The Pitcher Just Hits Home Runs Well [EN]: Chapter 38

Team Over Individual (1)

“What do you think?”

“Well, he’s good. Why wasn’t he picked for the national team when he was in middle school? He’s good enough to be fast-tracked, but I heard he wasn’t even picked in his third year. And he’s good enough for your school to offer him a scholarship, so why did he go to Joongang High?”

“I heard from a junior that he suddenly grew a lot during the winter break of his third year of middle school. They say he grew almost 10cm from 177cm [approximately 3.9 inches from 5 feet 9.7 inches].”

“He grew that much suddenly, but his athletic ability didn’t drop?”

“Yeah, so you have to see it as a natural talent for balancing. Even if his body changes so suddenly, he can still find his balance.”

Kyung-ho High’s ace, Jo Gyu-chan, nodded.

“I see. Still, 156km/h [approximately 97 mph]… If it’s 156km/h for a right-hander, is it about 152km/h [approximately 94 mph] for a left-hander? Hmm, well, there’s not much difference between me and him. When I look at it comprehensively, my ball is better anyway, right?”

“Bullshit. Why are you putting the left-handed merit at 4km/h?”

“Why? Are you upset because that makes my speed 3km/h faster than yours? Right-handed max 151km/h [approximately 94 mph]?”

Cheonnam High’s ace, Baek Ha-min, frowned.

“Don’t you remember who was the MVP of the King of Kings tournament?”

“Yes, next final losing pitcher.”

“Ugh, annoying.”

“Anyway, once we graduate, he’s going to be high school No. 1.”

“To be exact, after *I* graduate. He’s No. 2 right now.”

“Six at-bats, six hits allowed, six home runs allowed. Wow, is he Damian? 666?”

“Ugh, Jo Gyu-chan. So annoying. Why are you picking a fight with me when I’m sitting here? Don’t you have any friends to watch the game with?”

“Why wouldn’t I have friends? You’re here. A ten-year friend.”

No matter what anyone said, Jo Gyu-chan of Kyung-ho High School and Baek Ha-min of Cheonnam High School were the two pitchers most expected to be drafted this year.

After the opening ceremony, the schools without games today disbanded early. Both Kyung-ho and Cheonnam High received seeds [automatic qualification for a later round], so they were exempt from the first round, and their first game was scheduled for two days later.

However, neither of them took the returning school bus. If it were another player, it would have been difficult to tolerate such independent behavior. But they were the team’s aces. Not many high school baseball coaches would stop players who are projected for the first round of the draft from wanting to see the most threatening hitter with their own eyes.

“He’s coming out now.”

Baek Ha-min’s expression changed.

Jo Gyu-chan’s expression also changed as he watched.

Although he teased him as 666, Jo Gyu-chan recognized Baek Ha-min’s skills more than anyone else. He even thought that among the ’07 liners [players born in 2007], the only guy who could match him was Baek Ha-min.

And the guy now entering the plate was a monster who had 6 hits in 6 at-bats against Baek Ha-min. He even hit all those hits as home runs.

The monster moved as he had seen in the video.

He stepped into the plate, adjusted his helmet with his left hand, and tapped his head twice. Then, he gripped the bat strongly twice with his right hand, tapped the home plate once, and straightened his posture.

One out, runner on second base.

The pitcher on the mound bit his lower lip.

First pitch.

– Bang!!

Of course, the umpire’s hand did not go up [indicating a strike].

Jo Gyu-chan clicked his tongue.

“Tsk, this is anticlimactic, isn’t it?”

“I know.”

It was just one ball, but the meaning was clear.

The pitcher on the mound had no intention of facing Choi Su-won.

In fact, when you think about it, it was natural. In a tournament where you slip even if you lose just one game. With first base open, who would be the pitcher to face such a monster?

“Still, if we wait, won’t they compete at least once?”

