Genuine Performance (2)
“Really, it’s okay?”
“I’m fine. I haven’t thrown many pitches at all.”
“If you feel your strength fading, let me know right away. You know it’s Daegu Stadium, right?”
“Understood.”
Park Ujin walked to home plate, and I took a deep breath.
In truth, I’m human too. After pitching yesterday and already throwing twenty pitches today, I’m not at one hundred percent.
Assuming the batting order can’t score anymore, if I hold this inning, we can hand it off to Han Yongjun in the eighth and Go Junyong in the ninth.
It was a pretty reasonable pitching strategy, but it must have been difficult to pull off. The manager clearly saw today as a crucial moment in the season.
There was a reason. Next week we were hosting the Marines at home. If we lost this series to a loss or sweep and fell behind the Marines as well, the gap in the standings would widen dramatically.
We had to hold the seventh inning scoreless no matter what.
The Tigers’ ninth, first, and second batters were coming up this inning. Facing Carlos after allowing baserunners would be honestly quite burdensome. I wasn’t bad in matchups, but I had seen the power of Daegu Stadium yesterday.
The Tigers’ ninth batter came up. I knew he was a pinch hitter, but since he could hit but not field well, they seemed to just let him bat.
‘Or maybe they thought a pinch hitter was unnecessary.’
From my perspective, I had to get him out no matter what, but if he got even a blooper single, it would be troublesome.
-Thwack!
“Strike!”
It was the final inning anyway. Throw every pitch at full power.
-Thwack!
“Strikeout!”
One pitch wasn’t called a ball, so I got the third strike.
***
-Lee Junseong’s sixth strikeout today! Unbelievable pitches being shown.
-Even though the Dragons were leading big early today, we were curious how manager Park Duseong would handle the game after starter Kim Junhyeok collapsed. He went with the bold strategy of keeping Lee Junseong in for a long time. So far, it’s working well.
-He’s been with the team for about a month, but he’s already become a core player. Now that I think about it, commentator Go Seungmin has been praising Lee Junseong a lot before, hasn’t he? Did you expect this level of performance?
-I expected him to do well, but I didn’t think the team would use him so actively so soon. Fans can look forward to more.
-Haha, the Dragons’ fans will be full from just watching. Hey, just now! Shortstop Kim Junsu cleanly caught the ground ball and threw to first. Two outs!
***
We quickly got the ninth and first batters out. The situation we feared didn’t happen, but now it was really starting.
The Tigers’ second batter was Gi Jang-wook. He had been noticed for his handsome looks at first, but now he was one of the league’s best contact hitters and a symbol of the Tigers.
He was a lefty, but he hit well regardless of hand. Not only did he hit well, but his contact was too good and his speed was fast, so it was hard to catch him on marginal plays.
So what we needed was strikeouts.
Catcher Park Ujin signaled, and I threw a fastball to the mitt.
-Thwack!
“Foul!”
Gi Jang-wook touched the outside fastball, making a foul.
As expected, his swing was quite compact, probably because he aimed for getting on base rather than a big hit.
What if we connected with Carlos? No way.
-Thwack!
“Strike!”
A high inside fastball was called a ball. But earlier against the leadoff batter, we had thrown a similar pitch and it wasn’t called a ball? Anyway, that was good.
The opponent was probably catching on, but at two strikes there was no need to throw another strike. Such tactics didn’t always work.
Catcher Park Ujin signaled, and I threw to the mitt.
-Thwack!
“Huh?”
I turned around and looked at the ball. It should have been a curveball dropping nicely to the ground?
The ball fell in front of center fielder Gang Daeho.
Was my power a bit lacking? I clenched and opened my fist repeatedly. The feeling of strength had been most noticeable when I got Ruth’s blessing, and although I had been training diligently, I felt like my power was slightly off.
Annoying.
I believed I would reach my peak someday, but I wanted to devour everything now. I didn’t want to make excuses like “it’s not complete yet.”
“Are you okay?”
The pitching coach, Park Ujin, and the infielders had gathered at the mound.
The next batter, Carlos, was a righty. No matter how you looked at it, it was time to sub in Han Yongjun.
“Honestly, it’s not one hundred percent. But I’m confident.”
To not be too stubborn, I said it honestly. With balls like this, I could end the inning.
“The manager asked the pitching coach to check my condition. Hmm…”
The pitching coach showed a thoughtful expression. Although pitching changes were under the manager’s control, did the pitching coach have a say this time?
“Ujin-ah, if Junseong is at this level, how high do you think he’ll rank in our team’s bullpen?”
The pitching coach asked an unexpected question.
“... Even if my strength is a bit off from normal, it’s better than Yongjun’s, similar to Junyong.”
