Villain On The Mound [EN]: Chapter 125

Mound Villain – Episode 125

Mound Villain Episode 125

A short suspension for a pitcher doesn’t mean much.

Five games is just about skipping one rotation.

In other words, even the league office doesn’t see this as a big deal.

-Isn’t this just for show?

-lol, right.

-Guess he gets a good rest for one game.

-Throw a beanball and get a vacation, nice.

-Seriously, this happened because of a bat flip?

-These MLB guys are weird.

-What can you do? They say it’s their culture.

-If they’re going to ban bat flips, shouldn’t they ban pitchers from roaring too?

-Exactly.

-They strike out a batter and roar.

-They’re strange.

Korean netizens didn’t understand Major League Baseball’s unwritten rule against bat flips.

Especially the new fans who came in with Ha-sung’s success.

Surprisingly, this reaction was also happening in the U.S.

-They’re suspending him for a bat flip.

-Isn’t this too much?

-They should ban pitchers too.

-I thought it was cool, though.

-It was flashy.

-It’s on a different level from the occasional bat flip, right?

-I’d like to see this often.

Younger fans were voicing their support for bat flips.

Of course, older fans were giving negative opinions, but Major League Baseball Commissioner Bud Selig didn’t care.

“The reaction from young fans isn’t bad?”

“They can’t help but like that kind of performance.”

“What’s the reaction through MLB.tv?”

“We made a highlight video and posted it. It has the highest number of views so far. It’ll probably be the most viewed highlight video of the year within a few days.”

“I don’t know if bat flips are popular or if Ha-sung Jung is popular.”

“According to Google’s search data, there’s a lot of interest in bat flips themselves.”

“Hmm.”

Bat flips were an unwritten rule that was forbidden among players.

But from the commissioner’s point of view, it was a bit disappointing.

“It seems like a good showmanship to display. I don’t understand why the players blocked this as an unwritten rule.”

“It’s because it provokes the pitcher. But if you look at it that way, you have to stop the pitcher’s roar too.”

“That’s right. We have to keep showing things like this for new fans to come to the stadium and naturally increase sales. The players don’t know that.”

Recently, Major League Baseball was experiencing a decline.

Some even said it was a crisis, as fans weren’t coming to the stadium.

The long game time and static game weren’t popular with young fans.

To attract their attention, Bud Selig was looking for various methods.

MLB.tv was one of them.

Through this, they were creating short videos and various interesting content to attract fans’ attention.

That’s why Ha-sung’s issue caught his eye.

“If we use this well, it looks good to attract fans’ attention….”

At that moment.

Knock knock-!

An employee came in after knocking.

“What’s going on?”

“Oakland Athletics’ Ha-sung Jung has filed an appeal.”

“What?”

Ha-sung’s unexpected action embarrassed him.

* * *

[Ha-sung Jung Files Appeal Against Suspension with Major League Baseball!]

Ha-sung’s move was something no one expected.

-Why is he appealing this?

-Isn’t it just one game off?

-Why would he do this?

-Strange.

-This guy’s actions are unpredictable.

-Real unpredictable lol

Fans said Ha-sung’s choice was typical of him.

The actions he had shown so far were often outside the realm of common sense.

So, this time again, they expected what he would show.

As expected, the media covered him, and Ha-sung’s purpose was revealed.

“Ha-sung Jung, you have filed an appeal with the Major League Baseball Secretariat. What is the reason?”

“Why should I be punished when I didn’t do anything wrong?”

“Isn’t it true that you threw a beanball [a pitch intentionally aimed at the batter]?”

“They threw it first, so I threw it too. These cases haven’t gone to disciplinary action in the past.”

Ha-sung spoke fluently as if he had already checked the past data.

A reporter asked Ha-sung.

“There are many opinions that it’s okay to just accept the five-game suspension because you can just postpone one start. Is there a reason why you bothered to appeal?”

“It’s because my strikeout record will be reduced by that much if I miss one game.”

“Ah….”

The reporter nodded as if he understood.

Ha-sung smiled inwardly at the reporter.

‘This will improve my image.’

This appeal was a strategy for image making.

‘The old fans might turn into anti-fans because of this bat flip. If I show that I’m serious about baseball, public opinion will turn around.’

Fans were valuable customers.

That’s why some image making was necessary.

That said, what he told the media wasn’t all lies.

‘Records must be set when they can be set. I don’t know when I’ll be able to achieve these strikeouts again.’

Ha-sung’s current number of strikeouts was accumulating at a rate comparable to the all-time record.

If he missed one game, the record would drop by that much.

‘My value will change depending on how much record I ultimately achieve.’

It may not have a big impact right now, but if you think about salary arbitration [a process where an independent arbitrator determines a player’s salary] and free agency (FA) [when a player’s contract expires and they can sign with any team] in the future, it was better to achieve as many records as possible.

‘That way, I’ll be in a better position when fighting with the club.’

When Ha-sung, who successfully finished the interview, arrived at the clubhouse, Catherine was waiting for him.

“I see you often these days?”

“Ha… It’s because Ha-sung Jung is causing too many incidents. Whether it’s good or bad.”

“I don’t remember causing any accidents?”

“The commissioner has requested a meeting.”

