The Pitcher Just Hits Home Runs Well [EN]: Chapter 241

241. Korean Series (6)

Bus 111 was packed with people heading to Sajik Stadium. The faces of those who had managed to snag tickets were beaming. And why wouldn’t they be? It had just been announced that Choi Su-won would be the starting pitcher that day. It was an unexpected stroke of luck.

“Hey, Gyu-hwan. Why is Su-won starting today, though?”

“Why? You don’t like it?”

“Of course I like it! I’m thrilled. Just getting tickets to Sajik is tough enough, but Brave’s tickets are even harder to come by than Sajik’s, even though they’re supposed to be an unpopular team, right?”

“You think all those people are Brave’s fans? There are tons of Marlins fans living in Seoul. My great-grandparents’ family has been Marlins fans for three generations. Besides, Su-won has a lot of personal fans, doesn’t he? There are rumors he’s going to the majors next year. So, it was even harder to get tickets because people wanted to see Su-won’s last game in Korea.”

“Then the people who bought tickets to see Su-won pitch in Game 3 must be kicking themselves?”

Mr. Oh Gyu-hwan nodded.

“That’s right. But some hardcore fans probably saw it coming.”

“Huh? How could they predict that?”

“Our second starting foreign pitcher is Diego, Diego Rodriguez.”

“So what?”

“Don’t you know who Diego was strong against last year?”

“Hey, of course I know that! He always choked whenever he faced the Marlins.”

“No, you have to exclude the Marlins. It’s harder to find someone who *didn’t* choke when they met the Marlins, no matter who it is. And my question wasn’t ‘who did he meet,’ but ‘who was he strong against’?”

In fact, contrary to what Mr. Oh Gyu-hwan said, Diego Rodriguez, who played for Elitz last year, was particularly strong against the Marlins. It wouldn’t be an exaggeration to say he was their nemesis. However, he showed a decent performance against the Braves both last year and this year, but the overall numbers weren’t that outstanding. But the pattern is a bit unusual.

“So, you’re saying he was just so-so at home against the Braves, but he dominated on the road?”

“Yeah, Diego played a total of five games against the Braves last year and this year. Only three of them were away games, and of course, the sample size is too small, but it’s hard to just dismiss it because all three games were good.”

“Hey, but Diego isn’t really a ground ball pitcher, is he? And Gocheok [a stadium with a fully covered dome] is an artificial turf, so it’s disadvantageous for ground ball pitchers, right?”

“That’s…”

***

My starting pitching announcement for Game 2 of the series may have surprised some people, but it was something that had already been discussed internally within the team. It’s not like I played as a designated hitter instead of a first baseman in Game 1 for no reason.

-Thwack!!

“Good ball. You’re in good shape?”

“Of course. I just swung the bat once yesterday and rested well. My stamina is at 200 percent right now.”

Jo Yu-jin gave a thumbs up.

-Thwack!!

“Yeah, yeah, I know you’re at 200 percent. But your changeup is coming in too strong at 200 percent right now.”

“I know. My changeup isn’t dropping well today.”

“Well, it doesn’t seem that strange. Anyway, let’s throw a few more changeups and finish up. Let’s focus on fastballs and curves as usual for today’s pitching.”

“Okay.”

Being a battery [pitcher and catcher duo] with Jjo-yu in the Korean Series.

It felt a bit strange. The last time was in my second year of high school before I went back in time.

Well, even in terms of intimacy, wouldn’t the four years I’ve known her now be closer than the 19 years I knew her in my previous life, from sixteen to thirty-four?

“I sometimes feel like this is a dream.”

“What is?”

“Well, you know. It was obvious that you were a promising player who would go pro, but that wasn’t the case for me. But from coming to the pros in the second round to winning the starting catcher position in my first year, I’m even receiving your pitches in the Korean Series.”

Jjo-yu’s eyes were unnecessarily moist.

“Hey, don’t do that.”

