Today's Star

"……What the hell is this."

Today every baseball article on the portal sites had been completely swept up by Park Jeonghun. For years he'd been nothing more than a defensive replacement, occasionally trotted out as a pinch runner. And now, for the first time since his debut, he had smashed two home runs in a single game—off none other than Kwon Jong-jin.

He'd single-handedly manufactured both the first run and the go-ahead run, so of course every spotlight was locked on him. If I hadn't given up that home run and finished with a complete-game shutout, the story might have been different… but today, Park Jeonghun deserved to take it all.

The community boards, though, were a different story.

"What's going on?"

I was riding home in Ho-min's car—same as always—when I opened the forums.

"…Why are they losing their minds over this?"

They were completely obsessed with whatever I'd muttered after giving up the home run.

"Puhahaha. That's just how they are. So what's the real answer?"

"What?"

"What did you say? Was it 'Ah'? 'Dog'? Or maybe 'You'?"

"……Dog."

"'Dog fuck'? What did the dog ever do to you?"

"I don't know. It just came out that way. What am I supposed to do about it?"

Was it really that strange? Ho-min kept repeating "dog fuck, dog fuck" under his breath, grumbling that the words just wouldn't sit right ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠on his tongue.

Once we got home I changed clothes, washed up quickly, and came out to find Ho-min already on the sofa watching TV. The screen was showing today's ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠game highlights. First up was Park Jeonghun's opening home run.

"Whoa~ He really crushed that one."

"…Didn't you used to say that senior was good back in the day?"

"Huh? Yeah, I know. He used to do it all by himself—hitting and fielding."

"Really?"

Guess I was the only one who hadn't known.

The broadcast rolled on to the ninth inning, the moment I gave up the home run. Just seeing it again left a bitter taste in my mouth.

"……Got any beer in the house?"

"Huh? Are you crazy? The guy who just threw a complete game wants to start drinking?"

"…Just one can."

"What's your problem this time?"

I hesitated, then finally told Ho-min ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠everything about the mistake I'd made after the home run. He listened without a word of lecture and simply said, "……Fine. Drink."

"No lecture?"

He just snorted a laugh.

"You think you were the only one? Watching the game, I thought the same thing. We won. Game over."

"……"

"Everyone probably did. Nobody thought you'd give up a home run to Kim Min-seok right there."

He agreed so readily that I felt oddly embarrassed. The weird mood killed any desire for alcohol completely.

"……I'm going to sleep."

"What about the beer?"

"Are you insane? I've got a game tomorrow."

"…This guy's actually lost it."

Looking at the lineup, I was genuinely shocked. I never expected it to change overnight like this. Manager Park almost never touched the batting order. The only usual swaps were designated hitter, first base, and third base.

Seo Gyeongmin was still locked in at cleanup, no change there. With me joining the lineup I was slotted fifth as the designated hitter. Normally Kim Tae-seong would have been sixth… but that spot now belonged to Park Jeonghun. And not at third base—at shortstop. He was starting at short.

Kim Tae-seong dropped to seventh at third. So what about Choi Min-gi, the regular shortstop who usually hit second? Na Seung-won moved up into that spot.

Jo Chang-jun, Na Seung-won, Shane, Seo Gyeongmin, me, Park Jeonghun, Kim Tae-seong, Ko Mandeok, Lee Won-jeong. Looking at it like this, our lineup actually looked… pretty solid?

Of course, that assumed Park Jeonghun could show the same kind of bat he'd had yesterday. If yesterday had been a one-game flash and he reverted to his old self, we'd start missing Jeong Jong-seong's production.

"But is he going to be okay at shortstop…?"

Any defensive worries?

"He can play anywhere—infield or outfield."

Completely unnecessary.

[We're seeing some changes in the Savers' lineup today.]

[That's right. Park Jeonghun, who put on an incredible performance yesterday, has his name in the starting lineup.]

[He's starting at shortstop today.]

[Defense is the last thing you need to worry about with Park Jeonghun. The real question is whether he can produce the same kind of offense as yesterday. Still, he's always been such a hard worker that I think we can expect good things.]

Park Jeonghun's insertion started paying off from the very first inning.

Crack!

A deep grounder shaded toward third—he snagged it backhand and threw on one hop for the out.

Crack!

A ball sailing over the shortstop's head—he turned his back, sprinted, and laid out for a diving catch.

"……He's insane."

Literally insane. That man was a defensive god.

"#@%$#%@#$%@!!!!"

Even the usually quiet Michael Len was screaming his head off with excitement. Thanks to Park Jeonghun's ridiculous defense we retired the side in order in the first.

