Break the Frame
While Seo Tae-woong was lost in various thoughts, the car pulled up in front of Hana Eagles Stadium.
He unloaded all his luggage from the trunk and exchanged goodbyes with the staff. Even though they'd only spent a short time together in the second team, they'd treated him kindly.
"Thanks for the ride, Manager."
"No problem, Tae-woong. Make it big out there. I hear trades get psychologically tough after a few times. Settle in well. Not that I worry about you or anything..."
"I have to succeed this time... for sure."
"You've got this! Carve out your spot and crush it!"
Tae-woong's "this time" referred to his life before regression, but the manager took it as his time with the Wiz. With final waves goodbye, the manager turned the car around and headed back to Iksan.
Standing alone in front of the stadium, Tae-woong set down his heavy bags for a moment and lifted his head to stare straight ahead.
A massive signboard blared the 2018 Hana Eagles slogan alongside their star players striking cool poses, gazing directly forward: Break The Frame: Shake Up the Board.
Tae-woong stared at it wordlessly for a while before heading through the entrance. Hypnotizing himself, he muttered,
"Next year, that'll be me up there."
Clack, clack.
Tae-woong's footsteps echoed through the corridor. As he walked in from the entrance, he glanced around curiously.
True to its roots as a stadium in use since the 1960s, Hana Eagles Stadium bore the marks of time in spots, even after multiple remodels.
"Yeah, it's definitely showing its age."
By the calendar, it hadn't even been a full year since he'd been released from the Eagles and left this place behind. But strictly speaking, this was his first time at the "old Hana Eagles Stadium."
Before regression, when he'd been traded to the Eagles, this had been—as good as the Giants' Sajik Stadium—one of the newest, top-tier facilities.
"They'll start building the new one next door soon enough."
As he said, it wouldn't be until early next year that construction began on the new stadium, thanks to heavy investment from the Daejeon market and the Eagles' parent group, Hana Group. By the time Tae-woong returned to Korea and made his comeback, the Eagles were already playing home games at the brand-new "Hana Eagles Stadium." The "old" one he was in now would get renamed and handed over to the second team in Seosan.
Ace popped into the air and immediately ruined the nostalgic moment.
"Can't you not interrupt an important time like this?"
"You gonna die if you don't breathe? Hell, do holograms even breathe?"
As Ace grumbled at Tae-woong's prickly response, a man came panting toward him from the opposite corridor.
"Ah! You're Seo Tae-woong, right? Great to meet you. I'm Lee Doo-woong from the stadium operations team—I called you earlier."
Yep... that's the operations team leader, alright.
He'd been too busy packing when he took the call to register it fully, but face-to-face, it was unmistakable. Short, around 170cm early, handsome and approachable face. But the real giveaway was impossible to miss: an enormously oversized head. A big-headed guy.
Back in the army, he bragged his beret was size 64. Got wasted at the championship party and wouldn't shut up about it. Biggest head in the whole Eagles organization, first and second teams combined...
"Welcome to the Eagles, Seo Tae-woong."
Grinning, he offered a handshake. Tae-woong extended his hand, bowing politely.
"Yes, Seo Tae-woong here. Looking forward to working with you."
"I should've met you at the entrance, but I got a sudden stomachache... really sorry."
"No, I got here earlier than expected."
"Glad you see it that way. Let's head to the locker room to unpack, then. Ready?"
"Yes, please."
I know the layout and everything, but no need to show off...
While Tae-woong sorted his gear in the locker room, Lee Doo-woong stepped away for a call and returned.
"All unpacked, Seo Tae-woong?"
"Yep, done."
"Group practice is wrapping up soon. Wanna head over now? Coaches and players are all together—say hi, chat a bit..."
"Of course."
Tae-woong followed him through the dugout onto the field. Han Young-deok, the manager, stood at the front with players gathered in a circle—practice had just ended.
Spotting Tae-woong as he turned, Han smiled.
"Ah, Tae-woong's here."
Tae-woong hurried over and bowed.
"Hello, Manager! Seo Tae-woong reporting!"
