The Pitcher Just Hits Home Runs Well [EN]: Chapter 376

“Wow, this baseball stadium is huge!”

“Tsk… Hey, stop gawking like that, it’s embarrassing. You look like you’ve never seen anything before. And what’s so huge about it? The stadium layout is the same as that one, you know? The one where we had spring training.”

“Yeah, but that’s the field layout. The *size* is different. This place has 56,000 seats, right? That’s more than twice the size of Jamsil Stadium!”

“All they did was stack more seats on top. No need to make a fuss about it.”

“But stacking more seats is exciting! It means 56,000 seats *can* be filled. I wish our Sajik stadium would build a new one with 60,000 seats. And make it a dome while they’re at it.”

“Don’t even go there. Seriously. Do we even get 13,000 people for weekday games? Even now, half the seats are empty and it feels desolate. If there are 56,000 seats, almost three-quarters of them would be empty. It wouldn’t be fun to play in a stadium that empty.”

“Hyungnim [older brother/term of respect]!! Why are you thinking about them being empty? You should be thinking about filling all 56,000 seats! Huh? Remember when we won first place last year? People couldn’t get in because there weren’t enough seats. We can do that again, right?”

“If you’re going to say things like that, you need to bat over .210 first, okay?”

“Ugh… Using facts so unfairly…”

While Jo Yu-jin and Lee Jung-hoon were having their usual banter in a slightly special place, a sturdy figure approached them and greeted them warmly.

“Did you guys wait long?”

“Senior Kyu-man!!”

It was Lee Kyu-man, who had retired at the end of last season and come to the US for coaching training.

“Wow, Jung-hoon, you’re looking much better!”

“I bulked up a little. But Senior, you look like you’re in even better shape than when you were an active player.”

“Yeah, there are a lot of guys working out here. And since I came to learn, I’m trying to learn with my body too.”

“Are you going to make a comeback as a player at this rate?”

“Comeback? Anyway, let’s go in quickly instead of standing here. The game starts soon. We need to grab some food too, so we should go early.”

“Oh? Senior. I heard from Su-won that American baseball stadiums have people who bring you food and serve you?”

“Jo Yu, that’s only in the premium seats.”

“Ah, I guess the seats the broadcasting station got us aren’t premium seats? They got us business class tickets on the plane, though. Wouldn’t it be better to give us economy tickets and premium seats instead?”

“You probably couldn’t even get the tickets themselves. I heard that for this game, outfield seats are selling for over $2,000 on StubHub [online ticket marketplace].”

“$2,000… What? The outfield seats are almost 3 million won [Korean currency]?”

“Yeah, not all of them are that price. And you wouldn’t be able to get premium seats even if you had the money. The atmosphere here is crazy right now.”

“Wow… The land of a thousand trillion [exaggeration for emphasis]. The scale is just different. 56,000 seats and you still can’t get tickets…”

“That’s why the broadcasting station is using you guys to film this broadcast. You’re filming today’s game, tomorrow’s game, and the New York game, right?”

“Yes, but Senior, aren’t you going to New York?”

“No, I barely made time for this. Anyway, let’s go in quickly.”

In Korea, Choi Su-won’s popularity was beyond imagination.

It is common knowledge that the most popular sport in Korea is national soccer, followed by the KBO [Korean Baseball Organization]. But in 2028, what people were most enthusiastic about was not the Korean Series but the MLB World Series, which gives you an idea of Su-won’s popularity.

Thanks to this, Korean broadcasting stations were organizing various special programs about Choi Su-won, and Jo Yu-jin and Lee Jung-hoon came to the United States as part of such a special program. Of course, since it was very difficult to get game tickets right now, there was only one camera crew following them into the stadium.

“Hey, we’re late! We’re late!”

“Ah, Hyungnim. What did I say? I told you to just buy a hot dog.”

“No, this nacho is super popular on social media these days. Dodger dogs are old news.”

“Stop bickering and let’s sit down quickly. At least Su-won is still pitching cleanly.”

“Yes, thankfully we’ll get to see the match-up with Ohtani. Honestly, that’s the highlight today.”

56,000 pairs of eyes were focused on the mound.

Choi Su-won wound up.

“Su-won’s form looks a little different?”

“Yeah, of course. It’s been a year. At that age, they’re growing so fast that they change every day.”

“No, not since last year. It looks a little different compared to his last appearance last month?”

“Since last month? I don’t know. Hey, Jo Yu. Are you just saying things to sound cool because the camera is on and you can’t even see properly from that far away?”

“Come on, Jung-hoon hyungnim. I’m a catcher. A catcher! And I’ve worked with Su-won for four years, a soulmate catcher. Even if we’ve been apart for a year, that strong bond doesn’t go away easily. I can tell right away.”

“Is that so?”

-Boom!!

100.3 mph fastball.

“Wow, what’s with that ball? 100.3 mph is 161.5 km/h?? I heard the American speed guns are a bit of a lie. But it doesn’t seem like it?”

Lee Kyu-man responded to Lee Jung-hoon’s surprised remark.

“That’s all old news. These days, the equipment used in Korean stadiums is almost the same as the equipment used in the US. Our baseball has developed a lot too. Now we just need to train the people who operate it better.”

“That’s right. That’s why Senior Kyu-man is here!! Haha, isn’t that right?”

