The Pitcher Just Hits Home Runs Well [EN]: Chapter 396

396. Extra Story 6) Recruiting Party Members (4)

Domingo Rodriguez had spent a very long time with Choi Su-won.

Therefore, he was certain of one thing: that the ‘greatest hitter of all time’ was none other than the pitching and hitting monster, Choi Su-won.

Over 15 seasons since his debut, 1976 games, and 8082 plate appearances. If a hitter with a career slash line of .352/.470/.704 isn’t the greatest of all time, then who could be? Even the 15-year prime of that guy who supposedly took drugs and became a god doesn’t compare. He is truly the reincarnation of the god of hitting in this era.

And at the same time, he was also certain of another thing: that ‘pitcher Choi Su-won’ could not be considered among the ‘all-time’ greats.

Of course, since 2037, he had clearly been a league-ace-level pitcher. From that point on, Domingo Rodriguez had to completely give up his spot as the number one starter to him. But that was only because of the age difference.

Choi Su-won and Domingo Rodriguez at the same age?

‘Of course, I’m a much better pitcher.’

So, the elements needed for today’s victory were very simple. The Mets’ hitters needed to target pitcher Choi Su-won, who wasn’t the greatest of all time, and Domingo Rodriguez himself needed to bring out as much of his prime skills as possible.

He didn’t bother looking at the field.

And quietly checked his body.

His velocity was ridiculously slower compared to his prime.

But didn’t Greg Maddux say that what makes a pitcher great isn’t a strong arm, but what’s between the ears? That small, wrinkled lump of protein weighing only 1.5kg [approximately 3.3 pounds, referring to the brain].

-Boom!!

“Strike!! Out!!”

The out count piled up.

But even so, Domingo Rodriguez didn’t waver. Because there was also a hitter on this team who, while it might be a stretch to call him the greatest of all time, was definitely in the conversation for the top ten.

Of course, even such a hitter can’t always get a hit against a pitcher. But conversely, even a hitter who isn’t that great can sometimes get a hit against a league-ace-level pitcher.

-Clang!!!!!

Before Alexander McDowell’s turn came.

Brian Wilcox got a hit first.

One out, runner on 1st.

Alexander McDowell swung big at a ball that came in deep.

The batted ball soared.

Could they get a clean scoring opportunity from the first inning? But unfortunately, that hope was not realized. The Yankees’ right fielder caught the ball with an amazing diving catch.

Bad luck.

Just like the teams that face him often experience.

And riding that momentum, he finished the inning with a strikeout.

Change of offense and defense.

Domingo Rodriguez went up to the mound.

─Wooooooooo!!!!!!

A tremendous booing.

Booing on a scale that was truly beyond imagination erupted from the stands. Well, he never felt particularly loved by the Yankees fans during his time with the Yankees. That’s why he didn’t feel much pressure about moving to another team. Originally, hatred is something that is expressed when there are feelings.

But the reaction from the Yankees fandom immediately after he moved teams was a bit surprising. It was like he had become Judas, who betrayed Jesus.

To be honest, it wasn’t bad.

It’s much more appealing to be Domingo Rodriguez, who is hated by everyone, than to be one of Choi Su-won and the kids, becoming one of the kids.

So, he enjoyed it a bit.

He ran his mouth a bit in the media and deliberately left some stupid posts on social media. Thanks to that, the reaction to him spread like wildfire, and the sight of shorts burning his uniform taking over the entire internet world was truly spectacular.

Amidst the huge booing, he lightly threw a few practice pitches.

And the young punk who came up to bat made eye contact with Domingo. Well, the crowd was full of animosity towards Domingo, but he wasn’t really on bad terms with the Yankees players.

Of course, just because they weren’t on bad terms didn’t mean he had any intention of going easy on them.

Low and outside.

He didn’t have the velocity of his prime, but the sharpness of the ball was still there.

-Clang!!!

The first pitch, hit weakly, didn’t leave the infield.

