32강 컷! 시원한 타격과 감독의 격려, 그리고 가영의 연락
The coach walked all the way out to second base to collect Choi Seungtaek's gear.
"Choi Seungtaek, nice! Your hitting's looking sharp today, huh? All that batting practice paid off?"
"I'll light the bat on fire for you today."
The power of Choi Seungtaek's new swing was unmistakable. He hadn't fully settled into it yet, but whenever he squared the ball up, he could drive a clean line drive into the gap.
"Aigoo, listen to you talk. Don't try to do it all yourself — just keep raking from here on out, you punk."
"Don't worry. We're going to smash everyone and win the championship."
"Alright. Let's win it this time."
It wasn't the kind of conversation you'd expect in the first inning of a Round of 32 game, but Choi Seungtaek was already starting to feel it.
This is just the beginning.
Fire burned in Choi Seungtaek's eyes.
That day, Seoul Suseok High School rolled over Suwon Information & Communications High School, 9–0. Lee San had been perfect through seven innings, and the bullpen coasted through the last two.
After the game, once they'd returned to school, the coach called every player together in the manager's place.
"Good work, everyone. We advanced to the round of sixteen with room to spare, so this time let's actually win it. Got it?"
"Yes, sir!"
"Yes, sir!"
Then the coach relayed the various things the manager had left for each player.
"San, your stuff was excellent. If we make the quarterfinals, you'll start again then, so take your time getting ready."
"Yes, sir."
Then the coach added something.
"But whose idea was it to throw a breaking ball right down the middle? The sequencing was perfect. Risky, but it worked."
"Choi Seungtaek sunbae instructed me. I thought it was a good idea too, so I trusted him and threw it."
"Alright, got it."
Bullshit. He shook his head twice.
The words rose all the way to Choi Seungtaek's throat, but he swallowed them for San's sake — the kid had already launched into the lip service.
"Gihyeon, your defense was a bit disappointing, but you got three hits, so you'll probably keep batting leadoff."
"Thank you."
"And Choi Seungtaek."
"Yes!"
"Four-for-five today. Your bat was on fire. Well done. But the manager wants to see you, so just pack up quickly and go."
"What?"
"Don't give me 'what' — pack up and get to the manager's office. Now."
"Yes, sir."
Being called in separately by the manager left Choi Seungtaek uneasy.
Getting summoned right after a game is usually bad news.... What did I do wrong?
When Choi Seungtaek's expression soured, the underclassmen picked up on it and started helping him pack.
"Sunbae, we'll help you."
"You don't have to. Don't. I'll handle it."
"No — we didn't even play, so we don't have anything to pack."
"Forget it. Just do your own stuff and get some rest."
Choi Seungtaek headed for the manager's office with a knot in his stomach. Manager Kim Ik-hyun was waiting for him, leaning back in his chair.
"Seungtaek."
"Yes, sir."
Then, with a stern look, the manager said,
"Is that how you're going to play baseball?"
"I'm sorry."
No choice. In a situation like this, you shut up and apologize.
"What kind of nonsense are you spouting all of a sudden?"
"Sir?"
"I called you in because you did well, and you're sitting there sweating bullets by yourself. Tsk tsk."
Ah. He called me in to praise me. I don't remember him being the type to hand out compliments like this.
"At first I thought you'd lost your damn mind. Asking me to drop other training so you could work on hitting, asking me to let you pick the starter yourself..."
"Ahem."
"I wondered if you'd gone off the deep end, but I'm glad you played well today."
"It was nothing, sir."
"Don't give me that.... I'm just happy a kid I can turn loose and still have him perform has shown up."
The manager really did look pleased. Choi Seungtaek found himself thinking back on Manager Kim Ik-hyun. In truth, he was the finest mentor Choi Seungtaek had ever had. Kim Ik-hyun had already seen his potential when he was still in middle school, and had helped him enroll at Suseok High on favorable terms. Thanks to that, poor as he was, Choi Seungtaek had been able to keep playing baseball. And because the manager ran a purely merit-based lineup — no money, no connections — Choi Seungtaek had been a starter from his sophomore year. Remembering all of it, Choi Seungtaek felt a warmth of his own at the sight of Manager Kim Ik-hyun looking this happy for the first time in a long while.
