The Pitcher Just Hits Home Runs Well [EN]: Chapter 45

45. Except Him (3)

Kyung-ho and the 103rd class, now in their third year, are clearly a golden generation. Just looking at the current lineup, it’s full of familiar faces.

Kyu-chan *hyung* [older brother/male friend], the ace, is someone I suffered with to get a military exemption. Moreover, Captain Byung-chul *hyung* was my rival when I won my first MVP [Most Valuable Player award] in ’29. If the Marines had played baseball even a little bit like humans back then, Byung-chul *hyung* might have taken the MVP.

And that’s not all.

Young-jae *hyung*, who was always overshadowed by me until I went to the States but then won the first baseman Gold Glove for four consecutive years after I left, Tae-yoon *hyung*, who kept getting his name on the national team roster but eventually went to the military as a member of the Sangmu team [athletic program within the Korean Armed Forces], and even Jin-kyung *hyung*, who’s at bat now, there are at least five players who are key members in professional baseball.

Park Jin-kyung.

He’s an infielder who has everything among the 5 tools commonly mentioned in baseball, except for the shoulder. Before my regression, I also hurt my shoulder, so my throwing wasn’t great, and I was treated as a 4-tool player, so I was often compared to him. I was considered trash in the majors, but when I was in Korea, I was considered a decent first baseman.

‘Honestly, if Park Jin-kyung improves a bit more, wouldn’t he be like Choi Soo-won?’

‘No, he wouldn’t. And there’s nothing more for him to improve. His face is already completely ruined instead of his skills.’

That’s roughly the kind of talk that went around.

Anyway, Park Jin-kyung has infield defense that ranks among the best in the entire KBO [Korea Baseball Organization], a .280 batting average, can steal 20 bases if he puts his mind to it, and is a first baseman who hits 15 home runs at Jamsil Stadium [known to be a pitcher-friendly stadium].

He came to the plate, meticulously adjusted his helmet, and tamped down the dirt in the batter’s box with his foot. Seeing that Park Jin-kyung, famous for his many routines at the plate, only had two routines, I was reminded of how young he still was.

Jo Yu-jin pounded his mitt, demanding a low pitch deep inside on Park Jin-kyung.

Of course, just because he demanded it and I aimed for it, didn’t mean the ball would necessarily go there.

Moreover, Park Jin-kyung was standing close to the inner corner of the plate. That meant there was a high risk of hitting him with the ball. That’s why Jo Yu-jin wouldn’t normally ask me for a pitch like that. But I think he definitely felt something today.

In fact, I had been cautiously applying a few insights I gained from teaching Meong-ge to my pitching practice for the past few days. Of course, I didn’t do anything crazy like suddenly changing something drastically. Since I removed the pause in the balance point, I slightly delayed the timing of pulling the center of gravity in the stride, and I consciously increased the speed of the backswing a little to gather power there.

Of course, this process alone couldn’t suddenly improve my command or completely stabilize my location. After all, the maximum efficiency I could expect from it was only to narrow the grouping of my pitches. That means zeroing in is a separate issue.

So, the fact that the ball went in perfectly during practice today was just because it was one of those days. You know, sometimes you have those days. Days when your body feels light, everything goes well, and things just work out. It’s understandable why pseudo-sciences like biorhythms became popular on days like that.

When I was playing in the majors, on those days, exaggerating a bit, the ball looked as big as a door, and I could distinguish the types of pitches in detail just by looking at the seams. Today was similar. Of course, the ball that Jo Kyu-chan threw a little while ago was so obviously a curveball that I could have distinguished it even if I wasn’t in good condition, but anyway, it was like that.

A low pitch deep inside.

With my current condition, I feel like I can plant the ball on the edge of the zone with razor-like sharpness.

Here we go.

When practicing, I consciously controlled my body.

But in a real game, I don’t consciously think about what I’ve ingrained in my body, and just use it as comfortably as possible.

