Blue Dragon Cup Finals (2)
As befitting the Blue Dragon Cup finals, scouts from nearly every Korean pro baseball team were in attendance, eyes glued to the game. The Gocheok Turkeys had their scout team leader there in person, accompanied by his staff, with scouts from other capital region teams lined up beside them.
"Wow... he's throwing well."
"That's Kim Jeong-ui up there now, right?"
His team member asked cautiously, and the Turkeys scout leader nodded.
"Yeah. I figured it'd be Lee Seok-hyeon on the mound, but Kim Jeong-ui came up instead. And he's doing great. Deserves to start the finals."
"Our main target was Lee Seok-hyeon originally. Too bad. I wanted to clock his velocity properly."
"What can you do? At least Lee Seok-hyeon as a hitter isn't bad. If we snag him, we can evaluate both sides."
The Turkeys leader said quietly.
"He's hitting the borderline well."
"That's the trickiest part. Control's definitely sharp. Velocity?"
"Average around low 130s. Even accounting for underhand, it's not super fast, but he's only a sophomore..."
"That's it? Earlier, against Suseok High's cleanup hitter... didn't it look faster?"
The scout checked his notes.
"Oh! Yeah. Hit 136 km/h against Oh Dan-hwi, their number four."
"So... he's varying speed too... Not bad."
Then the scout glanced at a foreigner nearby.
"That guy's probably MLB scout, right? Here for Dan-hwi?"
"Probably. Among hitters, Dan-hwi's the standout this year. But today... he's not bringing it."
The scout leader then spotted Kim Jeong-ui finishing his inning, heading to the dugout, then veering toward the stands. He tilted his head, noticing Jeong-ui chatting briefly with someone across the fence.
Family?
But soon, he seemed hyper-aware of the surroundings.
"Hmm..."
Something's off.
The Turkeys scout leader pulled his team member close.
"Hey, go check what that's about. See why he's acting like that? Place is getting rowdy."
He whispered instructions.
"Got it, sir."
The Turkeys scout slipped quietly from his seat toward the stands.
Shieeeek—
Thwump!
"Swing and a miss! Strike three!"
Amazing...
Catcher Hwang Jae-uk watched Kim Jeong-ui on the mound, thinking just that.
To think he can lead like this.
From elementary school to now, he'd caught for plenty of pitchers, but they usually focused on ball counts. No one pitched with this level of precision, using the pitch tunnel so meticulously.
Pure, overwhelming talent.
But the eyes of the Kim Jeong-ui on the mound right now didn't look so bright.
Through the top of the fifth, while our lineup went around twice, I'd given up zero runs. Heading to the dugout after the inning, my mind raced.
Over those two trips through the order, I'd challenged inside once, outside once. Considering their aggressive swings, I'd thrown hittable pitches to induce grounders, saving pitch count.
But now, time to switch patterns again.
They'd scored zero through five; we'd plated three. Gradually, their wild swings lessened, eyes sharpening, growing patient.
Now, inside-outside didn't matter—I needed tougher pitches.
With four innings left, stamina was a question, but no more hittable stuff. Full effort from here.
Or... one left?
I headed to the bullpen area, scanning around, confirming my final card.
Hoo... Didn't want to play it, but since I could, no choice but to toy with it.
This was the critical moment.
Yeah. Let's do it.
I moved straight to where Mom and Dad sat.
"What, Mom came?"
As I approached the stands, I felt eyes follow naturally.
"This ain't a big game or anything."
I stood before Mom, forcing casual.
"Finals, and my son's pitching? Of course I'm here."
Mom smiled.
"Dad's loving it most."
She pointed to Dad beside her.
I nodded, raising my voice deliberately.
"Dad played in MLB, so this is nothing to him."
Calculated words. For the opponent's third-base coach, third baseman, nearby Suseok players to hear.
As expected, surrounding gazes shifted subtly.
Soon they'd know whose son I was.
Kim Jeong-seok, MLB legend.
That alone would change the vibe.
Intimidation. From target to threat.
Perfect. Time to head back?
I glanced at Dad. He wasn't even looking.
Makes sense. MLB vet, won these a million times.
"What're you saying? Dad won the Blue Dragon Cup, so of course he loves his son in the finals."
...?
Eh? Really?
I couldn't help but falter at Mom's words.
"Dad won and got MVP in the Blue Dragon Cup. Didn't you know?"
Wait... then I had more reason than anyone to win this.
But I played it off.
"Figured Dad not saying anything meant he wasn't impressed."
Only then did Dad look at me.
"Dad, no words of wisdom?"
"...Ahem."
Dad finally spoke.
"Why're you throwing so sloppily? Pitch properly."
"..."
That's it? Figures.
"Yeah, yeah. I'll pitch right."
I returned to the bullpen area.
Warmed shoulders with light tosses.
Soon our bats finished; I headed back to the mound for defense.
Top sixth. Leadoff, start of their third time around.
The moment I saw their number one hitter, I knew my ploy worked.
Suseok's strength: sharing intel among hitters.
New info had spread from before.
Opposing pitcher's actually Kim Jeong-seok's son, the MLB guy.
And Dad just told him to pitch properly.
Clear fear in the leadoff's eyes confirmed it.
Time to pitch accordingly.
Might be easier than previous innings now.
But pitching "properly" wasn't easy. How?
When did I pitch my best...?
Couldn't recall.
How to pitch even better...?
I recalled peak sensation.
Not baseball.
But one great feeling surfaced.
—Smash that guitar over his head.
Yeah, this vibe.
I glared at the batter. He flinched.
Then, like smashing his skull with a guitar, I unleashed my best pitch.
Shiiieeeeeek—
The ball left my hand, dancing.
Team member gone, quiet settled over the scouts' section again.
Turkeys leader kept glancing at the stands amid notes.
Soon, the team member returned.
Leader feigned flipping pages casually, but the member leaned in, whispering.
"Boss. Kim Jeong-ui's the son of that Kim Jeong-seok. Those folks are his parents."
Leader's brow furrowed sharply.
Come to think... yeah, heard his son played ball, quit midway... must've restarted. That's why we missed it. Tch...
But coldly assessing, a pity.
Compared to Kim Jeong-seok... he might seem average. Velocity's lacking. Control's great, sure.
Jeong-seok was underhand too, but not defined by control.
Overwhelming stuff. Blazing speed and nasty movement despite underhand, dominating foes.
Then the member caught breath, whispering lower.
"Only caught the end, but heard Kim Jeong-ui get told by his dad he's not pitching properly."
"What?"
Turkeys leader's eyebrow twitched.
He leaned back, then forward again.
Gaze naturally to the mound.
"Ah... I see."
Leader muttered low.
That changes everything.
To the member, curtly:
"Then... let's see how he pitches."
Voice calm, eyes already different.
Moments later, the leader was speechless.
"...Can we even draft that kid?"
"Even this year's draft, he'd go top. Next year..."