The Pitcher Just Hits Home Runs Well [EN]: Chapter 21

I Was Always Special (2)

Ji-yeon was right.

The aftermath of that day’s game was far greater than I had imagined.

Even my father, who was usually too busy with his business to come to games unless it was the King of Kings tournament, said he would come to watch the game with his acquaintances this weekend.

Moreover, on Monday morning.

There was a morning assembly for the second week in a row. Usually, I would have thought it was great to have secured extra sleep time, but very unfortunately, I was the star of today’s assembly.

“(Omitted)······ In recognition of this, I present this citation. May 13, 2025. Principal of Joongang High School, Kwak. Dae. Ryong.”

Seriously, I played the game on Saturday and finished the interviews and everything else in two days, and then suddenly I’m receiving a citation at the Monday morning assembly. I never knew the school’s administrative processing could be so swift.

The principal, whose face was unfamiliar as I always slept through the occasional broadcast assemblies, patted me on the shoulder. And the student affairs director, whose face was somewhat familiar, took pictures of me and the principal with a large-lensed camera.

“So, is there anything difficult about playing sports?”

A perfunctory greeting.

If this were a test, the answer the principal would expect here would be a cheerful, “No, it’s all thanks to your consideration!!”

And if the person receiving the citation here was really the eighteen-year-old Choi Soo-won, he might have gotten that answer right. To an eighteen-year-old boy who considered even a senior just one year older as a distant figure, the principal, who was higher than the coach, was an incredibly intimidating person.

But unfortunately, the person in this place now, no matter what his appearance might be, was a thirty-five-year-old middle-aged man who had been through seventeen more years of life.

Also, I had similar experiences before. Like when a club owner came to bestow a bonus and a word from me solved a long-standing problem of the club, or when the president, after I became the home run king, retweeted my picture on social media and a dog-like problem related to the national team was resolved.

Of course, the scale of the principal, club owner, and president are vastly different, but they are all figures of authority in the places I belong to.

“Thank you for your consideration!! Right now, the baseball team needs a cable machine, a Smith machine, and weight dumbbells and plates.”

“A cable what? What did you say? Mr. Park, what is this student talking about?”

“Ah, that is, he seems to be talking about exercise equipment······.”

“Is the baseball team lacking exercise equipment right now?”

“No, not exactly······.”

“Yes!! There are almost thirty people on the team now, and there aren’t enough machines, so we have to wait to do weight training. We’re taking turns, but the waiting time is too long, so the efficiency is very low.”

The principal tilted his head and asked the student affairs director again.

“Is that equipment very expensive?”

“Yes, there is a document that Coach Park submitted, but this year there are also costs for the equipment going into the science lab······.”

“Ah, I see. Please bring the relevant documents to the principal’s office right away.”

As expected. Power is the best.

The problem of exercise equipment in the weight room, which was one of the baseball team’s long-cherished projects, was solved in an instant with just a word from the principal.

“Thank you, Principal!!”

“Haha, no thanks needed. How can a player not be able to exercise because the equipment is inadequate when he wants to work hard? Choi Soo-won, I hope you work hard and get good results.”

“Yes!! Oh, and Principal, about that Smith machine. Could you make it a 3D one? I heard that it’s better for exercise and great for preventing injuries.”

***

“Wow······, how many people are there?”

Koo’s Baseball Park.

Jo Yu-jin’s mouth dropped open.

Certainly, compared to Mokdong Baseball Stadium, which had even been used as a professional stadium, Koo’s Baseball Park had a smaller capacity. However, with a seating capacity of 500, it was a baseball field where filling even half of those seats was considered a lot.

But it was different now. The stand-style wooden seats were packed without any space to sit, and some people who couldn’t find a seat were grumbling about how narrow the baseball field was and wandering around looking for a place where they could see the game.

More reporters than the last game.

Scouts from all ten clubs, just like last time.

And even people with personal cameras who appeared to be BJs [Broadcast Jockeys, or live streamers] or YouTubers. Of course, Jo Yu-jin didn’t usually watch internet broadcasts, so she couldn’t be sure, but seeing people around recognizing some of them, it seemed like people with at least some recognition had come to watch the game today.

‘Damn it······.’

Of course, their purpose is Choi Soo-won.

They must have come to try to get something out of him since he’s been in the news and set records and all that. But I can’t help but feel nervous thinking about my play being watched by an unspecified number of people.

More than anything······.

‘Seriously, who are the foreigners?’

A foreigner with a huge camera.

A huge black man who looked like he could easily lift 500, if not 600, pounds was setting up his camera and talking about something. Because he was so big, the large camera looked tiny.

Could it be a Major League scout?

It wasn’t an implausible story. Even though it was only two games, the impact Soo-won had shown in the previous and last games was too strong.

A home run king who throws 151km/h. I heard that the Major League is also hot with two-way players these days, so Choi Soo-won might be able to aim for being a two-way player.

-Thwack!!

The ball thrown by Choi Soo-won from about 70 meters away was embedded in the mitt.

Clean.

I wonder what the coach is thinking? In the last game, Soo-won’s home run record was at stake, so he was sent out as a designated hitter instead of a starting pitcher, but today he’s a right fielder. Is he really trying to switch Soo-won to a fielder instead of a pitcher?

But it would be a waste of an arm that throws 151km/h, and the only decent pitchers on the team right now are that guy Choi Soo-won and Senior Byung-young.

