The Pitcher Just Hits Home Runs Well [EN]: Chapter 77

The Pitcher Just Hits Home Runs Well – Episode 77 (77/404)

77. The Beginning of the End (3)

America is the nation of sports.

People often talk about the greatness of America by comparing the world’s armies to the American army, but the same is true of American sports.

In terms of the size of the sports industry, the United States is by far the best in the world. Even just 10 years ago, the United States was unmatched by all other countries combined, and even with China’s recent quantitative expansion, it still accounts for about 40% of the global market.

From April to October, MLB [Major League Baseball].

From September to January, NFL [National Football League].

From October to April, NBA [National Basketball Association].

There is literally no off-season.

Of course, this is no coincidence. The NBA and NFL are held in the winter because of MLB. Until the 1970s, MLB boasted such an overwhelming status that the term ‘national sport’ wasn’t at all out of place. As a result, the NFL and NBA, which were relatively new sports, had to schedule their seasons to avoid MLB as much as possible, and their home bases were mainly in small and medium-sized cities not dominated by MLB.

“Of course, that’s all meaningless now.”

The guy with the butt-shaped chin, sideburns, and fairly thick beard grumbled, looking way older than me.

“Look now. No one comes to us for autographs. Even though this is New York.”

“I know, right? I heard you were on the cover of Sports Illustrated, but I guess you’re not as popular as I thought?”

“The problem is Sports Illustrated itself. Who reads that old stuff these days? Maybe The Athletic, but even that old rag hasn’t chosen a baseball player as the Sports Star of the Year for over 10 years.”

“Huh? I don’t think it’s been that long?”

“Forget it. There’s a non-sports player in the middle, but with that logic, he’s not a baseball player either.”

Ah, I remember.

The trash can that stole signs and won the MVP in Houston [referring to the Houston Astros sign-stealing scandal].

“Anyway, even though Shohei Ohtani had such a great performance in 2021, Tom Brady won the award. Of course, that’s not to say Tom Brady didn’t have a great performance. But the fact that the Illustrator, who likes joint awards so much, didn’t give a joint award is probably due to the realistic difference between the NFL and MLB, right?”

“Oh, well, I guess so? But why are you telling me all this? And coming all the way to my house on my day off?”

At my question, Alexander McDowell, the boy who definitely doesn’t look eighteen, chugged a glass of water and slammed it on the table.

The cafe owner glances at him once. Of course, he doesn’t seem to recognize who he is. By the way, how did this guy know I was here?

“I’m going to bring MLB back to before ’94. No matter what anyone says, America’s National Pastime is baseball, right?”

“Uh… well… yeah. I guess so. Well, legally speaking, that’s true. But what I’m wondering is why you’re telling this to a Korean who isn’t even American.”

“Because you were also given the same mission by the ‘God of Baseball.’ Right?”

!?

Wait a minute. The God of Baseball?

I couldn’t hide my expression when I heard the words ‘God of Baseball,’ as if I had been hit in the back of the head with a club.

Could it be that this guy experienced something similar to me? Something that modern science can’t explain? But how did this guy know I experienced something like that? Is there something special about me?

“You look surprised. Well, I guess it’s understandable. How could you not be surprised that Alexander McDowell himself recognized you as a rival? Despite that fatal mistake in ’94 [referring to the 1994 MLB strike], there was definitely an opportunity for baseball to revive. If Sammy Sosa and Mark McGwire were real baseball players. If Barry Bonds and Roger Clemens hadn’t succumbed to temptation. If Alex Rodriguez wasn’t such a blatant liar.”

“Wait, wait a minute. So you’re saying that you have a mission or something from the God of Baseball…”

“That’s right!! Once someone has tasted a strong stimulus, it’s hard for them to respond to a lesser stimulus. After the ’94 strike, baseball was too polluted by dirty guys who relied on drugs. Especially the home run, the flower of baseball. Roger Maris’s 61st home run was definitely a record that surpassed human limits. But now it’s not enough. Those damn bastards.”

Having actually played, I know how ridiculous the 61st home run record is. Even I, who was called the greatest hitter since Ted Williams, only had a season-high of 60 home runs.

What about now? Well… I don’t know. If I only focused on hitting, I think I could do as well as I did back then, but records require luck as well as skill, so I can’t be sure.

Anyway, the more Alexander McDowell talked, the more I realized that it was far from what I had imagined.

He continued.

“I’m going to surpass Barry Bonds’s 73 home runs someday. I think that’s what will bring baseball back to popularity. But!! That’s not enough. The time when Major League Baseball truly chased the NFL again wasn’t when Barry Bonds was dominating. It was when Mark McGwire and Sammy Sosa were competing. I believe you will be my Sammy Sosa. And in that sense, I hope you choose our team.”

“Huh? Out of the blue?”

“I told you, we have to have a home run king race. If there’s only one player like that on a team, they can just walk him with an intentional walk. But what if there are two? Besides, this is a good offer for you too. I’m debuting a year earlier than you, so I can win the Rookie of the Year award, and instead of taking the MVP in a league without me, you can have the glory of competing with the best and taking second place in the MVP race.”

