The Pitcher Just Hits Home Runs Well [EN]: Chapter 366

366. World Series (2)

“Kid, this was unavoidable. You’re doing great, so just focus on the batter,” Gerrit Cole muttered loud enough for everyone in the dugout to hear. Of course, no matter how loudly he muttered in the dugout, the sound would never reach the mound. But that was okay. Domingo Rodriguez wasn’t exactly a man who fit the title of ‘kid’ in the first place.

He was 29 this year.

An age close to the peak in every aspect, physically and technically.

Like Greg Maddux, Randy Johnson, or Clayton Kershaw.

Of course, you could never say he was on the same level as those pitchers who transcended eras and etched their names in history. But in terms of potential alone, Domingo Rodriguez was one of the pitchers most likely to enter that elite realm in this era.

Naturally, Domingo Rodriguez was well aware of what Gerrit Cole was saying. But being aware of it and putting it into practice were two different things.

‘Damn it.’

He was conscious of his back.

Perhaps in a normal game, he wouldn’t have been so on edge. But today’s game was World Series Game 1. Yes, the first game to determine the world’s strongest team.

He shook his head.

And tried to focus on his pitching. It wasn’t good that there was a runner on base, but if he thought about it positively, he could pitch more carefully, as he could afford to give up a walk in the worst-case scenario with a 0-1 count and first base open.

‘Positive mindset. Positive mindset.’

High fastball inside.

It was the same pitch that Mookie Betts had hit for a single earlier, but he didn’t hesitate. He had strong confidence in his own pitch, a confidence backed by his career.

-Whoosh!!

“Strike!!!”

[Shohei Ohtani!! Swinging strike on a high fastball!!]

[The count is now 0-2. Shohei Ohtani is on the brink.]

Yes, Domingo Rodriguez had clearly pushed Shohei Ohtani to the brink. Only one strike left. But Shohei Ohtani’s expression at the plate was as unwavering as if he were at the plate with a 0-0 count.

The third pitch.

He aimed for a changeup that just barely caught the edge of the plate. But the result was a changeup that was a little too centered. Shohei Ohtani was fooled.

-Clack!!

But unfortunately for Domingo, the mis-hit ball went foul.

However, the count was still 0-2.

Mookie Betts subtly widened his lead.

But it was a really precarious distance, not enough to throw to second base. As expected of Mookie Betts. It was the instinct of a player who had achieved 30-30 [30 home runs and 30 stolen bases in a single season] twice in his career.

The fourth pitch.

A sharply dropping curveball.

Shohei Ohtani fouled it off.

He had thrown three curves so far in today’s game, and the batters had fouled off two of them. The drop wasn’t bad, but was his curveball just not effective today?

The count was 1-2.

Domingo decided to test one more pitch.

A curveball on the outside.

The ball, properly scraped at his fingertips, flew with backspin.

And Shohei Ohtani swung.

-Clack!!!!

[He hit it!! Shohei Ohtani!! A well-placed hit!! Second baseman Dennis Martinez dives, but it gets past him!! In the meantime, Mookie Betts passes third base and heads for home!!]

Right fielder Tyler Beede ran out very quickly. As soon as he snatched the ball with his glove, he pulled the ball out and threw it towards home while still running.

A desperate situation.

The power of the throw was sufficient. But perhaps because he threw the ball in such an awkward posture, the direction wasn’t very good.

While Jose Trevino moved three steps to the side to catch the ball, Mookie Betts leisurely stepped on home plate.

“Safe!!”

[Ah, in the top of the first inning, with one out, the Yankees give up a point on a timely hit by Shohei Ohtani.]

[Certainly, I’ve felt this since the last Championship Series, but the LA Dodgers are somehow squeezing out points when they absolutely need to score. And Mookie Betts’ smart plays are always the starting point for that.]

[Indeed, Mookie Betts. His performance is a little lacking compared to his younger days, but he feels even more fearsome in the postseason. What is this? Baseball IQ? I can only express it as high baseball intelligence.]

[Yes, that’s right. In addition to that, I feel like this player is becoming a baseball master. Ah, now Diego Vegas, the cleanup hitter, is coming to the plate.]

[Diego Vegas has played a lot as a first baseman this season. But in fact, the defensive ability that a first baseman should have is arguably lacking. Nevertheless, the reason why he is consistently used by the Dodgers is, of course, because of his overwhelming offensive power, right?]

[That’s right. Of course, there are so many players who have hit over 50 home runs this time, from Alexander McDowell’s 62 home runs to Wander Franco, our Choi Soo-won, and Rafael Devers. 53 home runs would have been a great record that could have been aimed at the home run king title based on last year.]

[That’s right. Moreover, in the case of Diego Vegas, considering the current situation of the Dodgers, it is certain that he will leave the team as a free agent this winter, but he still shows a lot of affection for the team. He probably really wants to win the championship one last time.]

‘Damn it.’

Domingo Rodriguez bit his lower lip.

Even though his teeth were slowly getting dull, the opponent was Shohei Ohtani, one of the strongest hitters in the league. To throw the same pitch twice in a row, even if it was a breaking ball, considering that this was the World Series, it was too naive of a choice.

