Chapter 35
35. The Final
The third-year players played brilliantly against Japan.
After Seo Ji-tae left, Japan and Korea each added another run.
But in the eighth, Korea took advantage of a bad throw and finished the game 3 to 2.
They defeated Japan and earned their second Super Round victory.
“We’re in the final!”
The dugout exploded with joy.
The tournament was being held in Korea.
And now Korea had reached the championship game.
The association and the KBO would certainly be happy.
Manager Seo Dong-won could not hide his joy either.
South Korea would face the United States in the final.
“Good work.”
“Pitchers, start icing immediately.”
There was little rest in a tournament.
The important pitchers immediately began icing and recovery work.
Everyone tried to let them rest as much as possible.
Seo Ji-tae?
He had already started managing his body before anyone else.
Whether it’s the minors or the KBO second team, young players have to manage their bodies properly at times like this.
There was a reason Double-A had assigned someone specifically to manage his physical condition.
They were building his body so he could survive a Major League environment.
And in a tournament, perfect body management was impossible.
Even Major League teams shortened their rotations from five starters to three during the playoffs.
Seo Ji-tae simply considered 2012 a year dedicated to developing and protecting his body.
But the joy of reaching the final did not last long.
“Everyone loosened up? Gather around!”
Seo Dong-won hurriedly called them together.
The championship game was tomorrow.
The schedule was beyond tight.
But short tournaments were always brutal.
The coaching staff began analyzing their opponent with what little time remained.
The analysis coach pointed a laser toward the screen.
“Tomorrow, the United States will start Ben Myers. He’s two meters tall.”
The screen changed.
A 203-centimeter white pitcher appeared.
“His maximum velocity is 100 mph, around 160 km/h. His main weapon is a hard sinker. His ERA from the preliminary round through the Super Round is 0.00, exactly like Ji-tae.”
“160?”
“He’s faster than Ji-tae?”
The players looked worried.
“Why is his release point so high?”
“Look at his size. His release point is practically on the second floor. If a 100 mph pitch comes down from there, can you even see it?”
The hitters looked like people staring up at a giant tower.
“As for hitters to watch, these two are the biggest threats.”
The coach changed the slide.
A black player with curly hair appeared.
“The number two hitter, Noah Evans. He’s a contact hitter batting .440 in this tournament. And the cleanup hitter, Jayden Hayes.”
A huge muscular right-handed hitter appeared.
“A classic power hitter. He’s batting .300 and already has five home runs in this tournament.”
The United States had many good players.
But those three gave off especially overwhelming pressure.
Seo Ji-tae knew them.
Noah Evans, in particular, would enter the draft later that year as a first-round talent.
The room became gloomy.
“Can we even win this? Their starting pitcher alone feels impossible.”
Their defeated murmurs filled the locker room.
Fear.
They saw another country that looked stronger than them and immediately started thinking about losing.
Seo Ji-tae smiled.
His relaxed body suddenly sprang upright.
“Why is everyone so worried?”
“What? That guy is the real deal.”
“Sure, those players are good.”
Everyone looked at Seo Ji-tae.
He calmly pointed toward the American players on the screen.
“I’m better.”
The senior hitters’ eyes widened.
Seo Ji-tae lifted his chin.
“You’ve got someone reliable right here, so why are you all so scared?”
“Hey, Seo Ji-tae. The way you say things...”
“Even if I keep them scoreless, it means nothing if you seniors can’t score. You have to do your part too.”
Seo Ji-tae’s arrogant words.
But unlike before the tournament, everyone now knew how reliable he truly was.
And even those words were meant to encourage them.
Laughter slowly spread among the senior hitters.
“Ha, this bastard.”
“Fine. If our ace says he won’t give up runs, then we have to score.”
The frozen atmosphere loosened.
Seo Dong-won nodded.
“Everyone, relax tonight and prepare yourselves.”
The meeting ended in a much lighter mood.
But Seo Dong-won called Seo Ji-tae aside.
“How’s your arm?”
“Honestly, not great.”
The Super Round and final were being played only one day apart.
Proper recovery was impossible.
No human body could recover that quickly.
But Seo Ji-tae rejected the manager’s concern.
“The other team is under the same conditions. And I’m a little special.”
A switch pitcher.
His ability did more than confuse hitters.
It could also reduce the burden on one shoulder.
“What about your back and lower body?”
“I’ve been managing them since the minors. Actually, since high school.”
Seo Ji-tae had prepared thoroughly using knowledge from the future and the needs of his own pitching style.
Of course, he was not perfectly fine.
But I’m not bad enough that I can’t win.
“Now the seniors just have to fight too. I’ll do the same.”
Exactly.
The final was an all-out battle.
Seo Ji-tae and South Korea’s U18 team both had to give everything they had.
The championship game began.
Top of the first.
Korea was batting.
The 203-centimeter giant, Ben Myers, stood on the mound.
The Korean hitters looked nervous simply seeing the height.
From the top downward.
The drop angle.
The shortened reaction time created by those long arms.
The Korean hitters were swept aside.
“Is that a baseball or a rock?”
Lee Sun-jun, the number three hitter, shouted after returning from a swinging strikeout.
The powerful sinker dropped from a massive tower and crushed hitters with pure force.
The inning changed in fewer than ten pitches.
Now Seo Ji-tae stepped onto the mound.
His arm was not completely fresh.
If he had to choose, his left arm was better because he had only used it for one inning the day before.
Seo Ji-tae checked his condition.
His rising fastball immediately struck the upper part of the strike zone.
“Strike!”
The umpire called.
Seo Ji-tae’s start was not bad.
But the scoreboard showed 156 km/h.
It dropped.
His power had clearly fallen compared to before.
Seo Ji-tae immediately followed with a high-speed splitter.
The speed difference was around 10 km/h, enough to disrupt timing before the ball dropped.
Still, the American leadoff hitter Jake managed to hit it.
“!”
Seo Ji-tae looked upward.
But the ball did not travel far.
Fly out.
Next came the second hitter, Noah Evans.
The curly-haired hitter crowded close to home plate.
He dramatically narrowed the strike zone and looked ready to foul pitches off, a classic contact hitter’s stance.
Seo Ji-tae lifted his leg high.
His left arm snapped forward at full force.
156 km/h.
“Strike!”
First-pitch strike.
Noah looked slightly surprised, then calmed down.
Second pitch.
Power curve.
But Noah judged it correctly.
“Ball!”
Seo Ji-tae thought his eye was good.
Third pitch.
Rising fastball.
It struck the upper part of the zone.
But Noah’s bat quickly followed it.
A clean crack sounded.
The ball passed through the infield and rolled across the outfield grass.
A clean single.
Seo Ji-tae watched Evans step on first base.
He then induced a ground ball from the next hitter using two power curves in a row.
Two outs.
Now came the batter after that.
A large figure stepped into the box.
Power hitter Jayden.
Seo Ji-tae exchanged looks with Lee Jin-woo.
First pitch.
Rising fastball.
The 156 km/h pitch attacked the upper part of the zone.
Jayden immediately swung.
His bat speed was even faster than Noah’s.
The contact was strong enough to surprise Seo Ji-tae.
The ball shot deep into right-center field.
An RBI hit.
Evans sprinted home from first.
“Give it to me!”
The relay began.
But the throw was too slow.
By the time Seo Ji-tae received the ball and sent it home, Evans had already scored.
0 to 1.
A painful opening run.
Lee Jin-woo removed his mask and looked toward the mound.