A clean one out.

Next, Oswald Wells. The most difficult hitter in today’s game came to the plate. Ah, why is he the most difficult hitter?

-Clang!!!

[A high fly ball!! Right fielder right in front!! It’s an out!!]

[Domingo Rodriguez gets two outs with two pitches!! A very good start today.]

[Now up to bat is number 3 hitter Choi Su-won. Choi Su-won is coming up.]

[Two outs, no runners. The Mets are naturally sending Choi Su-won out with an intentional walk.]

Since Choi Su-won was going to be sent out with an automatic intentional walk unless it was an unusual situation. Although he had come down from his insane prime performance of 4/5/8 to a relatively human performance of 3/4/6, he was still a natural disaster. Whether it’s an EF5-level crazy tornado [Enhanced Fujita scale, a measure of tornado intensity] or an EF1-level relatively weak tornado, a tornado is a tornado. Natural disasters are not meant to be confronted.

─Wooooo!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

A fierce booing erupted.

But honestly, it didn’t feel like a bigger booing compared to when he came up to the mound earlier. It seemed like that was the maximum booing that this number of people could produce.

Low outside ball and low inside ball.

Balls that break away and balls that disrupt timing.

He no longer had the 100-mile fastball of his prime, but his pitching, close to that of a baseball master, squeezed out ground balls.

The game continued.

Neither Choi Su-won nor Domingo Rodriguez blew up the game. Although the content was different. The numbers on the scoreboard didn’t change easily from 0:0.

-Whoosh!!

“Strike!! Out!!!”

A roar of applause that seemed to shake the stadium erupted.

[The 10th strikeout of the game!! Top of the 6th!! Choi Su-won finishes the inning with his 10th strikeout.]

[Wow, Choi Su-won is always like that, but he’s especially scary in the postseason. Even people who say that big game players are an illusion have to admit that Choi Su-won is an irregularity.]

“Hey, I think we can definitely win this game today?”

“I don’t know. Not yet. Domingo is pitching really well today too.”

“Hey, how can you compare barely managing to prevent runs with overwhelmingly shutting them down? Domingo only has one strikeout so far. Besides, he’s old, how long do you think he can keep pitching?”

“Is that so?”

Bottom of the 6th.

Domingo Rodriguez went up to the mound.

The flow is good.

That’s how he felt.

His pitch count so far was only 51.

This proves that his pitching has been very efficient so far, considering that it is usually based on an average of 15 pitches per inning. On the other hand, Choi Su-won’s pitch count so far was a whopping 92. Of course, Choi Su-won had pitched one more inning, but his pitch count was definitely very high.

Pitching that trusts the defense and pitching that doesn’t.

It’s the difference between a selfish guy who wants to be the only protagonist in this place and a nice player who wants to win together.

Of course, the fact that the Mets’ infield is generally more experienced and has better resources, and the Yankees’ infield is full of inexperienced youngsters, wasn’t a big deal to Domingo. In the first place, it was unfair to face a lively 34-year-old guy at the age of 43.

The game continued.

Bottom of the 6th, top of the 7th, bottom of the 7th. Choi Su-won’s pitch count had increased to 103. Isn’t it about time for a substitution?

No.

-Whoosh!!!!!

“Strike!! Out!!!”

107th pitch, high fastball.

101.9 miles.

The batter’s bat missed.

He showed no signs of fatigue.

He was still throwing powerful balls, and that continued until the moment the Mets’ attack ended in the top of the 8th. So, at the point of finishing the 8th inning, his pitch count was 119. Choi Su-won in the dugout was still not starting to ice his arm.

And the 43-year-old old pitcher came up to the mound.

81 pitches.

In terms of pitch count, there was a difference of nearly 40. He straightened his back and looked at the batter.

His shoulder was stiff.

The heavy legs could not be fully recovered with only a 7-minute break. The scenario of the Mets’ hitters targeting the tired Choi Su-won, as he had planned, did not come to fruition. But if so, at least until the 8th inning. He wanted to block the same innings as Choi Su-won, also without giving up any runs.