1:0.

One out, runner on first.

Shohei Ohtani took two and a half steps forward. Despite being 34 years old, he was still relatively fast, but he didn’t have the same pressure as Mookie Betts earlier. When he was younger and faster than he is now, he often succeeded in stealing more than 20 bases using his fast feet, but now the success rate, as well as the attempts themselves, have become very rare. This is because his stolen base success in his prime was close to brute force using his fast feet, and his base-running sense itself was a little lacking to be called first-class.

Fastball.

Changeup.

Curve.

Another fastball.

Another curve.

And slider.

The count was 2-2.

Diego Vegas bared his teeth and smiled fiercely. Because he boasted bulging muscles that couldn’t be hidden even by his generous uniform, his smile was quite threatening.

Of course, Domingo was not overwhelmed by such a thing.

The seventh pitch.

A changeup that Pedro Martinez directly taught him, coming from a wild form.

The timing of the bat coming out was early.

If he swung as is, it would be a swinging strikeout. But Diego Vegas didn’t want to do that. The muscles that filled his body aided his will. A forced delay in timing. The bat connected with the baseball.

-Clack!!!

It was a very powerful hit considering he hit it in a collapsed posture.

But Dennis Martinez, who missed Shohei Ohtani’s hit earlier, showed excellent defense this time. He caught the hit while falling on his butt as he ran, and pulled the baseball that was spinning strongly in his glove and connected it to Anthony Volpe without missing a beat.

4-6-3 [Second Baseman to Shortstop to First Baseman]

Double play.

That’s how the LA Dodgers’ offensive inning ended.

***

One run allowed in the top of the first inning.

It was a slightly disappointing result. Well, the opponent, the LA Dodgers, was also the loser of the National League and a team that had advanced to the World Series, so it was true that they were a strong team, but even so, Domingo Rodriguez, the card we presented, was a pitcher who could have been expected to have a scoreless game against such Dodgers.

“They really clung on tenaciously.”

“That’s right, everyone’s eyes were full of venom, weren’t they?”

Dennis and Tyler, who were returning to the dugout, were chattering about today’s opponent. Of course, as expected, the story didn’t end with negative stories such as today’s game would be difficult.

“But still…”

“We’re not easy either.”

Anthony Volpe, who returned to the dugout, quickly put on his protective gear and left the dugout first.

“Anthony.”

“Huh?”

“First of all…”

“Just go out there? I’ll take care of everything else.”

Perhaps because he had heard it so many times, he now automatically spits out what I’m going to say.

“No, if possible, come back after hitting a home run.”

“What? You always ask me to take care of your RBIs [Runs Batted In]?”

“No, even if you get on first base, when it’s my turn, there’ll be runners on first and second, and the risk of a double play will only increase. It’s more comfortable to get to first base when it’s clearly open. Besides, they sometimes pitch around me when there are no runners on base.”

“Oh my, thank you very much for wishing for my home run with such pure intentions.”

Anthony walked to the plate with a smile. I also stood in the waiting batter’s box, swinging my bat a few times to warm up lightly.

The pitcher who came to the mound was David Steele. He was the blue-chip ace from the LA Dodgers farm system, who continued the reputation of the Dodgers as the ‘kingdom of pitchers’.

He was a man who finally stood tall as an ace, winning the NL Cy Young Award [Award given annually to the best pitcher in each League] two years ago as the second starter after Shohei Ohtani. It was fair to say that he had truly inherited the Dodgers’ ace position through his own explosion, not just Ohtani’s aging.

Quite dirty deception.

I had checked it several times in the video, but it’s even dirtier when I see it in person. Obvious double-kicking [Illegal pitching motion]. But in Major League Baseball, unlike Korea, which strictly regulates double-kicking, if there is continuity in the motion, it doesn’t matter much.

Anyway, a 96.9 mph fastball spewing out from such a dirty form.

-Clack!!!!

Anthony Volpe swung at that ball.

But it was just a weak swing. The hit went directly into the infield grandstand net.

The count was 0-1.

And the second.

The rhythm of the pitch was subtle.

A slightly faster feeling?

And the ball that came was the same fastball.

But the speed was a little faster at 97.4 mph.

-Clack!!!

Anthony’s bat was late.

Perhaps it was thanks to the synergy of the slightly subtle rhythm and the slightly faster ball.

A ground ball in front of the second baseman.

The out call came before Anthony could even walk a few steps.

“Damn it. This is really dirty no matter how many times I face it.”

“Anthony.”

“Yeah, tear me apart as much as you want.”

Anthony already knew perfectly what I was going to say. But sometimes, words are useless unless they are spoken out loud, no matter how much the other person knows.

“Even though I told you to clear the way a little, you didn’t have to listen to me so well to this extent.”

Anthony answered my mockery by quietly raising his middle finger.

One out, no runners.

On the mound is the blue-chip ace that they are proud of. Moreover, he is a blue-chip ace who has never been hit hard by me for various reasons.

“He’s not running away?”

David Steele on the mound wound up greatly.