Chapter 311
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Translator: 8uhl
Chapter: 311
Chapter Title: Pitch or Bat?
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Two days after filming wrapped.
An Daho stopped by Nara Kim’s mansion.
“They’ve decided to broadcast the documentary as a two-part series.”
“Two parts?”
Seojun tilted his head at An Daho’s words.
“Yeah. Part one will have more of an entertainment show feel and will feature you. Part two will be a straight documentary without you. They plan to edit part one with a lighter tone and go a little deeper for part two.”
Oh.
Seojun nodded.
That way, they could satisfy both those who didn't typically watch documentaries and those who wanted to see a serious one.
“That’s a good approach.”
“The people at ABS are happy too, since they got two programs out of a single shoot. It’s become such a hot topic that offers for ad placements are already lining up.”
“I see.”
“The broadcast will probably be in two weeks. And it’s scheduled to be uploaded to Plus+ as well.”
Seojun’s face lit up at An Daho’s words.
“I was worried about how people in Korea would watch it. If it’s on Plus+, they can see it easily!”
Seojun had no idea how fiercely the broadcast stations in Korea were competing to buy the rights to actor Lee Seojun’s documentary.
An Daho had heard about it through the grapevine. Even the companies looking to place ads were keeping a close eye on which station would land Seojun’s documentary.
“Also, the producer wanted to ask if you would do the narration for both parts.”
Seojun tilted his head.
“But I’m going back to Korea next week. They’ll have to edit the footage and write a script to match… will there be enough time?”
If it were one part, maybe, but splitting it into two would surely take a lot of time to edit.
‘And a good script doesn't just appear out of thin air.’
An Daho smiled and answered Seojun’s question.
“They said it won’t take that long.”
An Daho recalled his phone call with the producer the previous evening. When Daho mentioned that Seojun was scheduled to return to Korea next week, the producer had paused for a moment before exclaiming.
‘It won’t take that long!’
The producer had planned to take a short break after filming before starting the edits, but he quickly changed his schedule. He couldn't miss out on the boost in viewership and buzz that would come from Seojun Lee’s narration, not to mention the various other benefits.
‘Right. I can sleep later.’
An Daho chuckled softly as he remembered the producer’s faint words from the other end of the line.
After a moment of thought, Seojun nodded.
“Then I’m fine with it.”
Narration.
It was something he’d never done before, so he was curious to try.
Seeing Seojun agree, An Daho smiled and said.
“And there’s one more offer that came in.”
“An offer?”
“Yeah. Seojun. How would you like to throw the first pitch?”
The first pitch?
The completely unexpected suggestion made Seojun blink.
***
One day earlier.
The head of the LA Dodgers’ PR team counted on his fingers as he looked at Seojun Lee’s name flooding the internet.
“Hero Assemble, the whale rescue, the documentary filming, and now the appearance of a whale cloud. The talk has been all about Seojun Lee for almost a week, huh? But what do whale clouds have to do with Seojun Lee?”
At the PR head’s question, an employee chuckled and replied.
“Well, right now, Seojun Lee is the most famous celebrity that comes to mind when you think of whales. He’s at the center of all the buzz, and with a cloud like that appearing, it’s bound to become a hot topic.”
“And it’s an even bigger deal because that whale cloud circled the globe.”
“A lot of whale-related merchandise and events have popped up too. I heard whale-watching tours have increased significantly.”
The PR head stroked his chin as he listened to his staff.
The PR team had to be the most sensitive to what the world was paying attention to.
‘Whale’-related ads were popping up everywhere, and with the center of the phenomenon currently in California—in LA, no less—they couldn't miss such a golden opportunity right in front of them.
“Hmm. Then should we get in on the action?”
“Sir?”
The employees, who had just been talking about how they had to watch Seojun Lee’s documentary, looked at their team leader with puzzled expressions.
“We have a home game in a few days, right?”
“Yes.”
“How about we get Seojun Lee to throw the first pitch?”
Oh.
Oh!
The PR team members’ eyes lit up at their leader's suggestion.
***
Returning to the office after lunch, two scouts stopped in their tracks and backed away as they glanced at a certain desk.
