The Pitcher Just Hits Home Runs Well [EN]: Chapter 56

56. The Monster Rookie (2)

The answer to the question of which country has best commercialized high school baseball in the world is simple.

It’s Japan.

The summer Koshien [National High School Baseball Championship], with 49 high schools participating nationwide, attracts over 800,000 spectators. The average attendance per game is close to 17,000. Ticket prices are also quite high, exceeding those of professional baseball, and scalped tickets can go for ten times the original price.

However, that doesn’t necessarily mean Japan is strong in the U-18 tournaments. Is it simply because, like China’s Super League, the scale is large but there are few good players?

Of course not.

Considering that Japan’s professional league, NPB [Nippon Professional Baseball], is the second strongest league in the world, that doesn’t make sense. It’s the same reason why the United States doesn’t perform well in the Premier12. The United States doesn’t send players within the 40-man roster of Major League Baseball to the Premier12.

And looking at the WBSC U-18 Baseball World Cup, Japan is the same. Japan does not draw players from the 49 teams participating in the summer Koshien for the U-18 World Cup. In other words, the Japanese national team participating in the U-18 tournament is limited to players who have been eliminated in the regional qualifiers of the national tournament.

“I know that Korean baseball has improved a lot. But there is still a difference in level. I plan to show that difference properly this time.”

Therefore, it would normally be difficult for the Japanese national team to make such arrogant remarks in an interview. However, this time, the situation for the Japanese U-18 national team was a bit different.

Due to its nature, Koshien often sees upsets, and in this summer’s Koshien, as many as two schools that were considered to be competing for the championship, let alone reaching the quarterfinals, were eliminated.

And that was truly disastrous news for the students attending those schools.

Of course, the circumstances were slightly different for people like Sato Hiroshi, who conducted the interview. Although he failed to advance to Koshien this time, he had already proven his skills in the spring Koshien, and it was certain that at least one or two teams would pick him in the first round. But his friends were different.

A handful among the 160,000 high school baseball players nationwide.

They were the real elites who could challenge the NPB, but there were many players at a similar level to them. And considering the long tradition of Japanese professional baseball, the chances of students from schools that did not advance to Koshien being picked in the upper rounds were very slim.

“Don’t worry too much, everyone. If we perform well in this WBSC [World Baseball Softball Confederation tournament], the clubs will think again, even if just a little.”

“Do you think so?”

Of course, Sato Hiroshi himself knew that the possibility was slim.

Right now, all of Japan’s attention was focused on Koshien. Even the viewership ratings of professional baseball couldn’t keep up with Koshien. That’s why this kind of performance was necessary. They needed to attract the media with even slightly provocative words.

And in that sense, the relationship between Korea and Japan was a very good ingredient. Korea because of its past with Japan, and Japan because of the reality of being caught up by a latecomer called Korea, they couldn’t have good feelings towards each other.

Round 2 of Group A.

The match between Korea and Japan was approaching.

***

“Oh, so, like you said, he’s really good. It’s not just his skill, but his character is solid. Dieting, huh? These kids these days have a lot of spirit. Yeah, I know. That’s why I didn’t release that interview as an article. But I think it’s okay to release this one? No, that’s right. Of course, but this guy won’t be going to Japan anyway. Besides, unlike McDowell’s, this one is clearly picking on us.”

-Choi Soo-won ‘Are they just running their mouths again without sending out the first string? Sigh, Elon Musk really needs to work harder. Outer solar system navigation technology needs to be developed quickly so they can bring the Japanese first string, who are training in Andromeda.’-

Whenever they lose a match against Korea, Japan has a very old tradition of saying, ‘XX was missing, so it wasn’t the first string.’ Of course, the U-18 national team wasn’t really Japan’s best members, but Choi Soo-won didn’t care about that, and he was just a little annoyed because it was so obvious that they would talk like that and then say it wasn’t the first string if they lost again, so he made that statement.

Basically, there was a little more interest in the U-18 tournament than usual. And although there has been a slightly lesser tendency recently due to the rise of China, the Korea-Japan match always had a resonance that stimulated something deep inside Koreans.

Reporters always live off people’s attention.

In that sense, Choi Soo-won’s provocative remarks were enough to attract people’s attention. From the Goryeo Ilbo [a fictional Korean newspaper], which conducted the interview in the first place, to various internet media, copying was rampant.

“Hey!! What are you doing? Does the company have so much money that they sent you to the United States? I sent you to get interviews like this. No, what are you going to do interviewing the coach? Is the Phillies game important now? It’s just one of the 162 games a year anyway. Run over there right now. And make sure to get a victory interview after the game. What? What if you don’t win? Hey!!! Are you at a level where you need to be taken care of like that?”

Thus, the WBSC U-18 game, which would not have received so much media attention even if it was a Korea-Japan match, now had it in spades.

Black-haired reporters gathered in the stadium.

***

Before the game started.

Sato Hiroshi came to me, bowed once, and then babbled something and disappeared. I could understand about half of it, but of course, it wasn’t because I knew Japanese.

“Wow… that was English.”

At first, I thought it was real Japanese.

In the middle, I heard some English words, so I thought he was mixing English and Japanese. Only at the end did I realize, ‘Ah, he’s been speaking English all this time.’ I realized once again that when I first went to the United States, when I was clearly speaking English but was told to speak English, it wasn’t racism.

Anyway, there was no need to bother interpreting what he said.

He just said that the interview wasn’t his true feelings and that he fully respects Korean baseball. He apologized for making unnecessary trash talk because he needed media attention. Thanks to my good reaction, the media’s response became even bigger. That was the content.

