The Genius Pitcher Dad Throws for His Daughter - Chapter 100

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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 100
#100.
The day Kang Ho-jin engaged in Buddhist training alongside Meck.
Naturally, baseball continued unabated.
Kim Se-jin was scheduled for the Busan Dolphins, while Ju Hae-jin took the mound for the Seoul Buffaloes.
Expert predictions suggested the Dolphins would maintain their winning streak momentum.
And their predictions proved accurate.
The fans erupted with cheers.
– The Dolphins’ homegrown ace Kim Se-jin has returned!!!!!!
Kim Se-jin truly had returned.
An impressive 7 innings, 1 run allowed, 7 strikeouts, 5 hits, 2 walks.
He achieved a quality start-plus performance, contributing to the team’s winning streak.
Until last year, Kim Se-jin’s top velocity had hovered around 140 kilometers per hour.
Even then, he threw fastballs in the mid-130s to maintain control and pitch deeper into games, relying primarily on curveballs to navigate innings.
It was a choice born from an aging body protecting the Dolphins’ mound—and indeed, until his injury removed him from the roster, he had managed respectable innings and broken the team’s losing streaks.
And now, having prepared diligently, he had returned.
His velocity had climbed to 145 kilometers per hour, and beyond throwing curveballs, he now wielded the forkball he’d favored during his prime years.
At the sight of Kim Se-jin’s triumphant return, Dolphins fans at Jamsil Baseball Stadium roared his name, and he responded by waving to the cheering crowd.
Having won two games to secure the series, the Dolphins had now notched five consecutive victories and confidently held first place.
– We’re in first place?!
– It’s fleeting spring glory, but… I’m still happy.
– Breathe in this air! Who knows when it’ll slip away!
– Let the celebration ring out! Savor this moment!
– Let’s go!
The Dolphins fans savored this precious moment.
Currently, they held sole possession of first place in the league.
To be precise, after the regular season began, they’d shared first place for a single day before maintaining sole possession ever since.
And the fans knew the truth.
They knew this happiness was fleeting, that once the cherry blossoms began to fall, their team would mysteriously begin to crumble—a pattern repeated over the past decade.
Of course, they’d glimpsed autumn baseball glory once, and they’d even witnessed a miracle that defied 95% odds in favor of 5%, yet they cherished this moment nonetheless.
And then came the final game of the midweek three-game series.
The Dolphins sent Choi Jin-ha to the mound and prepared for battle.
Today, even Dolphins fans could watch the game with relative ease.
Statistically, one loss in three games is inevitable—there’s a reason the term “Corgi Day” exists. Even looking purely at regular season records, even the strongest teams struggle to achieve a 70% winning percentage.
So while acknowledging today’s game could be a loss, the fans naturally hoped for victory as they watched.
Hoping for a win, the fans sitting before their televisions threw their hands up in jubilation when the game ended.
– Yesssssss!
– Insane, five straight wins!
– How long has it been since we’ve had a five-game winning streak?!
– A sweep against the Buffaloes?!
– This is the true power of the Dolphins!
Choi Jin-ha’s aggressive pitching, utilizing his characteristic rapid tempo, had proven devastatingly effective.
Throughout the off-season, he had relentlessly refined his pitching tempo and meticulously managed the pitch clock, perfecting his own distinctive throwing style.
Combined with Deok-hwan’s data analysis, he executed each confrontation with the batter under such a flawless game plan that he barely needed to exchange signs through the pitchcom.
Six innings pitched, zero runs allowed, seven strikeouts, four hits, zero walks.
With a perfect quality start, the Clutch Team took the mound for the remaining innings and closed out the game.
The Bullpen, despite being exhausted from three consecutive days of appearances, showed no hesitation and sealed the victory decisively.
Manager Bong Jun-sik also encouraged the players, reminding them that they must win when victory is within reach.
There was also a strategic reason behind consuming the Bullpen so heavily to secure this win.
Tomorrow would be Friday, the first game of the weekend three-game series.
The long-awaited home opener at Sajik Baseball Stadium was finally upon us, and Kang Ho-jin was scheduled to take the mound.
Manager Bong Jun-sik’s bold decision stemmed from the fact that Kang Ho-jin possessed the inning-eating capacity to give the overworked Bullpen a day of rest.
And so the momentous Friday arrived.
The home opener.
Sajik Baseball Stadium, with its 25,000 seats, opened its doors wide in anticipation of the fans, and they came in droves.
“Waaaah!”
The roar of the fans reverberated through Sajik Baseball Stadium, and a message appeared on the scoreboard.
– Home opener sold out. Thank you for your interest, fans.
For the first time in a long while, Sajik Baseball Stadium, which had struggled to fill its seats even for opening games, achieved a complete sellout with fans.
Seagull, where are you~!
Before the game began, fans who had visited the stadium for the first time in ages sang out, searching for the seagull.
The song echoed through the baseball stadium, and Sajik Baseball Stadium—known as the greatest karaoke on earth—began to heat up with fervent energy.
* * *
Sajik Baseball Stadium VIP Room.
Shin Chairman, the Team Owner, gathered with his relatives and family to watch the home opener.
Needless to say, this was the first time the Team Owner had visited Sajik Baseball Stadium for a home opener in seven years.
At that time, it was to watch Kim Se-jin, who enjoyed the Team Owner’s confidence, take the mound for the home opener—and it was also the last victory the Team Owner remembered witnessing at Sajik Baseball Stadium.
A team plays 144 games a year.