“What?”

“That thing with your eyes getting all moist. Seriously, anyone would think we’ve already won the championship. Of course, we’re going to win anyway, but don’t get all sentimental already. Huh? You know that, right? This is a death flag if it were a movie. *Slam Dunk* [a popular manga and anime series] also had something like, ‘That photo was never used.’ Of course, we’ll never be like that.”

“Yeah, what’s so great about winning the Korean Series? We already won when we were in high school.”

“Hey, even so, winning the Korean Series is a bit different from winning a national high school tournament. Especially with the Marlins. At this point, isn’t it more difficult than winning the World Series with a major league big market team? No, maybe it’s as difficult as winning with a small market team.”

“Really? Then, now that it’s come to this, let’s clear the most difficult Marlins championship first, and then win together as a battery in the majors later.”

“Well, winning in the majors seems possible enough as it is, but the ‘as a battery’ part is a bit difficult, isn’t it? First of all, you need to go through the very difficult process of advancing to the majors and becoming a starting catcher.”

“You little… You really have no romance. Do you have to hit people with facts even at a moment like this? I know I can’t go to the majors, you know.”

Why was that?

Yeah, maybe it was because it was ‘this kind of moment,’ as Jo Yu-jin said, that I was a bit emotional.

“Jjo-yu, I clearly said that a difficult and arduous process is needed, but I didn’t say it was impossible.”

“Huh?”

“Never mind. I’m going to go meditate. Practice your hitting properly and see you later.”

“Hey, wait. Wait a minute. Are you saying that there’s a possibility that I can go to the majors too? Do I need to start studying English?”

“Don’t talk nonsense, and go start practicing your hitting quickly.”

“What, Choi Su-won. Are you embarrassed right now?”

“Ah, just get lost. I’m starting today.”

“Yeah, this body, which needs a difficult and arduous process but is not impossible to become a major leaguer, will leave now.”

I guarantee it.

Jjo-yu will talk about that even in broadcast interviews later. 100 percent certain.

***

[The second game of the Korean Series between the Marlins and the Braves is taking place at Sajik Stadium. The second game of the series to determine the strongest team in the 2027 KBO [Korean Baseball Organization] is about to begin. I’m caster Lee Ju-hyung. And following yesterday’s game, we have commentator Park Dong-sik with us again today to help with the commentary.]

[Hello, I’m Park Dong-sik.]

[Yesterday’s Game 1 was a masterpiece pitching duel worthy of the name value of both teams’ aces. So, how will today’s Game 2 unfold? What do you think, commentator Park Dong-sik?]

[As I said yesterday, I was very impressed with Dilton Doyle’s pitching in yesterday’s game. Of course, Jo Chang-hyuk also pitched very well, especially considering he pitched in the first game of the 준playoff [semi-playoff] on the 16th and is now pitching his fourth game in just 18 days. I think even major league scouts, who have a much tougher schedule than the KBO, would have been very impressed.]

[That’s right. Jo Chang-hyuk’s major league advancement through posting [a system where a KBO team allows a player to negotiate with MLB teams] is almost certain at the end of this season, so it was a very good showcase. Of course, it’s a shame that the showcase ended in defeat for Jo Chang-hyuk, but the score Jo Chang-hyuk gave up was only 1 point, wasn’t it?]

[In fact, that one point was an unavoidable accident. Wasn’t the opponent Choi Su-won? Anyway, to get back to the story, if we only look at yesterday’s game, I would like to give the edge to Dilton Doyle among the two aces.]

[Yes? But you were praising Jo Chang-hyuk so much just a moment ago?]

[That’s just a concept of doing well despite a tough schedule. In fact, pitching is important for the pitcher, but the batter he faces is also important, isn’t it? A long rest can sometimes be a poison in terms of practical sense. I think that’s a bit of the case for the Marlins right now. I think a significant part of Jo Chang-hyuk’s good pitching yesterday relied on that.]