-Thwack!!

Cho Yu-jin lightly caught the ball thrown by Choi Soo-won. He caught a slightly high ball by stretching his arm up instead of stepping back, which looked pretty cool.

‘He definitely looks taller because of his long limbs, doesn’t he?’

Come to think of it, there were quite a few comments on the internet saying that Choi Soo-won was handsome. I went to each one and pressed the dislike button, but seeing him throwing and catching the ball on the ground now, I have to admit it, even if I don’t want to.

‘Of course, I’ll still press the dislike button.’

The game started.

Senior Byung-young didn’t pitch very well.

Jo Yu-jin knew it well because she was catching the ball. Today’s Senior Byung-young was just the same as usual. If he gritted his teeth and threw, he could throw 132km/h, but his control would be a bit shaky, and if he threw moderately, he could throw around 128km/h into the desired course. His curve was not good, but his slider was okay.

“Nice!!!”

So, the reason Senior Byung-young on the mound could roar now was not because he pitched well today, but because the opposing team’s bats were out of whack.

7 innings, 4 hits, 2 walks, 6 strikeouts, and 1 run allowed.

He threw 104 pitches and came down from the mound.

And in the bottom of the 7th inning.

It was Jo Yu-jin’s turn as the 9th batter.

***

People often use expressions like “a player who is strong in big games” or “a pinch hitter.”

There are many arguments about whether such a player really exists or not, but if there is such a player, Jo Yu-jin could never be a player who is strong in opportunities.

-Whoosh!!!

“Strike!! Out!!”

Already the third strikeout of the game.

Of course, her batting wasn’t very good to begin with, but her body felt particularly stiff today. It seemed to be because she was nervous about the number of spectators and the cameras of the news companies.

Bottom of the 7th inning. One out, no runners.

All the camera lenses were pointed at me. I lightly patted the butt of Jo Yu-jin, who was coming in dejectedly, and stood at the plate.

I adjusted my helmet with my left hand and tapped my head twice. Then, I gripped the bat strongly twice with my right hand, tapped the home plate once, and then adjusted my stance.

The pitcher on the mound threw the ball.

It was the same routine he had shown in today’s game.

-Thwack!

-Thwack!!

-Thwack!!!

-Thwack!!!!

Straight walk.

Perhaps because I hit a slightly off-target ball in the last game, he threw it where the bat couldn’t even graze the ball. He must have meant that it didn’t matter if it went behind because there were no runners anyway.

Walk for three consecutive at-bats.

Well, it’s a reasonable choice······.

I walked to first base, took off my helmet, and took off the shin guards. I put on the stolen base gloves that the first base coach handed me, lowered my body slightly, and created a distance of about three steps.

A threat that I could run to second base if necessary.

Of course, I didn’t really intend to run.

But the pitcher on the mound is already nervous and shaking. This alone is bound to put pressure on him.

The pitcher on the mound threw two balls, each foul and ball.

And the third.

-Clang!!

Our strategic second batter surprisingly recorded a hit that went over the shortstop’s head.

It was a pretty big hit.

I ran to second base with all my might.

I didn’t bother to look at the hit directly. That’s the job of the third base coach anyway.

‘Run!!’

I didn’t stop my foot that stepped on second base. Six big steps. Now third base wasn’t that far away. Huh? But the third base coach’s arm doesn’t seem to stop turning.

Was there some kind of mistake in the opposing team’s defense? Well, nothing is particularly strange in high school baseball. Especially considering the level of the opposing team today.

Right foot.

Left foot.

Right foot again.

And left foot again.

I stepped slightly on the inside of the base. My body was trying to be pulled outward by centrifugal force. My body was already leaning slightly to the left. I increased the movement of my right arm and suppressed the movement of my left arm.

I suppressed my body, which seemed like it would turn greatly outward, as much as possible and ran quickly toward home.

I can see the empty base over there.

The catcher is waiting for the ball, slightly forward.

I had a feeling.

Headfirst sliding.

I threw my body and lightly tapped the home plate with my left hand.

-Thwack!!

And the sound of the catch ringing almost simultaneously.

I was comfortably faster.

“Safe!!!”

Bottom of the 7th inning. One out, 8:1 called game [a game ended early due to a significant score difference].

The game was over.

***

It’s already been three weeks since Benjamin came to Korea.

He visited the stadium every time, but he still hadn’t achieved his purpose here.

Suwon Choi(OF) [Outfielder]

Hit : ??

Power : ??

Run : 55

Fielding : 40

Arm : 70

Suwon Choi(RHP) [Right-Handed Pitcher]

Fastball : 60

Slider : 45

Changeup : 40

Control : 40

“Yes, Boss. Unfortunately, following the previous and last games, I couldn’t see his batting in today’s game except for the foul in the first at-bat.”

“@#$%@$#%^”

“No, what can I do when the other side doesn’t even try to compete? Logically, it’s natural for the opposing team to do that if he’s that good of a hitter. Ah, but I saw some pitching this time. The pitching was also very good. Of course, he still needs to build his body and there seem to be many things to fix, but on the other hand, that means he’s throwing 151km/h in that state. And since the Golden Lion Flag tournament will be held from next Tuesday, I think I can take a closer look there.”

“······.”

“Yes, yes, I understand. I will send the video and report together as before.”