Cheat Hitter Eats It All 458

Chapter 458 – Episode 450. Struggling.

Champion, champion, runner-up, runner-up, champion. When picking out the strengths of the Hancheol Grizzlies, who recorded grades of 3, 4, 3, 4 despite advancing to the Korean Series for five consecutive years and experiencing aging of the main batting lineup and free agent outflow, one should not pick out the ability of coach Dae-hoon Park, who has led the team during that period. It was inevitable.

If you were to choose a great general in the current KBA League, Hancheol’s coach Park Dae-hoon would be the first to be considered, along with coach Moon Ki-taek, who is taking a sabbatical this season. Of course, AT’s coach Lee Soo-hyun, who is aiming to win the championship for the second year in a row, is often mentioned, but it was difficult for him to receive high praise from fans due to the presence of Ji Maeng-ho.

Ji Maeng-ho makes a coach who is aiming to win the championship for two years in a row turn into a player. Director Park Dae-hoon’s concern ahead of the Korean Series was also Ji Maeng-ho.

A batting average of .400 and 60 home runs for two years in a row, as well as breaking numerous batting records. However, if there were only records related to hitting like this, coach Dae-Hoon Park’s worries would not have deepened.

40%? It can be prevented. It meant that if you hit 10 times, you will be out 6 times.

60 home runs? It can be prevented. The place where the game was held was one of the largest baseball stadiums in the world, and no matter how many home runs he hit, he couldn’t hit a home run every time he batted.

However, in Coach Park Dae-hoon’s opinion, Ji Maeng-ho’s most bizarre ability was his ability to steal bases. In his first year, 2023, he stole 58 bases and missed 2, and this year he stole 86 bases and missed 0. He was recording a ridiculous 98.6% in the regular season alone.

Ji Maeng-ho’s ability to steal bases did not end there. He had 25 steals and 0 errors in last year’s postseason. In addition, he never failed to steal a base in various international competitions. If this kind of performance had been recorded only in Korea, one could have thought that the level of Korean catchers was low, but many catchers playing in the major leagues or in Japan could not catch Ji Maeng-ho.

What’s even scarier is that, except for one error and another time when he blocked the bases, Ji Maeng-ho actually never failed to steal a base.

‘How is there a record like this? This is a record that makes no sense.’

.400 or 60 home runs were records that appeared frequently in baseball history. However, the fact that he had no failures while stealing over 100 bases was a record that was incomprehensible from manager Park Dae-hoon’s common sense. This was impossible even with the legendary great thief ‘Ricky Henderson’, who recorded 1,406 stolen bases in the major league.

Even though that number of stolen bases was recorded, there was never a check… Even if Ricky Henderson played in a baseball league for the public, he could have been caught at least once in baseball. The more I watched Ji Maeng-ho’s stolen base video in the manager’s office, the more Ji Maeng-ho’s record made no sense.

Of course, Ji Maeng-ho was fast. But he could not surpass the human record. A player with Ji Maeng-ho’s level of power? He had one or two on each team. Of course, he doesn’t have an excellent base running sense like Ji Maeng-ho.

‘What is the secret?’

I’ve been analyzing Ji Maeng-ho since his debut last year, but I couldn’t figure out the secret to Ji Maeng-ho’s ability to steal bases.

There is only one secret about Ji Maeng-ho that has been revealed so far. ‘Ji Maeng-ho only plays when the pitcher throws a breaking ball.’… That was all. Of course, he did run when he threw a fastball, but the frequency was extremely low, less than 10 times.

Of course, when manager Park Dae-hoon signs a stolen base, he also targets the timing of the opposing pitcher’s breaking ball. But that can’t be right every time. Ji Maeng-ho was succeeding in that.

‘Like real players say, is it all being calculated when running a base? But how do you know the timing of checks?’

Ji Maeng-ho calculates the timing of the breaking ball by giving in a hundred times? That was possible. Considering Ji Maeng-ho’s goal at the plate, he could have done that. But does he calculate the timing of the check? That was ridiculous.

