The Pitcher Just Hits Home Runs Well [EN]: Chapter 47

47. Excluding Him (5)

Jo Gyu-chan felt his pitches were on point today. The results weren’t too shabby either.

Top of the 4th, two outs.

Out of eleven outs, five were strikeouts. The only batter who managed to get on base was Choi Su-won. Of course, the fact that it was a home run was a pretty big deal.

Was that the reason?

A nagging thought flickered in his mind.

Maybe the pitch he threw to Choi Su-won wasn’t a mistake after all? Did it get hit because it landed in such an awkward spot? Would he have gotten a swing and a miss if it had bounced once?

Things like that.

But he shook his head.

If it were Baek Ha-min, that reckless idiot would be arguing with the coach again right now. But sometimes, personal desires have to take a backseat for the team’s victory.

Jo Gyu-chan glanced at the scoreboard.

1:0

Yes, it’s 1:0.

He didn’t think his teammates would fail to score forever. They were Kyung-ha High School, the strongest in the nation.

-Thwack!!

Intentional walk.

Choi Su-won walked to first base.

The game continued like that.

***

Kyung-ha High’s coach, Choi Jung-chan, stroked his chin.

The score of 1:0 showed no signs of changing. Jo Gyu-chan’s pitch count was already at 54. Considering that only four innings had passed, he had pitched efficiently, but it was still a bit of a shame.

According to high school baseball regulations, 45 to 60 pitches require one day of mandatory rest, and more than 60 pitches require more mandatory rest days.

The final is the day after tomorrow.

Ultimately, if Jo Gyu-chan throws more pitches here, it means he won’t be able to pitch in the final. His gaze turned to the team’s second option, Lee Ji-min. Not bad. No, he’s a pitcher good enough to be an ace on any decent team. In fact, he’s skilled enough to be drafted in the third round at the latest.

But would it really be okay? Could he shut down Central High’s batting lineup, which is so hot these days?

At that moment, Choi Jung-chan’s hand, which had been stroking his chin, stopped.

‘Shut them out?’

Why? Why did he automatically assume that he had to shut down Central High’s batting lineup?

Choi Su-won on the mound threw the ball.

-Thwack!!

A fast and powerful ball slammed into the catcher’s mitt.

A great pitch that’s hard to hit.

But they were the strongest Kyung-ha High School in the nation.

He was sure that there were at least three players who could make it to the pros right now. Besides, it’s still a high school game. The 105-pitch limit for pitchers is an absolute rule. No matter how well Choi Su-won pitches, unless it’s a record-breaking performance…

-Thwack!!

“Strike! Out!”

Good heavens!

There was no logic. There was no basis. Just a strong premonition flashed through his mind. But Choi Jung-chan couldn’t ignore the premonition that flashed through his mind.

That’s how high school baseball is.

Sometimes, records are set out of nowhere. Sometimes, even pitchers who can’t go pro set records against prestigious teams.

‘No… Still…’

Choi Jung-chan thought.

The upper batting order, consisting of Park Jin-kyung, Kim Tae-yoon, Choi Young-jae, and Jung Byung-chul, clearly surpassed the high school level. But there’s always a ‘what if’.

So, this is only, only a ‘what if’. What if the no-hitter continues until the 5th, 6th, or 7th inning? Could he do something then? Even if it’s the semi-final and a close one-point game? But… Kim Tae-yoon, Choi Young-jae, and Jung Byung-chul are up. Wouldn’t it be okay to trust them one more time? It would be better to leave that to the lower batting order…

-Thwaaaaaack!!!!!

“Strike!”

The sound of the ball hitting the mitt was like a roar.

A particularly loud sound. He couldn’t know the exact speed, but it was definitely faster than the fastest ball Jo Gyu-chan threw. 155 [kilometers per hour]? Or maybe even more? Jung Byung-chul said that it was better than Baek Ha-min’s fastball in terms of both speed and power.

“Coach Shin.”

