Villain On The Mound [EN]: Chapter 153

The Mound’s Villain – Episode 153

The next day.

The internet portal sites were plastered with articles about Ha-seong.

[Jeong Ha-seong Achieves 20K, the Most Strikeouts in a Single Major League Game!]

[Achieves 20K with No Walks, the Second Since Randy Johnson!]

[There Are No Limits to Jeong Ha-seong!]

[How Far Will Jeong Ha-seong, Who Has Become the Best Pitcher in the Major League, Go?]

[Jeong Ha-seong Shows Amazing Performance in His Debut Season as a Starter!]

Ha-seong’s performance became a major topic.

It focused the attention of the United States and Korea, as well as the entire world.

[Korean pitcher Jeong Ha-seong, who is playing in the Major League, has set a record of 20 strikeouts in a single game.]

[It’s a truly amazing record.]

[There are many promising pitchers in Japan as well, but they cannot be compared to Jeong Ha-seong.]

Japan also organized a special program and broadcasted articles about Ha-seong.

This was a very unusual event.

Considering the relationship between Korea and Japan, it was unusual for them to cover a Korean player with such prominence.

Nevertheless, the reason they posted articles about Ha-seong was because there was so much public interest.

Public interest was so high that Ha-seong’s threads continued to be created on 2ch [a popular Japanese internet forum], a representative community site in Japan.

Articles about Ha-seong began to appear not only in Taiwan and China, but even in Europe, where baseball is not a popular sport.

[The Korean Monster is Dominating the Major League!]

[The Young Asian Pitcher is Breaking Major League Records!]

Amid the flood of articles related to Ha-seong.

There was another noticeable article.

[Major League Secretariat Begins Working-Level Meeting with the Major League Players Association Regarding Doping!]

The Major League Secretariat and the Players Association began full-scale contact.

Until now, the two organizations had been preparing their respective positions and had not had any exchanges between the organizations.

But finally, the working-level officials of the two organizations were making preparations to present new positions related to doping as they made contact.

This was a very unusual event.

Naturally, various baseball-related programs covered this issue with great importance.

[Has there ever been a case where the Major League Secretariat and the Players Association contacted each other during the season for a new agreement?]

[There have been a few times. Especially in moments when the league was about to go on strike, the two groups negotiated until the end.]

[So, if the agreement is not properly reached, the Players Association may go on strike.]

[That’s right. There have been eight actual strikes since the union was established, and the league has been suspended four times because of them.]

The most powerful card held by the Players Association was the strike.

The strike of the players, who are the core of Major League Baseball, a business of enormous scale, had tremendous power in itself.

That’s why the Secretariat had no choice but to be careful about doping.

This is because the players’ backlash could be strong.

[But this time, that’s unlikely.]

[Why is that?]

[The union has already gauged the opinions of the players to some extent. As a result of confirming through various channels, in a survey conducted by the union, the players leaned towards the opinion that sanctions against doping players, including Rodrigo, should be strengthened.]

[This is quite unusual?]

[The fact that the Major League has been declining recently and the changing perceptions of the players seem to have played a major role.]

Currently, there is talk that the Major League is in crisis.

The long game times exhausted viewers, and the complex game rules became a barrier to entry for new fans.

As a result, admission revenue and the number of viewers continued to decline.

In the meantime, the player base was undergoing a generational change.

They have seen and learned how bad drugs are.

That’s why they had antipathy towards it, and when the same thing happened this time, they became hostile to those involved.

[So, do you think the negotiations between the Secretariat and the union will produce meaningful results?]

[There is a high possibility. According to reports from the United States, Commissioner Bud Selig is directly overseeing this negotiation.]

[If Commissioner Bud Selig steps in, there is a high possibility that meaningful results will come out. All baseball fans are paying attention to the direction of this BioGenesis scandal and the fate of the key figure, Alex Rodrigo. Next news…….]

* * *

Major League Secretariat.

All the key figures from the Secretariat and the Players Association gathered in the conference room.

Commissioner Bud Selig was also present at this meeting, where both sides, including lawyers, were present.

“Well, I hope we can make a decision today.”

Tony Madison, the union leader, nodded at Bud Selig’s words.

“Dragging it out any longer will not be seen favorably by the fans.”

“It seems like we have a unified opinion. As the working-level staff have been exchanging opinions, what we want is to strengthen the punishment related to doping, starting with this BioGenesis scandal.”

“But banning someone on the second offense is too much to ask.”

“Are you saying we should start a tug-of-war again?”

Bud Selig and Tony Madison glared at each other.

The union members, the players, were also in favor of strengthening doping penalties and imposing strong penalties on players involved in the BioGenesis scandal.

But they couldn’t accept it as it was.

“The list of sanctions related to doping needs to be more carefully defined. In the current situation, there is a high possibility that drugs that players have taken unknowingly will also be included.”

Ignorance is not a crime.

Of course, that can’t be an excuse, but in reality, many players have taken banned substances without knowing it.

What the Players Association was arguing for was to reduce the list of such drugs.

However, the Secretariat’s position was clear.

“If that happens, there won’t be much difference from the current situation. Above all, if you feel wronged, you are given enough opportunity to explain, so it doesn’t seem like a big problem.”

“But if the explanation fails, won’t it eventually lead to expulsion?”

The two camps continued to discuss this at length.

And eventually, they compromised at the midpoint.

“Then let’s proceed with reducing the list of drugs by 25 percent from now on.”