It was all a known story.

In the original history, Sato Hiroshi was an unpopular figure with the public. I played with him for about a year when he was in the majors, and he told me about these situations in detail back then. Of course, even then, I thought, ‘He lives a tiring life. He keeps everything in his heart.’

Sports inevitably involve nationalism.

No, are the villain wrestlers in professional wrestling really bad guys? Even though Sato Hiroshi is disliked by Koreans, he is a baseball player loved by Japanese people. I think that’s enough. There’s no need for a villain to go around telling people, ‘This is all a gimmick. Please love me.’

Oh, what about me?

Of course, I also made some provocative comments when playing against Japan. But I was a player representing Asia. The life lesson you can learn here is that baseball players must first be good at baseball.

Anyway, I nodded roughly to Sato Hiroshi, who was expressing his gratitude.

He said he wanted to show more people the sight of him getting beaten up, so I had no reason to refuse.

Top of the 1st inning.

Sato Hiroshi went up to the mound.

He wasn’t bad. He had pitched in Japan for eight years, won the Sawamura Award [Japanese equivalent of the Cy Young Award], twice, and came to the majors, where he was runner-up for Rookie of the Year and made the All-Star team once.

Today, our team’s leadoff hitter is Park Jin-kyung, the shortstop from Gyeonggo [a high school in Korea].

He recorded 3 hits in 4 at-bats in the last game.

When he was playing in the KBO [Korea Baseball Organization], he was said to be a minor version of me, a versatile hitter. I might have had a hard time against him in the semi-finals if I hadn’t hit him in the torso with the first pitch. He later said that he grounded into a double play because the spot where he was hit by the beanball was sore, but I just nodded and said I understood, even though it was a double play timing anyway.

-Clang!!

Park Jin-kyung touched the first pitch.

A batted ball that completely deviated from the right foul line.

He briefly stepped out of the batter’s box and tightened his gloves.

Frankly, the biggest difference between Korea and Japan is the pitchers.

To explain that part, I have to explain the flow of modern baseball in the 21st century. So, how did I come to know this so well? After the 2039 season, on a day when the first snow fell in November in New York… (omitted) …so, in conclusion, the average speeds of the three leagues, which were all 142, 140, and 139 at the beginning of the 21st century, are now quite different in 2025, at 152, 148, and 144.

Anyway, the fastest ball in the current Korean high school league was thrown by me. And then Baek Ha-min, and then Han Min-joon. Jo Gyu-chan was the only left-hander.

Unlike Korean high school baseball, where only four pitchers throw over 150 km/h [approximately 93 mph], Japan has about a dozen pitchers who throw over 150 km/h. And Sato Hiroshi is one of them, a left-handed pitcher who throws a maximum of 154 km/h [approximately 96 mph]. So, he’s a left-handed fireballer who they bring even from hell.

But even against such a pitcher, Park Jin-kyung picked the ball well on the second and third pitches. And another foul on the fourth. He definitely has a sense for hitting.

And on the fifth.

-Whoosh!!

“Strike!! Out!!”

But no matter how much sense you have, there are balls that are hard to handle. The forkball that Sato Hiroshi throws is one of those balls.

In fact, forkballs are not often thrown in the KBO or even in the majors. The risk of injury from sliders is debatable, but forkballs are undoubtedly full of risk of injury. Moreover, you can get a similar effect with a splitter, so there’s no reason to throw it.

However, the effect is certain.

In fact, Sato Hiroshi was ranked second in the Major League Rookie of the Year with just that one ball. Considering the major league’s tendency not to give the Rookie of the Year award to rookies from the NPB or KBO, it can be said that he was virtually the best rookie that year.

The following second batter was retired with a ground ball to the infield.

The course was pretty good, but the bat speed couldn’t keep up with the 152 km/h fastball. Seeing Sato Hiroshi throwing almost at his maximum speed from the first inning, it seemed like he was putting a lot of effort into this game.

And it was my turn.

The cameras in the stadium all looked at me.

It’s a natural thing.

In the last game against Australia, I recorded 3 hits in 3 at-bats (2 home runs) and 1 walk in 4 plate appearances. With this kind of performance, it wouldn’t be strange if an intentional walk came out.

But the Japanese outfielders retreated backwards. They’re going to compete. It wasn’t a tournament, and it was a Korea-Japan match. A rational choice internally would be an intentional walk, but it would have been an impossible choice considering the external factors of the game.

Sato Hiroshi on the mound looked at me.

It was a completely different look from when he came to me before the game and bowed.

First pitch.

A high course slightly outside.

-Bang!!

“Strike!!!”

I didn’t bother looking at the umpire. I just waited for the next ball, thinking that he was going to give strikes even up to here today.

Second.

Low course outside.

-Clang!!

I thought it was a fastball, but it was a two-seamer. The batted ball greatly deviated from the foul line.

And the third.

Frankly, it was expected.

He was a man who was proud of his forkball. A 0-2 count. Here, it was right to aim for a swing and a miss.

The baseball flew from his hand.

I saw it. Those spread fingers. And that forkball flying between those fingers.

The rational choice was to lay off the pitch and aim for the next ball at 1-2.

But the most efficient choice beyond rationality is to break the ball that the pitcher is most confident in head-on.

-Crack!!

A cool sound that seemed to split the baseball echoed through the stadium.

There was no need to see. I lightly threw the bat and ran towards first base as if jogging.

A huge home run that went far beyond the left fence.

Sato Hiroshi on the mound was still standing tall. It seemed that the flight distance was still slightly insufficient to bring the Japanese first string in Andromeda.

The game continued.