The Pitcher Just Hits Home Runs Well [EN]: Chapter 224

224. Championship (1)

Instead of frowning, Lee Jin-myung sighed.

He had been with this newly founded team for 16 years since he was drafted. He had too much experience to let something like this shake his mentality.

‘He’s only a rookie, but to think he even considered a surprise slider here… No, wait a minute. Could it be that he didn’t even consider it and just reacted to it? Even if my slider has become trash, if that’s the case, it’s a bit disheartening…’

Then came Kang Raon.

-Clang!!

A well-hit ball zipped through the gap between 2nd and 3rd base.

A double.

He allowed consecutive hits. But that didn’t make Lee Jin-myung feel particularly desperate. After doing the same thing for about 16 years, you tend to just do your job rather than feel desperate. He naturally walked Noh Hyung-wook intentionally, filling 1st and 2nd base, and then induced a double play from Lee Gyu-man.

Two hits allowed, one run given up against five batters in the first inning.

Not bad.

“Seung-jin, I’ve done my part, so make sure to score. It’s been a while since you’ve had a hit at the plate too. It’s time to start hitting. Let me get double-digit wins for the first time in a while.”

“Yes!! I’ll do my best… But, senior, haven’t you only got 7 wins this year?”

“Hey, you never know. Maybe I’ll win today, win as a starter again, and then get one more win as a reliever at the end?”

“…I understand.”

Baek Ha-min came up to the mound.

“That guy is really handsome. He looks just like me 15 years ago.”

“Senior…”

“What? Why? Don’t you like my expression?”

“No, even so…”

“Man, I looked exactly like that when I was younger, but my skin aged because I played in the hot sun.”

“No, it’s not just the skin, but the features themselves… Besides, he’s played a full season in the hot sun too.”

“…”

“Should I ask him what products he uses later?”

Lee Jin-myung nodded.

Indeed, Baek Ha-min’s skin was still dazzlingly white even after playing a full season. And that was probably just one of the many things that Baek Ha-min was born with, rather than something he particularly managed.

On the mound, Baek Ha-min counted numbers in his head.

2.94

That was Choi Soo-won’s ERA [Earned Run Average, a measure of pitching performance], which went up after giving up 3 runs in 6.1 innings in yesterday’s game. That guy has gone too far to even compete with now.

Has there ever been a greater hitter than him in KBO [Korean Baseball Organization] history? No, will there ever be? If I were to carefully consider it, it would be impossible. The only hitter who has the potential to be greater than Choi Soo-won in the 2027 season is Choi Soo-won in the 2028 season, or the 2029, 2030 season.

Moreover, now that it’s almost certain that he’ll advance to MLB [Major League Baseball] next year, Choi Soo-won’s 2027 will surely be etched in KBO history as immortality. The records he set this year are great records that will be forever talked about as long as KBO exists, or perhaps as long as the sport of baseball exists.

The gap is so vast that I want to give up.

But Baek Ha-min looked straight at that distant gap in front of the player who was writing such overwhelming records, behind his junior who had gone too far to even compete with.

That distant gap said to him.

‘If you give up and walk your own path, it won’t be painful.’

No one could blame him. Who could blame someone for not being able to keep up with a runner who runs 1 hour and 30 minutes alone in a marathon where everyone aims for 2 hours?

Moreover, baseball is not just a marathon, it’s an ultra marathon. Who would have predicted that Justin Verlander would catch up to Clayton Kershaw’s greatness? Eventually, if you walk at your own pace, you might meet again somewhere on that long road in the sport of baseball.

And in front of that sweet temptation, Baek Ha-min counted the numbers one more time.

‘2.94.’

That must have been a strong whip towards himself who wanted to give up.

Hamin did not give up on staring straight at Choi Soo-won, who was going straight ahead without looking back.

Of course, he didn’t have the absurd idea that he could catch up all at once.

He just started with at least not falling behind in pitching records to that cocky junior who does both pitching and hitting alone.

Bottom of the 1st inning.

In that possibility, Baek Ha-min pitched his best. And William, the eldest son of the Washington brothers, who was watching the pitching, muttered.

“No matter how I look at it, that’s my type.”

“Will, you know that what you just said is very dangerous, right? It explains why you’re not married and don’t really meet women at all.”

“Don’t talk nonsense. You have eyes, so you can see it.”

“What? Filling in the gaps with a pitching mechanism despite the terrible physique? Well, my type is Swan rather than Hamin. Soft and solid. The recovery is absurd too. And if what you said is true, he has the software to match that physique.”

“Hey, Swan isn’t just that. He has perfect hardware and even more software. All he lacks is a bit of optimization? That’s why it’s not fun. Swan is like the unlucky rival who falls in the ring at the end in a comic or movie. Hamin is the real protagonist.”

“So, you want to be the coach who leads that protagonist well? Hyung [older brother], do you know how much money is left in your account? Don’t forget. Our pitching lab’s start-up funds include the trust funds that Mom and Dad set aside for Hyung’s lovely nephews’ college funds.”

“…I know. I know. I just said it was my taste, why is the story going so far?”

-Bang!!!

“Strike!! Out!!”

150.3km/h [approximately 93 mph].

A dynamic pitching form that seemed to squeeze the body.

“I’m just sad. I’m sad.”

“Yeah, Will. But don’t be too sad. Looking at it, he’s doing almost everything you told him without making mistakes. Of course, he’s running a bit over pace…”

I predicted that much from the beginning.

The habits of the players were obvious, and since I couldn’t keep adjusting them from the side, it was reasonable to set the goals as conservatively as possible. It was more appropriate advice for a nineteen-year-old boy to prevent injuries as much as possible, even if he couldn’t show the best performance.