The fully drawn body shoots out like an arrow. Following the rotation of the torso, the arm that went behind the back quickly pops out. Passing the ear, over the eyebrow, further than the brim of the hat. And at the last moment, I perfectly scraped the ball.

And as a result…

– Thwack!!

Instead of a refreshing sound of the ball hitting the mitt, a refreshing sound of the bat hitting the ball echoed through the stadium.

Ah…

Unfortunately, the razor-like sharpness seems to have been my delusion. Sadly, the ball was about one and a half balls outside.

– Cough…

Park Jin-kyung knelt down, making a sound like air escaping from his lungs. Fortunately, the ball hit his thigh. Of course, a 156 km/h ball hurts like hell even if it hits a good spot, but it’s a relief that it didn’t hit any joints or bones.

Park Jin-kyung, his face flushed red, got up and limped towards first base. I slightly lowered my head to express my apology. In the major leagues, there’s no such thing, but when in Rome, do as the Romans do. In Korea, you have to do this. I’m going to be at the plate soon, and although it’s not as fast as my 156 km/h fastball, being hit by Jo Kyu-chan’s 150 km/h fastball will still cause bruises.

Unfortunately, the perfect game was ruined with a hit-by-pitch to the first batter in the top of the first inning.

I had a good feeling today, it was just the right moment for a perfect game, but it’s a shame. Well, there’s nothing I can do. I’ll let go of what’s past. It’s a shame, but let’s just be satisfied with a no-hitter.

Second.

The second batter from Kyung-ho also stood on the inner side of the plate.

In the major leagues, there’s a famous saying, ‘If a batter stands close to the plate, I’ll hit them even if it’s my grandmother.’ But, contrary to that saying, Jo Yu-jin’s mitt slightly moved to the center.

‘Is this bastard…?’

I sent a signal with my eyes. From the look on his face, I could tell that he was saying, ‘I trust you, but how about throwing it a little more towards the center?’

I lightly shook my head twice and glared at him once more.

And I was quite pleased with the position of the mitt that had slowly moved.

Yes, the first pitch is just for zeroing in. Besides, one and a half balls off isn’t that far off. More than anything, it’s stupid to avoid a match just because they’re standing close to the plate. A fastball pitcher with bad control? Then it’s up to them to stand in a position where they can avoid it. That’s baseball.

The Japanese emphasize getting on base even if it means getting hit, and Korean baseball has been influenced by that, but honestly, getting hit by a baseball is usually not good for your body. I’ve been there. But to play 144 or 162 games in a season, it’s best to avoid getting hit as much as possible. Also, I think that’s the virtue of a player who gets paid hundreds of millions in salary.

So, come on, stand close.

Kim Tae-yoon, the second batter, is a right-handed hitter. There’s one pitch that’s perfect for a right-handed hitter standing that close.

I gripped the seams of the ball tightly.

I glanced at first base. A reasonable lead. Park Jin-kyung is a very fast runner. He clearly intended to run to second if the opportunity arose. But even if the ball was slow, my ball was fast enough, and Jo Yu-jin’s shoulder wasn’t bad either. As long as I don’t lose the pitching timing, stealing is meaningless.

Winding up.

The ball, strongly scraped by my fingertips, left my hand.

Mid-140s? Maybe a little slower than that. But no batter can remain calm when such a ball is flying straight towards their head. Kim Tae-yoon was startled and fell on his butt.

– Bang!!!

‘Strike!!!’

Slider.

It was a slider that curved from the inside to the outside for a right-handed hitter.

‘Are these crazy bastards?’

Park Jin-kyung, who was massaging his thigh, got angry. And Kyu-hyuk *sunbae* [senior/mentor], who was standing on first base, said something to Park Jin-kyung.

‘Hey, it’s a strike.’

‘No, still. There’s a limit. Where else is there a guy who throws fastballs with no control right at the body?’

‘So, what’s normal about a pitcher like that standing on the mound and a batter standing right inside and falling on his butt from a breaking ball?’