“All right.”

The first agenda item was passed.

The fact that the agenda item, which had been fiercely opposed, was passed meant that both the Secretariat and the Players Association had a strong will to make a decision today.

“Let’s move on to the next agenda item.”

With Bud Selig’s words, the meeting moved on to the second agenda item.

“This is about the penalties to be imposed on players involved in this BioGenesis scandal.”

“Shouldn’t we impose penalties according to the existing agreement?”

Damon spoke.

Tony Madison frowned as he watched Damon speak without his permission.

Bud Selig also shook his head as he looked at him.

“No. The methods of the players involved in this scandal are very heinous. The players intentionally took drugs and attempted to avoid testing.”

“That’s right. This scandal is a more organized and planned crime than the previous Mitchell Report [a report detailing the use of steroids in Major League Baseball].”

“If we don’t impose definite penalties, we can’t give them a proper lesson!”

The Secretariat’s opinion was clear.

The position was to impose proper penalties on the players involved in this case to give the players a sense of alertness.

However, the Players Association was a little different.

Some people thought similarly to the Secretariat, but others did not.

“To strengthen the penalties now is the same as applying them retroactively!”

“Who knows if the Secretariat will use this case as a precedent in the future?!”

The people of the Secretariat also flared up at the words of the union members who were expressing their opposition.

“It’s not retroactive application! We’re saying that this case should be treated as a special case!”

“Did we commit a crime?! Your players did wrong!”

The atmosphere in the conference room became chaotic.

It was difficult for the two camps, which had formed interest groups, to agree.

The same was true even if the leaders of the groups gathered.

However, Bud Selig had come to the conference room himself, leading his busy body, to finish it definitively today.

There was no reason to keep watching this.

“Tony, let’s talk for a moment.”

Bud Selig requested a one-on-one interview with the chairman.

The venue became quiet because it was an unusual event.

“All right.”

And as Chairman Tony accepted, a secret meeting between the two took place.

As all the people in the hall left and the door closed, Bud Selig took out a cigar.

“Would you like to smoke?”

“I’m fine.”

“Then excuse me.”

Bud Selig lit a fire and blew smoke.

And after slowly savoring the taste, he opened his mouth.

“I see that friend Damon is close to Rodrigo.”

“There’s a bit of that.”

“Rodrigo certainly has a wide reach. Various friends contact me and put pressure on me without me knowing.”

“He’s a superstar representing the Major League, so that’s natural.”

Alex Rodrigo still boasted a powerful network.

It was only natural, considering that he had played the role of a superhero in the black community in the United States.

Bud Selig smiled as he looked at Tony, who was in the same situation as him.

“You and I are in a similar situation.”

Tony also smiled at Bud Selig’s words.

“If you raise his level of punishment, the pressure will increase.”

“Haha! I’m already old, so I’m not afraid.”

“Are you serious?”

Chairman Tony looked at Bud Selig with surprised eyes.

Bud Selig was a man with great ambition.

For him to call himself old was a very unusual event.

Bud Selig looked out the window and said.

“I met Jeong Ha-seong a few days ago.”

“I see.”

“That friend told me. Isn’t it time to take care of your honor?”

“Honor?”

“Yes. He advised me not to be lukewarm about drugs, but to be decisive about it. Can you believe it? Now a rookie in his twenties is giving me advice.”

Tony wondered if what he was hearing was true.

Could there be a player who would say such a thing to Bud Selig?

And that he was only 20 years old.

But because it was Jeong Ha-seong, he soon admitted it.

“If it’s Jeong Ha-seong, it’s possible.”

“Haha! As you said. It’s a story that’s possible because it’s him. A really unique friend has appeared.”

“So, are you going to be decisive about it?”

“Yes. How long will I live if I live according to his advice? This will be the last incident that happens during my term as commissioner.”

Bud Selig rubbed out his cigar.

“The Major League must enter a new era. Only then will it be able to survive in a changing era.”

“To meet that era, we must clearly reveal the dark events that happened in the past and move on.”

“It will hurt right now, but we have to pull it out by the roots so that the Major League can move forward further.”

Bud Selig’s will was firm.

No matter how many opposing opinions come out from the two camps, if those at the top join hands, they can shake it off.

Of course, the aftermath was something the two had to endure.

Bud Selig was saying that they should face the aftermath together.

Tony pondered for a while and then nodded.

“All right. For the sake of baseball…….”

“Yes. It’s for baseball.”

The two shook hands.

* * *

The next day.

All the media announced the agreement between the Secretariat and the union.

[Major League Secretariat and Players Association Agree to Strengthen Regulations Related to Doping!]

[Special Sanctions Will Be Imposed on Players Involved in the BioGenesis Scandal!]

[Bud Selig said in an interview, “I will order Alex Rodrigo to be expelled and all his records to be deleted!”]

[Alex Rodrigo Forms New Legal Team and Issues Official Statement Saying, “Strongly Opposes the Secretariat’s Actions and Will Take All Legal Measures!”]

[Alex Rodrigo Breaks Silence! But the Fans’ Reaction Was Cold!]

The Secretariat and the union joined hands.

And Rodrigo’s cry, which broke the silence, was published in the article.

Everything is still uncertain.

But one thing became clear.

-Rodrigo’s 600 home runs this season are gone lol

-13 consecutive years of 30 home runs and 100 RBIs are also gone~

That his great records were gone.