He wondered if the check sign was exposed, but pitchers sometimes throw check pitches even when there is no sign. But every time, Ji Maeng-ho returned to base like a ghost.

The magic 4.5 steps. Even though he was one step ahead of the other batters, no one could put Ji Maeng-ho out. Since the fast guy is already one step further ahead than the other runners, it is natural for him to succeed in stealing base. If the lead width could be reduced by just one step, catching Ji Maeng-ho wouldn’t be difficult…

‘What on earth is that secret? How is it possible to return to base like a ghost when throwing for a check and steal the next base when throwing for home?’

A concern that has lasted over a year. All coaches, power analysts, and scouts within the team tried to find out the secret, but they could not. It was a huge shock to all teams that the UG Overlords, who had the best power analysis team in the country, gave up 20 stolen bases in the Korean Series because they did not know the secret.

But I had to find out. I didn’t want to waste the opportunity to win for the first time in 5 years in vain like UG did.

‘What should I do? Then, when Ji Meng-hao is on base, should we tell him to only throw fastballs?’

That was even more ridiculous. The batters lurking behind Ji Maeng-ho were not scarecrows either.

Gi Ki-joo, who boasted Korea’s best contact ability even when on the same team, Jin-cheol Choi, who hit 50 home runs for two consecutive years and hit the upper 30 home runs this season, and Williams, who is the best foreign hitter in the league if not for injuries, which is where he got them, plus the league’s all-time hitter. Even Woo Kwan-hyung, who recorded the most hits.

It was a harsh request to ask a pitcher to throw only fastballs against such batters.

If any pitcher throws only fastballs, it is natural for him to hit a home run. They might get lucky and get through in one game, but after that, they were suffocated by AT’s batting lineup.

‘There is no answer, there is no answer…’

Measures to prevent Ji Maeng-ho from stealing bases are something that coaches from all nine teams are concerned about. I thought about it before the Korean series started, but I couldn’t come up with an answer. No, there was one answer. A method that I don’t want to use as a baseball player.

Director Park Dae-hoon closed his eyes and fell into deep worry.

Winning and pride as a baseball player. The weighing continues. A chance to win for the first time in 5 years. If I miss this opportunity, when will I be able to win? In fact, Hancheol’s power was not that good. The players who dominated the league with him continued to age, and Joo Seung-cheol, who had been the center of the team, was leaving for the major leagues at the end of this year.

In addition, the Jamsil Series will be held for the first time in league history. If we lose this series… Park Dae-hoon, who has been a member of the Grizzlies team since his days as a player, knew the meaning of this series.

And Ji Maeng-ho. The best hitter in the league, no, the best hitter in Korean history. Although he was an enemy, as a baseball player, I felt catharsis from Ji Maeng-ho’s performance. It was clear that if he went to the major leagues, he would be able to see the first Korean player to receive the MVP award in the major leagues.

But if you use that method…

‘No, considering Ji Maeng-ho’s physical ability, he might be able to get up in no time. Yes, Ji Maeng-ho’s future is bright anyway. So, as for this win…’

I increasingly know that I shouldn’t do that, but I feel better about using that method.

“Director, it’s almost time for the meeting.”

At that time, the club’s manager knocks on the door of the manager’s office. The meeting time arrived without a definitive answer yet. Director Park Dae-hoon took a heavy step.

And then the meeting started. The players’ eyes were filled with the desire to win. Now, when I see those looks in the eyes of players who are like my children, it fills my mind with the thought that I don’t want to cause failure to these players.

How much effort did you put in after being dealt an unexpected blow by AT last year?

“Do you think this is worth it?”

“Yeah, hey, if you just stop Ji Maeng-ho, Seung-cheol will do it.”

“Hey, you don’t have to stop me. I’ll just do it. “I am confident.”

Especially Joo Seung-cheol. He was originally a great player, but after a lot of hard work this season, Lee Yong-gi left and joined the crumbling team in the championship race.

But unfortunately, there were no wins during his time with him. Park Dae-hoon knew of the efforts Joo Seung-cheol made to surpass his father when he joined the team and to surpass Ji Maeng-ho after Ji Maeng-ho debuted.

