Chapter 37
Chapter 37
Translator Wjin
Chapter 37
The President’s Cup final was ultimately closed out by Cha Tae-hyun, who had come in as the closer, and Hyeoksan High achieved the remarkable feat of winning the Golden Lion Trophy, the Blue Dragon Flag, and the President’s Cup in succession.
The star of that whirlwind was, without a doubt, Cha Tae-hyun.
Thanks to that, Cha Tae-hyun’s fame began to grow to the point where not just Phoenix fans, but any baseball fan had at least heard of him.
The interesting thing was that among the lower-ranked teams, posts like this were starting to appear.
[Isn’t it better to be in last place and get Cha Tae-hyun than to be in 7th?]
Honestly, I'm tired of seeing 'Last Place Phoenix' bragging about Cha Tae-hyun, but it's also true that I'm jealous.
He's really fucking good;; This season seems to be a bust anyway, so wouldn't it be better for the future to just be in last place?
[Upvotes: 129] [Downvotes: 152]
└ This is the right move for the fucking Dinos lol.
└ Judging by their performance, they'll probably be in last place even without tanking.
└ Nah, that’s impossible. The Volcanos are beatable, but the Last Place Phoenix are in a league of their own. They can’t be beaten.
└ It’s so funny that they can’t even lose enough to be in last place lol.
└ Come on guys, tanking is a bit much.
└ You trolls, get back to your own forums.
└ Ugh, these tanking idiots are always here.
Of course, with more downvotes and negative comments, there were still fans who were resistant.
But considering that tanking, the act of deliberately lowering one's ranking to draft a rookie, was a highly negative image that undermined the spirit of sports, this level of reaction was surprising.
“Ha~ So refreshing, you Dinos. Yep~ Cha Tae-hyun is our Phoenix ace.”
Shin Ha-yoon chuckled as she looked at the post.
She was always teased for losing to the Dinos, for her team’s ranking, and for their recent championship drought.
But now, Cha Tae-hyun had become the justification for everything.
“Yep, we’re in last place. But we’ll take Cha Tae-hyun~,” she wrote in the comments. Her younger sister looked at her with a pathetic expression.
“You used to pretend you hated him…”
“No, no, just as a fan! I meant it as a fan!”
She frantically shook her head and explained, but to her sister, it was just an excuse.
“If you keep acting like that, you won’t even be able to be friends with Tae-hyun oppa. Someone else will snatch him up first.”
“…What are you talking about? I’m just a fan. It doesn’t matter.”
“Hmm… really?”
They had lived together for over 10 years. She could immediately notice her sister’s change in expression.
The moment she said, “Someone else will snatch him up first,” her lips had pouted slightly. Her sister narrowed her eyes and said to Shin Ha-yoon, “Good luck until the day you get together with Tae-hyun oppa~.”
“Hey! I said no, really!”
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇;
The high school baseball broadcasting team office was like a scene from an apocalypse.
An employee walking in with coffee, completely zoned out.
An employee who had passed out with their face on the keyboard.
And even an employee walking around like a zombie.
The only sane person was the team leader.
“…It’s not enough. It’s still not enough… It’s just not enough!”
An employee sighed at the director’s sudden outburst.
‘He’s at it again…’
It was so familiar that it was getting old. It was obvious that in a few minutes, he would order them to make a video about Cha Tae-hyun.
“The U-18 Baseball World Cup, a big event, is just around the corner! We don’t have a big hit! A big hit! We need to make Cha Tae-hyun a bigger! Bigger! Star!”
‘Isn’t he a big enough star already…?’
The viewership for the President's Cup final had reached a whopping 1.1%, and Cha Tae-hyun’s interview video had easily surpassed 500,000 views. What more did he want…?
At that moment, the director’s eyes widened, and he shouted as if he had a eureka moment.
“I got it! I got it!”
“Ha… what is it this time.”
“We’ll film Cha Tae-hyun’s daily life!”
“No… is Cha Tae-hyun a celebrity? Are we going to film a vlog?”
“Tsk tsk… that’s why you’re still under me and can’t get promoted.”
‘You’re more than 10 years older than me…’
“Think about Cha Tae-hyun’s tear-jerking interview! If we film how hard he’s living…”
“Wasn’t that resolved with support?”
