The Genius Pitcher Dad Throws for His Daughter - Chapter 15

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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 15
#15.
“Swing! Batter’s out!”
Against the Daegu Salamanders’ batters, I struck out six over three innings, smoothly working through one complete rotation of their lineup.
“Good! Good!”
“Nice pitching!”
“Excellent!”
As I headed into the Dugout, the fielders passed by me one after another, each offering a word of encouragement, and I returned their greetings by extending my glove.
“Thank you for your hard work.”
And finally, the right fielder came rushing over, grumbling toward me.
“Ugh… why do all the fly balls come my way?”
“Thank you.”
Against nine batters, I’d struck out six, leaving three for the fielders to handle. Notably, several came toward right field, and it was Yeo Hyung-gu who safely caught the final one.
He’d once been a starting right fielder for the 1st Team, but as he aged, he naturally descended to the 2nd Team. Now he was preparing for a second chapter of life, contemplating retirement.
“Don’t thank me—I was just doing what’s expected.”
“But you really had to sprint down for that last catch.”
“Right? Your stuff was so devastating the ball just dropped out of the sky.”
I followed Yeo Hyung-gu into the Bench.
Now it was the top of the fourth inning, and my senior casually wiped the sweat from his brow with a towel, gazing out at the Ground.
“Out!”
The leadoff batter swung at the first pitch again, grounding out to the shortstop.
The next batter went to a full count at six pitches but struck out looking. The third batter’s second swing was off, resulting in a ground ball to the pitcher for an out.
‘The batting order really has gone cold.’
When it came to offensive firepower, the Busan Dolphins were the team.
It was true for both the 1st Team and 2nd Team—once their offense caught fire, it was notoriously difficult to extinguish.
Of course, fans loved it and hated it in equal measure.
You damn fools, are you really going to hit today and then not score for weeks?!
If you’re going to do this, spread it out! Yesterday you couldn’t score a single run and we lost!
I thought we finally won after scoring, and now you’re burning it all down?!
Disband the team!
Hmm…
The fans’ cries carried such layered meaning.
And more than anything, I didn’t just understand those sentiments—I felt them in my bones.
On days when I took the Mound as the Busan Dolphins’ ace, the batting order seemed constipated, completely locked up—not a single hit, not even a walk.
As a result, I rarely received meaningful run support each game, and at best, we’d manage one or two runs.
When I came down from the Mound in such situations, an arsonist would inevitably appear, but on other days, the offensive floodgates would suddenly burst open and we’d score like madmen.
Twenty starts, ten wins, two losses.
In those ten games, the team’s average runs scored was 1.9.
When it’s frustrating, it’s incredibly frustrating, but when it explodes, it’s gloriously explosive. Not only would all our starters get hits, but we’d catch up from a 13-run deficit in one breath and even pull off the comeback.
But today was the former case, and through four innings including the one I just pitched, while players had reached First Base, none had advanced to scoring position—Second Base.
“You alright?”
“Yes, I’m fine.”
Kang Do-bin approached me with an apologetic expression.
It seemed he was sorry about the lack of runs, but I was truly fine.
‘I’m used to it.’
Compared to before I returned to the past, we hadn’t even reached the point of an error-filled inning yet, so this was actually manageable.
Anyway, that wasn’t what mattered.
‘Three innings pitched, thirty-two throws. Remaining stamina is thirty-three?’
So far, I’d been aggressively placing my improved four-seam fastball inside the strike zone, overwhelming the batters with dominant pitching.
Thanks to that, even though these were 2nd Team batters, I could tell my four-seam fastball was working exceptionally well, and I believed it would be effective in the 1st Team as well.
‘In a way, the ball is even better than during my prime.’
It wasn’t merely a feeling.
This assessment was based on equipment measurements. The velocity was certainly similar to my prime, but the spin rate was superior. On top of that, the vertical movement had improved as well.
Despite being merely B-Rank, the quality had risen this much—I couldn’t even imagine how much better it would become at higher ranks.
Still, I needed to be careful from this inning onward.
The batting order had cycled through once, and the batters would have grown accustomed to my four-seam fastball.
‘Though not enough to actually hit it.’
But now was the time to vary my pitch selection.
Until now, I’d built counts around the four-seam fastball and countered with changeups or curveballs, but this time I planned to finish with the opposite or the four-seam fastball itself.
