Villain On The Mound [EN]: Chapter 31

Mount Villain – Episode 31

[Ah-! Alex is heading to the mound!]

Alex’s sudden, unexpected action.

As the announcer shouted in surprise, players poured out from both dugouts.

Almost simultaneously, Trevor, the catcher from Oakland, grabbed Alex.

“Hey! Alex, what’s wrong? It’s just one wild pitch, no need to get so worked up!”

“Just one pitch?! That bastard definitely aimed for my head!”

“Come on, it happens sometimes during a game.”

Trevor didn’t understand the situation.

There hadn’t been any previous tension between the two teams.

Nor was it likely that rookie Ha-sung and Alex had any connection.

Most of all, Ha-sung is a rookie.

Reacting this strongly to a rookie’s mistake was strange.

“Saying he aimed for you is a misunderstanding. Wild pitches happen from time to time, you know?”

As Trevor tried to calm him down, players gathered in small groups.

“What’s going on?”

“What’s the matter?”

“Hey, Alex. Calm down.”

There were no clashes between the players.

Alex’s behavior didn’t resonate with the players.

It wasn’t a situation where a beanball [a pitch thrown deliberately at the batter’s head] would be thrown.

“Hey, rookie, be careful when you throw.”

“What if our superstar had gotten hit?”

Some players warned Ha-sung, but it wasn’t too serious.

Alex was also calmed down by Jeter, and the situation was resolved.

[The situation seems to be settled without any major clashes.]

[Yes. It was definitely a dangerous pitch, but since it was thrown by a rookie, it’s hard to see it as a beanball or a threatening pitch.]

[Should we just see it as a simple control mistake?]

[That’s the right way to see it. That’s why it passed without any major clashes.]

As the situation settled, Ha-sung bent down to put rosin on his hand.

A smile was on Ha-sung’s face.

‘Being a rookie is really great. They protect you even in situations like this.’

Normally, they should have taken Alex’s side.

But because he was a rookie, not only his teammates but even the Yankees’ players understood and moved on.

‘But the person involved knows it well.’

Ha-sung, standing on the mound, looked at Alex, who was entering the batter’s box.

You could tell from his expression.

How excited he was right now.

‘The moment you get excited at the plate, you can’t help but become prey for the pitcher.’

Alex is a hitter classified as top-notch.

His skills as well as his mentality.

He was the best player in every way.

It was strange that his mentality was shaken by just one beanball.

But the one beanball that Ha-sung threw was just a trigger.

‘Doping is his Achilles’ heel. I talked about the weakness he wants to hide forever in a place where reporters are, so his mentality can’t be normal.’

Ha-sung wound up and threw the second pitch.

Again, Alex leaned back early as the ball headed towards his head.

Whoosh!!

But the ball changed its trajectory and was sucked into the strike zone.

Pow!!

“Strike!!”

The umpire’s hand went up.

[The second pitch, a wonderful breaking ball, is caught in the mitt! Alex must have thought it was another mistake, leaning back and dodging it.]

[That’s not like Alex.]

Alex’s face contorted.

‘Damn bastard……! He deliberately threw a beanball on the first pitch and then taunted me with a slider on the second.’

If there had been no behind-the-scenes, Alex wouldn’t have dodged it.

But because he created the behind-the-scenes, Alex had no choice but to avoid it.

‘I know you…….’

Ha-sung, receiving the ball back, smiled at Alex.

‘You don’t know about me.’

That was the miscalculation in this game.

Ha-sung wound up and threw the third pitch.

Swaeaaaek-!!

‘This time……!’

Alex swung the bat with all his might.

But in a state of losing his composure, there was no way he could make a proper hit.

Clack!!

[A mis-hit! Second baseman fields it and throws to first!]

Thud!

“Out!!”

[Out! Alex Rodriguez turns around with a ground ball in three pitches!]

[Unlike the previous at-bat, he swung with too much force.]

Not liking it himself, Alex threw his helmet down nervously as he entered the dugout.

‘No matter how much of a superstar you are, you can’t help but be shaken if you lose your composure.’

Alex was well known for being very sensitive.

In particular, he would get excited when he saw a junior not respecting him.

‘If you mess with doping on top of that. No matter how much it’s him, he can’t maintain his composure.’

This will make it easier to face the Yankees.

“Waaaaa-!!”

At that moment, cheers erupted from the stands.

And a player entering the batter’s box caught his eye.

[The Yankees’ captain! Jeter is entering the batter’s box!]

Jeter, who is in charge of one axis of the Yankees along with Alex, entered the batter’s box.

‘Is this a mountain over a mountain?’

There are monsters in the major leagues.

Facing the Yankees, that word became a reality.

* * *

The 6-game series of death is over.

The record is 4 wins and 2 losses.

With 1 win and 2 losses in the 3-game series against the Yankees, the sweep against the Red Sox became meaningless.

