The Pitcher Just Hits Home Runs Well [EN]: Chapter 373

Ohtani Shohei sensed the heavy atmosphere in the Dodgers’ dugout.

It wasn’t just because they had lost two consecutive away games.

What goes up must come down. The Dodgers were clearly on a downward trend, and the players felt it strongly.

Unlike the first game where they tenaciously hung on against the opponent’s ace, they suffered a lackluster defeat against Gerrit Cole, who was considered a step below. In this situation, Stan Owens’ sudden injury provided an easy excuse to explain the shift in atmosphere. Moreover, the fact that Dylan Lee was brought in as a replacement amplified this feeling. He wasn’t a bad pitcher, just… not particularly good.

And in the bottom of the 2nd inning.

-Clang!!

[Hit!! But a ground ball to the second baseman!! Dennis Martinez fields it cleanly and throws to first!!]

“Out!!”

[Bottom of the 2nd, runner stranded on 2nd!! Dylan Lee shuts down the Dodgers’ offense in the bottom of the 2nd without giving up a run.]

[He hasn’t struck anyone out yet, but he’s inducing ground balls effectively. Notice how almost every pitch has stayed low in the zone today.]

[But considering the swing trajectories of today’s hitters, isn’t this a bit risky?]

[It’s risky, of course. But the pitches that get hammered for hits or home runs are the ones that catch too much of the plate, not the ones on the low outside corner. If he keeps pounding that low outside corner like this, he won’t give up many runs even if he allows a few lucky hits. Dylan Lee is showing remarkable composure and sticking to his strengths on this big stage. That’s how I see it.]

[I see.]

[Besides, considering the Yankees’ recent offensive explosion, Dylan Lee doesn’t necessarily need to pitch a shutout. The Yankees’ batting lineup is on fire, scoring a whopping 25 runs in the last two games combined. If he just keeps doing what he’s doing, the lineup can easily secure the victory. That’s my take.]

[But isn’t the opposing pitcher, Ohtani Shohei, also a formidable player? And Dodger Stadium is known as a pitcher’s park (a stadium that favors pitchers due to its dimensions and atmospheric conditions).]

[Yes, that’s true. But Ohtani Shohei is also starting to show signs of fatigue. Personally, I don’t think he’ll be able to pitch very deep into the game today.]

The score is still 1:0.

He somehow managed to barely hold off the Yankees’ offense in the top of the 2nd, but there wasn’t much time to rest. The Yankees’ lineup starts with 9th batter Oswald Wells. Once he faces one of the lower hitters, it goes back to the 1st batter. Moreover, there are three outs in an inning in baseball. This means that no matter what Ohtani Shohei does, Choi Soo-won’s at-bat will come around this inning.

He clenched and unclenched his fists several times.

It’s only the 3rd inning. He still had plenty of strength.

Ohtani Shohei knew better than anyone that the team’s atmosphere was sinking. And he also knew what was needed to revive it.

Take down Choi Soo-won.

Of course, the other Yankees hitters are also dangerous. Judging by their performance, there are four players besides Choi Soo-won who deserve to receive votes within the top 5 of the MVP race. But even so, this overwhelming force is absurd. So, in the end, it’s Choi Soo-won. A hitter who transcends standards. It’s like an MLB-level hitter playing in the AA league (a level below MLB in professional baseball). If there was another league above MLB, he would be good enough to compete for MVP there as well.

Lead-off hitter Jose Trevino.

Along with 8th batter Angel Cabrera, who was the last batter in the previous inning, he is one of the few relatively weaker hitters in the Yankees’ lineup. A starting pitcher can’t go all out against every hitter. It’s the mark of a good starter to conserve stamina through efficient pitching and work deep into the innings.

So, first, lightly throw a fastball deep inside…

-Bang!!!

Jose Trevino smartly pulled the ball.

A hit that barely went over the infielder’s head.

Wells reached 1st base.

They hadn’t given up any runs yet. It was just a lucky hit from the bottom of the order. But if there was a scale of victory, wouldn’t this hit tilt it at least 2 degrees towards the Yankees?

Getting hit by a great player is something you can accept and move on from. It’s something that can happen. So, what really brings down morale is when it happens in a situation where it shouldn’t. Minimizing such occurrences for ourselves and forcing them on the opponent is ultimately the key to victory.

The source of the Dodgers’ cohesiveness throughout this season, the point where the Dodgers’ identity is created, is also at that very point. Preventing mistakes that are about to happen, and showing highlight-reel plays that seem impossible. But right now, it’s the Yankees who are showing that Dodgers-like resilience and brilliance.

Anthony Volpe stepped up to the plate.

No outs, runner on 1st.

Ohtani Shohei did his best, pitching like he was in his prime.

A sacrifice bunt.

An RBI double.

A hit.

An outfield fly.

And an infield pop-up out.

Ohtani Shohei returned to the dugout.

Voices of encouragement to cheer him up could be heard from everywhere.

