Proof (2)
Before the game.
"Hello, I am Song Eun-yul, the leader of Craypas! It is truly an honor to throw the first pitch today..."
The national anthem echoed, and the first pitch thrower stepped onto the mound.
The atmosphere in the dugout was the worst.
Near the entrance, Head Coach Kim Young-seung watched the first pitch with his arms crossed and an expressionless face, while the pitching coach on the exact opposite side was still fuming.
It was to the point where just going near them felt chilling.
"Min-woo."
While the players kept quiet, reading the mood of the two, Gu Dong-woo, the leader of the pitching staff, approached and whispered to Han Min-woo.
"Yes, Senior."
"What's with this atmosphere? I heard something happened in the bullpen earlier. Weren't you in the bullpen?"
Han Min-woo briefly explained what had happened in the bullpen.
That the pitching coach, who rarely even spoke to him normally, came over and acted friendly. Then, as if suddenly struck by a whim, he took him to the bullpen and made him pitch. And then, saying he would teach him a forkball, he forced him to throw the ball.
Having heard all of this, Gu Dong-woo let out a sigh.
"Phew. He was quiet for a while, but that disease flared up again."
"It seems things like this happened a lot before, too?"
"A lot. The pitchers were all dying. Saying stuff like you have to throw a lot to build strong shoulders."
'There was someone else like Hwang In-sung.'
Han Min-woo nodded. He roughly grasped what kind of style it was.
A style that completely ignores human physical durability and believes that overcoming things with mental fortitude like in the past is a cure-all.
Exactly the old-school way.
'There are no good coaches who hold onto the old-school style.'
Why don't they know?
Why star players don't use the old-school method. Why it's always the players who had mediocre careers and retired mid-way who emphasize the old-school method.
Only they are unaware of it.
The human body has clear limits. If you use it too much, it breaks; but if you use it too little, it also breaks. The important thing is to train efficiently with the right amount.
To Han Min-woo, whose shoulder had already blown out once, that was the only way to increase a player's capabilities.
'The Dolphins' batters' situation was better than this.'
Han Min-woo secretly sighed inwardly without Gu Dong-woo noticing.
Still, Hwang In-sung was a 2nd-team hitting coach. But this guy was a 1st-team pitching coach. It was clear which side would cause more damage.
It was a detail that explained why the Wolves were called the grave of pitchers even while using Jamsil as their home.
Starting out drained of energy before the game even began, there was no way they could pitch well.
'Today's appearance is out the window.'
Han Min-woo pressed hard on his temples.
If only they would send him out, he was confident he could eat up the innings. He had already thrown once, but considering Han Min-woo's recovery ability with the
However, Head Coach Kim Young-seung didn't know of Han Min-woo's condition.
In his common sense, it would be engraved that if one threw a ball, one needed adequate rest.
What if he sends Han Min-woo out today? Then he would probably send him to the mound with the resolve not to play him for at least two days.
From Han Min-woo's perspective, that was the worst-case scenario.
"Don't stress too much. Still, I don't think things like this will happen in the future."
Gu Dong-woo patted Han Min-woo and said.
"Why?"
"You raised a fuss today, didn't you? The pitching coach looks really angry, right? But that's him trying to hide his panic. Until now, there hasn't been anyone who confronted him like that. But today, the manager confronted him head-on. From the pitching coach's perspective, it'll be burdensome to take pitchers and make them throw bullpen sessions again."
Han Min-woo nodded slowly.
Han Min-woo roughly knew that the pitching coach was General Manager Ryu Hyun-jong's nephew, and therefore had quite a strong voice within the front office.
Surely, even from Head Coach Kim Young-seung's perspective, today's action couldn't help but feel burdensome.
Nevertheless, there was only one reason why Head Coach Kim Young-seung had firmly spoken out.
'The acting manager is also putting his life on the line this season.'
The first game of the series began.
Today's starting pitcher for the Gladiators was Han Dae-myung. Possessing a four-seam fastball in the upper 140s, he was a typical finesse pitcher.
