The Genius Hitter Who Conquered America - Chapter 39

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Chapter 39
The game had progressed to the top of the seventh inning. The score remained 4-7.
Under normal circumstances, the gap should have widened further.
The Quakes’ starter had crumbled, and the bullpen wasn’t in great shape either.
On top of that, the fatigue from six hours of travel had weighed heavily on the fielders’ legs.
Yet strangely, there had been no additional runs.
The reason was Soo-ho.
The dirt caked across his uniform was exerting a silent pressure on the players.
‘How can I slack off when he’s giving that much?’
‘At least I shouldn’t make a play I’d be ashamed of.’
Not quite a hunger for victory, but the bare minimum pride of a professional—or perhaps guilt.
Such emotions had awakened the players.
They forced their heavy legs to move, cutting off potential hits.
Soo-ho’s fighting spirit was forcibly holding onto the defensive focus that had been flickering out.
And now it was Soo-ho’s turn at the plate again.
‘Three runs behind….’
Soo-ho glanced at the Scoreboard.
Three runs down in the seventh.
It was a score that could be called either substantial or manageable.
But generally speaking, from a defensive standpoint, it was a comfortable margin.
The closer could come in and seal it.
Meanwhile, from an offensive perspective, three runs was far too much.
Yet Soo-ho believed they still had a real chance to win.
‘The gap could have been wider, but we held on.’
This was definitely a positive sign.
Most players’ eyes still didn’t show a burning desire for victory, but—
‘At least they’re not giving up and doing their best.’
That was enough.
Our team’s determination right now surpasses that of an opponent content with a three-run lead.
Soo-ho tightened his grip on the bat.
‘He said to get on base.’
Casey’s words from earlier came back to him—a kind of challenge.
Truth be told, he wasn’t sure what Casey would do if he got on base.
‘Will he hit a home run?’
Casey was truly an exceptional player.
In terms of skill as Soo-ho assessed it, he was the most ideal player imaginable.
‘Baseball isn’t a sport where you can hit a home run just because you want to.’
But Casey right now, with his fighting spirit ablaze unlike usual, might actually clear the fence.
‘Or perhaps….’
Soo-ho shook his head slowly.
What good would it do for a batter in the box to worry about others?
Right now, I had to get on base—exactly as Casey wanted, exactly as the team needed.
‘How do I get on base….’
On the opposing mound stood the Giants’ dominant relief pitcher.
His stuff was formidable.
Above all, home runs weren’t the only concern—hits couldn’t be manufactured on demand either.
But Soo-ho smiled faintly.
He was confident.
‘Exploit the complacency of a relaxed opponent.’
A three-run lead.
Late in the game.
Both the pitcher and infielders had shifted their defensive positions back, concerned only with extra-base hits.
The tension from the first inning had long since evaporated.
The pitcher began his windup.
Soo-ho didn’t change the position of his hands gripping the bat.
His stance remained unchanged.
But the instant the ball left the pitcher’s hand.
Crack.
Soo-ho suddenly dropped the bat level.
A surprise safety bunt.
“!”
The Third Baseman gasped and bolted forward.
He was an exceptionally quick defender.
Despite having retreated far back, his reaction speed was outstanding.
The Third Baseman then caught the ball barehanded and fired it hard to First Base.
The timing was razor-thin.
Actually, the throw was slightly faster. But Soo-ho didn’t slow his pace.
‘I’ll make it!’
My body launched into the air once more just before First Base.
It was the head-first slide the Manager had so strongly warned against.
Thud!
As dust billowed up, my hand touched the base.
An instant later, the ball landed in the First Baseman’s glove.
The Referee’s arm swept out to the side.
“Safe!”
Soo-ho, covered in dirt once again, clenched his fist tightly.
He was saying he’d kept his promise.
* * *
Casey, kneeling in the On-Deck Circle watching the play unfold, saw Soo-ho sprawled in the dirt once more and wore an expression of utter exasperation.
‘…Seriously, this is unbelievable.’
On the other hand, a wave of guilt washed over me.
It was I who had threatened him to get on base no matter what.
That fool was determined to keep my word, and he’d already attempted a head-first slide again.
If he got injured doing that….
