The Pitcher Just Hits Home Runs Well [EN]: Chapter 232

232. After the Championship (5)

The manager gave Im Gwang-hyeong the option, but there really wasn’t a choice.

The choice to run away is easy.

It seemed reasonable at first glance. But he could never choose that.

Because Im Gwang-hyeong was the ace.

Yes, the ace. An ace used in a very old-fashioned, classic sense. So, Im Gwang-hyeong was more than just the best pitcher on the team; he was the ace with a lot of implications that were hard to put into words.

That’s why in this 144th game.

He faced the batter who raised his ERA [Earned Run Average, a measure of pitching performance] by a whopping 0.42 points again like this.

“We meet again.”

“Yeah.”

Jeong Byeong-cheol didn’t really answer anything. He wasn’t usually a man of few words, but the importance of today’s game and Im Gwang-hyeong’s attitude towards this game made him a bit stiff.

Choi Su-won performed his routine at the plate without saying anything more.

It was heavy.

Jeong Byeong-cheol knew Im Gwang-hyeong’s heart. He knew the path he had walked well. That’s why he understood how heavy the things Im Gwang-hyeong carried were, and how great it was to carry them willingly.

Then what is the weight felt from this young batter at the plate now? Does this weight simply stem from his enormous talent?

First pitch.

Fastball.

It was a deep inside course.

-Ppeoeong!!

A perfect ball that wouldn’t be strange no matter what call came out.

The pitcher, batter, and even the catcher all focused their attention on the umpire’s mouth. Because how easily today’s game could go would ultimately be determined by this call.

And the umpire didn’t clench his fist.

Ball count 1-0.

‘Damn it.’

Jeong Byeong-cheol cursed inwardly.

It was a ball that was good enough to be called a strike. No, objectively speaking, it was much closer to a strike. But the umpire is also human. He can’t help but be aware of public opinion.

70 pitches in the previous game.

Even that was 70 pitches with multiple home runs. Moreover, Im Gwang-hyeong, who he is facing today, has allowed as many as 3 home runs and 4 home runs against Choi Su-won.

73 pitches.

That means there is ‘possibility’ in that number that is logically impossible. In this situation, if the umpire thinks about self-preservation even a little, the call will inevitably be in favor of the batter.

Of course, depending on the umpire, there were cases where they went the other way to maintain a strong image without any of that, but it didn’t seem like the home plate umpire Park Young-joo had any intention of doing that today.

There was no change in Im Gwang-hyeong’s face.

Second.

Again, inside.

This time, a slightly lower course. A ball that digs inside by half a ball’s difference. It was truly a command that deserved the expression exquisite.

-Ttaak!!!

[Choi Su-won!! Hit it!! A huge foul ball falling deep into the infield stands!!]

Choi Su-won took a step back from the plate for a moment and adjusted his helmet.

He’s definitely a great pitcher.

It wasn’t a four-seam fastball. It was a cutter that slipped further inside on the inside course. It’s truly an admirable ball. He threw a cutter right after the four-seam fastball, and he controlled it so perfectly. If it had been a little off, it would have been a hit by pitch. It was truly a perfect belief in his command. And it was an aggregation of great skills that lived up to that belief.

Ball count 1-1

Im Gwang-hyeong prepared his third ball.

His face was still unchanged.

Outside course two-seam fastball.

It slipped out slightly far.

2-1.

Immediately following the fourth outside low course.

Choi Su-won thought it would be a changeup that fell a little more. This is because the outside low course two-seam fastball was already a course where he had hit two home runs. No matter how bold a pitcher is, would he show a ball that he has been hit with two home runs twice in a row? Even while putting it into the zone this time?

-Ppeoeong!!

“Strike!!”

144.7km/h

Im Gwang-hyeong was convinced that Choi Su-won was also tired.

The number of recent home runs was still the same, but the distance was definitely reduced. The reason why his number of home runs is still the same is because intentional walks are decreasing and more aggressive hitting is taking place. In fact, the increased number of outfield flies as much as recent home runs proves it. So, it would be difficult to swing the bat aggressively at such ambiguous balls.

Ball count 2-2.

Now one strike is a strikeout.

-gulp.

Jeong Byeong-cheol swallowed hard.

When Im Gwang-hyeong told him about the ‘secret weapon’ before the game, Jeong Byeong-cheol couldn’t easily nod his head. Frankly, he understood it right away because the person who said that was Im Gwang-hyeong, but if an ordinary pitcher had said that, he would have recommended thinking about it again.

High fastball.

Yes, after the launch angle became important with the fly ball revolution, home run hitters have had a hard time with high fastballs for quite some time.

However, since trends come and go, the trend of having difficulty with high fastballs is slowly fading away, and in Major League Baseball, there is a tendency to avoid high fastballs again. Of course, in the case of the KBO [Korean Baseball Organization], the trend is a bit slow, so it was still an effective ball, but Choi Su-won is an exception. He has already sent such high fastballs out of the fence several times this season.

So, what Jeong Byeong-cheol believes in now is not logical consistency or theoretical validity, but the pitcher Im Gwang-hyeong himself.

Fifth.

Im Gwang-hyeong wound up greatly. And the center of gravity that had moved backwards quickly moved forward. A subtly faster center of gravity movement than usual. And in line with that subtle increase in timing, the ball stretched out from his fingertips with a very slightly faster timing.

Im Gwang-hyeong’s boasted computer-like command faltered a little. No matter how good he is, he couldn’t expect such perfect command even in this situation. But instead of the sacrificed command, the ball gained speed. Moreover, thanks to the timing of the pitch being faster by half a beat, the timing of the ball coming was even faster than the number indicated.