It was impossible for such a player to go to the United States without a championship ring.

‘Yes, even for Seungcheol’s sake…’

After thinking about that, I quickly shake my head. Joo Seung-cheol is just an excuse and an excuse. He didn’t want to pass on his bad feelings to a young player.

‘Okay, I just want to win, right?’

The thrilling taste of victory. I wanted to experience that taste again. By any means possible. Dae-hoon Park, who faced his heart like that, ended his meeting and called the two players to the coach’s office.

“Director?”

Those players were players who had been with him since he took office 15 years ago and were like his persona.

“Sihwon.”

Although he is now in the twilight of his career and is waiting for the day to retire, second baseman An Si-Hwon won four Golden Glove Awards in his prime and still has the best BQ and strategy in the league.

“Joong-ki.”

He was a typical OPS hitter with the power and ability to hit around 20 home runs every year in Jamsil, but third baseman Park Joong-ki had sore fingers and was never able to win the Golden Glove after being pushed out by Choi Jin-cheol and Kim Su-ho.

These two players were trustworthy players who had been together for almost 10 years since 2015, or more than 15 years if you think about the time when they were coaches. And the team’s stalwarts who can follow whatever instructions they give…

“Yes. “Do you have anything else to say?”

It was heartbreaking to ask such a request from these players, but other than these two, there was no one else who would grant such a request. Moreover, the positions are second base and third base. They were essential players for the strategy he had in mind.

“Ji Maeng-ho. … Let’s soak it.”

“Yes?”

“Suddenly what…” .”

An Si-Hwon and Park Joong-Ki asked back with a clear look of confusion at the sudden remark.

“Under… I’m sorry for saying this. But this is the only way to win. When Ji Maeng-ho attempts to steal a base, block him as roughly as possible. No, just step on it. Hands, shins, wherever. Don’t let Ji Maeng-ho even think about stealing in this series. No, it’s better if he can’t even go on business trips.”

“Director? “Are you serious?”

“Ah…, That’s a bit…”

The two still express their disapproval. However, Director Park Dae-hoon conveyed his true feelings to them, as he had already said.

“Let’s try to win. Sihwon, player career. This is almost the last time. Joong-ki. You will be like that too in a few years. “How many more times will we come up here before then?”

“…”

“…”

“And the Jamsil series. Held for the first time in the league. Do you want to lose to AT bastards? “No.”

The two people who have been with Hancheol since their debut were well aware of the significance of the Jamsil Series. Will such a stage take place in the Korean series? I never wanted to lose.

“And honestly, if you step on it just once, won’t you start running towards Ji Meng-ho’s personality? If something like that happens, we might be able to kick Ji Maeng-ho off the field without causing any injuries. “Isn’t this a plan worth trying to win?”

After Director Park Dae-hoon’s words, silence surrounds the director’s office. Because there was no player who would immediately reply that they knew about this suggestion. Time passed so helplessly,

“… I will do it.”

An Si-Hwon, who has just a few days left to retire, accepts his words. If another manager had made this request, he would have rejected it right away, but since Park Dae-hoon was a gift that lifted him from struggling in the second team to his current position, An Si-hwon accepted the request.

“Thank you, Si-Hwon. “It’s an unreasonable request, but please listen.”

“Anyway, I don’t have long left until I retire… Actually, even if it wasn’t for what the director said, I think I would have taken the first step. Haha…”

Although it was glossed over as a joke, Director Park Dae-hoon’s eyes turn red when he hears An Si-hwon accepting a request that is difficult to handle.

“Joong-ki. If it’s a burden, you don’t have to do it. Because it’s not coercion.”

“Under… All right. Let’s try to win.”

And, Park Joong-gi felt the same way. Coach Dae-hoon Park, who believed in and hired him when he was an insignificant second-team player, was the benefactor of his life.

“Thank you guys… And I’m sorry.”

So the three people looked at each other and made up their minds without knowing what the future would bring.