“Philip, what’s with him?”
Their eyes turned to the scout, Philip, who was slumped over his desk as if he were dead. It was hard to tell if he was sleeping or had fainted. It was as if a dark cloud hung only over Philip’s desk.
“It was four or five days ago. He went through the entire list of East Asian high school players, and he’s been like that ever since. What was he saying? ‘Jack Smith’s friend was Seojun Lee! A Hollywood actor!’ He was practically screaming his head off.”
Hearing that, a colleague sipping coffee let out a gasp.
“Ah. I saw that too.”
As videos of Seojun Lee’s whale rescue appeared on N-tube, the other people in the videos also gained attention. Some were interviewed on the news, while others identified themselves on social media.
Among them, the most attention went to the large boy standing near Seojun Lee, who was wearing a black cap.
At first, people suspected he was Seojun Lee’s bodyguard, but one by one, people who knew the boy began to appear. As a famous high school player, quite a few people recognized him.
The scouts also quickly realized the boy was Jack Smith.
“But are Jack Smith and Seojun Lee really friends? It wasn’t just a coincidence that they rescued a whale together?”
The scout shook his head.
“Apparently, it came up in an interview during the ‘Over the Rainbow’ promotions. Seojun Lee lived in LA when he was filming Shadowman 1. He lived next door to Jack Smith, so they’ve been friends since they were kids.”
His colleague let out a sound of admiration.
“Wow. The kid who lived next door to me becomes a superstar… Sounds like something out of a novel.”
“Tell me about it. Well, he was just a little kid back then, I guess.”
“That’s true.”
The two scouts chuckled.
“But how did you know they lived next door? That probably wasn’t in the interview, right?”
“Apparently, Jack Smith is getting pestered quite a bit by his teammates. I mean, if my friend’s friend was a superstar, I’d be curious too. But Jack’s been good at shutting it down, so nothing more has gotten out.”
His colleague nodded at that.
Whether you were a baseball player or an actor, the biggest threat to a superstar was stories coming from acquaintances. Even if there was no concrete proof of whether the information was true or false, the fact that it came from an ‘acquaintance of the star’ often gave people a sense of unspoken confirmation.
“There are guys who would sell that kind of information… He’s a good friend. Oh, did you hear? The PR team is trying to get Seojun Lee to throw the first pitch.”
“Oh. That’s a good idea. He’s the center of attention right now, and there are a lot of Koreans in LA, so the turnout should be good. And Seojun Lee has a lot of fans, so…”
The scout thought for a moment, then said with a slightly overwhelmed look.
“…I think a lot more people will show up than we expect.”
***
A few days ago, the scout, Philip, had followed Jack Smith to a batting cage and discovered what he thought was an unpolished gem. He had rushed back to the office that day and combed through all the data on East Asian high school players, but no matter how hard he looked, he couldn't find the player he’d seen at the batting cage.
Putting down the last page, Philip sighed.
“…Maybe he’s not a high school player?”
He could be a pro or a minor league player. Or he could be a civilian altogether. Philip scratched his head in frustration.
“If he’s a civilian, he’ll be hard to find…”
He had no idea where to even begin his search. Still, his conscience as a baseball fan wouldn’t allow him to just let a boy with such talent go.
“He definitely has what it takes to be a superstar.”
Philip the scout trusted his own two eyes.
Renewing his determination, Philip stood up to print out the list of East Asian players.
Just then, a scout in the office exclaimed, “Oh!” The attention of everyone in the office turned to him.
“Seojun Lee was spotted at MydeMan Beach!”
“Seojun Lee?!”
An employee who was a fan of Seojun Lee shot up from her seat with a shriek. She looked ready to run to MydeMan Beach that very instant.
“I knew he was in LA, but I guess he went to MydeMan Beach.”
Everyone picked up their phones with intrigued expressions. The internet was already in an uproar.
Philip also took out his phone for a quick break and started browsing. Then he saw a certain photo and stopped breathing. He couldn’t even blink. His whole body stiffened, and he could only stare blankly at his phone.
“Rescuing a whale… How amazing.”
