Villain On The Mound [EN]: Chapter 183

Mound Villain 183

Twenty million dollars annually.

That amounted to 23 billion Korean won [roughly equivalent to $20 million USD, given the exchange rates at the time].

Just three years after his major league debut, Ha-sung was earning the same salary as the top pitchers in Major League Baseball.

The highest-paid pitcher in Major League Baseball in the 2011 season was CC Sabathia, who earned $23 million.

Sabathia signed with the Yankees as a free agent, securing a contract worth over $20 million.

However, Ha-sung was set to receive $20 million through salary arbitration alone, not free agency, causing a huge buzz among fans.

– $20 million in his first year of salary arbitration, lol.

– What’s going to happen when he becomes a free agent?

– He should get around $50 million.

– $50 million? He should get $100 million a year, shouldn’t he?

– Which team can afford that amount?

– The Yankees might be able to do it, right?

– Even they can’t, lol.

Some speculated that Ha-sung’s salary could rise to $100 million.

However, since it was such an absurd story, people just laughed it off.

In any case, with Ha-sung’s third-year salary determined to be $20 million, the Athletics were racking their brains.

“Damn it! Those bastards sided with Jung Ha-sung…”

“If we give Jung Ha-sung $20 million, it will affect next year’s operating expenses.”

Team owner Lewis Wolff frowned at Chris’s words.

“Reduce the salaries of other players. And if we go into austerity, we can somehow manage.”

“How can we cut operating expenses any further? Please, just give us more operating funds. The club’s revenue increased by 32 percent last year. The data overwhelmingly shows that it will increase again this year.”

“Look. How can we increase operating expenses right away after only one year of profit? We have to make up for the losses we’ve had.”

Chris was dumbfounded.

Lewis had been giving the minimum operating expenses, saying that the income was low.

But now that they had a surplus, he wouldn’t increase the operating expenses?

“We reached the League Championship and even advanced to the World Series. This is the time to increase operating expenses and adequately compensate the players.”

“I’ll give you a 10 percent increase in operating expenses based on last year’s standards. No more than that.”

“That’s…”

Even a 10 percent increase was like a drop in the bucket.

With the World Series bonus factored in, the players’ salaries would increase exponentially.

Adding Ha-sung’s salary increase of $19.5 million, it was an impossible increase.

Chris had a lot to say, but Lewis got up from his seat first.

“Then, I’ll leave it to you.”

With those words, Lewis left the office.

Left alone, Chris sighed, a bewildered expression on his face.

* * *

Having signed the contract, Ha-sung began to move in earnest.

“Nice to meet you. I’m Michael Berry, the branch manager of Rolex New York.”

“I’m Jung Ha-sung.”

Rolex, the most well-known luxury watch brand to the public.

He had a meeting with the New York branch manager.

Their request was simple.

“We would like to ask you to be the official model for Rolex.”

Official model for Rolex.

There had been no instances in Korea where a sports player had signed a contract with Rolex.

That meant Ha-sung’s position had risen that much.

“The term is three years, with a model fee of $2 million per year and $500,000 worth of Rolex models provided.”

Depending on the model, Rolex watches range from tens of thousands to hundreds of thousands of dollars each.

He was given the opportunity to wear those for free.

Simply by wearing them and appearing at official events.

On top of that, he could receive a model fee of 2.3 billion Korean won [approximately $2 million USD], so it wasn’t a bad deal.

A three-year contract wasn’t that long, so it was enough.

After hearing more detailed conditions, Ha-sung decided to sign a contract with them.

“The first contract went well.”

Isabel said on the way in the car.

As she said, the first contract went smoothly.

“Thanks to your excellent preparation, there wasn’t much to adjust separately.”

“That’s because Ha-sung told us the conditions in detail first, which made it easy to adjust.”

“Where to next?”

“Next, we’re scheduled to have meetings with GM and Ferrari, the car brands.”

“It’s going to be busy.”

“Thanks to Ha-sung causing another big sensation this time, they’re even more anxious.”

A $20 million contract.

It wasn’t just about gaining wealth.

It left a huge impact on the public and engraved the name Jung Ha-sung in their minds.

Even without that, 2010 was such a great year for Jung Ha-sung that people were saying it was ‘the year of Jung Ha-sung’.

But that was only in baseball.

There were many people in the world who didn’t watch baseball.

In other words, it was only a part of the world.

However, money was related to everyone.

Therefore, the story of someone making a lot of money was enough to attract people’s attention.

“Ha-sung’s contract has become a hot topic all over the world. Not just in baseball, but also in soccer, American football, etc. It’s hard to find a case where someone signed a $20 million a year contract after only three years in any sport.”

Of course, it’s not that there aren’t any.

But it was such a rare occurrence that people were curious about how this happened.

Naturally, attention was focused on Ha-sung.

For companies that wanted to use him as a model, it was even more tempting.

“You’ll be busy for a while. Be prepared.”

“Yes.”

Ha-sung’s contract parade continued.

* * *

Ha-sung was already one of the most popular players in Major League Baseball.

But now that he had become a high-paid player, the public’s interest had increased even more.

To make a living off of that public interest, paparazzi began to stick to Ha-sung.

“Whew.”

After getting out of the car, Ha-sung could spot cameras taking pictures of him from afar.

He could tell at a glance that they weren’t reporters.

“There were paparazzi before, but now the number has definitely increased.”