Park Ujin gave his opinion. He must think highly of me.
“The manager said this inning is a crucial moment. So we should leave it to the best pitcher.”
The pitching coach looked back and forth between me and the players. The decision had been made.
“Don’t just aim for strikeouts. If that guy pulls too much, I’ll catch it if it’s a ground ball.”
Kim Junsu said.
“... Thank you.”
Kim Junsu put in his final effort, and everyone backed away.
The best pitcher... It was a bit embarrassing, but it was a nice thing to hear. I would make sure to be called the best pitcher not just in the bullpen but in the team in the near future.
No pitching change. I had to end the inning. It was a chance for me, but if I hit a home run, it would be a tie.
Park Ujin, standing at home plate, tapped his chest and gave the battery’s spirit.
How would Park Ujin lead? The standard for extreme pull hitters was to go to the outer part, but Carlos was the type who pulled even to the outer part. He knew his weakness, so he stood close to the inner part even in the box.
No matter how much I thought about it, I couldn’t avoid it. Even if I threw well, he might hit it, and if I threw poorly, he might hit it. There was no guarantee. I would just throw my best.
I threw a pickoff to first base. The home fans at Daegu Stadium were booing.
Catcher Park Ujin signaled to the outer part. The fastball signal came. I had to throw it right on the border between ball and strike.
I took a deep breath and threw the ball.
-Thwack!
“Strikeout!”
Carlos was protesting to the umpire, and the home fans were booing. Cheers erupted from the away cheering section.
It was obvious it was a strike, but I was worried the umpire might not call it.
My heart was pounding. I didn’t even do the ceremonial stuff and came down from the mound. I wanted to rest quickly. And since he had gone this far, let’s win this.
***
-Strikeout! Pitcher change, Lee Junseong throws the best pitch at the most crucial moment.
-His heart is really strong... I thought he would get Carlos out before the point where Yu In-gu’s pitch doesn’t work, but after the inside fastball, he went to the outer part.
-Now that I think about it, Lee Junseong doesn’t have many pitch varieties, yet it doesn’t feel monotonous at all. Why is that?
-Pitches have purpose. Like breaking off, stealing timing, or luring. But Lee Junseong can hit anywhere upper, lower, left, right with just fastball and curve, and with the combination of powerful fastball and curve, he can shake the batter’s timing. So he can face batters in various ways.
-Haha, if he adds more pitch varieties in the future, he’ll be even scarier.
-Exactly. Not only pitch varieties, but Lee Junseong’s velocity has been increasing, and now we can’t even predict the future. We can’t know the end. The only thing we can expect is that he’ll be the pitcher carrying the future of Korean baseball beyond the Dragons.
-Many baseball fans will think the same as commentator Go Seungmin. See you soon.
[Top of the 8th: Seoul Dragons 7 - 5 Daegu Tigers]
***
The game ended. We didn’t score in the remaining innings, but Han Yongjun and Go Junyong each held an inning scoreless, so we won 7-5 and ended the losing streak.
It was a win, but if it had been a game where we led 7-0 in the first inning, it would have been easy. Today’s victory was like the team grabbing the tail and pulling themselves up from the bottom. Considering how hard it was to pitch like today, the team needed to step up more.
Anyway, we won, and I heard I wouldn’t pitch tomorrow.
I finished the MVP interview and headed to the lodging.
When I went to an away game, there was a brief moment of rest: washing up, changing clothes, and lying on the bed.
When I turned on my smartphone, messages from Yu Suhyeon and Song Hyeonji came.
We had planned to meet this weekend including Children’s Day a few days ago. It was the usual chatter about what to prepare. There was more I wanted to do, but since our relationship with Yu Suhyeon had reached a somewhat stable stage, I didn’t stress about it much. Meeting was good, but if I acted impatiently, it would interfere with my baseball.
-Song Hyeonji: Oppa, today was really amazing.
-Me: Thanks. At least we won, so that’s good.
-Song Hyeonji: Since you did so well, of course we won! Are you pitching tomorrow too?
-Me: Don’t say that.
-Song Hyeonji: Ah... You’re right, sorry.
-Me: No, but since everyone’s doing well, don’t worry.
-Song Hyeonji: Good, I hope Monday comes soon.
-Me: Me too. I’ll contact you again tomorrow.
-Song Hyeonji: Okay!
I was also looking forward to meeting Song Hyeonji. No matter how you looked at it, it seemed easier than with Yu Suhyeon... There was a saying I had seen before. A first-year college student was like a fruit that was delicious but hard to peel. If I approached thoughtlessly, she would run away.
I replied to Yu Suhyeon and enjoyed a moment of rest. I wanted to win tomorrow and return to Seoul with a happy heart.