‘Who am I to blame?’
But Casey shook his head immediately.
I had already heard Soo-ho’s philosophy of baseball.
Was that stupid? No.
Then was it reckless? No.
Then… was it cool?
Casey asked myself.
And the answer came instantly.
‘…Yeah.’
Damn cool, actually.
I couldn’t help but admit it.
Soo-ho possessed something that not only I lacked, but also current Minor League players, no.
Perhaps even Major League players didn’t have.
‘Romance… if you could call it that.’
Now extinct in modern baseball, which operated on calculation, efficiency, and the logic of capital.
That primal fighting spirit that purely craved victory.
That was what made my own heart race right now.
Casey stepped into the Batter’s Box.
This time, facing a Left-handed Pitcher, I stood in the right-handed batter’s position.
“Phew.”
Normally, I would have analyzed the pitcher’s pitch types and pondered how to meet the ball with my swing arc to create a power hit.
But this time was different.
‘Just keep the chain going.’
Only one thought dominated my mind.
Usually, a batter focuses on the battle of wits with the pitcher at the plate.
What will he throw? What will I aim for?
But right now, I threw all that complicated calculation into the trash.
‘It’s foolish.’
Abandoning the mind game and focusing only on making contact with the ball.
In terms of hitting mechanics, it was nothing short of regression.
So if someone asked me next time if I’d do this again, I would answer without hesitation.
“Am I insane?”
But at least right now, in this moment, it felt like the right answer.
‘Because that guy threw his body on the line again.’
The leadoff batter had set the table by sacrificing his own body.
Then the next batter should cast aside his own pride and greed.
It was a matter of courtesy to pass that plate carefully to the next person without overturning it.
The game had begun.
The first pitch was a strike.
The second pitch was a ball.
Count 1-1. The third pitch.
The pitcher threw a fastball that tailed away on the outside.
A course where pulling it would easily result in a weak ground ball.
Casey didn’t get greedy.
He gently pushed the ball along its trajectory with a soft tap.
Crack!
With a soft contact sound, the ball landed beautifully in front of the Right Fielder—a right-field single.
The moment the bat sound echoed, Soo-ho on First Base broke into a sprint.
He raced past Second Base and charged all the way to Third Base without hesitation.
By the time the Right Fielder caught the ball, Soo-ho was already safely on Third Base, and Casey had reached First Base.
No outs, runners on First and Third.
The magician had laid the stage, and the genius had turned on the brilliant lights.
The cleanup hitter Luis Garcia stepped into the Batter’s Box, but Casey’s performance was far from over.
As the pitcher entered his set position, Casey on First Base broke into a sprint.
“Damn! He’s running!”
The opposing battery was caught off guard.
Down by three runs, no outs, runners on First and Third.
The runner on First was stealing? One mistake and it would be a reckless play that dampened their momentum.
The Catcher caught the pitch and sprang up, firing the ball to Second Base.
The throw was quick. The timing was close.
In that instant, Casey’s body launched into the air.
Normally, he would have chosen a slide that pushed his legs first to avoid injury.
It was efficient and safe.
Even if he were called out, he would never lead with his head.
But this Casey, without a moment’s hesitation, dove headfirst.
Thud!
The player boasting the highest market value in the current Minor League.
A genius batter who appeared perhaps once every hundred years threw his body into the dust.
Injury? Future? Market value?
None of that mattered right now.
Only one thing was important at this moment.
Turning this damn game around.
“Safe! Safe!”
The Second Base Umpire’s call came down.
Casey stood on Second Base without even brushing the dirt from his uniform.
His gaze was not on Soo-ho at Third Base, but on Luis in the Batter’s Box.
‘The double play threat… has vanished.’
Lewis hadn’t felt good at the plate today.
The probability of a ground ball was high.
If I had been on First Base.
If a double play had come, it would have doused this momentum with cold water.
Casey had thrown his body into the breach to erase the variable of defeat, reducing the probability to zero percent.
A genius’s fighting spirit choosing the most inefficient path to victory.
It was transforming even the air in the Dugout.
As expected, Lewis eagerly swung at the pitcher’s money pitch and grounded out to the Shortstop.