“That means Ha-sung’s popularity has increased that much. It’s also unusual for a baseball star to have this many paparazzi.”

The number of paparazzi was about 15.

Their faces were now familiar.

He saw them so often that he was starting to memorize their faces.

“Still, they don’t cling to you like in the movies, do they?”

“Unless they’re really nasty, they don’t go that far.”

“Does that kind of thing really happen?”

“Actually, that’s a toned-down version. Some really nasty ones even break into your home.”

“That’s a crime, isn’t it?”

“Exactly. That’s why the really nasty ones often have criminal records.”

“Wow…”

It was absurd.

But seeing the look of disgust on Isabel’s face, it didn’t seem like she was lying.

‘Still, they wouldn’t do that to me.’

It didn’t seem like I needed to worry too much.

“Let’s go inside.”

“Yes.”

Not yet, anyway.

* * *

Paparazzi make money by digging up celebrities’ secrets and selling them to the media.

The price depends on how sensational the material is.

That’s why some paparazzi try to dig up even more sensational stories.

These individuals were a problem in American society, but they still hadn’t disappeared.

And among them, there was one who was the most notorious.

“Hoo-!”

A man exhaled cigarette smoke in a dark room.

He smiled as he looked at the photo on the monitor.

“A man who conquered Major League Baseball as an Asian…”

The main subject of the photo was Ha-sung.

A tall height and handsome face.

The man took an interest in Ha-sung, who had become the center of public attention with his enormous salary.

“You’re my next target.”

The man, known as the most vicious of the paparazzi.

Hammels had decided to target Ha-sung.

* * *

Ha-sung spent busy days in America, fulfilling his schedule.

Paparazzi still followed him wherever he went, but he didn’t pay them much attention.

‘It’s not like they’re harming me.’

The paparazzi were just taking pictures of him from a distance and didn’t do anything particularly threatening.

In any case, it was their job to gather information, so there was no reason to stop them.

Of course, it was a bit unsettling that they were taking pictures of his private life.

However, he didn’t make a big deal out of it, and no trouble arose with the paparazzi.

But recently, something had changed.

‘I’ve never seen that guy before?’

A man with a dirty beard and gaunt face looked unapproachable.

In addition, he had tattoos all over his body, even on his neck.

Tattoos were common enough, so it wasn’t a big deal, but the man’s behavior was a little different from the other paparazzi.

“Hey! Jung! The woman next to you is sexy, huh? What’s your relationship?”

He not only approached Ha-sung but also asked him questions.

In particular, he persistently pried into his relationship with Isabel.

Isabel pulled Ha-sung’s arm and said quietly.

“He’s one of the nasty paparazzi I told you about a few days ago. Let’s not get involved and go inside.”

“Okay.”

Ha-sung had no intention of causing unnecessary trouble either.

But it wasn’t something he could control.

“What’s wrong? Why are you so quiet? Did you rub your bodies together so passionately last night that you don’t have the strength to talk? Or did you do some SM play [sadomasochism]? Is that woman your queen and you’re her slave?”

The man, Hammels, spewed provocative words to irritate Ha-sung.

“Jung Ha-sung, the master of the Major League mound! A queen’s slave in bed! What a killer title!”

Ha-sung’s veins popped out on his forehead at his reckless behavior.

Isabel was surprised by Ha-sung’s reaction and tried to stop him again.

“Ha-sung. If you touch that guy, you’ll be involved in a crime.”

“I know. But I can’t just leave him alone.”

“What?”

“Don’t worry. I’ll end it their way.”

“What does that… mean?”

She was puzzled but couldn’t ask any further.

Because Ha-sung was smiling like a villain.

Unaware of Ha-sung’s change, Hammels continued to provoke Ha-sung.

Until Ha-sung entered the building.

* * *

Hammels’ actions gradually went too far.

“Oh, is this the hotel you live in? Do you bring women here to party?”

He waited in the hotel lobby and harassed Ha-sung every time he passed by.

The staff tried to stop him, but he entered the hotel in various ways.

Sometimes he booked a room, and other times he used the restaurants inside the hotel, so there was no way to stop him.

In addition, he followed Ha-sung wherever he went and even posted false articles on his blog.

[The Best Pitcher in Major League Baseball! Turns Out He’s the King of the Night!]

[An Untouchable Pitcher Enjoying Time with His Queen!]

He didn’t mention his real name directly, but he used content and expressions that made anyone think of Ha-sung, attracting people’s attention.

Naturally, the number of views increased, and his blog quickly became the most viewed blog in the United States.

“Hehe! Jung Ha-sung was a good subject after all.”

He didn’t care about other people’s misfortunes and only focused on increasing the number of views of his articles.

He didn’t even care about the pain the other person was suffering.

It was a psychopathic mindset, but he didn’t think it was wrong.

“Anyway, even if I don’t do it, other guys will. Should I go out and get some coverage today?”

He grabbed his camera and headed to the hotel where Ha-sung was staying.

Then he sat down at a cafe in the lobby and waited for him to come out.

‘He’s later than I thought.’

He was spending time on his smartphone when it happened.

“Who is this? Isn’t this the paparazzi who’s been following me around?”

“Huh?”

Hammels looked up at the sudden commotion.

In his eyes, he saw Ha-sung and a number of people.

And he could see that those people were holding cameras in their hands.

“Wh-what are you doing?”

“What do you think? We’re filming.”

A deep smile spread across Ha-sung’s face.