The Pitcher Just Hits Home Runs Well [EN]: Chapter 264

264. The First Pitch is Always (2)

And Jose Trevino sighed.

‘This guy…’

Blatant.

Too obviously blatant.

With Jose Trevino’s experience, he could roughly tell whether a pitcher threw a beanball [a pitch intentionally thrown at the batter] on purpose or by mistake. Even the circumstances were too obvious. Tanner Gordon, who was at the plate just now, was one of the guys Choi Su-won had asked about in the clubhouse locker room this morning. Well, he must have been looking down on him and started a fight, since he’s always had a bad attitude.

Tanner Gordon, who had fallen while clutching his butt, jumped up.

His face was red, and he seemed determined to inflict the pain he felt in his butt on the pitcher on the mound.

“Sorry.”

But surprisingly, Choi Su-won on the mound nodded and ‘apologized.’

The reason this is surprising is that beanballs are basically part of baseball. No, to be more honest, Jose Trevino thought this Tanner Gordon deserved to be hit by a beanball. Provoking the guy who was going to be on the mound as a pitcher today was wrong in the first place.

Why is baseball a gentleman’s sport?

It’s simple.

Because the pitcher on the mound can smash the batter’s head at any time.

As the famous Conan the Barbarian said:

The reason civilized people are rude is that their heads don’t get split by an axe even if they say rude things.

That’s why baseball had to be a gentleman’s sport.

If you don’t want your head to be smashed by the pitcher’s fastball.

And Tanner Gordon, whose butt was smashed instead of his head, didn’t dare run to the mound. Choi Su-won’s apology was also a factor, but Tanner Gordon’s nature itself was weak to the strong and strong to the weak.

Run out here?

With the pitcher even apologizing, how many people would follow him to the mound? In a formal game, there is a mandatory penalty for not joining a bench-clearing brawl, but this is not a formal game.

And what if the ball that hit his butt just now was aimed at his head?

Tanner Gordon quietly headed to first base.

Jose Trevino stared at the mound.

‘So, rather than arguing in the locker room, you prefer to throw beanballs even in a 1-out, 1st and 3rd situation. Swan, I can tell you’re tougher than you look from this one beanball. So, what are you going to do now?’

Choi Su-won was a superstar in the league he was in.

But there was no guarantee that it would continue in the big leagues. Of course, his hitting is likely to work to some extent in the big leagues. And even if it doesn’t, considering he’s a rare two-way player, he’s very likely to be guaranteed a spot on the 26-man active roster.

But estimating that he could earn at least $150 million, maybe even over $200 million, if he played in the KBO [Korean Baseball Organization] for another 5 years, there’s no way this guy would be satisfied with just that.

He needs at least one spot in the starting lineup. And to guarantee that, he needs to show at least a minimal performance in this camp.

1 out, bases loaded.

Choi Su-won on the mound raised the corner of his mouth.

Jose Trevino liked that expression quite a bit. So he thought. He hoped that the pitching he would show would match that expression.

***

Last winter, I bulked up like crazy.

In fact, this was a huge gamble. Of course, as a hitter, I know that I have a frame that can handle bulking up to 120kg. But what about as a pitcher?

-Bang!!

“Strike!!”

It was something I couldn’t know because I hadn’t experienced it yet.

But at least bulking up to 100kg was very successful. Even though I did hellish flexibility training with it, the range of motion of my body itself didn’t decrease much. Considering that the range of motion of the arm itself often decreases when muscles build up in the upper body, this was really amazing.

The batter in the box waited for the second pitch.

Hitter number 7.

In the KBO, it would be an easy out. But the level of that 7th hitter, whose name I don’t even know, is higher than the foreign hitters who come to the KBO.

So I didn’t let my guard down.

Second pitch.

A curveball that drops sharply.

It’s a pitch that I used quite a bit in the KBO. It’s also the most complete of my breaking balls.

-Whoosh!!

“Strike!!”

Two consecutive strikes.

The third and fourth pitches were decoy pitches.

The batter let one go and fouled off the other.

Ball count 1-2.

Fifth pitch.

Another curveball that drops sharply.

It was a decoy pitch to draw the batter’s swing, just like the third and fourth pitches, with a ball that drops sharply from a high course.

-Clang!!

Disrupted stance.

The batter’s bat hit my curveball.

Since it was a completely broken stance, there’s no way the bat could have had any power in it. But is this really the major leagues?

Even in that collapsing stance, the bat that turned all the way sent the ball flying.

“That guy’s pretty good, huh?”

“Felix Rosario. He’s a guy we just signed as a minor league free agent this time.”

“Ah, that guy who was designated for assignment [removed from the team’s 40-man roster] from the White Sox?”

“Yes, his hitting balance is quite good, but he’s inconsistent and his power is a bit weak. And his defense is only possible at 1st base…”

But just like the batter in the box was a major leaguer, the fielders behind me were also major leaguers. Although the chemistry between the pitchers was terrible, at least the defense was incomparable to my time with the Marines.

The second baseman cleanly caught a fairly fast ball.

The shortstop also quickly covered second base without any hesitation.

4-6-3 double play.