Of those, 71 or 73 are home games. Calculating that over seven years means witnessing 497 or 511 games, yet he had failed to see a single victory.
It was an absurd statistic, but it was unavoidable nonetheless.
A chairman of a major corporation based in Seoul could not easily arrange a schedule to travel all the way to Busan to watch a game, and even if possible, there was no guarantee that the team would win.
In any case.
Shin Chairman visited Sajik Baseball Stadium for the first time in ages, bringing his entire family.
“Tsk tsk. I’m finally enjoying life these days.”
Five consecutive wins since the opening.
To be honest, this level of performance was not unprecedented.
But what delighted the Team Owner was that at the center of it all was a player he had recently taken a liking to, and a player he had once favored.
Moreover, unlike before, there had been no incidents or scandals since Spring Camp, and when he received reports that everyone was working hard for this season, he became a Team Owner who looked forward not to this year but to the year after next, truly believing that the rebuilding was proceeding properly.
“By the way, what about those Buffaloes?”
At the Team Owner’s question, the General Manager immediately reported.
“We’ve sent trade proposals to each team, but we haven’t heard anything back. Since they know his value, they won’t accept unless they’re in dire need.”
A player already marked as damaged goods by one team doesn’t take long to reach the ears of others.
Especially in the narrow world of baseball, bound together by school ties, regional connections, blood relations, and old friendships, it’s not a matter of days but hours.
“What about the old guard?”
“They’re making noise from various angles, but there’s nothing they can do to harm us.”
“If you’re going to grow old, do it gracefully. How dare they….”
The Team Owner was referring to the veterans of the baseball world.
Until now, they had coexisted by helping each other with the team’s maintenance and future prospects in mind, but the Team Owner had swept away that arrangement as if it were his inherent right.
This had drawn considerable backlash from the veterans, but it was futile.
After all, the baseball world runs on corporate money, so whether they struggle or not, it’s meaningless.
“Clean it up as quickly as possible. Even if that doesn’t work, if we keep him buried in the 2nd Team, he’ll leave on his own. At the very least, if he leaves voluntarily, I’ll just let him go.”
“Yes, Chairman.”
It was at least a courtesy to a player who had once worn the uniform of his baseball team.
If he rejected even that, there was no further reason or meaning to protect him.
Beyond that, the Team Owner received reports about the baseball organization and waited for the game to begin. When the reports concluded, someone appeared in the VIP Room.
“Grandfather!”
“Oh my, my little puppy!”
At the sight of a woman rushing into the arms of the Team Owner, Shin Chairman, his relatives quietly smiled.
It was the appearance of Shin Se-a, who had started as an intern in the Dolphins Front Office and was now an employee.
Recently, she had boosted revenue through the Dolphins’ operations and YouTube broadcasts, and was also contributing to improving the company’s image. It was a smile of welcome toward such Se-a.
“You’ve finished work?”
“Yes, I took a half day off.”
“Come, let’s watch together.”
“Yes, Grandfather.”
The Team Owner, Shin Chairman, had several grandchildren besides Se-a, including sons and daughters, but he was particularly fond of Shin Se-a.
No one envied or was jealous of that favoritism.
Not only was she naturally cheerful and pleasant, but there was no one in the family who could dislike Shin Se-a, the youngest of the youngest.
Thus, from the singing of the national anthem announcing the start of the game to the salute to the flag, everything was completed.
– Today’s ceremonial first pitch will be thrown by the parents of Kang Ho-jin, the Busan Dolphins’ ace pitcher and rising star!
At the announcer’s introduction, Shin Chairman looked surprised.
“Kang Ho-jin’s parents are throwing the first pitch today?”
At that question, Shin Se-a nodded.
“Yes, I made sure everything was prepared for their convenience—train tickets on the way here, a car, hotel reservations for tonight, and arrangements for their return tomorrow without any inconvenience.”
She had arrived late because she was attending to Kang Ho-jin’s parents until just moments ago.
“I’ll guide them to their seats and come right back.”
As Shin Se-a excused herself, saying there was still work to be done, Shin Chairman watched her with satisfaction.
“That girl….”
It seemed less like romantic interest and more like genuine fandom, which made him proud of her.
In the meantime, as Kang Ho-jin’s father threw the ball, Shin Chairman watched with satisfaction as Kang Ho-jin’s mother swung as if she truly meant to hit it.
“General Manager.”
“Yes, Chairman.”
“I’d appreciate it if you looked after this once more.”
“Yes, Chairman.”
At the Chairman’s instruction, Park Ju-ho, the Team Owner, sprang into action.
Meanwhile, the Scoreboard displayed Kang Ho-jin embracing his Parents, exchanging brief words with them.
A radiant smile that couldn’t be seen on the Mound—one that truly revealed how close he was to his Parents—made everyone who witnessed it smile in return.
“Tsk tsk. What a fine young man.”
Shin Chairman felt a faint desire to make him family, if circumstances allowed.
With a handsome face and natural bearing, coupled with his devotion to his Parents and his sense of responsibility toward his work, he was a solid young man of a kind rarely seen these days.
Had it not been for his unfortunate circumstances, the Chairman might have pursued it more actively, but knowing what he did, he could only watch and hope that Kang Ho-jin would continue to give his best for the organization.
And so the game began, with Kang Ho-jin throwing the first pitch.
“Huh…. It went up again?!”
Remarkably, Kang Ho-jin’s maximum fastball velocity had increased once more.
– 158km.
Faster still.

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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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