Today was a foreign-pitcher matchup. Going into the game everyone had expected another pitchers' duel after yesterday. And yet…

[Another hit! Seo Gyeongmin rips a double into the left-center gap! Runner Shane scores from second—3-0. The Savers are pouring it on from the first inning!]

[Four straight hits. The Savers' lineup looks terrifying today.]

Unlike the limp showing against Kwon Jong-jin yesterday, they were attacking from the jump. And now it was my turn.

As Jo Chang-jun crossed the plate he tossed me a tip: today's pitcher—Grant Visner—had a fastball that was just too pretty. Came in looking absolutely gorgeous, he said with a grin.

How pretty could it really be…

Pop~

"Ball."

Yeah… so this was that "broomstick fastball" people talked about? Something was clearly wrong with him. If he'd always thrown like this he wouldn't have the numbers he did. The ball left his hand and came in perfectly straight—I was honestly startled.

"Ball."

"Foul."

I took another, then fouled off a splitter that dropped just a little on the third pitch. Fourth pitch. The pitcher kept shaking his head, clearly unhappy with something. From behind him came a thin sigh.

That hopeful little feeling. Finally the four-seamer I'd been waiting for came flying in again.

CRACK!

"Ah, shit!"

The curse exploded out of me the second I made contact. I quietly set the bat down and sprinted for first. Raiders veteran catcher Kim Gyeong-seok was still staring up at the sky and heaving sighs even after I'd rounded third and touched home.

The words "Thank you" had been right on the tip of my tongue… but the age gap was just too big. I couldn't bring myself to say it. Was he thirty-five this year? Thirty-six? Either way, ancient—same generation as our own Jo Sangjun.

Park Jeonghun was waiting at the plate with his hand out. I passed the intel along the same way Jo Chang-jun had.

"Senior. It's a broomstick. Straight broomstick."

"Oh~ Really?"

He grinned and nodded, confidence written all over his face.

CRACK!

"Ugh… what the hell."

He yanked the very first pitch and sent it sailing. Was this really a guy whose career batting average sat under .200? Overnight he'd become a completely different person.

[Still no outs and already six runs in. Back-to-back home runs from Kang Hajin and Park Jeonghun make it 6-0. The Raiders are collapsing in the first!]

[Another four-seamer. Same thing happened against Kang Hajin earlier. He keeps shaking off the catcher's signs and throwing four-seamers—and they keep going for home runs. Visner needs to stop being stubborn right now…]

[The pitching coach is finally visiting the mound.]

[A change is tough this early. The bullpen guys just started warming up.]

The pitching coach stayed on the mound ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠for a long time—long enough that someone should have complained—but with the score already lopsided and still no outs in the first, our side stayed generous. Not even a light protest.

Finally the coach left. The opposing starter seemed to have come to his senses at last and stopped throwing four-seamers. Just like that he recorded three outs and ended the inning. But the score was already 6-0, and our starter was Michael Len.

[They give up more runs in the third after the first. The pitching coach finally accepts reality. That's all for Visner today.]

Watching Michael Len pitch, you couldn't help thinking how good he was. A fastball that touched 155 km/h, a sharp slider, a curve, a changeup. Solid command, not many mistakes. Even when he gave up a home run he recovered his composure right away… or honestly, I wasn't sure his composure ever really wavered. Good stamina, ate up innings.

A pitcher this good… and yet even Michael Len had completely failed in the majors? What kind of world was that place? To throw like this and still not stick even in the bullpen, getting shipped back to the minors…

Michael Len's line for the day: seven innings, two runs. The home run in the sixth was a shame, but by then the score had already ballooned beyond repair.

[Final score 11-2. The Savers take today's game as well, and the gap between the two teams has now disappeared!]

"Ah…"

Right before the final game of the three-game set against the Raiders, we got some miserable news. Seo Gyeongmin, the heart of our lineup, and Ko Mandeok, our everyday starting catcher, were both out at the same time.

"Why the hell…"

The cause: gastroenteritis.

"What did they even eat… haah…"

Neither of them was the type to drink before a game. So they must have eaten something else that did this to them…

I'd left early yesterday and hadn't known. Throwing a complete game and then playing again the next day had left me pretty wiped. Even as a designated hitter who didn't have to play defense, it still took a toll. Maybe the system boosts were the only reason I was holding up this well…

Apparently after the game a few of them had gone out to eat together and then split up. They all ate the same food—so why only those two…

The silver lining was that it didn't seem too severe. Word was they might even be available for late-game pinch-hitting or defensive replacements.

Because of that, our lineup had no choice but to change again.

Cleanup hitter: Kang Hajin!

"Why the hell…!!!"

And that was how it happened.