Villain On The Mound [EN]: Chapter 206

Mound Villain – Episode 206

He was a Major Leaguer.

It was only natural that each player was exceptional.

It was a place where the best baseball players in the world gathered.

I never underestimated the players there.

But I didn’t overestimate them either.

‘I am better.’

Ha-seong thought he was superior.

It wasn’t arrogance.

It was closer to confidence.

And this confidence became a positive factor for him.

‘Acknowledging the opponent is definitely helpful. But if I go beyond acknowledgment and overestimate them, I’ll create a monster within myself.’

It had happened in the past.

When he was playing in the KBO [Korean Baseball Organization], a Major League veteran came to another team as a foreign player.

Ha-seong had been particularly weak against him.

Looking back now, he wasn’t that great of a hitter.

Of course, hitting 100 home runs in the Major League was a great achievement.

But, realistically, he was someone who couldn’t adapt to the Major League and came to the KBO.

There was no reason to overestimate him.

Simply because he was a former Major Leaguer, he overestimated him, and as a result, his record against him was bound to be poor.

‘There’s no need to underestimate the opponent’s skills, and there’s no reason to overestimate them either. What’s needed is cool-headed judgment.’

Thinking coolly, his current skills were among the best in the entire Major League.

A boosted morale of the opponent wasn’t a threat to someone like him.

‘Focus more.’

Rather, it gave him a chance to ignite his fighting spirit.

Late in the game.

No matter how good Ha-seong’s stamina was, it was lower than in the beginning.

Lower stamina meant decreased concentration.

But as the enemy boosted their morale, it naturally gave Ha-seong a sense of tension.

It had the effect of raising his concentration again.

‘They haven’t given up yet.’

The moment he realized that, his tension heightened.

‘One… one….’

Ha-seong, exchanging signs [hand signals between the pitcher and catcher], took a stride and stepped forward.

Crack!

With increased concentration, he could feel the transfer of power.

The power that started from the soles of his feet traveled up his lower body.

At that moment, he rotated his waist, creating a path for the power to move to his upper body.

The rotational force generated then amplified the power.

He concentrated the power created in that way on his fingertips and threw it with all his might.

“Hup!!”

Whoosh-!!

The ball, leaving his hand, pierced towards Bautista’s body at a fierce speed.

‘Inside fastball!’

Bautista’s response was also quick.

He took an open stance and brought his arms close to his body.

And he swung with all his might, making the trajectory of his swing concise.

Whoong!

It was a concise but powerful swing.

‘I got it!’

A swing that even José Bautista himself thought was perfect.

He was full of confidence that he could hit the guy’s ball this time.

But.

Thwack-!!

The ball hit the mitt before the bat could turn.

Whoong-!!

Following that, the bat futilely cut through the air.

‘What……!’

Bautista was shocked.

It was the best swing he could make.

Speed and power.

He was confident that it was a hit with everything.

‘But I missed it.’

It was an unbelievable fact.

His gaze naturally turned to the scoreboard.

(103mph)

The speed of the ball from just now was displayed there.

‘103 miles…….’

It was officially the highest speed of the ball that Ha-seong threw.

‘He’s throwing the fastest ball in the 8th inning?’

The more a pitcher throws, the more their stamina decreases.

Decreased stamina naturally meant that the speed also decreased.

But to throw the highest speed in the 8th inning?

‘What the hell is that guy?’

Could it be that he had been conserving his stamina until the 8th inning?

It was unbelievable.

Could he conserve his stamina and throw against them?

No matter how great a pitcher was, it was difficult.

‘Halladay also said before. It’s possible to conserve stamina and throw, but it’s natural for stamina to decrease in the later innings.’

Roy Halladay, currently one of the highest-rated pitchers in Major League Baseball.

He was the pride and symbol of the Blue Jays.

Although he had transferred to another team now, he was one of the players he respected the most.

To think that there was a pitcher who denied what he had said from the front?

‘How can this be? Is that guy not human? Or does he have something that surpasses us?’

The overestimation that had arisen in his mind was gradually turning him into a monster.

‘To face that guy, I need to swing the bat faster.’

He came up with a way to respond to the inflated image.

And that led to a mistake.

‘He’s thinking of swinging faster.’

Ha-seong gained a lot of information by watching Bautista step back into the batter’s box.

‘He’s holding the bat shorter and standing behind the batter’s box.’

It was a simple change.

But the information Ha-seong obtained was not small.

‘He’s intimidated by the 103-mile ball.’

In fact, it couldn’t be helped.

103 miles.

It was the fastest ball in the current Major League.

It wouldn’t make sense if he wasn’t intimidated by it.

But it wasn’t good to overestimate too much.

‘I can throw up to 103 miles, but the accuracy is poor. The data also explains that.’

Ha-seong’s average speed hovers around 100 miles.

But he doesn’t often throw the highest speed.

The reason was that he often made mistakes in control.

So far, statistically, the control of the highest speed fails with a probability of about 62 percent.

So when he throws at the highest speed, he aims for the center of the zone [the strike zone, the area above home plate between the batter’s knees and chest].

Because the speed is so fast and the power is so great, the probability of hitting it accurately is low even if it’s concentrated in the center.

‘The fact that it hit the body just now was also just a coincidence. If I were to throw it again, I would fail.’

Anyway, that was enough.

Bautista’s imagination filled in the other parts and made himself more terrifying.

‘He still lacks experience.’

His potential was enough.