148.7km/h

Slightly high course. A lightning-like high fastball.

It was ace Im Gwang-hyeong’s prepared finishing ball to strike out with two strikes.

Choi Su-won’s bat moved.

He didn’t predict the surprise high fastball. But his sharply honed senses were sharp enough to react to the surprise fastball.

The location of the batted ball was high.

As much as that, the trajectory of the swing was also high. His body balance was disrupted, but his amazing sense of balance and the batting form engraved in his mind barely corrected it.

The tightly tightened right armpit pulled the bat out. The core, which was definitely thicker than his weight, helped the rotation of his torso.

-Tak!!!

High fly ball.

Choi Su-won briefly checked the batted ball. After the follow-through, he dropped the bat he was holding tightly with both hands.

[Hit it!! A fast batted ball!! Center left!! Center left!!]

Im Gwang-hyeong’s finger pointed to the batted ball.

The Phoenix center fielder chased the batted ball. It was a precarious batted ball. The fans who filled Sajik Stadium prayed that Im Gwang-hyeong would become a tree that generously gives to Choi Su-won again today.

A height that was slightly insufficient to be called precarious.

Choi Su-won’s batted ball hit a place about 1 meter lower than the top of the fence.

[Ah, it was slightly insufficient.]

Fortunately, Phoenix was not a team with excellent fielding by fielders. In particular, the outfield was said to be more serious than the Marines, so today they showed their fielding worthy of that evaluation without regret.

Instead of catching the batted ball, even though they started fielding from a position deep in the outfield, the handling of the batted ball that bounced off the fence was very clumsy.

The result was a runner on third base with no outs.

Im Gwang-hyeong on the mound did not express regret for the clumsy fielding. He prepared for the next batter as if nothing had happened.

Choi Su-won was very disappointed that his batted ball did not go over the fence.

[Well, bottom of the 1st inning. 2:0. Runner on third base with no outs. A situation where you can make up 1 point with a hit or a sacrifice fly. Kang Ra-on is at the plate, Kang Ra-on is coming up.]

-Bu웅!!!

“Strike!! Out!!”

Perhaps because he perfectly read Kang Ra-on’s mind to hit it high? A changeup that appropriately slipped out took a strikeout from him.

A strikeout in a situation with a runner on third base with no outs. And an infield fly ball. And an outfield fly.

Im Gwang-hyeong clearly did not give up a point.

“Ah, s······. I’m pissed off. I want to quit swearing. Because of these guys, I can’t quit swearing? No, do these bastards have to make this game a Chick-Collasico even in this kind of game?”

“No, at that level, it would be better to just put a scarecrow in the outfield. No, a guy who can’t hit and can’t field, why is he in the pro first team?”

That’s right.

It was Phoenix’s clumsy fielding that gave up the point.

[Ah, it’s out!! The runner on third base to home!! The batter safely arrives at first base.]

[Bottom of the 1st inning, two outs. The Marines catch up by 1 point.]

2:1.

There was still no change in the expression on Im Gwang-hyeong’s face on the mound.

***

Is it because everyone has been resting a bit lately?

Or is it because the championship has already been decided and their minds are relaxed?

‘Bullshit, it’s just always like that.’

Noh Hyeong-wook on third base loosened his shoulders with an awkward expression.

That guy could have calmly caught the ground ball and thrown it to first base, but he threw it in a hurry, and the throw floated up, sending it to second base instead of ending it with a ground ball out.

Noh Hyeong-wook wasn’t the only one who made a mistake. Kang Ra-on and Saul Lopez too. Overall, the atmosphere was very chaotic today.

At the end of the top of the 2nd inning, the score was 4:1. In this inning, Han Myeong-hoon gave up two hits but gave up two additional points. Of course, there were no home runs among those 2 hits. That’s right. Today’s game was a classic Chick-Collasico itself.

Im Gwang-hyeong and I are very serious and determined, but the Marines and Phoenix are not cooperating. They keep turning the game into entertainment. Moreover, the spectators who came to see today’s game were fans who came to see the beautiful finish of the Marines and Phoenix, which had been pretty good this regular season.

The atmosphere in the stadium was not good.

In that situation, bottom of the 2nd inning.

Runner on second base with two outs.

My at-bat came around.

Im Gwang-hyeong’s face was expressionless.

But for some reason? I could infer Im Gwang-hyeong’s thoughts a little from that expressionless face.

‘Ah, I wanted to face him less if possible, but I’m facing him in the 1st inning and again in the 2nd inning? Is this real?’

Isn’t that what he’s thinking?

“Oh, we meet often. I wish we could see each other more nicely if possible······. Anyway, it’s nice to see you so often like this.”

“······.”

This time too, Jeong Byeong-cheol didn’t answer anything.

Well, he probably didn’t like this Chick-Collasico either.

Yeah, it’s a shame that the end of the regular season is like this.

But if you ask me if this Chick-Collasico has necessarily worked badly for me, well······.

Bottom of the 2nd inning, runner on second base with two outs.

While getting five outs, the number of pitches Im Gwang-hyeong has thrown so far is a whopping 39.

First pitch.

Im Gwang-hyeong’s 40th ball left his hand.

Yes, a whopping 40th.

The number of balls I directly faced today is five.

And the number of balls I watched in the waiting at-bat is six.

The number of balls I stared at intently from the dugout is twenty-nine.

And I added 3 more balls to that.

-Tak!!!

Yeah, Im Gwang-hyeong’s preparation for today’s game was not lacking.

But the defense of Daejeon Phoenix was not good enough to live up to his preparation.

The batted ball went over the fence.

It was his 71st home run of the season.