With exceptionally good control, his breaking balls thrown as a lefty—sliders, splitters, changeups—made it tricky for batters to pick them.
"Wow, what was that just now? Is that a splitter?"
"Look at the angle on that slider. How are you supposed to hit that?"
Terrifying pitches sprayed from Han Dae-myung's hand. In every aspect, from pitch quality to control, the sharp pitches flew into the catcher's mitt, making them untouchable.
Pop—!
"Strike! Batter out!"
The Wolves' batters couldn't figure out the starter Han Dae-myung. However, that didn't mean the Wolves just sat back and took it.
Today's starting pitcher for the Wolves was Jin Sung-soo. He was likewise the type to hook and devour opponents with breaking balls rather than overwhelming them with pitch velocity.
Jin Sung-soo, who took the mound, was also boiling hot, massacring the Gladiators' batters.
It was his peak form. Thanks to the rest during the All-Star break, he had pulled both his condition and senses to their best.
—Swinging strikeout! Player Jo Woo-chan was fooled by Han Dae-myung's splitter and swung the bat!
—Player Bok Ki-cheol hits it. A fly ball heading to the outfield, center fielder Player Yoon Jae-hyun comes in a little and catches it. Jin Sung-soo finishes the inning with a three-up, three-down again!
—A masterpiece pitchers' duel that no one at Jamsil Baseball Stadium expected is unfolding!
—Ah, it's amazing today. This is why baseball is so fun. Who could have imagined that the pitchers coming out as each team's 4th starters would show such a fantastic performance?
—Before the game, commentator, you predicted the game would be decided early on. You said both teams' bullpens were just too good. But unexpectedly, the starting pitchers are bringing the heat.
Until the end of the 5th inning, the score for both teams was 0 to 0. Thanks to the stellar pitching of the two starting pitchers, the batters were busy being helplessly put out.
It was truly a suffocating pitchers' duel.
But that pitchers' duel couldn't last forever. The first to activate the bullpen were the Gladiators.
—Ah, Player Han Dae-myung is finally coming down. He held them scoreless for 5 2/3 innings.
—Giving up back-to-back walks against Players Jo Woo-chan and Kang Sung-han was big. From the manager's perspective, he couldn't give him more chances even if he wanted to. One run given up here could decide the direction of the game.
The Gladiators' reliever Sung Sang-tae handled Kwon Jun-seo with a flyout to right field. The Wolves couldn't capitalize on the 2-out, 1st and 2nd base opportunity.
Next came the top of the 7th inning.
A crisis also came for Jin Sung-soo, who had been pitching well until then.
He gave up consecutive hits to the 2nd batter Kwon Yoo-han and the 3rd batter Jung Tae-woong, resulting in no outs and runners on 1st and 3rd.
"Sung-soo, you worked hard. From now on, your teammates will hold them down."
At the battery coach's words as he took the ball and patted him, Jin Sung-soo headed to the dugout with his head down.
Meanwhile, Pi Ki-jung waited on the mound for the next pitcher, taking off his catcher's mask and wiping sweat.
'I wonder who will come up.'
He inwardly hoped Han Min-woo would come out.
It was really strange.
A situation where giving up even a single run could completely kill the momentum. Yet, the first person who came to mind was Han Min-woo.
The Wolves' bullpen pitchers' stuff was generally not bad. There were four people alone whose top speed exceeded 150 kilometers, and their breaking balls were sharp, making them good for enticing batters.
Despite that, there was no pitcher who gave as much stability as Han Min-woo.
However, contrary to his wishes, the pitcher who revealed himself from the bullpen was...
—Ah, Player Song Jun-yeol is coming up here.
—He's a power pitcher whose fastball top speed reaches 154 kilometers. But it's a bit unexpected. Honestly, I thought Player Han Min-woo would come out.
It was Song Jun-yeol, one of the Wolves' must-win relief squad.
Pi Ki-jung bit his lip.
