A Lesson in Manners
"Alright, let's kick off the 'KBO Deep Dive' lecture right now."
Monday, the day after the Children's Day series wrapped up. In my living room, Jeong Hanseong was putting on unnecessary airs.
"What's a deep dive?"
I had no clue what that fancy word meant.
"Huh? Yeah, good question..."
Even Jeong Hanseong, the one who'd said it, didn't know.
"Are you nuts or something...?"
"It's probably just something people say in situations like this? I think I picked it up somewhere..."
Jeong Hanseong mumbled incoherently for a bit before snapping.
"Anyway! That's not the point!"
He even got pissed off at me.
"Let's think about why we're here. This isn't 'Korean Lessons for Jin Yuha'; it's 'KBO Lessons for Jin Yuha' time."
It was my precious day off. I'd only met up with Jeong Hanseong, whom I saw every day anyway, because he was giving me a crash course on Korean baseball since my knowledge was lacking.
"Is that really such a big deal? I can just check the players' stats."
I, the student, had zero enthusiasm.
"No! This is about respect. It's about showing manners to the league and team you're playing in."
Hmm.
"Fine. Let's go with that."
Whatever.
"You're just sick of me hanging around the clubhouse dorms, but sure, let's pretend."
"Ugh... Why do you have to call me out like that? It's awkward around the seniors if I'm there."
Why worry about them?
"Just ignore 'em. They're not making the first team anyway because you outshine them."
"Still, how can I disrespect my seniors?"
Like I'd said before, a catcher who can't handle pitches properly isn't a catcher. Therefore.
"Those guys aren't seniors."
They weren't even baseball players. If they weren't working on their own skills and just resented the talented underclassmen, even more so.
"Sigh... Not everyone's like you."
Jeong Hanseong let out a deep sigh, chugged some cold water, changed the subject, and dove into the real lecture.
"Which team has the closest ties to our Titans right now?"
Today's topic seemed to be teams closely linked to the Titans.
"Carvers?"
"Why do you think that?"
Well.
"Because we battled it out for last place in the East?"
I vaguely remembered hearing that the Carvers' home stadium used to be the Titans' too.
"Ugh... Not wrong, but... the Carvers aren't that close."
Lots of teams came to mind.
Like the Daegu Warriors, whose name hadn't changed since day one. Or the Changwon Rhinos, whom our fans hated for some reason. Or the Seoul Guardians, who always gave us infuriating games. But.
"Sorry, all wrong. I asked about the team currently closest to the Titans."
Jeong Hanseong shot me an annoying smirk and shot down all my answers.
"The answer is... Jeonju Dragons."
That was unexpected.
"Dragons? The baby of the West?"
"Yeah. Kinda surprising, right?"
"Tell me about it."
They seemed totally unrelated.
"It's not that long ago that the connection really deepened."
"The Dragons haven't been around long themselves."
"Even more recent than that. Like two years ago."
Two years, huh.
"When the Titans announced their rebuild."
Clap!
"Correct. Jin Yuha."
Jeong Hanseong clapped and nodded.
"What's the rebuild got to do with the Dragons?"
"You know how the Titans cleaned house after declaring the rebuild, right? Most of those trades were with the Dragons."
Jeong Hanseong explained it like this.
The rebuilding Titans decided to cut some veterans. To do that, they aggressively pursued trades.
"And most of those trades were with the Dragons?"
"Guys like Coach Yoon Gangyeol and Kim Taeyong came from the Dragons. A few bullpen arms too."
I had no idea. Wasn't interested.
"Oh."
Come to think of it.
"Wasn't this weekend an away series at the Dragons?"
"Yep. Lots of guys who played together for years, so it'll probably be a friendly matchup, huh?"
"Hey."
"..."
"You said it'd be friendly."
"...I didn't know the seniors hated each other's guts."
Jeong Hanseong muttered under his breath with an aggrieved look.
"Ha! Who the hell do you think you are, showing up here?"
"What, can't I come? Still acting like a stuck-up old-timer, huh, senior?"
Before the first game of the weekend series, there was a clash between players from both teams.
"Coach Park Cheongwon. I've got some years under my belt too, and I'm not with the Titans anymore, so cut the crap."
Surprisingly, the one starting the beef on the Titans' side was Park Cheongwon, famous for his good personality.
The Titans' steps toward Jeonju were light as could be.
Children's Day series. The Pistols, still reeling from their brutal loss to Jin Yuha, got crushed by 10 runs in Game 3 too.
The weekday home series against the Fighters. The two teams had split their opening series 1-1, so the rematch was a shocker.
The Titans swept them. Their first sweep since the Warriors series—a long time coming.
What made the Titans even happier was.
"Finally... we're in first place!"
Sweeping the weekday series had them leapfrogging the Rhinos to the top of the East standings.
"Sluuuurp... So this is what the top smells like."
The Titans, tasting first place for the first time in ages, were sky-high. Sure, there was that minor issue with Jin Yuha and his dad Jin Yusung being on awkward terms, but whatever.
"Everyone looks pumped. Must be the hot streak."
That was the vibe right up until someone showed up at the dugout before the game.