“I’m not involved in operating the equipment. Anyway, Su-won must be in really good condition today. It’s a bit warm here, but still, throwing 100 mph from the first inning isn’t easy.”

Ball count 1-0.

The umpire didn’t raise his hand, probably because the fastball was a little high.

“Ah, if it were me, I could have caught it at the edge and gotten a strike call.”

“Are you going to break your fingers trying to catch a 100 mph ball?”

“Oh, who do you think I am? Korea’s best defensive catcher. Jo Yu-jin. It’s all about technique.”

“Jo Yu, how many times have I told you, you need to bat over .210 to say things like that? You’re not a defensive catcher because you’re good at defense, but because your offense is so terrible.”

“……”

Su-won prepared his second pitch. At that moment, the two people who had been chattering about useless things focused on Su-won on the mound. Dynamic form. Lee Jung-hoon and Jo Yu-jin. Even Lee Kyu-man counted the rhythm to match the form.

‘….Now!!’

‘……Now!!’

‘..Now!!’

-Whoosh!!!

“Strike!!!!”

A truly exquisite curveball.

Ohtani Shohei’s bat swung through the air. And the bats in the hearts of the three people watching the game also swung through the air.

“Wow, that ball is really good.”

“I agree. Even watching from this far away, I really thought it was a fastball at first.”

“……”

Ball count 1-1.

They had often watched Su-won’s games on TV. But is it different to see it with your own eyes in person? Su-won’s ball seemed much more powerful than it looked on TV.

Ohtani Shohei stepped back for a moment and adjusted his stance.

Perhaps because all three of them were batters, they were watching the game with a little more empathy for Ohtani Shohei than for Choi Su-won on the mound.

What would I do in this moment?

“You have to attack the fastball, right?”

“That’s right.”

“Su-won’s curveball is too good today. The speed seems faster, but the angle of the drop seems bigger.”

Then the pitcher’s choice is obvious.

A few more curveballs.

So, filter out the balls that go out of the zone more reliably and cut off the close balls as much as possible.

Yes, Ohtani Shohei also decided to do that.

High course.

A faster ball than before.

Fastball?

No, no.

It is famous that Choi Su-won throws two types of curveballs. The one that is a little faster and less dropping but shows horizontal movement.

-Clang!!!!!!

The mis-hit ball went out of the foul line.

It fell a little more and went out a little more than the trajectory drawn in my head. Did he get his strength back after resting well? He’s definitely not normal today.

Ball count 1-2.

Fourth.

Curveball.

It was likely to be a curveball that went out of the zone.

[Pitcher winds up!!]

The ball left his hand.

Ohtani Shohei’s sharp eyes watched the rotation of the ball. It’s not a backspin. The course? Outside. Then it’s an outside fastball.

Up to that point, it was only 0.17 seconds.

His body moved.

It was a powerful swing. It was as if he was going to split the flying ball in half.

The ball flew.

The bat moved towards home plate.

The ball was still flying, almost reaching the center line of the body.

The ball was still, still flying.

Something was wrong.

Something was wrong.

Ohtani Shohei forcibly stopped the bat from turning.

And again, 0.2 seconds.

Clearly slow timing.

The ball was stuck in a course that subtly deviated from the zone.

“Striiiiike!! Out!!!”

[Ohtani Shohei!! The bat turned!! Strikeout!! Strikeout!! Choi Su-won strikes out Ohtani Shohei!!]

Crazy…

It was a changeup. A surprise changeup that came out at an unexpected moment. If you ask if the completeness was very high, it wasn’t. The movement was also minimal, and if you had the changeup in mind and swung the bat with the intention of hitting it, it would be a ball that could go over the fence as it was. It’s practically an eephus [a very slow, high-arcing pitch].

It was a ridiculous gutsy call.

Ohtani Shohei clenched his bat tightly and stepped away from the plate.

A trick is a trick because it can only be used once. Today’s game is only the end of the first inning. There are still 8 innings left. At least 3 more chances left.

Ohtani Shohei looked forward to the next at-bat.

***

“Nice!!”

I clenched my fist on the mound without realizing it.

To be honest, I wasn’t going to use it from the first meeting in the first inning. It was a ball that I had been doing a little image training on, thinking that I should use it in the second or third at-bat. But today, the umpire’s curveball judgment was a bit bad, so I just boldly threw it as a deciding ball, and it worked very well.

“Su-won, good pitching. Your ball is really good today.”

Oswald, who caught the ball today, came to me and gave me a thumbs up.

“But why did you shake your head at the curveball so much? Your curveball is great.”

“No, I think the umpire’s judgment is a bit bad today.”

“Huh? Ah!!”

“Why?”

“No, the umpire’s judgment is the judgment. But I think your curveball is dropping more than usual today? It’s dropping more than it did during practice.”

“The curveball is dropping more than it did during practice?”

“Yeah. The angle is very sharp. I think Ohtani was a little embarrassed because of that.”

It’s not always good if the ball thrown by the pitcher is simply faster and drops better. Yes, what the pitcher does is not throwing but pitching. Of course, this is only the story of pitchers who put the ball where they want, like Greg Maddux [Hall of Fame pitcher known for his control]. Honestly, if the value is the same, it’s better to have a faster and better dropping ball.