'Jun-yeol won't cut it.'
Honestly, Song Jun-yeol's pitches weren't bad. His four-seamer was quite heavy, and his forkball that dropped right in front of the home plate was very threatening.
But Song Jun-yeol was the type weak to pressure. Even now, his face was completely stiff, looking extremely nervous.
Head Coach Kim Young-seung also grasped Song Jun-yeol's pros and cons. Nevertheless, there was only one reason Song Jun-yeol came out.
"Listen well. Since it's okay to walk them, we're going to focus mainly on waste pitches. Understand?"
It meant to throw mainly waste pitches and strike out the batters.
"Understood."
At Pi Ki-jung's words, Song Jun-yeol nodded with a stiff face.
The game resumed like that.
The Gladiators' 4th batter, Lee Young-woong, stepped into the batter's box.
Pi Ki-jung immediately sent the forkball sign.
—Player Song Jun-yeol throws the first pitch.
—Ah! He pulled it! Far! Far! Far! Over the wall...! It goes over! Player Lee Young-woong's three-run home run!
And Lee Young-woong pulled Song Jun-yeol's forkball, which didn't drop, and made it a 3-run home run.
'Damn it.'
Pi Ki-jung, who jumped up from the home plate, blankly watched the batters running the bases.
Han Min-woo, who was blankly watching the game from the bench, shook his head.
'It's over.'
It was a massive home run that hit the upper reaches of the Jamsil outfield.
With this, the momentum had completely shifted.
Without watching the game anymore, Han Min-woo leaned against the dugout fence and surveyed the outfield seats.
Myung Sang-woo, seeing that, approached and asked.
"What are you doing?"
"Ah, I was looking for someone."
Myung Sang-woo scrunched one eye and flicked his pinky.
"Girlfriend? Or a hidden wife?"
At that, Han Min-woo gave an awkward smile.
"My parents said they were coming to watch the game today."
"Bastard, you should've told me that sooner. It's a shame, your parents are coming and you can't even go out. Because of some son of a bitch."
Myung Sang-woo said softly, glancing sideways at one side of the dugout.
Han Min-woo didn't answer and silently affirmed.
"But why are they in the outfield? If you tell the front office, they'll give you separate tickets."
As a welfare benefit, when a player's family comes to watch the game, the front office gives them free tickets for pretty good seats.
Han Min-woo knew that too, but couldn't help but smile bitterly.
'Because they can't wear Gladiators uniforms there.'
It was then.
—Oooh!
The fans watching the game buzzed.
Han Min-woo and Myung Sang-woo quickly checked the situation. And soon they could realize the identity of the buzz.
His parents were appearing on the scoreboard screen.
"Wow, they came again. I'm telling you, they're really hardcore fans."
Myung Sang-woo murmured softly after seeing Min-woo's parents on the scoreboard.
Han Min-woo turned away from the scoreboard and quietly went to sit on the bench.
"..."
He was embarrassed.
Because his parents were 'hardcore' fans in the truest sense.
To the point where just their faces showing up on the scoreboard, the players and fans would recognize them...
The game ended.
The score was 3 to 0.
The three-run home run given up in the top of the 7th inning eventually became the game-winning hit.
"Ah..."
"We pulled it along well up to here, tsk."
The players groaned and packed their gear. A loss was a loss, and even for tomorrow's game, they needed to forget today's defeat and get some good rest.
Han Min-woo sat on the bench and blankly replayed today's game.
Head Coach Kim Young-seung, who spotted Han Min-woo like that, approached.
He sighed and said.
"Why are you sitting like that?"
"...Because it's a shame."
It was a remark that implied many meanings.
Head Coach Kim Young-seung patted Han Min-woo's shoulder.
"Don't be too upset. There will be another chance."
"Understood."
Han Min-woo nodded and stood up from the bench.
To such a Han Min-woo, Head Coach Kim Young-seung murmured low.
"I'm counting on you."
It was a remark that implied many meanings, just the same.