“Hmm….”

This was a bit unexpected.

* * *

It was unusual for the commissioner to meet with a player directly.

Ha-sung didn’t even think that the commissioner would come to see him for this.

‘Well, just think of it as meeting an old man.’

The person who leads Major League Baseball is the commissioner.

But he can’t really do anything to the players.

If that happens, the players’ union will stand up. So there was no reason to be afraid.

Knock knock-!

“Come in.”

When he opened the door and went inside, Chris, the general manager, and a familiar old gentleman were sitting there.

“You’ve arrived. This is Commissioner Bud Selig.”

“You’re Ha-sung Jung, who’s been making Major League Baseball hot lately. Nice to meet you.”

“I’m Ha-sung.”

After a brief greeting and sitting down, just as Bud Selig was about to start talking.

“Did you come because of the appeal?”

Ha-sung made the first move.

Chris was embarrassed by his actions.

He knew he was that kind of person, but he didn’t think he would do that to the commissioner.

On the other hand, Bud Selig smiled and nodded.

“Haha! That’s right. I was curious as to why you appealed.”

“As I told the reporters, it’s because not being able to play one game could affect the season record.”

“Um, are you thinking of challenging the Major League Baseball season record?”

“That’s a bit of a strange question. Are there any players in Major League Baseball who don’t challenge it?”

It was an impudent answer, and if he crossed the line, it was an overreach.

Chris was worried that it might be a rude answer.

Bud Selig chuckled and nodded.

“Looking at you, I feel like I’m seeing Rodrigo when he was young. He was also very confident and actually said his words….”

“Oh, I’m sorry. I don’t feel good about being compared to a drug addict?”

“Um?”

“Rodrigo’s record was ultimately made because of drugs, wasn’t it? I feel bad if you compare me to such a person.”

Ha-sung got up from his seat.

“I think I’ve asked roughly about what you’re curious about, so I’ll get up. I have schedules ahead.”

Chris was embarrassed by his sudden attitude.

But Bud Selig looked at him with a smile on his face.

Then Ha-sung, who had turned his back, turned his body again.

“And it’s weird that they throw beanballs just because I did a bat flip. I’m not weird. Please withdraw this suspension.”

“We’ll discuss it.”

“Honestly, if you look at the fans’ reaction to my bat flip, you know? This is just fan service. We exist because fans like it, right?”

“I totally agree with that. So you’re saying that fans will like it if you introduce bat flips?”

“It’s natural for good plays to come out in Major League Baseball. Fans are no longer surprised to see that.”

“Are you surprised to see bat flips?”

“You’ve already received the report, haven’t you?”

With those words, Ha-sung left the manager’s office.

As the door closed, Chris quickly apologized.

“I’m sorry. Ha-sung Jung is such a free-spirited style.”

“It’s rather interesting. Is he usually like that?”

“Yes. I’ve asked him to refrain several times, but since he’s a young player….”

“Why? It’s nice to see.”

“Yes?”

“There’s a young player’s spirit. He’s a player to watch in the future.”

The commissioner decides on various policies of Major League Baseball.

Marketing was one of them.

It meant that they could push a specific team or player.

In fact, Bud Selig caused a lot of controversy by favoring the Milwaukee Brewers, which he owned.

That’s why these remarks couldn’t be easily overlooked.

‘Is it really a good thing that the commissioner liked Ha-sung?’

Chris’s head became complicated.

* * *

As Ha-sung filed an appeal, the suspension was put on hold.

He was able to play normally during the appeal.

‘I’ll play normally in one of the two games, but if the appeal is accepted, I’ll be able to play in both games.’

Ha-sung appealed for the same reason he said in the interview.

Ha-sung wanted to play both of the remaining two games.

‘You have to grab the opportunity when it comes.’

Ha-sung knew very well how difficult it was to achieve records.

Everything had to fit perfectly to barely achieve it.

So, this season’s goal was 300 strikeouts.

‘This season’s goal is to aim for 300 strikeouts or more. To do that, you can’t rest in the middle.’

300 strikeouts was a record that didn’t easily come out even in Major League Baseball.

The number of games an ace pitcher pitches in a season is 28 to 33 games.

Currently, Ha-sung has pitched in 16 games, and if it goes normally, he can pitch in up to 18 games.

‘If the second half of the schedule goes normally, I can play in 13 games. In other words, I have 15 games left.’

There were quite a few records that he could aim for as he was running an all-time record this season.

“If I do well this season and next season….”

In fact, there was only one reason why Ha-sung was doing well.

“It’s not a dream to receive more than 10 million dollars in the first year of salary arbitration!”

It was because of salary arbitration.

Salary arbitration tends to be more expensive as the number of years increases.

This is because the value gradually increases as the player’s stats accumulate.

That’s why they try to give as little money as possible in the first salary arbitration.

If they give too much money, they can’t handle it.

But Ha-sung had no intention of being dragged around by the club.

“I’m going to accumulate as many stats as possible and become a millionaire at once.”

Ha-sung was already excited at the thought of holding more than 10 billion won [approximately $7.5 million USD] in Korean currency in his hands.

“For that, I can’t just pass by one game!”

Ha-sung strengthened his will.