“Aigoo… you have no sense. We can just do a reenactment. Like, “I lived a very hard life~,” in a reminiscent tone.”
The employee couldn't help but be impressed. He was definitely a boomer, but his creativity was something to be acknowledged.
“Well… it would be interesting.”
“Right… it’s a must! This is a must-hit! Everyone, stop sleeping and start planning Cha Tae-hyun’s reenactment video today!”
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇;
With the U-18 Baseball World Cup just around the corner, Japan held a press conference to express their confidence.
“It is true that Japan has been weak in the Baseball World Cup, but that was because we focused on Koshien rather than international competitions, and we formed a team with second-tier, or even third-tier, players. It’s different now. We plan to show the world the true strength of Japan’s first-tier, the best.”
“Are you saying you’re confident of winning with Japan’s first-tier?”
“Of course. This year’s national team is an unprecedented golden generation with many outstanding players. And… we have the best prospect, ‘Yamada Ryuji’. I am confident that Japan will win.”
This news was immediately conveyed to neighboring Korea, and in line with their rivalry, where even a game of rock-paper-scissors couldn't be lost to Japan, they held a press conference.
“Manager, there are many opinions that the US and Japan are very strong in this U-18 Baseball World Cup. Is that true?”
“That is true. Both the US and Japan can be said to have all-time great teams. There’s a smell of a golden generation, as they say. And since Japan is the host country, they’ll have the home-field advantage. I think it will be the most competitive World Cup in history.”
‘This is troublesome…’
The reporters’ faces fell at Jeon Ho-cheol’s unexpectedly clean admission. They had expected something like, “Japan? We’ll sink them,” or at least a confident declaration of victory. Nationalistic articles were usually popular.
Jeon Ho-cheol looked at the reporters’ faces, chuckled as if he knew what they were thinking, and continued.
“But… well, our Korea is no pushover either.”
At those words, a reporter immediately asked, “Have you seen the interviews with Japan and the US?”
“Of course, I have.”
“They all expressed confidence in winning. Could you also say a few words?”
Jeon Ho-cheol raised one corner of his mouth and replied, “Japan and the US both say they have a golden generation with many good rookies… but we’re the same. I believe this generation will go down in Korean baseball history as a golden generation.”
Click, click, click.
The reporters finally started typing furiously. Jeon Ho-cheol explained why the Korean national team was strong, and…
“And most importantly… we have a monster.”
Jeon Ho-cheol’s final words were exactly the headline all the reporters here had been hoping for.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇;
There are some settings in Nemesis that are slightly different from reality. One of them is that the Bonghwangdaegi, which had been abolished and then revived, is still abolished here, and the U-18 Baseball World Cup is held before the draft.
And so, I am now in Osaka, Japan, the host city of this year’s Baseball World Cup.
As soon as I got off the plane, Kim Shin-hwa, Jin Tae-hyun, and Kim Yu-bin stuck to my side. I don’t know why, but they had been acting friendly since the training camp before we left. Well, I could understand Jin Tae-hyun.
“After we unpack, want to have a one-at-bat for drinks with Kim Shin-hwa?”
“I don’t know about Cha Tae-hyun, but you wouldn’t even be able to touch my pitch. What kind of bet is that?”
“Wow, what would Kim Shin-hwa do if he couldn’t play baseball? He would have no friends…”
What was with Kim Shin-hwa and Kim Yu-bin sticking to me like this?
At that moment, my phone vibrated.
[Ms. Mi-yeon: Tae-hyun, did you arrive in Japan?]
As soon as I saw the sender’s name, the corners of my mouth went up on their own.
[I arrived safely, hehe]
[Did the plane crash?]
[Then I wouldn’t be able to reply.]
[That’s a relief… but what if there’s an earthquake in Japan? I heard a typhoon’s coming too…]
[Or maybe I should just go to Japan on vacation and cheer for you?]
I wanted to reply “Yes!” right away, but I knew that was a bad idea. Ms. Mi-yeon also needed a break during her vacation. And most importantly, hadn’t she always come all the way from Busan to Seoul to cheer for me?
It would be shameless to ask her to come to Japan.
[It’s okay. You need to rest too, teacher.]
[Well… it’s a trip, and the yen is cheap these days.]