“Yes.”

“Let’s go with a surprise bunt.”

“Yes, I understand.”

Bottom of the 4th.

One out, no runners.

A surprise bunt for the second batter who’s now at bat? Of course, it wasn’t that strange. But Coach Choi Jung-chan wasn’t usually a coach who enjoyed using tactics. But he didn’t object. The coach’s orders were absolute.

The first pitch was a fastball deep inside.

Even though he doesn’t have great control, and he already threw a beanball [a pitch intentionally aimed at the batter] once, he wasn’t afraid to throw inside. Even if it’s not as much as the batters who are afraid of getting hit by the ball, pitchers are also afraid of hitting the batter.

Second.

The signal came from the dugout.

‘A surprise bunt?’

Kim Tae-yoon’s face didn’t show any expression. If you asked if he felt bad because he didn’t think he was trusted, that wasn’t the case. To be honest, he didn’t think he could hit Choi Su-won’s ball in the current situation.

The problem was whether this would work.

Choi Su-won on the mound wound up greatly.

The timing of throwing the ball was slowly becoming familiar. It was a little different from the video footage he had seen in advance, but the timing of swinging his arm was only slightly faster, and the difference wasn’t so great that it was impossible to adapt. The problem was that the ball was still too fast.

A speed of 156km/h? Yes, of course, it’s amazing. People often say that the condition for a pro is whether or not you can hit a 150km/h ball when you know the location, but 156km/h is a full 6km/h faster than that. But it wasn’t just that problem.

It’s the length of the release extension.

The timing of swinging his arm was faster, but the point at which he released the ball was farther away. The release point was lowered, but naturally, the release extension had to be longer. And the speed of swinging his arm is faster than the speed at which the ball flies. The farther he swings his arm, the faster the speed feels.

And as a result.

-Thwack!!

Even though he went into a surprise bunt stance, he couldn’t hit the ball properly. Of course, it was also because it was a pretty high outside pitch.

Was he just trying to throw one high outside? Or did he notice the surprise bunt? He couldn’t know. But Kim Tae-yoon thought that the pitcher on the mound seemed like the latter.

Ball count 0-2.

The pitcher on the mound smiled faintly.

His eyes turned to the dugout.

Power hitting? Bunt? Fake bunt slash?

Third.

A dynamic pitching form. And the hand that had gone back flowed out quickly. There were no other pitches in his head. Fastball. The pitcher on the mound was good enough with just that.

The ball came flying.

A timing of less than 0.1 seconds. His eyes guessed the trajectory of the ball. A low and exquisite course inside. It’s hard to bunt. Is it a ball that’s going to miss? Maybe.

Kim Tae-yoon retracted his bat.

-Thwack!!!

“Strike! Out!”

Two consecutive strikeouts.

Jo Yu-jin turned the ball to third base. From third base to shortstop, from shortstop to second base. Back to first base. While the infielders circled the ball, the ball containing the infielders’ cheers from ‘Nice pitching’ to ‘Fighting’ went into Choi Su-won’s glove. It was a small ceremony after getting a strikeout.

Following 3rd batter.

Choi Su-won didn’t let those infielders down.

-Clack!!

Infield fly ball.

Lim Ji-min, who played as second baseman, caught the ball easily.

Bottom of the 4th, another three up, three down.

It was the moment when the thought of ‘maybe’ in Jo Yu-jin’s head changed to ‘what if it stays like this?’

***

His back was damp. Of course, the heat of July was sweltering, but it wasn’t just because of the heat. He was lucky in the previous inning. If it hadn’t been for the ball that went farther outside than he intended, he might have allowed a surprise bunt. And if it was Kim Tae-yoon’s speed, he would have been able to get on first base if the course of the hit wasn’t too bad.

It’s certain. Something is definitely going to happen today.

From this morning until now, not only is my condition good, but the goddess of fortune keeps smiling on me. Of course, it would have been better if she had given me a perfect game, but still, a no-hitter is good enough.

