The Pitcher Just Hits Home Runs Well [EN]: Chapter 230

230. After the Championship (3)

I knew it without being told.

My swing had gotten a bit bigger.

But I didn’t bother correcting it. There was no reason to. The team didn’t need any more wins. The team openly showed that intention. They gave the main players rest and gave the rookies a chance to gain experience in the first team. And they moved my batting order up to number 1.

The goal was obvious.

Yeah, it’s a home run. But not many people would tell me that outright. And it was even rarer for someone to mention a specific number.

No, it’s more than rare. Frankly, Alexander McDowell is the only crazy bastard who would openly talk to me about 73 home runs right now. This is almost like telling a pitcher who’s aware of a perfect game, ‘When else will you get a chance to pitch a perfect game? You have to do it. Huh? I’ll give you lots of energy.’ That’s crazy talk.

But maybe because it’s crazy talk from a crazy guy, it was quite encouraging.

Anyway, I swung, openly aiming for a home run.

But maybe it’s because it’s Jamsil Stadium [a baseball stadium in Seoul], or maybe it’s because I’ve accumulated a lot of fatigue without realizing it at the end of the season, but it just wouldn’t go over the fence.

“Isn’t this the timing for you to say something?”

“Hmph, if you wanted that, you should have brought a hitting instructor. I’m a pitching expert.”

William proudly declared that he had nothing to say.

“No, not really pitching either…”

“That’s because there’s nothing for Swan to touch in the short term. Besides, your next appearance is in 3 weeks.”

“But isn’t that too much for Hamin, who also has his next appearance in 3 weeks?”

“It’s difficult to say anything about using work time without paying for business trips separately. Besides, Hamin has a lot of things to touch right away, unlike you. Unlike you, his body balance has changed quite a bit, and in the process, he’s picked up some unnecessary habits here and there. Fortunately, he’s keeping the basics, and that balance change is positive, but more efficient changes are possible in a relatively short period of time. Besides, don’t you need Hamin’s performance to win the championship anyway?”

I shrugged once, looking at Jack, who was making a slightly troubled expression next to me.

“Haha, Swan. It’s a bit unpleasant to say, but most of it is true. Besides, that guy is incompetent and doesn’t know anything other than pitching mechanics, so there’s not much else he can help with in the current situation. You’re not going to fix your pitching right now, are you?”

Actually, I wasn’t really expecting anything from William. It was more like a complaint to the person next to me. But Jack reacted quite seriously to my complaint.

That seriousness was too far from the direction I wanted…

“First of all, in terms of physical aspects, the muscle fatigue is a bit high… But that’s inevitable for people. If you want more than that…”

I waved my hand at Jack, who was hesitating for a moment.

“No. That’s okay.”

“Good thinking. That’s what losers with nothing to lose do when they try to jump once. It’s not something a player like you should touch.”

The body of a nineteen-year-old.

Well, it’s no exaggeration to say that almost natural steroids are spewing out. I’ve been managed in many ways, and the schedule is much more relaxed compared to MLB [Major League Baseball], but anyway, considering that I’ve combined pitching and hitting, my physical condition at the end of the season is very good.

“I think I told you once not too long ago? And you said the answer then.”

That’s right.

It is impossible for a batter to hit a home run in every at-bat. How many times do they fail to hit the ball over the fence in the Major League All-Star Game home run derby, where the best hitters gather?

“It’s inevitable that you’re impatient. But don’t forget. Swan, you’ve played 142 games so far. No, even the games you played as a hitter are only about 110 games. And 68 home runs in that. That’s really absurd. Even if you don’t add more home runs, no one will say anything.”

It was very good comfort like an adult.

Of course, I liked Alex’s absurd encouragement more than Jack’s very good comfort like an adult.

Still, if this comfort has helped me in any way, it was that I found someone who would say something to me if I couldn’t add more home runs from 68.

Alexander McDowell?

No, he’s probably the guy who would chuckle and say it’s a shame, so try again in the Major League next year, not the guy who would bother to say anything to me.

Choi Su-won.

Yes, myself.

If I can’t set a new record here, I probably won’t be able to forgive myself. Am I being too harsh on myself? Should I be a little more generous to myself? Yes, if I had a friend around me who was driving himself too hard and suffering from it, I could say that as much as I wanted. But I wasn’t an ordinary person. I experienced a miraculous moment that ordinary people could never do.

I have to do it.

And I can do it.

-Clang!!!

Thus, the game against Elitz.

First at-bat.

Home run number 69.

Starting with a home run that easily went over the fence that hadn’t gone over yesterday, I recorded 2 hits and 2 home runs in 5 at-bats, reaching the 70 home run mark.

2nd all-time.

Yes, 2nd all-time. Before returning to this era. Of course, the league was different and the standards were different, but it was the 2nd all-time record that I had really desperately experienced.

There is only one game left.

The team bus headed back to Busan.

***

“Gwang-hyung [hyung is a Korean term used to refer to an older brother or male friend], I’ll leave this to your choice.”

“No, manager. What choice are you talking about at this timing? I’m old enough now. And you’re not even MZ [Millennial and Generation Z], manager. You have to be more old school here. It’s cooler when you get old.”

“Is that so?”

“That’s right.”

“Then please. What can I do? We’ve come this far.”

“Uh… But it seems like you haven’t come far enough to use that line. Okay. Well, what can I do? Let’s try it.”

