Villain On The Mound [EN]: Chapter 284

Matt Kemp.

A hitter who dominated the National League in the 2011 season.

He recorded a batting average of 0.324, an on-base percentage of 0.399, and a slugging percentage of 0.586, with an amazing record of 39 home runs and 40 stolen bases.

[Matt Kemp, who performed at an MVP level last season, missed June due to injury this year. It seemed like he might not be able to participate in the Olympics because of this, but his strong desire to compete led him to the Olympic stage.]

[Matt Kemp’s determination is truly remarkable. His record against Jung Ha-sung is 1 hit in 4 at-bats.]

[The fact that he managed to get a hit off Jung Ha-sung is quite impressive.]

[Looking at this tournament alone, that feeling is definitely strong. However, Matt Kemp is also a top-tier Major League player, so it won’t be an easy match.]

The commentator’s words became reality.

Thwack!!

“Foul!!”

[A ball that goes out of the foul line on the third base side! It’s a foul, but Matt Kemp’s swing timing isn’t bad.]

[The hitters who have faced Jung Ha-sung so far haven’t even been able to react to his pitches. Major League players are definitely different.]

Before the finals.

It was hard even to make contact with Ha-sung’s pitches.

The hitters’ swings often missed, like they were swinging at air.

But Matt Kemp made contact with the ball from the first pitch and sent it flying.

‘It’s hard to hit the center of my pitches after a long time, isn’t it?’

Ha-sung looked at Matt Kemp and prepared for the second pitch.

[He throws the second pitch!!]

Whoosh-!!

The ball that left his hand drew a sharp angle and darted close to Matt Kemp’s body in the center of the strike zone.

Matt Kemp, who was extending his bat, flinched and had to lean back.

Thwack!!

“Strike! Two!!”

The second strike was called.

He reacted to the first pitch, but this time he was completely fooled by Ha-sung’s pitch.

Looking at it so far, it seemed like a perfect victory for Ha-sung.

But Matt Kemp showed his potential from then on.

Thwack!!

“Foul!!”

[He hits the 99-mile fastball on the third pitch!!]

Thwack!

“Ball!”

[Matt Kemp endures the falling curve on the fourth pitch, making it two strikes and one ball!]

Matt Kemp’s plate discipline began to show.

Thwack!

“Ball.”

[He endures the fifth pitch too! Two balls and two strikes! Jung Ha-sung’s pitch count is increasing from the first batter!]

[Major League hitters are definitely high level. They’re cutting off the pitches Jung Ha-sung throws to get an out and letting the breaking balls go, making the ball count favorable.]

[Jung Ha-sung can’t get a quick win either.]

[Well, it’s Matt Kemp. It’s hard to recklessly challenge him, who is the leadoff hitter but also has power.]

The commentator’s words were accurate.

If it were another Major Leaguer other than Matt Kemp, Ha-sung would have gone for a quick win.

No, he challenged Matt Kemp from the start.

That pitch was the third pitch.

‘The lead with the third pitch was good. I don’t like the pitches from the fourth pitch onwards.’

And one more thing.

Unlike when he was with the Yankees, the catcher now was Lee Myung-ho, the nation’s catcher.

His lead was safety-oriented, so he kept inducing breaking balls from the fourth pitch onwards.

Ha-sung didn’t like that.

‘It’s time to compete now, mister.’

Ha-sung leaned forward and sent a sign directly.

Lee Myung-ho couldn’t make a decision right away at his sign and shifted his gaze to the dugout.

‘He’s at a level where he can make his own decisions. Is he getting confirmation one by one because the opponent is a Major League All-Star?’

The American team was different from the players they had faced so far.

They were selected players from Major League Baseball, the home of baseball.

It was no exaggeration to say that they had moved the All-Stars as they were, boasting a brilliant lineup.

But to Ha-sung, they were just the people he faced every day.

That’s why he didn’t feel pressured.

But it wasn’t the same for the other players.

‘Damn… it’s really Matt Kemp.’

‘As expected of Matt Kemp. He’s responding to Ha-sung’s pitches.’

‘Kershaw’s pitches were really artistic earlier.’

To them, Major League players were objects of admiration before they were opponents.

That was the same even for professionals.

They were beings from another world, so it was difficult to perform properly.

‘I have to do well.’

This atmosphere gave Ha-sung another sense of pressure.

At that moment, Lee Myung-ho nodded and held out his mitt.

He didn’t like his action of nodding only after getting permission from the bench, but now was not the time to think about that.

“Hoo…”

Ha-sung, who exhaled a deep breath, went into his windup.

Following the kick, he twisted his body and threw the ball with all his might.

“Hup!!”

Whoosh!!

The ball that left his hand flew near Matt Kemp’s thigh and landed directly in the mitt.

Matt Kemp didn’t swing, judging it was a ball.

But.

“Strike! Batter Out!!”

The umpire’s hand went up.

[Strikeout!! Jung Ha-sung strikes out Matt Kemp, the best hitter in the National League, with a standing strikeout!! The speed of the four-seam fastball, which was the deciding pitch, was a whopping 102 miles!! He recorded his highest speed today!]

Matt Kemp stared at the umpire for a long time as if he couldn’t believe it, then headed to the dugout.

Ha-sung’s lips curled up as he watched him.

‘I thought it was a ball too. Today’s umpire is generous with the low pitches.’

Ha-sung, who turned away Matt Kemp with the information he got in the top of the first inning, faced the subsequent hitters.

* * *

Ha-sung’s pitch count reached 17 at the end of the first inning.

‘As expected of Major Leaguers. Even if I try to get a quick win, they don’t swing easily.’