Uh… well…

I’ve always thought of Ahn Byeong-yeong as the maximum amount of crazy I could see in my life. But today I had to revise that thought. Alexander McDowell. This guy is seriously crazy.

“Okay, that’s a good story. I have training today, so I have to go now. Take care. Let’s see each other again sometime if we have the chance.”

“So, you want to compete against me on the opposing team rather than on the same team. Okay, I understand. Challenging the home run record is important, but you want to get revenge on me even more. That game must have been the first defeat of your life.”

“That game? Oh, the U-18 finals [Under 18 baseball tournament]?”

Alexander McDowell nodded solemnly.

I felt strangely annoyed. By the way, I’m sure this guy wasn’t like this before he regressed…

“Go ahead and go to training today. I’ll come back tomorrow.”

“Hey, hey, wait a minute. What do you mean come back again? Listen carefully. First of all, I’m not going to your team, and it’s not because I’m avoiding you. More than anything, that game wasn’t the first defeat of my life. I got beaten in the finals in a similar way in the tournament right before I came to this tournament.”

“What… what did you say!?”

“And honestly, isn’t it a bit shameless to ask me to come to your team?”

“What’s wrong with our team!! It’s a team based in New York, the city with the most popular baseball in America!!”

“Yeah, a New York-based team is a New York-based team. But it’s not the Yankees, it’s the Mets.”

“……”

“Honestly, if you want to do what you want to do, it has to be the Yankees. Right?”

Alexander McDowell.

The face of the guy who looked like a macho himself was slightly distorted.

“That… that’s because the Yankees didn’t finish last year…”

“And I heard the Mets have an international prospect slot money penalty? Then they can only offer me $100,000. You got over $10 million and you’re telling me to come to the Mets for $100,000? Do you think that makes any sense right now?”

“$100,000? Why does the Mets only have that much money? They’re a New York team, after all.”

“It’s not that the Mets only have that much money, it’s the rule. Sigh, never mind. What can I say to a kid? Anyway, I’m busy training in New York, so stop coming to see me and you should do your own training. You have to train hard to break the 73 home run record. Right?”

I finished speaking and got up from my seat.

Looking at his expression, it was clear that he didn’t even know that the amount the Mets could offer me was $100,000. Well, it’s a relief if he even understands his own draft slot money properly, so there’s no way he would know about international prospect bonus pools.

He probably doesn’t even know that the lower-ranked players signed for ridiculous amounts of money because he called for over $10 million.

“Oh, right. I forgot to ask how you found out I was here.”

***

2025 season.

Both the Marines and the Phoenix fought well.

The only difference between them was who they met at the end.

The Marines’ opponent was their soulmate, the Seoul Elites. With the 80 million won Rolex Daytona watch and Japanese Aomori soju stored in the safe now over 30 years old, the Elites have become a strong team again.

So much so that special articles like ‘DTD is no more. The return of exciting baseball. The Elites’ counterattack!!’ were appearing. [DTD likely refers to “Down to Die,” a Korean baseball term for a team that collapses in the standings.]

Originally, the Elites were supposed to perform a DTD like a ghost when such an article appeared and give up a sweep, but surprisingly, the Elites even broke that jinx and swept the Marines. It was a clean three-game winning streak that surprised the Phoenix fans who came to the stadium expecting the El Clasico [a classic rivalry game, like Yankees vs. Red Sox].

On the other hand, unlike the Marines, the Phoenix had no rivals. It wasn’t because no one picked them as rivals in the 10-team fan survey. It’s just that the Phoenix’s rival has always been themselves. Anyway, that’s it.

In any case, the Phoenix played the final series of the season against the Daegu Griffins, who they thought were their rivals, but the other side didn’t see them as rivals.

A smooth first game loss.

And then the second game. An upset occurred.

“Ah, why…”

“Why are you playing baseball all of a sudden when you haven’t been playing baseball until now!!”

“Why is he pitching so well?”

It was a sight that was not very familiar to Phoenix fans. But the really strange thing was not the pitcher.

The twenty-two-year-old, military-completed shortstop Oh Min-yeop, who came in for a temporary fill-in due to the starting shortstop spraining his ankle in the last first game, was the main character of that strangeness. [In South Korea, most men are required to complete mandatory military service.]

“Wait a minute. And why is he catching ground balls?”

“What!! The shortstop’s throw just went straight into the first baseman’s mitt.”

“Crazy!!! Phoenix had a shortstop who could do that?”

The sight of the shortstop perfectly handling ground balls, and doing it several times in a row, was a scene that was hard for Phoenix fans to see.

Thanks to that? Rookie pitcher Choi Eu-ddeum, who had just come up from the Seosan’s second team and seemed to have been put up for defeat, won the game with 7 innings of no runs and 8 strikeouts.

Daejeon Phoenix 144 games 42 wins 99 losses 3 draws 0.298

Busan Marines 144 games 42 wins 100 losses 2 draws 0.296

[Congratulations Marines]

First three-digit loss season in professional baseball history, lowest place!!

It was the moment when the Marines finally won at the end of a year-long battle.

─EyeglassesAce: Yes, that’s it!! That’s all I need!! Now Suwon just needs to buy me some glasses.”