[And it’s easy to find cheap plane tickets if you’re traveling alone… and… I want to travel abroad too…]
The more she texted, the more it seemed like she wanted to come, giving all sorts of reasons. It felt strangely good. As I was trying to dissuade Ms. Mi-yeon, who seemed to be seriously considering the trip, I was stunned by a surprise text.
[Don’t you miss me, Tae-hyun?]
[I think I miss you a little… no, a lot, a lot…]
Hmm…
I knew this was a bad idea, but…
[I miss you.]
My fingers defied my brain and typed the words. Ms. Mi-yeon might really book a flight after seeing this. But wasn’t this her fault? How could I not say I missed her? That would be crazy.
“Cha Tae-hyun’s weakness was here.”
Kim Shin-hwa suddenly said something strange.
“He really can’t keep his composure, can he?”
Kim Yu-bin chuckled, nudged my shoulder, and said, “This bastard… he’s a gentle lamb in front of a woman. Did you see his face? I’ve never seen him smile so foolishly.”
Did I?
Well, I could have been smiling because I was texting with Ms. Mi-yeon, but I couldn’t believe I was smiling foolishly. I asked Jin Tae-hyun for the truth.
“I already knew that the G.O.A.T. of the baseball world, Cha Tae-hyun, was weak to women.”
Jin Tae-hyun also nodded as if it were nothing.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇;
Many people think that Taiwan is a baseball powerhouse because they have beaten Korea or played close games against them in international competitions, but that's not the case.
Their domestic league has been rocked by match-fixing scandals, and the league management has been called a mess. Although they have been showing signs of improvement recently, they are still no match for Korea, the US, and Japan.
However, it is also true that they have been particularly strong in the U-18 Baseball World Cup. It was no wonder that the Taiwanese people had high expectations for today’s game.
└ Korea in the first round? That’s not going to be easy.
└ But we still have a chance, right? We’ve won a few times.
└ Right, for some reason, Taiwan does well against Korea.
└ And most importantly, we have Lin Hao.
└ Right. Brothers, believe in Lin Hao.
└ Who can hit Lin Hao’s rock-like fastball?
And most importantly, their top prospect, starting pitcher Lin Hao, could throw a 153km/h fastball even though he was a high school student, so they couldn’t help but have high expectations.
And so, the game began with the Taiwanese people’s expectations at their peak.
Crack!
└ Brothers? Something’s wrong. Lin Hao got hit by the first batter…
└ Friend, calm down. Lin Hao seems a little nervous.
└ Lin Hao’s strength is his strong mentality, which allows him to regain his composure even when he’s shaken! Don’t worry, brother.
Crack!
└ He got hit again?
└ Brother, don’t you believe in our Lin Hao? Lin Hao is a pitcher who has gotten out of many jams with runners on base.
└ Just wait for Lin Hao’s 153km/h fastball.
Crack!
└ No, brothers, I really think something is wrong… The bases are loaded now…
└ And if that Jin Tae-hyun’s hit had been a little luckier, it would have been at least a double… If the shortstop hadn’t made that diving catch, a run would have scored.
└ Where did all the brothers who said to believe in Lin Hao go?
The Taiwanese broadcast chat was quiet for a moment, but soon, they started cheering together again with one heart and one mind.
└ We have to hope that Lin Hao can pull himself together and pitch.
└ Lin Hao, relax! You’re not a pitcher who should be getting hit like this!
└ Right, if Lin Hao just relaxes, he’ll be able to dominate with his 153km/h fastball.
Contrary to what the Taiwanese viewers thought, Lin Hao wasn’t nervous at all. He was pitching like he always did, and perhaps even better than usual.
And even in this bases-loaded situation, facing Cha Tae-hyun, who was listed as the player to watch out for in the scouting report, Lin Hao wasn't nervous at all and pitched with confidence in his specialty, the fastball.
Right. Lin Hao was not at fault. He had pitched really well. It was just that…
Craaaack!!
└ Brothers?
“He pulled a fastball that was tight on the inside!! This ball is going deep, deep! It’s over the fence! Over the fence! Cha Tae-hyun hits a grand slam in his first at-bat in a bases-loaded situation, driving a dagger into the heart of Taiwan in the first inning!!!”
…Korea’s golden generation was a little strange, just as Manager Jeon Ho-cheol had said.