"More than anything, I like how easy you look out there. Watching you today, you were every bit a pro, you punk."
Choi Seungtaek felt a little embarrassed by the praise. Then the manager showed him a video he'd seen before.
"Have you seen this?"
"Yes, sir. A friend showed it to me in class a few days ago."
It was a video of Second-Team Manager Park Wangyu.
"After that came out, I got a few calls asking about you."
"Oh — is that so?"
"Until now it was just casual inquiries. But do you have any idea how many calls I got about you after today's game?"
"No, sir. I don't."
"You know the pro scouts came today to watch San, right? Well, they weren't just looking at San. They asked about your name quite a bit too."
"They asked about me?"
"Yeah, you punk. In all my years, I've never talked about a catcher this much. So keep it up — you can go pro too. At this level, it's a lock."
Manager Kim Ik-hyun fanned out several business cards. Names from club after club stared up at him.
Gwangju Pigeons
Gangnam Parrots
Gangseo Turkeys
"See these? I'm a little worried it'll go to your head, but I figured telling you would be better motivation."
In the past, Choi Seungtaek at this point in his life had been thinking about which college to attend. A pro draft pick had been unlikely, but college had been within reach. Then, out of nowhere, the Busan Seagulls had drafted him, and he'd gone straight into the pros. The school had gone into an uproar. Nobody had expected it — and then two players had gone pro at once.
This time was different. The reaction now was what you got for a fourth-to-sixth-round pick. Hearing that he could almost certainly go pro made Choi Seungtaek feel even better.
This is still only half a success.
Even a middle-round pick wouldn't come with a large signing bonus. And no club would truly push him as a prospect from that kind of slot. If he was going, he needed to land somewhere that actually guaranteed him a real opportunity.
"I'm not worried about Tae-poong or San. You, Bangmani, and the other seniors were the problem. I'm glad things are working out for you, at least."
"Thank you. I'll give it everything I've got through Bonghwangdae."
"Good. Do well. You can go."
Having heard the good news, Choi Seungtaek left the manager's office with a weight off his shoulders.
And Manager Kim Ik-hyun was still holding one business card he hadn't shown — the card of Park Wangyu, second-team manager of the Incheon Cranes.
I'll show him this if he does even better.
A name that big could easily throw Choi Seungtaek off. After a moment's thought, Manager Kim Ik-hyun slipped Park Wangyu's card away again.
"Seungtaek. Did the manager chew you out?"
Han Bang-man had come looking for him, worried. Choi Seungtaek shook his head.
"Nah, I only heard good things. He said I've been playing well lately and to keep it up."
"That's a relief, then. The guys were making a huge fuss because you got called in."
"Honestly, I thought the same thing. Glad I was wrong."
"Aigoo, you idiot. Good thing nothing happened. I'm heading in first, then."
"Yeah."
Choi Seungtaek went into the dorm, showered, and lay down on his bed.
Bzzzzzz.
He was lying there trying to sleep when his phone vibrated.
"Huh...?"
When Choi Seungtaek checked the name of the person who'd messaged him, his heart felt like it slammed to a stop.
It was Park Gayeong. They had only just exchanged numbers. Before he'd left for the stadium, Park Gayeong had asked him for his contact, and Kim Minjae — who'd witnessed the whole thing — had turned into an evil spirit and tormented him the entire bus ride.
Uh.... What do I do?
Choi Seungtaek's heart stopped for a beat, then started pounding like mad. It had been so long since he'd exchanged messages like this that he froze solid.
Park Gayeong's messages were getting sharper by the second.
Crap. I can't leave her hanging.
Choi Seungtaek felt a sudden pang of guilt. It felt a little cheap, throwing the manager under the bus like that.
Do I have time?
His heart started hammering all over again.
What's she thinking? A date, maybe?
Thump-thump.
That's a relief. I thought I wouldn't see you for ages?
Park Gayeong's texts left him feeling even more fluttery.
What did she mean by that?
Choi Seungtaek closed his eyes, then opened them. This was reality.
Choi Seungtaek lay back, feeling good. When he briefly turned off his phone, he saw himself in the dark screen, the corners of his mouth turned up.
...
Caught grinning like an idiot at his own reflection, Choi Seungtaek felt a little embarrassed.