“Isn’t this elder abuse?”

“His pitch count is only 81. He’s been smart about conserving his stamina. He’s definitely a veteran. There’s a reason why he’s been making almost $20 million in the major league until that age.”

He threw each ball with all his might.

His body was heavy, but his mind was getting clearer and clearer. To exaggerate a bit, he felt like he could feel the movement of every single muscle fiber.

He accurately planted the ball where he wanted it.

Of course, that didn’t mean that the ball could overwhelm the batter. It would be too much to ask for that kind of power from a 43-year-old old pitcher throwing a 90.1-mile ball.

Slow fastball.

And an even slower changeup.

Exquisite slider and a nearly perfect curve.

Two batters were retired in a row with routine ground balls.

Only one out count remained.

-Clang!!!

And the batted ball fell somewhere between the shortstop and the right fielder.

Two outs, runner on 1st.

The Mets’ dugout still didn’t move.

The fourth batter of this inning came to the plate.

Number 1 hitter.

If they don’t get him here, the next hitter is the most dangerous hitter.

Domingo Rodriguez exquisitely induced a ground ball. And the batted ball led to a ground ball as he had induced.

The fact that an induced ground ball becomes a hit is not an area that the pitcher can do anything about. That’s why a strikeout is the most certain play that a pitcher can show.

The ground ball that Domingo Rodriguez induced did not become a routine ground ball.

The shortstop’s defense wasn’t even a particularly big mistake. It was just a slightly disappointing defense to have come out at this timing.

Two outs, runners on 1st and 2nd.

The moment runners went on base in scoring position, the Mets’ dugout moved.

Domingo Rodriguez shook his head violently.

The Mets’ manager took half a step back without realizing it at the old pitcher’s fierce eyes.

Just one more.

There was a difficult path and an easy path.

Was it because of a mysterious premonition that they couldn’t beat that worst opponent with only easy and rational choices? Amazingly, the Mets’ manager chose the difficult path between those choices.

[Ah, no pitcher change. Two outs, runners on 1st and 2nd. Domingo Rodriguez will face Oswald Wells as is.]

Concentration that was not broken even by the manager’s visit.

No, rather, his mind was elevated to an even higher place. A clarity like that of an ascetic at the end of his asceticism attaining enlightenment.

The pitcher on the mound now was clearly not Domingo Rodriguez, the most powerful pitcher of this era during his prime. But among all the 43-year-old pitchers who have ever existed, he was worthy of competing for the strongest.

The 90.3-mile fastball, squeezed out with all his might, led to a foul. The 86.3-mile slider that left the zone drew a swing and miss, and after a few bait balls, the ball he threw at a full count was a changeup that he had been taught by Pedro Martinez, the most powerful pitcher in Major League history a long time ago.

But that ball was not the same as Pedro Martinez’s changeup.

Although its most brilliant moment may not have reached Pedro, it was a changeup that contained all of Domingo Rodriguez’s experience, whose 23-year career was second to none.

-Whoosh!!!

“Strike!! Out!!!”

The second strikeout he had earned after keeping the game scoreless for a whopping 8 innings today.

Domingo Rodriguez on the mound roared.

Although he may not have pitched better than Choi Su-won in today’s game, he at least showed the same share of performance. No, he went beyond that. With this, the momentum has shifted to the Mets, and the Mets’ hitters will surely take advantage of this momentum to score.

Although Domingo Rodriguez himself may not be able to become the winning pitcher, at least the Mets will take today’s game, and this is the watershed moment of this series…

“……”

Top of the 9th.

The 34-year-old ace, who had thrown 119 pitches, came up to the mound once again.

Game 3 of the series.

The score is 1:0.

The Mets failed to overcome the Yankees in the end.

And like Domingo Rodriguez’s premonition, that was the watershed moment of the 2042 season World Series.