The bases-loaded, one-out crisis ended very cleanly without giving up a single run.

I came out from the bullpen, but I was returning to the dugout.

The dugout, which originally had less than 20 people, was very crowded with people. But Gerrit Cole, who had been hit like crazy in front of me, was nowhere to be seen.

“Gerrit? He probably showered and went home first. Or he went straight home without showering.”

Yeah, this is the major leagues.

The coach asked if I could pitch a little more in the second inning.

“Yes, anytime.”

Two batters.

It was a good offer since I was still a bit restless after ending one with a hit-by-pitch in the first inning.

As a hitter, I’m already close to perfection, but not as a pitcher. There was no reason to refuse this kind of practical training.

In the second inning, I had 1 hit and 1 strikeout against 4 batters without giving up a run.

Considering that pitchers warm up later than hitters, it wasn’t a bad start.

***

The hallway leading to the locker room.

Reporters who had been granted access held out microphones to me.

“Choi Su-won, you showed a very good adaptation to the major leagues with one hit and no runs allowed in 1.2 innings in today’s scrimmage. Can you say a word about your impressions?”

“You didn’t get a chance to hit today. Aren’t you disappointed? Can you say a word to the fans in your home country?”

Originally, a lot of Korean reporters stuck to me. But was it because of the story that there was a scrimmage today? It feels like there are more than usual today.

“I’m glad I was able to show the pitching I had prepared. I think I can show a better performance when my body is more warmed up.”

“That part has already been discussed with the manager. We will slowly adapt to the two-way routine.”

While I was answering the reporters’ questions appropriately, Jose Trevino walked towards the locker room.

“Is it over for today?”

“Yeah. I’m off work today too. By the way, you’re a star. How many reporters are there? It’s not New York, and we just had a scrimmage.”

And some of the reporters who were asking me questions recognized Jose Trevino.

“It’s Jose Trevino.”

“Jose Trevino? Who’s that?”

“You know, the Yankees’ starting catcher.”

“Ah!! The one who’s good at defense?”

No, honestly, I was a bit pathetic that they didn’t even know who Jose Trevino was when they came to interview me, but on the other hand, there was nothing I could do about it. How many of these guys watch the major leagues, and how many of them even know the rules of baseball?

The reporters rushed to Jose Trevino and asked useless questions.

Fortunately, it wasn’t the ‘Do you know’ series, but they weren’t questions you would ask a catcher who had won three Gold Gloves [award for defensive excellence] and two Platinum Gloves [award for the best defensive player in each league].

But Jose answered their questions very kindly without showing any signs of dislike. He was indeed a well-trained veteran major leaguer.

“Swan, are you getting a massage and going straight home?”

“I should.”

“Then, shall we grab a bite to eat on the way? I know a good burger place nearby.”

“Are you buying?”

“If I’ve been talking this much in an interview, shouldn’t you be buying?”

“Okay. I admit it. I’ll buy it today.”

***

“You’re very popular in your country, aren’t you?”

“Baseball is the most popular sport in Korea. And I’m the best baseball player in Korea.”

“Oh, really? Baseball is the most popular sport in Korea, just like in Japan.”

“Yes, it’s not as popular as baseball completely overwhelming soccer like in Japan, but anyway, that’s right.”

Is it because I don’t really like American burgers? The burger wasn’t as good as Jose had promised. If you like handmade burgers, you’ll like that the patty is very well-grilled, but I guess I’m the type who thinks burgers should have good sauce.

“That beanball today, you threw it on purpose, right?”

“Was it obvious?”

“Yeah, even a ball boy who’s watching baseball for the first time today could tell it was a beanball thrown on purpose.”

“That’s a relief. I was worried it wouldn’t be obvious.”

“…Did you move your locker next to Volpe on purpose too?”

“Was that obvious too?”

“Were you worried that wouldn’t be obvious either?”

I took a sip of diet cola at Jose’s question and nodded.

“Yes.”

“Can I ask what you’re thinking?”

“It’s just that Rodriguez and Cole are using me like a horse in their power game, and those idiot brothers didn’t give me a choice.”

“A choice?”

“Actually, I don’t have any special feelings. Backstabbing is understandable. Jealousy is inevitable. But they openly picked a fight with me in front of everyone, and if I just let it go, I’ll look too ridiculous. You have to suppress these things early on so that bigger incidents don’t happen later.”

Trying to establish a hierarchy is human instinct wherever you go. I have no intention of denying that instinct. And I have no intention of hating a human who feels threatened in their position and snarls at me. But watching that and doing nothing is ultimately giving in.

“Wait a minute… Swan, don’t tell me… No way, right?”

I just smiled at Jose’s question.

***

-Thwack!!!

“Gwaaaack!!!”

The batter, clutching his butt and making a pig-squealing sound, collapsed.

There were only three days left until the first game of the Grapefruit League [spring training games].

It was thanks to Choi Su-won throwing another beanball in the third scrimmage.

‘I’m telling you, there’s no choice.’

Jose Trevino thought as he watched Choi Su-won, who lightly bowed his head with the word ‘sorry’ on the mound.

I don’t know about his skills yet, but that bastard’s personality is definitely ‘starting pitcher’ material.