That wasn’t the only reason.

‘My chemistry with Lee Myung-soo isn’t very good either. The hitters I faced before were low level, so there weren’t any big problems.’

Facing the Major League, he definitely felt that their chemistry wasn’t good.

He didn’t know what variables would be created if this situation continued.

‘And I don’t think the other hitters will be able to attack Kershaw in perfect condition.’

As he expected, the hitters couldn’t use their strength against Kershaw.

At this time, Kershaw threw fastballs in the mid-90s, which gave even more power to his breaking balls.

Thanks to that, the hitters’ bats repeatedly became fans and cut through the air.

‘It won’t be easy to score in this game.’

Ha-sung grabbed his glove after seeing the third out count go up.

* * *

Ha-sung’s prediction became reality.

Thwack!!

Thwack!

“Out!!”

[Out! Jung Ha-sung induces the third out count with a ground ball, ending the inning!]

When Ha-sung finished the inning without giving up a run.

Thwack!

“Strike! Batter Out!!”

[Clayton Kershaw finishes the inning, recording the third out count with a strikeout!]

Kershaw also finished the inning without giving up a run.

Except for the first inning, there were no hits from either team, creating a pitching battle.

-Kershaw is Kershaw.

-I expected Ha-sung to pitch well, but Kershaw hasn’t even debuted for a few years. He’s doing well.

└ Fact: Ha-sung is also in his 5th year.

└└ Kershaw is older.

-No, but the Major League hitters are good too.

└ They don’t have a single hit?

└└ That’s true. But they’re somehow responding to Ha-sung’s pitches.

-As of the 4th inning, Ha-sung’s pitch count is 62, and Kershaw’s pitch count is 52.

└ It’s been a while since Ha-sung had more pitches.

The two pitchers’ showdown attracted the attention of fans.

A pitching battle originally had a high possibility of unfolding into a boring game.

This was because pitchers tended to drag out the time before entering the delivery and then pitching.

But Ha-sung and Kershaw’s pitching tempo was very fast.

They threw the ball almost as soon as the hitter was ready, taking the tempo quickly and preventing the fans from getting bored.

Of course, they weren’t throwing the ball quickly for the fans’ enjoyment.

It was only for the purpose of maintaining their current good pitching feel by taking the tempo quickly themselves.

[The current situation is a tight tug-of-war.]

[The 1 point that Jung Ha-sung scored in the first inning feels really big.]

This tight pitching battle continued, but the game was being led by the Korean team.

This was also thanks to Ha-sung.

In the first inning, when Kershaw’s body wasn’t fully warmed up yet, Ha-sung created a lightning-like solo home run.

If it weren’t for this point, the score between the two teams would have been tied.

[In the end, today’s game is likely to depend on when the two starting pitchers collapse.]

[That’s right. Considering that Jung Ha-sung was retired with a ground ball by Kershaw in his second at-bat, it’s likely that it will be difficult to score additional points.]

Clayton Kershaw’s pitches, whose body was warmed up, were very sharp.

He was able to retire Ha-sung with a ground ball, so you could tell how good his condition was.

-If Ha-sung goes down, the Korean team is immediately out.

-ㅇㅈ [Abbreviation for ” 인정 ,” meaning “I agree” in Korean]

-It seems like Ha-sung is the only one doing well on the Korean team.

-It can’t be helped if you’re facing Major League All-Stars.

-No matter what, is there this much of a difference in level?

└ The opponent isn’t just the American team, but the Major League All-Stars.

└└ They’re the ones who came out in the middle of the season.

└└└ That means they’re in top condition.

The level difference between Major League Baseball and the KBO [Korean Baseball Organization] was very severe.

No matter how much the level of the KBO has risen, it was impossible to compare it with Major League Baseball.

That was the same even for the national team.

In the first place, it was a miracle that a close match was being played against the American team, which was made up of Major League All-Stars.

‘As expected, it’s becoming a match between me and the American team.’

It was Ha-sung’s existence that made that possible.

Ha-sung, who took a short break in the dugout, stood up again.

‘I can’t collapse if I want to win a gold medal.’

It was a sense of weight given only to Ha-sung.

He was about to be crushed by the weight, but Ha-sung enjoyed this moment instead.

‘Win a gold medal and get military exemption.’

Only for himself.

Ha-sung went to the mound.

* * *

[Jung Ha-sung, who went to the mound in the bottom of the 5th inning, is facing the first batter.]

Ha-sung, who went to the mound, raised his concentration.

When Lee Myung-soo was about to give a sign to such Ha-sung.

‘I’m not going to follow that anymore.’

Ha-sung gave the sign himself.

Lee Myung-soo, who received his sign, had a bewildered expression.

‘He’s giving the sign himself from the first pitch? Why?’

The pitcher usually gives the sign himself when throwing the deciding pitch.

Or he gave the sign when he was trying to carry out another tactic.

But now it was the first pitch he was throwing after entering a new inning.

It was unusual for a pitcher to give a sign himself in this situation.

That’s why Lee Myung-soo’s gaze naturally turned to the dugout.

‘What is he trying to do?’

Kim Moon-seok, the national team coach who was watching the scene from the dugout, was also embarrassed.

But he soon nodded.

‘Let him do what he wants.’

Kim Moon-seok, who knew well what kind of character Jung Ha-sung was.

That’s why he gave permission.

Lee Myung-soo also nodded and held out his mitt as his permission fell.

‘Now…….’

Ha-sung went into his windup with a satisfied smile.

‘Now it’s not a team vs. team battle, but a battle between me and you.’

Ha-sung decided.

To face the American team alone.