‘Ah…’

Of course, even if this was a beanball, there wouldn’t be a bench-clearing brawl. Basically, bench-clearing brawls are almost impossible in high school baseball. Well, it’s not like there’s no precedent at all, but it happened once about 30 years ago, and then again about 20 years before that. So, it’s safe to say it doesn’t happen. More than anything, both schools that caused such incidents were suspended from national competitions for a year afterward.

Kim Tae-yoon, the second batter, got up from his seat with a flushed face and waited for the second ball.

He’s still standing on the inner side of the plate. I guess he has some pride. But it’s inevitable that his hips and upper body are leaning back. Good. You can’t put any power into your hits with that awkward posture. You can tell just by looking at Jo Yu-jin.

Center.

Fastball.

This time, the ball is sucked right into the center where I want it to go. It’s not the highest speed because my body isn’t fully warmed up yet in the top of the first inning, but it’s still a fastball in the mid-150s. It’s not easy even if it’s in the center.

– Thwack!!

A ground ball right to the shortstop led to a clean 6-4-3 double play through the shortstop, second baseman, and first baseman.

Two outs in an instant.

Choi Young-jae, the third batter, came to the plate.

Before my regression, he was overshadowed by Jung Byung-chul in high school, and by me in the pros, so he had a strong image of being second-best, but after I went to the majors, he consistently won the first baseman Gold Glove, and his offensive power alone was among the best in the league.

A face and build that are hard to believe for a high school student.

His profile says he’s 180cm and 100kg, but I know he’s actually about 179cm and 112kg. He truly fills the batter’s box with a massive presence.

First pitch.

High inside.

– Whoosh!!

The bat was late.

He seemed to flinch a little. It definitely gets a little easier after hitting the first batter. I can understand a little why George Cook, the second pitcher on our team when I was in the majors, was proud of his nickname, ‘Headhunter’.

Second.

Similarly, a deep inside pitch.

But this time, the properly controlled ball was very low.

– Thwack!!

‘Strike!!’

Choi Young-jae bit his lower lip.

And third.

Center.

The bat swung powerfully. A swing with overwhelming power that would definitely pierce the infield if it hit. His power alone definitely surpasses even Kyu-hyuk *sunbae*.

– Whoosh!!!

‘Strike!! Out!!’

Of course, that ridiculous power only matters when you actually hit the ball.

The slider in the low 140s that went out of the zone drew a swing and a miss from the batter.

Three-pitch strikeout.

The inning ended.

***

‘Good job.’

On the way back to the dugout.

Jo Yu-jin patted Choi Soo-won’s butt and gave him a thumbs up.

‘Your pitches are really good today. Even if it’s Kyung-ho’s batters, it wouldn’t be easy to attack you, right?’

‘Shhh!! Don’t say any more. It’ll bring bad luck.’

‘Huh?’

‘The perfect game is already broken, so it’s okay. But don’t use ‘that word’ carelessly.’

Choi Soo-won’s face was endlessly serious.

And Jo Yu-jin, who had no intention of saying ‘that word’ in the first place, looked at that serious face and thought.

‘If it’s ‘that word’ at this timing, it must be no-hitter, right?? So, he suddenly threw a beanball to the lead batter on the first pitch, and now he’s declaring a no-hitter after the first inning? Is this bastard crazy after all?’

But strangely, the thought of ‘maybe’ flashed in one corner of his mind. Is it because that crazy bastard is Choi Soo-won?

In the top of the second inning that followed, Jo Kyu-chan proved why he was called the best left-hander in high school.

And again, in the bottom of the second inning, Kyung-ho’s attack.

He was the MVP of the mid-season King of Kings tournament and the captain of Kyung-ho.

At the same time, Choi Soo-won’s history before his regression. If his team hadn’t been the Marines, he might have taken Choi Soo-won’s MVP at least once. He was also the strongest catcher.

Jung Byung-chul, the fourth batter, came to the plate.