He turned slightly, took off his top, wiped his body with a wet towel, and then wiped his body again with a dry towel. Considering the hot weather, he had prepared three more undershirts. He felt refreshed after changing into a fluffy shirt.

Of course, the state of the game was not as refreshing as his mood.

Jo Gyu-chan didn’t come down from the mound.

It meant that Kyung-ha High School decided to focus on today’s game rather than the final the day after tomorrow. He didn’t know if this should be considered surprising or natural.

However, this also seemed to him to be a signal from the goddess of fortune to set a record. Of course, looking at the sea squirt [a player who is not performing well] in the bullpen, he could see a Slam Dunk [a popular manga and anime about basketball] ending…

-Thwack!!

“Strike! Out!”

At that moment, Jo Gyu-chan finally got the second out in the top of the 5th with his seventh pitch.

Pitch count 61.

With this, Jo Gyu-chan’s appearance in the final the day after tomorrow was out of the question. He already gave up a point in the first inning, so it would be impossible to set a record and throw more than 105 pitches, but anyway, it means he will throw 44 more pitches in the future.

Jo Gyu-chan on the mound glanced at their dugout for a moment. He didn’t know if it was his imagination, but he thought he made eye contact with him for a moment.

He felt a little strange.

The media often makes a fuss about starting pitchers, calling it a starting pitcher match, etc. In fact, he originally hated such fuss. Basically, baseball is a 1:1 battle between the batter and the pitcher. It means that the batter is the one who faces the pitcher on the mound.

But a starting pitcher match? It was funny.

He thought it was just a media ploy to promote the pitcher, or a pitcher’s ploy to raise their name value.

But now, at this moment, for some reason, he felt that the competitive spirit filling his heart was not that of a batter, but that of a pitcher. From the beginning, there was no reason to feel competitive as a batter. There was no idiot who felt competitive against an opponent who was several levels below him.

-Whoosh!!!

“Strike! Out!”

A swing and a miss on a curveball that dropped sharply.

This time, Jo Gyu-chan blocked their batting lineup with three up, three down.

He picked up his glove again.

The current pitch count is 51.

The coach didn’t say anything to him, he just nodded once. Instead, Coach Yang Se-joon stuck next to him and talked about pitching. Of course, it didn’t seem like there was anything worth listening to, so he listened with one ear and let it out with the other, but he nodded as if he was engraving it in his heart.

The game continued.

***

“Ah, thank you for the interview. One last question. So far, Ted, you have only emphasized Choi Su-won’s aspect as a batter, but in fact, Choi Su-won is originally famous as a pitcher. In fact, he is currently in the second grade of high school and throws 156km/h. Can you tell me what you think about dual pitching and hitting?”

At the words of PD [Production Director] Choi Kyung-ah, Ted Park laughed heartily and waved his hand.

“Dual pitching and hitting? Ah, of course, our company is not that negative about it. In fact, the value of the roster is increasing, and a fielder who replaces one pitcher roster is that much more attractive.”

“Does that mean that Choi Su-won can also try dual pitching and hitting? Something like that?”

Ted Park didn’t bother to mention how many players had tried and failed at dual pitching and hitting since Shohei Ohtani.

Also, he didn’t bother to bring up the story that a team would never want something ambiguous like dual pitching and hitting for a foreign prospect who used more than $2 million. Of course, $2 million is an amount that Major League teams that spend hundreds of millions of dollars a year can afford to gamble on with the lottery. But if it’s not just $2 million, but $2 million in foreign prospect slot money, the story is different.

But his rational thoughts were not that important.

The only thing that matters is the player’s will. Especially when he is still a ‘potential customer’ who has not yet signed the contract.

Therefore, Ted Park could only smile and repeat the most fundamental words.

“Well, Choi Su-won’s talent is second to none compared to any player I’ve seen. I think that’s all I can say.”

“Ah, yes. Thank you.”