“But the person next to him. Doesn’t he look familiar?”
“You’re right. If we know him, he must be a baseball player. Oh, isn’t that Jack Smith? Philip! Is this Jack Smi… Philip?”
In Philip’s vision, which had gone deathly pale, were the figures of two boys.
There was Jack Smith in the same clothes he had worn earlier that day, and the boy Philip had thought was a gem buried in the mud—the actor Seojun Lee, who was like an already magnificently cut gem.
***
Since that day, it seemed Philip had lost all motivation. He couldn’t hide his disappointment. Though he walked around with his shoulders slumped, he still diligently did his work, making the head of the scouting team just shake his head in silence.
Thud!
Having finished all his morning tasks, Philip slammed his head on his desk.
“Damn it… I’d rather he had been a civilian…”
If he were a civilian, it would have been hard to find him, but he could have persuaded him one way or another to at least get tested. But…
“A Hollywood actor!”
A Hollywood actor, and one who had won an Academy Award at such a young age, with his acting skills already proven…!
The superstar potential Philip had seen was being displayed in a different field.
And it was being displayed incredibly! Magnificently!
As Philip wallowed in his despair, the conversation of his colleagues reached his ears.
First pitch?
Philip, who had been dejected about losing a talented batter to Hollywood, shot up from his seat. Startled by the sudden movement, the two scouts spilled a little of their coffee.
“First pitch!?”
“Wh-what?”
“What’s gotten into you all of a sudden?”
Philip shouted.
“Seojun Lee should be a batter, not a pitcher!”
At Philip’s sudden outcry, the two scouts could only blink.
***
“So you’re saying we should have him bat?”
Philip nodded repeatedly at the PR head’s words.
Philip’s story had been passed through a PR employee and had reached the team leader. The other PR staff members’ eyes sparkled with interest at the thrilling tale.
My goodness.
He followed Jack Smith and saw a talented batter, who turned out to be Seojun Lee?
This kind of behind-the-scenes story always sold well.
While the employees were thinking they could spread this story if Seojun Lee’s side agreed to bat, the PR head looked unconvinced.
“But no matter how well the pitcher throws, people usually can’t hit it. If he can’t hit it with everyone watching, it won’t be good for Seojun Lee’s image, will it? I feel like we’ll get blamed for making him bat.”
“He’ll have to practice even if he’s pitching, so can’t we just let him try batting once when he comes to practice?”
At Philip’s words, the PR head scratched his cheek.
“Hmm. If we include the story, having him bat is perfect for promotion… Alright. Then we’ll just let Seojun Lee choose between pitching and batting.”
As Philip’s expression brightened, the PR head continued.
“But you know he has to agree to it first, right?”
***
—You have toooo!!
You’re going to burst my eardrum.
Seojun held the phone far away from his ear. On the other end, Jack Smith was going wild.
—You’re a great pitcher! Your control is amazing!
If Philip had heard that, he would have been shocked. He’s good at batting and pitching!?
“Well, I can only throw a fastball.”
—You’re an actor, you’ll pick it up in no time!
Seojun scratched his cheek as Jack chuckled.
“They said I can either pitch or bat, whichever I’m comfortable with.”
—You’re good at both, so you can just do whichever you want! Batting sounds good too. Go hit a home run! Man. To think you’d stand on the field at LA Stadium before me…!
“Isn’t it a little different for you and me? You’re a player, and I’m just throwing the first pitch.”
—Still, it feels strange. What’s it like… Like I’m making a cameo in a movie?
Seojun thought for a moment at Jack’s words, then burst out laughing.
“That would be really weird.”
—Right?
Jack chuckled as well.
—So, are you going to do it or not?
“I already told them I would. It sounded like fun.”
He hadn’t gotten a chance to say it before, as Jack had started shouting before he could even mention he had accepted.
At Seojun’s words, Jack spoke in an excited voice.
—I’ll definitely come watch! Oh, wait. There’s going to be an article about you throwing the pitch, right? Wow… I might not even be able to get a ticket, right?
Seojun couldn't help but laugh at Jack’s genuine concern.