[So, to summarize, Dilton Doyle tightly tied up the Braves’ lineup, which had been on a roll, and Jo Chang-hyuk was able to pitch well because the Marlins’ hitters were in a bit of a slump despite being tired. Is that what you’re saying?]

[In fact, Jo Chang-hyuk is originally the league’s best fastball pitcher, throwing up to 160 km/h [kilometers per hour, approximately 99 mph], but the only ball that exceeded 159 in yesterday’s game was the beanball that went wrong to Choi Su-won. Overall, the speed was formed around 156 km/h. He pitched in 30 games this season, almost 200 innings, and then pitched like that in the post-season, so he had no choice but to get tired. Anyway, in that sense, I think the focus of today’s game is on how much the Marlins’ lineup has improved through yesterday’s game. And it depends on what kind of performance Choi Su-won can show on the mound.]

Top of the 1st inning.

Choi Su-won stood on the mound.

He was famous as the first perfect pitcher in the KBO in the early and mid-season, but after the All-Star break, he collapsed in a few games, and at one point, his ERA [Earned Run Average, a key pitching statistic] even fell to the 3-point range.

Experts analyzed that it was a combination of physical burden brought about by pitching and hitting, and the experiential problem of the first professional season.

[So, in the end, the biggest key is how the last three weeks of rest will affect Choi Su-won. But judging from that first at-bat home run yesterday, wouldn’t it be safe to say that he is in very good condition?]

[Well, I think batter Choi Su-won is literally an exception to the rule, to the point where I wouldn’t be surprised if he stood at the plate and hit a home run after running a marathon. Besides, pitching doesn’t simply mean that you throw better because you’ve rested for a long time. Ah, Brave’s leadoff hitter is now at the plate. Kim Nara, who recorded 1 hit in 4 at-bats in yesterday’s game, is coming up.]

“Okay, everyone, forget about yesterday’s defeat and focus only on today’s game. If we win 1 and lose 1 on the road, and then go back home and win 3 in a row, we can cleanly take the series.”

I pondered the words of coach Park Yu-sung before the game started.

It was quite contradictory. He told us to forget about yesterday’s defeat, but before that was even over, he reminded us of the defeat by saying that we should win today and take 1 win and 1 loss.

Yeah, the coach must be on edge right now. If Chang-hyuk goes to the majors next year and Chan-min is released as a FA [Free Agent], we don’t know when another opportunity like this will come.

But that’s the same for Kim Nara himself.

The Braves can’t catch the best players. The huge FA transfer fees that arise from the KBO’s abnormal behavior of relying on the parent group’s ‘grants’ are not suitable for the Braves, a ‘company’ that has to make a profit from its own revenue.

The players they catch are moderately good players, or players who have advanced to the majors through posting and returned to Korea—that is, players who can only play for the Braves.

Kim Nara was the former. He is consistent enough to earn FA qualification, but the market evaluates him at around 2 billion won [approximately $1.5 million USD] for 4 years. No matter how crazy the market is, he can never go up to 4 billion won.

Kim Nara will almost certainly remain with the Braves, so this opportunity to win was also very precious to him.

‘Let’s just try to get on first base somehow.’

The Braves use a strong number 2.

Jang Chan-min.

If he hadn’t had that hamstring injury four years ago, he would have been a player who could have aimed for the major leagues like the previous Braves shortstops. Even after the injury, he is still one of the best hitters in the league, so if he gets on base, Jang Chan-min will take care of the rest.

Choi Su-won wound up on the mound.

‘Yeah, let’s just get on base.’

First ball.

Matching Choi Su-won’s lightning-fast ball, a surprise bunt!! A bunt… So, I was going to bunt, but…

-Thwack!!!

“Strike!!!”

That was too fast to bunt.

160.1km/h

November.

Chilly weather.

And the top of the 1st inning. First ball against the leadoff hitter.

A 100-mile fastball suddenly pierced the zone.