A timing that could have resulted in a double play if not for the stolen base.
But thanks to Casey’s judgment, the chance remained alive.
One out, runners on Second Base and Third Base.
Still one hit away from two runs crossing Home Plate.
And to receive this perfectly set table, the Quakes’ cleanup batter Mark Williams stepped into the Batter’s Box.
* * *
One out, runners on Second Base and Third Base.
Cleanup batter Mark stepped into the Batter’s Box.
Massive conflicts were colliding in his mind.
‘Should I go for something big?’
Aiming for a home run in this situation was far from personal greed.
It might actually be the most rational decision.
The score was down by three.
One home run would tie it instantly.
‘The opposing pitcher is already rattled.’
Therefore, a solid extra-base hit could instill greater fear in the pitcher and the entire opposing team.
Above all, there was the responsibility of solving this as the cleanup batter.
‘Or… should I play strictly for the team?’
That was also rational.
Abandon ambition, make light contact for a hit, and two runs score.
At worst, an outfield fly guarantees one run. Tightening the reins of the comeback.
‘What do I do?’
I couldn’t decide.
Mark instinctively glanced toward the Dugout.
Manager Taylor stood with his arms crossed, sending no signal whatsoever.
Green light.
It meant do as you see fit, and the silent trust that the cleanup batter should resolve this with aggressive hitting.
Perhaps it was an obvious signal.
Yet Mark’s gaze, unable to make a decision, turned back to the Ground.
On Second Base stood Casey, his uniform caked in dirt, breathing heavily.
‘In the end, you’ve been drawn in too, haven’t you?’
A laugh escaped him.
A first-round draft pick hailed as a genius.
Being dragged along by an aging rookie who’d tasted failure in Korea—what a sight.
Others might call him foolish for it.
But was it truly foolish?
‘No, it wasn’t.’
If Casey Meyer were a fool,
then I would be a fool too for acknowledging Soo-ho and wanting to emulate him.
‘Sorry, but I’m no fool.’
Casey would feel the same way.
So there was nothing wrong with either of us.
‘Soo-ho was simply right. We just came to recognize that answer a bit late.’
Mark grinned widely.
The idle thoughts had clarified exactly what he needed to do at the plate.
Ironic as it was, it hardly mattered.
All that mattered was winning.
‘Will the pitcher face me head-on?’
The pitcher’s eyes wavered with uncertainty.
First Base was empty.
There was no reason to risk a long hit by facing off against the cleanup batter whose senses were at their peak.
He’d either throw a tempting pitch or walk him.
So the answer was clear.
‘Why let myself be led?’
The at-bat began.
“Ball!”
“Ball!”
“Ball!”
The pitcher persistently threw outside the strike zone, trying to draw out Mark’s bat.
Under normal circumstances, Mark’s pride as the cleanup batter would have made him swing at such pitches.
But Mark didn’t budge.
‘I’ll take the walk.’
The momentum had shifted our way.
Soo-ho had thrown himself into the fire to ignite the spark, and Casey had poured fuel on it.
There was no need for me to become the hero and finish it alone.
‘They’ll come through behind me.’
Soo-ho had always done that, hadn’t he?
He’d always trusted the batters behind him and thrown himself into danger without hesitation.
‘So I should trust them too.’
The fifth and sixth batters behind me, and my teammates.
“Base on balls!”
Mark tossed his bat aside and walked toward First Base.
One out, bases loaded.
A choice that delivered despair to their opponents while granting the Quakes their greatest opportunity.
From the Dugout, Manager Taylor pulled his cap down low over his eyes.
His gaze was hidden beneath the brim.
Yet both corners of his mouth curved upward uncontrollably.
‘That’s it.’
A smile brimming with certainty of victory.
Who could stop a team that had abandoned selfish desires and begun to trust one another?
And truly, the miracle became reality.
Beginning with the clutch hit from the fifth batter, the Quakes’ lineup erupted.
Like a dam bursting, four consecutive hits poured forth in rapid succession.
Beyond a 7-7 tie came 8-7, then 9-7….
The game flipped entirely into a perfect comeback victory for the Quakes.
Beneath the night sky of San Jose, Soo-ho’s magic was finally complete.

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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