The score was 3:0.

“It’s only the top of the 3rd. We still have seven more innings to attack. Three points is nothing, we can get that quickly.”

“Yeah, that’s right!!”

Dylan Lee came up to the mound.

With a blank face that didn’t reveal what he was thinking, he threw the ball like a machine.

It wasn’t an overwhelming fastball or velocity, nor did he show tremendous movement. It was always the same. But the secret to his survival in the big leagues was that very consistency. Maintaining a consistent location, sometimes missing, sometimes coming in a little more, but still consistently attacking the low outside corner. Fastball and changeup. He didn’t have the magical location and pace control like Tom Glavine, the legend of the Atlanta Braves. If you had to compare, he was closer to a less refined minor league version of Tom Glavine.

-Swish!!

He allowed a walk,

-Bang!!

Got hit.

But still, he stuck to his pitching.

And surprisingly, he shut out the Dodgers through the 3rd and even the 4th inning.

The Dodgers’ dugout still hadn’t lost its voices of encouragement. But Ohtani Shohei felt that the strength in those voices was hollow.

Top of the 5th.

The Yankees’ lineup starting with Anthony Volpe.

-Bang!!!!

Victor Gomez caught the high fly ball.

And then Choi Soo-won.

Ohtani Shohei did his best to pitch.

Putting it in, taking it out, dropping it.

-Swish!!

[Choi Soo-won!! He’s not fooled by the breaking ball. Walk. Choi Soo-won reaches base for the third time today.]

[Choi Soo-won is clearly showing Ohtani Shohei why no one dared to compete with him in the previous series.]

One out, runner on 1st.

The splitter thrown to Tyler Wade was mis-hit.

4-6-3 double play.

Ohtani didn’t give up any runs against the top of the order for the first time today.

The score is still 3:0.

Bottom of the 5th. Dylan Lee came up to the mound again.

***

It was a dreamlike moment.

Dylan Lee, who rarely showed any change in expression even in difficult moments, couldn’t help but twitch his lips at this moment. Yes, he was starting in Game 3 of the World Series, recording 4 shutout innings and holding an advantage over Ohtani Shohei.

Of course, the only people who noticed the twitch in his lip muscles were his 5-year-old daughter and 2-year-old son, and his wife who was watching the game on TV.

“John, Ailee. Daddy seems to be in a really good mood right now, right?”

[Bottom of the 5th, Dodgers’ attack. The Yankees are currently leading 3:0. 9th batter Sergio Gonzalez comes up to the plate as the lead-off hitter. Dylan Lee has only allowed the Dodgers’ lineup to bat through twice while recording 12 outs.]

[The Yankees must feel like they’ve stumbled upon an unexpected stroke of luck. Dylan Lee is a pitcher who doesn’t give up a lot of runs, but he’s also not a pitcher who completely shuts down the opponent like this.]

[That’s right. However, considering the importance of the game, I think they should start preparing to activate the bullpen (relief pitchers). He only has 71 pitches so far, but it’s bound to get difficult once the lineup starts going through for the third time. The Yankees saved a lot of bullpen in the last two games, so they need to use it generously to solidify this lead.]

Sergio Gonzalez was an easier hitter compared to the other Dodgers hitters. But that only means he’s an easier hitter compared to the other Dodgers hitters.

Dylan Lee just did his best to throw the ball as he always did.

-Whoosh!!!

“Strike!!!”

On the 4th pitch.

A swing and a miss on a changeup that slightly drifted outside.

The count is 2-2.

Jose Trevino gave him a sign.

‘Let’s quickly throw a fastball high and inside here.’

For a whopping 4 innings.

Since the opposing hitters are all focused on the low outside corner, it would be effective to surprise them here.

A 94.7 mph fastball flew into the high corner.

-Whoosh!!!

“Strike!!!”

A satisfying swing and miss.

Dylan Lee clenched his fist.

[Dylan Lee!! Dylan Lee gets a strikeout with a high fastball.]

[Good, very good. Something like this makes the opposing hitters second-guess themselves. Just when they think he’s only going to attack the outside corner, he throws a high pitch like this, forcing them to consider that possibility. Just by making slight changes to his pitching strategy like this, the number of innings he can handle increases.]

[I see. So, can we expect Dylan Lee to handle a few more innings?]

[Well, if this was a normal game during the season, that might be okay, but considering the importance of this game… Anyway, we’ll have to watch a little more.]

The Dodgers’ lineup starting again with the 1st batter.

Rocky Chavez stepped up to the plate.

He was still a dangerous hitter. Even though it was his third at-bat. But Dylan Lee’s stomach wasn’t as uncomfortable as before.

He threw the ball with a more relaxed mind.

-Bang!!!

Ah, of course, just because his mind was relaxed didn’t mean his ball got any better. Yes, just like his ball didn’t get any worse because his mind was uncomfortable.

A well-hit ball pierced the gap between 2nd and 3rd base.