He proved it and became one of the highest-paid players in Major League Baseball.

But he still lacked the experience to face himself.

‘A good prey.’

It was a good time to break the morale of the Blue Jays, who were on the rise.

* * *

[Jung Ha-seong successfully seizes the initiative with a 103-mile first pitch, he throws the second pitch.]

Whoosh-!

Whoong!

Whack!

“Swing! Strike two!!”

[The bat cuts through the air futilely at the falling splitter.]

[Expecting a fast ball, he swung the bat, but Jung Ha-seong cleverly stole the batter’s timing perfectly with a splitter!]

The second ball was a splitter [a type of pitch with a sharp downward break].

The speed was 87 miles.

It was an infinitely slow ball compared to the first pitch, which was 103 miles.

[Considering the perceived speed, it seems like the ball would have appeared to be standing still to Bautista.]

[Probably so. To be able to throw a ball with such a difference in speed. Jung Ha-seong is cool-headed even in these important moments.]

Cool-headedness was absolutely necessary.

The pitcher had to throw his ball without getting excited at any moment.

Therefore, it was necessary to be cool-headed at any time and in any situation.

In that respect, Ha-seong was perfect.

Tak-!!

[He hit it! But a high fly ball! The shortstop signals that he will handle it!]

Whack!

“Out!!”

[Jung Ha-seong turns away the tricky hitter José Bautista with three pitches! Only 5 outs remain!]

It was a complete victory.

Although it was José Bautista with boosted morale, Ha-seong’s coolness was even more outstanding.

‘The level is different…….’

The coolness was enough to give Bautista despair.

Bautista’s despair was transferred to the other players as well.

The fighting spirit that had begun to ignite subsided.

Rather, they were overwhelmed by Ha-seong’s fighting spirit and couldn’t make a proper match.

Thwack-!

“Strike! Batter out!!”

[It’s a strikeout! Jung Ha-seong records his 15th strikeout of the game today!]

[Only 4 outs remain! Jung Ha-seong’s concentration is still there!]

Only one out remained in the 8th inning.

Ha-seong easily hunted down that out as well.

Tak-!!

[He hit it! But right in front of the second baseman!]

The mis-hit ball headed straight for the second baseman.

He lightly snatched the ball and threw it straight to first base.

Whack!

“Out!!”

[It’s out! Jung Ha-seong finishes the inning by taking three outs!!]

The number of outs he caught was 24 in total.

The 8th inning ended like that.

* * *

Ha-seong, who arrived at the bench, took a breath.

His teammates didn’t come to his side.

It was an unwritten rule.

Having experienced it once, the teammates were even more careful.

‘We have to be careful not to break his concentration.’

Thanks to his teammates’ consideration, Ha-seong was able to rest comfortably.

Ha-seong also knew about his teammates’ consideration, so he maintained his concentration and waited for the 9th inning.

* * *

The fateful 9th inning arrived.

[The Blue Jays are using a pinch hitter from the first batter to prevent Jung Ha-seong’s great record.]

[They are putting veteran Logan in the batter’s box. He certainly lacks power, but he is an experienced hitter with excellent contact ability.]

Bill Logan.

At 35 years old this year, he is weaker in power compared to the promising players.

But he had enough experience to deliver an unexpected blow.

But.

Thwack-!

“Strike! Batter out!!”

[Jung Ha-seong turns away Bill Logan with three fastballs!!]

[It was a very good choice. Bill Logan has a lot of experience, but his reflexes have slowed down as he has gotten older. He accurately targeted that!]

Ha-seong’s coolness was one step above.

He knew how to target veterans well.

He had been a veteran himself.

[Only 2 outs remain!!]

Ha-seong’s hunting of the Blue Jays continued.

Tak-!!

[The ball flies high!]

Sometimes with fast balls.

Sometimes with breaking balls, he cooked the batters and attacked them in various ways.

Whack!

“Out!”

[The center fielder safely catches the ball and raises the second out count!]

Only one out remained until the perfect game.

Now all the spectators were standing up and hoping for his great record to be achieved.

[Only one out remains until the achievement of a record that has never existed in Major League history!]

[It’s a very thrilling moment even from the viewer’s point of view.]

It was a thrilling moment that made the heart rate of the viewers rise.

But Ha-seong maintained his coolness even in these moments.

And that was reflected in his pitching as it was.

“Hup-!!”

Whoosh!

Thwack-!!

“Strike!!”

[The first pitch, a 99-mile fastball, sticks to the body!]

[He’s really got a tremendous heart. How can he throw a body ball so easily at this moment?]

[If a hit-by-pitch ball comes out here, wouldn’t the record be broken?]

[That’s right. That’s why they can’t throw more body balls at this moment. Jung Ha-seong doesn’t care at all.]

Ha-seong’s momentum, who had caught the first strike, did not stop.

“Hup!!”

Whoosh-!

Whoong!

Whack!

“Swing! Strike two!!”

[The batter’s bat misses the slider that curves outward!]

This time, he caught the opponent off guard with a breaking ball.

Ha-seong, who had captured such an advantageous position, raised his last strength.

‘I’ll finish it this time.’

He didn’t look back.

With the single thought of finishing it this time, he concentrated all his strength on his fingertips.

“Hup!!”

Whoosh-!!

The ball that left his hand flew at a fierce speed.

Thwack-!!

The moment the ball was lodged in the mitt with a tremendous sound.

“Strike! Out!!”

History was recorded.