“I don’t know. Well, once the game is decided, they’ll probably let the pitcher do whatever he wants… But if you think about what Joongang High was doing, they might be eliminated in the first round if they’re unlucky? That’s troublesome… I have to get revenge in the finals.”

“Don’t talk nonsense. They’re going to get knocked out by me in the semi-finals anyway.”

“Well, it’s possible. If you avoid all of his at-bats, Jo Gyu-chan.”

Jo Gyu-chan frowned at Baek Ha-min’s words.

“I’m going to avoid them all? What would you do if you were Baek Ha-min?”

“What would I do? I’d have to do what the coach tells me to do.”

“No, that’s obvious. What if the coach told you to do whatever you want?”

“Of course, a strikeout.”

“You’re 6 at-bats, 6 hits, 6 home runs. 6666? Even if you get 12 strikeouts from now on, it’s still a .300 batting average, and even if you get 18, it’s .250?”

“Then I’ll just get about 24 in a row and make it .200.”

What should I call the expression on that face?

Confidence? No, the expression ‘will’ would be more appropriate.

Jo Gyu-chan nodded.

He really liked this old friend’s expression when he met an absurd opponent.

Unlike Jo Gyu-chan himself, who was a natural genius. It was because of Baek Ha-min’s expression, who was desperately crawling up with effort and will, that he was able to make at least the minimum effort not to be defeated by him.

– Bang!!!

Walk [Intentional walk].

One out, runners on first and second base.

Choi Su-won walked to first base.

“Oh, right.”

“What suddenly?”

“No, I just remembered that even if you get 24 consecutive strikeouts against him in the future and make him .200, his OPS [On-Base Plus Slugging, a sabermetric baseball statistic] is still 1.”

Baek Ha-min’s handsome face contorted.

***

Jo Gyu-hyeok, the fourth batter of Joongang High, stood at the plate.

– Hooo.

A big deep breath.

One out, runners on first and second base.

The situation where Su-won, the third batter, was intentionally walked.

It was natural. Even if Jo Gyu-hyeok himself was the coach, he would not order a match against such a batter. 0.900/0.950/2.800. Is that even a figure that a person can record? I guarantee that even if you bring the professional league MVP, you won’t be able to record a higher score than that.

Therefore, it was obvious that this situation would occur frequently throughout this tournament.

A sense of burden suddenly struck me. Would this burden have been a little less if Jo Gyu-hyeok himself had entered at number 3 and Su-won at number 4?

He shook his head.

The pitcher on the mound prepared to pitch.

Today’s opponent, Chunghun High School, can be described as Joongang High without Choi Su-won, and the pitcher on the mound now was objectively no better than Ahn Byeong-yeong.

The pitcher on the mound wound up greatly.

He thought that the runner on second base would not be able to steal to third base.

– Whoosh!!!

“Strike!!”

I was aiming for a fastball, but a curve with a large drop came in.

Ball count 0-1.

I calmly waited for the second ball.

The long training with Su-won over the past few months flashed before my eyes.

Jo Gyu-hyeok didn’t think that people could change drastically overnight with a few months of training. Whether it’s studying or exercising, accumulating something requires time.

But at the same time, he also believed that there was a critical point.

The difference between 99℃ water [210°F] and 100℃ water [212°F] was only 1℃, but there was a huge gap between them that could not be explained by 1℃.

So, have I passed that critical point now?

Second ball.

– Bang!!

The umpire’s hand did not go up [indicating a strike].

Ball count 1-1

The pitcher on the mound prepared the third ball.

He had been playing baseball for over 10 years.

At this point, Jo Gyu-hyeok himself knew enough about his talent.

Adults say.

Sometimes giving up requires great courage.

That’s right. Perhaps giving up like Jin-woo might require even greater courage.

But even so, Jo Gyu-hyeok wanted to struggle.

It was truly embarrassing to approach a junior who was a year younger and ask him to teach him, but he wanted to struggle even like that.

– Taak!!