As a result, there was a big uproar on the internet.

-Why do these Oakland bastards sweep us and go 1 win 2 losses against the Yankees?

-Don’t save Jung Ha-sung, put him up there!

-Still, he’s a rookie lol. Asking him to pitch all 6 games is a bit…….

-What does it matter? He’s not on our team.

-That’s right.

There was a festive atmosphere in the Yankees’ community.

-This is the difference in class.

-Red Sox, who are swept by Oakland, can’t be our rivals.

-The bottom of the Red Sox has been revealed.

-We even hit a hit against Jung Ha-sung, who made a perfect inning against the Red Sox.

-Even if you look at this, it’s proof that our Yankees are better.

Red Sox and Yankees.

Thanks to the rivalry between the two teams, Ha-sung’s stock went up instead.

Oakland fans were indifferent to the results of this away game.

-We’re going to be eliminated from the postseason anyway, right?

-It’s not confirmed, but the possibility is low.

-By the way, Jung Ha-sung pitches well.

-It’s a shame the perfect game was broken.

-Still, he’s continuing his scoreless game, right?

-I want to see the game when rookies like this come out…… but it’s a team that’s going to leave anyway.

-Still, tickets are cheap these days. It wouldn’t be bad to go once.

-Wouldn’t Jung Ha-sung’s debut jersey go up in value later?

-Will there be a jersey?

-There will be.

Fans who were not interested in the team but became interested in the player Jung Ha-sung visited the stadium one by one.

Chris smiled happily at the significantly increasing number of spectators.

“The team’s finances are getting better because of one rookie.”

“It’s not enough to be happy yet.”

Chris’s young secretary, Katherine, adjusted her glasses and said.

She was petite and still had a girlish face, but she was definitely an adult.

Because her young appearance was a complex, she often wore tight-fitting clothes.

“Hmm, haven’t we taken a breather?”

“Jung Ha-sung’s popularity has increased, but there are not many related products. We need to release a lot of his products next year.”

“Do you see it that way?”

“When I collected information on the Internet, he is more popular than anyone on our team. If he continues to be active next year, he will definitely be a good product.”

A brilliant talent, she was already creating data on Ha-sung.

“And talk to the owner about how to solve the team’s relocation somehow, so that finances will improve.”

“I know that part. First, we have to think about finishing this season properly.”

“……Yes.”

The major leagues are famous as a women’s restricted area.

But as time went by, women were taking their place in various fields.

Katherine was one of them.

A graduate of MIT [Massachusetts Institute of Technology], she was an excellent mathematician.

She definitely had the ability, but she had not yet fully demonstrated that ability, so her voice was weak.

That’s why she couldn’t strongly assert her opinion.

‘Someday……!’

She clenched her fist and continued her own determination.

* * *

Oakland hosted the Texas Rangers at home.

[7th inning, the Athletics are in crisis. With runners on 1st and 2nd base, Ian Kinsler, the Texas Rangers’ 3rd batter, enters the batter’s box.]

[Ian Kinsler, who has played his role in the Rangers lineup, which has been a mess this season, is getting a chance.]

[Kinsler is marking a batting average of .321, a slugging percentage of .527, and an OPS [On-Base Plus Slugging] of .901 so far this season. He also has 68 RBIs [Runs Batted In], so if a long hit comes out, he will record 70 RBIs.]

As Ian Kinsler entered the batter’s box, Oakland also moved.

[The manager is visiting the mound.]

[He’s probably going to change the pitcher.]

[As you said, Tony is receiving the ball, and Jung Ha-sung and Chandler are warming up in the bullpen.]

[Chandler is not a bad card against Kinsler, who is weak against left-handed pitchers, but if it were me, I would put up Jung Ha-sung.]

[He’s a rookie, but Jung Ha-sung has been doing really well so far, right?]

[There’s no need to say anything. He is a more reliable card than Houston Street, the current Oakland closer.]

The closer is entrusted to the most reliable player in the team’s bullpen.

But to say that he is more reliable than that.

This was also a demonstration of Ha-sung’s current status, but it was also telling of Oakland’s current bullpen.

[As expected, Jung Ha-sung is on the mound.]

[We have to get through this crisis and somehow take the victory.]

The stadium was buzzing as Ha-sung took the mound.

“Oh-! That friend is Jung Ha-sung.”

“Wow~ I heard he’s 19 years old now. He’s in great shape.”

“Let’s see what kind of ball he throws.”

“Hey! I came to see you, so throw it properly!!”

Oakland fans expressed their expectations for Ha-sung as they were.

A situation that could be a burden for a rookie.

But Ha-sung’s face, who lightly finished his practice pitching, had a smile on it.

‘If you came to see my ball…….’

Ha-sung, exchanging signs with Trevor, took a slide step from the set position.

‘I have to show you!’

His body rotated and threw the first pitch.