“So, let’s take a little more care of him while we’re in Korea. Of course, we’ll get paid. Swan already paid for the business trip, so we can deduct that. The equipment is Marine’s anyway.”

“That’s a very touching thing to say from your stingy mouth.”

“It’s even more touching because it came from the mouth of a tragic younger brother who was forced to become stingy because a stupid older brother’s sense of money became too paralyzed.”

-Clang!!

A well-hit ball.

Kang Raon’s defense saved Baek Ha-min.

***

It was the end of the season, so it was time to lose some strength, but maybe it was because there were only a few games left, so he was determined to scrape the bottom? Hamin Hyung barely blocked the Blaze’s lineup.

After the 2nd inning, back to the top of the 3rd inning.

Blaze’s Lee Jin-myung came up to the mound again.

“Are we really going to win the championship today?”

“I guess so…”

I heard some players whispering.

Championship.

It wasn’t really a word that evoked much emotion. Of course, if it was the beginning of the season, it would have been a word that I would have run for with gritted teeth. But we had already risen to 1st place in the middle of the season and had been running without allowing any pursuit until now. So, after the single-digit magic number came out, it was no exaggeration to say that our championship was virtually decided.

Of course, unlike me, there were people who reacted very strongly to the word championship.

“Tsk!! You guys. Don’t jinx it. Can’t you be quiet?”

Seo Kyung-joon glanced around and controlled the players.

Of course, the target of that glance was Lee Gyu-man. Lee Gyu-man, who would have usually dissuaded him from unnecessarily catching the kids, didn’t seem to be in his right mind today.

That’s because it’s the first regular season championship in 45 years since the Marines were founded in 1982, and Lee Gyu-man himself is winning his first career championship after playing only for the Marines for 23 years.

Even if it was virtually decided a long time ago, now that it’s right in front of him, there’s no way he’d be in the right mind to pay attention to his surroundings.

-Whoosh!!!

“Strike!!!”

Lead hitter Jjo Yu swung his bat nicely in vain.

Because he’s a left-handed hitter, it should be relatively easy to face Lee Jin-myung, who is a right-handed sidearm pitcher, but he’s really nicely tricked by the changeup.

-Whoosh!!

“Strike!!”

Two times in a row.

-Whoooooosh!!!

“Strike!! Out!!!”

Should I say this is still fortunate? The last swing in vain was not a changeup, but a fastball.

“Ah, too bad. I was aiming for the changeup, but the fastball came right in.”

“Even if you’re Jjo Yu, you shouldn’t say three-pitch strikeout is too bad if you have any conscience.”

“Greg Maddux said this. You can’t distinguish a changeup unless you’re Barry Bonds. That means changeups are that difficult to face.”

“Not Barry Bonds, but Tony Gwynn.”

“Ah. Really? I was confused. But then does that mean Barry Bonds couldn’t hit changeups either? Then it’s natural that I struggled.”

Has Jjo Yu been hanging out with the Marines people too often? I don’t think he was this stupid and shameless before, but he’s become more of a mess.

-Bang!!!

And one of the culprits who made Jjo Yu a mess.

Lee Jung-hoon picked Lee Jin-myung’s ball.

Of course, as Jjo Yu said, distinguishing between a fastball and a changeup is much more difficult than predicting the trajectory of the ball. It’s no wonder that a changeup with no significant difference in trajectory from a fastball is a scam.

And Lee Jin-myung was a pitcher who was said to be a two-pitch pitcher with only one changeup, but the very fact that he’s still holding on as a starter proves how great that changeup is. In fact, his changeup has a very long tunneling section, so it’s difficult to distinguish between a fastball and a changeup just by looking at the trajectory.

Strike and foul.

And ball.

At a 2-2 count, Lee Jung-hoon swung his bat.

-Clang!!

It was a changeup.

Of course, he didn’t swing aiming for the changeup. He was tricked. Basically, Lee Jin-myung’s changeup was mostly a bait that went out of the zone.

Ground ball out to the infield.

With two outs and no runners, it was my turn to bat.

“Here you come again. Hey, aren’t we meeting too often?”

“Why? Are you going to get attached to me or something?”

“I guess so. If we get attached, then in my at-bat later… No, never mind. There’s no need to get attached. Hurry up and go to America.”

Useless small talk with Kim Seung-jin.

And Lee Jin-myung on the mound wound up.

Yes, it’s definitely very difficult to distinguish between a ball that gets faster and slower. That’s the same for me.

But you know.

That’s only the case when a ‘fast’ ball comes in ‘fast’ or comes in ‘slow’. If there’s no fast ball in the first place, what’s there to be confused about?

A slow ball and an even slower ball.

Of course, you can struggle with this composition too.

But if I struggle with a fastball that’s not even 140 km/h [approximately 87 mph] and a changeup that’s not even 130 km/h [approximately 81 mph], I’d feel too sorry for the major league pitchers who I beat up. Even if my shoulder hasn’t fully recovered today!!

-Clang!!!

Damn it…

The high fly ball flew straight to the left outfield.

It was a bit short again this time. But since there was a case in the first inning, I ran quickly, hoping for some luck.

-Aaaaah…

And again, I could tell even before I saw it.

A sigh full of regret, as if the entire stadium had become one.

[Ah, Jang Jae-hwan!! Blaze’s center fielder Jang Jae-hwan catches the ball cleanly in front of the fence.]

[The launch angle was a bit high. The wind seemed to be blowing slightly against it… And the direction was too deep. Choi Soo-won is not having any luck in many ways.]

Well, if I was lucky once, I might not be lucky twice.

But with these two at-bats, I have a sense of how to swing my bat in my current condition.

After the 4th inning, the 5th inning.

Baek Ha-min still didn’t give up any runs.