"Whew... Me and Jaeyu busted our asses in this shithole team, and you're jealous?"
Right.
Yang Soyeol and... Byeon Jaeyu?
They were the ex-Titans players my private tutor Jeong Hanseong had mentioned.
Yang Soyeol's today's starter, a sidearmer. Byeon Jaeyu's the lineup's anchor, a lefty slugger.
They were also key Dragons players flagged by our analytics team. Still.
Seems like our seniors don't get along with them.
Well, you can't be buddies with everyone. Just like me and the Titans' catcher scrubs. But.
"Jihun, why so stiff? Call me 'hyung' like old times."
"Haha... Did I?"
Baek Jihun, always the clown, was frozen with a stiff face.
That guy's totally scared shitless.
Looked like more than just awkwardness between them.
That's when.
"Ha! Who the hell do you think you are, showing up here?"
Park Cheongwon stormed out of the locker room and blocked the two Dragons players with harsh words.
Didn't see that coming.
I was sitting on the dugout bench, peeling a banana, thinking that. The Park Cheongwon I knew was the textbook nice senior.
"Coach Park Cheongwon. I've got some years under my belt too, and I'm not with the Titans anymore, so cut the crap."
"If you wanna play king, do it with your own team. Leave Jihun alone."
"Aw, what'd I do? We're just buddies."
"Still acting like a punk high schooler?"
Got it.
These guys are jerks.
Made sense why our GM shipped them out despite decent stats. Still.
No need for me to get involved.
As today's starter, I needed to focus on prep. I finished my banana clean and stood to do my routine.
"Oh, you must be that Jin Yuha? Damn... this kid's eyes are blue."
Okay, that's different.
I'd lost count of how many times people commented on my looks—I barely remembered anymore.
Thanks to that, I could tell exactly what he meant the second he said it.
Truth be told, the "this kid" part made it obvious he was picking a fight.
"..."
I tried ignoring him at first. No interest in engaging.
Dealing with idiots is exhausting. Plus.
Feels too forced.
Coming all the way to our dugout to start shit with a team he wasn't even tight with? Awkward as hell.
"Whoa, senior's talking and you're just gonna walk? Did they screw up your training? Or was it your home upbringing? Kid's got no manners."
But he kept pushing.
"Oh, sorry. You're so short I didn't see you."
So I responded politely.
"...What'd you say?"
"Oh! There you are. Impressive, senior. How do you even pitch at that height?"
Yang Soyeol—who looked under 170cm—turned beet red at my "compliment."
"Pfft!"
Baek Jihun couldn't hold back his laugh, making him even redder.
"This little shit..."
"Oh, did I mess up again? Living in America messed me up sometimes. Korean manners? Etiquette? Tough stuff."
I hammed it up with exaggerated gestures, full-on American tourist vibe.
"Holy shit..."
James Gilbert, watching the drama like me, let out an exclamation.
"..."
Park Cheongwon, who'd been shielding me, was stunned.
"Ha... fuck... ugh..."
Yang Soyeol trembled.
"Fine, if you weren't taught right, that happens. Ignorance isn't a crime."
He sneered unpleasantly.
"Oh, right. Baseball players just need to play ball. Great minds think alike. So your season stats... explain that."
I gave Yang Soyeol a pitying look and some "comfort." He clearly needed to try harder.
"Ha... ha! Funny guy. Big leaguer, so nothing's off-limits? All hype from juicing up anyway. Americans are famous for that."
Oof.
"That's a problematic statement."
"Hit a nerve?"
I casually pulled out my phone.
"I'll pass it on to my reporter friends. Uh, what's your name? Anyway, the short Dragons senior called my dad a juicer."
"...What?"
Who taught me baseball?
"If I'm a juicer, obviously the dad who trained me is too. That's how it starts—with bad adults tempting you."
Yang Soyeol had just accused Korea's baseball hero of doping.
"N-no... hey, that's not... wait a sec..."
His face drained of color; he couldn't speak.
"Sorry. I messed up."
He gritted his teeth and apologized.
At least open those pretty eyes when you say it.
Not super sincere, but.
"Alright. Watch it next time."
I let it slide.
Time to prep.
Lots to do before the game. Plus.
"Hey! Yang Soyeol! Byeon Jaeyu! What the hell are you doing here? Bullying our guys?"
Manager Jeong Hyeonho was back from his call with GM Hyeon Myeongun.
Yang Soyeol and Byeon Jaeyu bolted from the visitor dugout at Manager Jeong Hyeonho's arrival.
"Ha, fuck. That Jin Yuha prick has zero manners."
Yang Soyeol was fuming, badmouthing me to vent.
"Didn't seem like he meant anything by it?"
Byeon Jaeyu grinned at him.
"Yeah. No way that guy's intimidated by seniors from another team picking fights."
"Obvious from the jump. Interviews say it all—he's untouchable."
"So what now? You're the one who said facing the Titans was too much pressure."
Byeon Jaeyu glanced toward the Titans' side with a sleazy smirk.
"They've got another rookie besides Yuha today. No way he's got Yuha's attitude too. Let's mess with him."
His eyes were on Jeong Hanseong.