A huge foul ball that soared far beyond the third base infield grandstand.

Ball count 1-2.

The pitcher on the mound prepared the fourth ball, and the first and second base runners lowered their stances.

I briefly made eye contact with Choi Su-won, who was on first base.

‘Senior, it’s enough, I tell you? Talent? Hey, that’s a story for when you’re in the major leagues. The KBO [Korean Baseball Organization] is a league where everything from Single A to a very small number of major league players are mixed. That means you can play even if you’re only at the Single A or Double A level. It’s okay if you’re a little short on talent. If you work really hard, you can survive as a professional.’

It was a truly arrogant story. If another guy had told me this, I would have laughed. But Choi Su-won’s story was convincing. At least, the KBO that he saw in his view was only at that level.

Is it because I practiced while listening to the story of such a tremendous monster?

Somehow, the pitcher on the mound, who was at the level of Ahn Byeong-yeong, felt very small.

‘Instead, you have to hit it for sure when you hit it. It’s okay if you can’t get a hit against a league ace pitcher. A hit against a league ace or a hit against a 5th starter. A hit is a hit.’

Fourth.

The ball left the pitcher’s hand.

First round of the national tournament.

Bottom of the 1st inning. One out, runners on first and second base, and the ball count is 1-2.

The number of people gathered at the stadium was the largest the pitcher had ever experienced, and the flashing lenses of numerous cameras were also something he had never experienced.

That’s why I was expecting it.

Yes, at least once.

One is enough to come out.

– Taak!!!

A missed pitch in the middle.

A bland 128.7km/h [approximately 80 mph] fastball.

Jo Gyu-hyeok did not miss it.

A huge hit went over the fence of Mokdong.

It was the first home run of the Blue Dragon Flag Championship King of Kings tournament in the second half.

***

Bottom of the 5th inning.

My fourth at-bat has already come around.

No outs, runner on first base.

I have already recorded three consecutive walks.

But even if you exclude my at-bat in today’s game, there was an insurmountable level difference between our Joongang High and today’s opponent, Chunghun High.

The score is 9:0.

I pitched 57 balls in 4 innings and recorded no runs.

Maybe if it was before, I would have gone up to the mound in the 5th inning and thrown three more, but since I appealed that my shoulder wasn’t good, the coach seems to be taking extra care of my shoulder.

Anyway, in the 5th inning, Mungae senior went up to the mound and gave up one walk and one hit, but he managed to block the opponent with a double play.

Oh, by the way, Mungae senior has submitted a whopping three letters of apology to me since the apology incident.

And I rejected two of them.

Honestly, the third one was a bit ambiguous, but his expression looked so desperate that I let it pass. Well, it didn’t seem like he was putting himself in the other person’s shoes, but it was an apology that at least made him aware that what he had done could be a big wound to the other person.

Anyway, if you ask me if the senior who received pitching lessons from me got better, it’s actually a bit ambiguous.

It definitely didn’t get worse. But if you ask me if it got better, it’s definitely not. The speed got faster, but when you add it all up, he’s not a particularly better pitcher than before.

But even that makes Mungae senior very happy. I don’t know if it’s because people are getting happier, but these days, the grumpiness has definitely decreased, which is a plus factor for the whole team.

The pitcher on the mound is Chunghun High’s fourth pitcher.

Fourth at-bat and fourth pitcher. I can feel that Chunghun High is doing its best in its own way.

The pitcher wound up.

Intentional walk even in a 9:0 situation. But I didn’t want to criticize it. After all, the other person is doing their best.

So, I hope the other person doesn’t criticize me either.

I just hope they blame their own mistake of throwing the ball where my bat could reach.

– Taak!!!

I pulled the ball caught at the end of the bat to the end.

The result was a left-field hit that soared far beyond the infielder’s height.

It was a bit precarious.

But thanks to the defense at the level of an ordinary high school, it was enough for the fast first base runner to enter home.

10:0.