"Yeah, yeah. I called Kim Jin-woong myself and pushed hard to get you here—you know that."
His deadpan delivery had the whole team cracking up.
"Puhahaha!"
Arm around Tae-woong's shoulder, Han pulled him to his side.
"You've all seen the articles, right? Seo Tae-woong joins us starting today. Now, introduce yourself properly, newbie."
Stepping back, Han left Tae-woong alone in the center, surrounded by dozens of veterans.
A true rookie might've frozen, barely speaking amid seniors ten or fifteen years older. But Tae-woong was Ace-certified "used newbie." He scanned the faces calmly.
Some in their early-mid twenties he'd played with; the thirties-plus, he'd learned from as a coach.
All familiar faces.
Meeting each gaze, he smiled confidently.
"Hello! Seo Tae-woong here, traded from the Wiz! Pitcher, lefty thrower and batter. Please take care of me—I've got a lot to learn, so I'll work hard!"
He knew rookies should show spunk and spirit for a killer first impression—and delivered exactly that.
Clap clap clap clap clap clap, clap clap clap clap clap.
As applause rang out, Song Kang-min—new captain after Choi Jin-hyung's departure to Wiz—spoke up first.
"Alright, Eagles tradition for every new guy. Short and sweet—watch and copy. Show us, maknae!"
That one. Been around since 2018, huh?
Tae-woong knew exactly what was coming.
"Yes, sunbae!"
Jeong Woo-won, Tae-woong's sole classmate on the Eagles' first-team roster and the hitters' maknae, stepped forward briskly. Belting it out,
"Strong-est! Na-tion!"
Watching Jeong belt it, Song grinned at Tae-woong.
"Easy, right? Your turn!"
"Yes!"
Hands behind his back, Tae-woong shouted,
"Strong-est! Na-tion!"
It looked natural—he'd made every second-team rookie do it yearly.
After the quick ritual, Tae-woong followed Han Young-deok alone to the manager's office.
"Tough trip up to Daejeon on short notice."
"Nah, Wiz player support drove me—super comfy."
"Haha, good. And you nailed that intro without missing a beat."
"My best friend since childhood's a huge Eagles fan—we came to games a ton. Superfan, knew everything."
"Nice. Owe him one—gonna need some signed balls and jerseys later."
"He's not around now... but I'll grab some when I can and pass 'em on."
Of course, the "friend" was his past self.
I did come a lot as a player... not a total lie.
"Alright, business time, Tae-woong."
"Yes, Manager."
"You know the team situation, roughly?"
Newly minted Eagles manager for the 2018 season, Han Young-deok had made reviving the crumbling team—victims of the previous skipper's overuse and aging rosters—his top priority. He'd declared rebuilding as the season's goal.
Early on, he walked the talk: no obsession with immediate wins, rotating chances to young, promising kids despite the creaks.
But from mid-April, the Eagles flipped 180 degrees. Their trio of cheap foreign players—bottom of the league budget—suddenly looked acclimated, flexing real skill. Hitter prospects and bullpen studs lit up; injured vets and early slumps recovered.
From 3-7 and 8th after ten games, they surged to 2nd on a win streak.
But no team's perfect. Ironclad bullpen and error-free D shone, but starters didn't deliver. #2 Hiller and the native 3-4-5 guys barely hit 5-6 innings each, overloading the pen over time.
The bullpen's "best in league" rep kept them comfortably 2nd now, but baseball wasn't one-and-done. Having lived the past three years' pen abuse, the Eagles knew starters' value better than anyone.
The 5th starters rotating in barely scraped 5 innings; Hiller as #2 wasn't replaceable yet.
"That's why I scouted you hard."
"Ah, yeah..."
Tae-woong gave a short reply to Han's longwinded rundown.
"So, how's the arm? Saturday's second-team footage looked smooth—no issues."
"Perfect. Velocity's up too."
"Oh yeah? Weather's warming—right on time. Guy your build should hit 140 easy even easing up. Unless you've got some manga-style limiter, haha!"
"Y-yeah!"
Drip.
A bead of sweat trickled down his ear.