place finishes in KBO history, the second game between the Marines and the Hawks was progressing quickly.