Actually, it was a bit difficult to avoid.

Phoenix didn’t have many rain cancellations this season, so they had a few more rest days at the end of the season. Of course, it was Choi Eu-ddeum’s turn to go on the rotation as the 4th starter, but Im Gwang-hyung had already taken a five-day break.

In addition, Phoenix has confirmed the fall baseball season this season. However, the ranking has not yet been confirmed. If Phoenix wins the game against the Marines, they will go straight to the 준playoffs [semi-playoffs] as the 3rd in the regular season. If they lose, they will have to go through the wild card as the 4th.

“Senior.”

“Oh. Oh, it wasn’t a big deal. He just asked if I was going to take the chance to get revenge or not.”

“I see.”

Jung Byung-cheol nodded.

And that was the end.

“Huh? What’s wrong? Aren’t you curious? What choice did I make?”

“You haven’t learned how to run away yet, have you?”

“What nonsense are you talking about? I’m so good at running away. Look, I’m playing in the KBO [Korean Baseball Organization] instead of throwing in the MLB because I don’t want to lose at this age.”

“Senior. Ask all the people in Daejeon. Ask them if choosing Daejeon Phoenix instead of Atlanta Braves is running away or a challenge.”

“Tsk, I used to have a cute taste because I couldn’t even make eye contact properly at the beginning of the season. Seeing you answering back so clearly…”

“Do you like it more?”

“Yeah, you bastard. Come here and catch some balls. I’ve already thought of something to deal with that monster Choi Su-won.”

Busan Sajik Stadium.

The 144th game of the season.

The Marines’ last opponent is Daejeon Phoenix, the soul rival who has consistently competed for the bottom of the league for the past twenty years. And the best Korean pitcher created by Daejeon Phoenix.

It was Im Gwang-hyung.

***

The 23,000 seats in Sajik Stadium were already full. The Choi Su-won uniforms, which were prepared in huge quantities at the store inside the stadium, were also completely sold out.

As if it were too natural, countless people who could not enter the stadium were sitting on the lawn near the ticket office outside the outfield of Sajik Baseball Stadium. Baseball broadcasts were being played on a large screen temporarily installed near the gate.

Even that space was very insufficient, and the internal roads that could go to and from the parking lot, as well as the Sajik Indoor Gymnasium and the indoor swimming pool, were full of people.

A scene that perfectly matches the expression crowded with people.

Of course, the Marines’ championship has already been decided. But even so, Busan’s baseball fans have been eagerly waiting for the last game of this season, when the Marines’ first regular season championship is perfectly announced.

“If this world were a movie, I would think that even if the Earth was destroyed by a meteorite collision before the Marines’ championship announcement came out, it would be a sufficiently plausible development.”

“If you mean that the Marines’ championship is enough as a plausibility for the destruction of the Earth, I fully agree.”

“More than that, Phoenix’s starting pitcher is Im Gwang-hyung today, so don’t you feel good about it?”

“Of course I feel good. He’s completely caught by Su-won. I think ‘that’ might be possible today.”

Of course, the reason why they gathered in the outer field outside the stadium was not just because they wanted to be in Sajik Stadium at the moment of victory.

Home run outside the stadium.

The number of people who expect it to come out is also not small. In fact, Choi Su-won’s 61st new record was a home run outside the stadium that no one expected. Thanks to this, a significant number of people gathered outside the stadium were holding a large dragonfly net.

“What’s the viewership rating?”

“It’s 23.1%.”

“Crazy.”

The eyes of the entire nation gathered are truly terrifying, even though the game has not yet started. It seemed too natural to renew the highest viewership rating of the KBO regular season, and perhaps even surpass the highest viewership rating in KBO history. The 32.1% of the 1993 Korean Series.

The eyes of the entire nation gathered on that stage, which was perfect for the expression, and Han Myung-hoon, the Marines’ most winning local pitcher last year, came up.

[Marines vs. Phoenix. The last game of the season between Phoenix and Marines!! Marines starting pitcher Han Myung-hoon is on the mound.]

[Today’s game is really important for Phoenix, right?]

[Yes, that’s right. Whether they win or lose determines whether they are 3rd or 4th in the regular season. In fact, there is a big difference between playing the wild card and not playing it.]

[In the case of the Marines, the regular season championship has already been confirmed, but it is still a very important game. In fact, if you look at it, most of the starting players who had been resting on the rotation for the past few days were used as starters. The last game of the season held at home. The first championship since its foundation!! Coach Kim Dae-cheol said in an interview before the game that he would allow them to fully enjoy the great joy of winning, which he had not been able to give for 45 years, by winning.]

[In addition, the game is also very important for Han Myung-hoon, who is currently on the mound.]

[That’s right. It’s the last chance to win 7 wins, surpassing last year’s 6 wins. However, in this year’s case, even if he wins 7 wins, he will not be able to take the title of the Marines’ most winning local pitcher.]

Most wins by a local pitcher.

A not bad title. No, it’s even honorable in some ways. But if the specific number of 6 wins and 11 losses is added to it, it is not honor but just ridicule.

6 wins and 11 losses last year. The most winning local pitcher in the team. And Han Myung-hoon, who started the season as a bullpen pitcher this year, stood as the starter in the Marines’ last game.

-Clang!!!

The first pitch is a cool double to the right-center field.

And Oh Min-yeop, the shortstop who is very likely to win the Golden Glove this season, came to the plate.