Changeup, outside, low.
As if reading my thoughts, I caught Kang Do-bin’s sign and threw the ball while slightly shielding my face with my glove.
Tick—!
The batter, thinking it was a four-seam fastball, swung and made weak contact. The ball dribbled forward, landing perfectly in the shortstop’s glove as he charged in, and was delivered cleanly to first base.
“Out!”
Getting an out with a single pitch felt wonderful.
I threw nothing but curveballs at the next batter.
The first pitch was a strike at the bottom of the strike zone, and when the batter, looking disappointed at the low pitch, saw two more sink into the dirt, he didn’t budge.
The count had tightened in an instant, but there was no problem.
“Swing! Batter out!”
Two B-Rank four-seam fastballs were more than enough to shut him down.
The next batter stepping up was the cleanup hitter, Noh Ji-hwan.
Ah, this one definitely deserved special treatment.
From the first pitch, I threw a curveball that came tight inside.
“Eek!”
It was satisfying to watch him flinch and stumble backward again.
So I threw one more, and this time instead of retreating, he glared at me menacingly.
“Ball, two.”
The count had shifted in the batter’s favor, but I didn’t care.
I gripped the four-seam fastball and fired two consecutive pitches on the outside corner, earning strike calls.
And for the final pitch, I gripped the changeup.
Two pitches toward the body, followed by two on the outside, and then back to the body?
Whoosh—!
“Swing! Batter’s out!”
There’s no way he could hit that. Especially not when the batter’s eyes were already rolling back halfway.
Four innings pitched with zero runs allowed. Forty-three pitches thrown.
Twenty-two pitches remaining.
I could easily go another two innings, and I’d have no trouble shutting down two more rotations through the batting order.
I stepped off the Mound with ease.
‘Ah, baseball is fun.’
How should I put it?
Before I returned to the past, I played baseball for regret and atonement, but now I play it to save my Daughter. Yet because I’m approaching this baseball more seriously, accepting it with both body and heart, stepping onto the Mound has become something I look forward to.
And I hoped that someday would come—the day I’d take the Mound with my Daughter’s ceremonial first pitch.
Today was Children’s Day.
A day when I missed Ye-jin even more.
* * *
The Busan Dolphins 2nd Team had returned to Sangdong after finishing the game.
Everyone was in their rest period or individual training time. At this hour when most would be preparing to leave, Manager Jang Si-hwan stared intently at his smartphone, still hot from the call he’d just finished.
The Pitching Coach who’d heard the conversation sighed heavily.
“The kids will feel a lot of pressure, won’t they?”
“Can’t be helped. Still, we have to prove ourselves. That’s what being professional means.”
It was a notice that the 1st Team Manager would visit Sangdong in person tomorrow.
Well, the 1st Team Manager did come down occasionally to observe 2nd Team players with his own eyes, but this time was different.
He was coming down with the intention of immediately promoting any pitchers worth using to the 1st Team to give them experience, rather than letting them season longer in the minors.
At first, Manager Jang Si-hwan had tried to dissuade him.
From his perspective, these players needed much more seasoning, and it bothered him that the 1st Team Manager wanted to take players who were still shaky on the 2nd Team stage up to the 1st Team.
But on the other hand, he understood.
The Busan Dolphins Bullpen was currently overworked.
Not in a good way—in a very bad way.
On days when both foreign pitchers take the mound, they can at least stretch things to six innings, so the Bullpen consumption is relatively light. But with the third and fourth starters frequently faltering, the Bullpen gets activated early, and with no fifth starter properly established yet, they’re running Bullpen days constantly, leaving not a single healthy pitcher available.
On top of that, with the player who had the highest potential as a fifth starter withdrawing due to a drunk driving incident, the team had sunk into a losing streak, and the 1st Team Manager’s last lifeline was bringing up 2nd Team pitchers. He understood this necessity.
And he said he’d also take a look at the position players while he was at it.
“Right now, which players do we have that would be worth showing Manager Bong?”
The Batting Coach answered first to that question.
“Won Tae-jun has decent batting form lately. Lim Byung-chul has always been a player with good athleticism, so he’s good as a backup and outfielder. And finally, there’s Kang Do-bin. His catching and blocking have both improved significantly recently.”
Manager Jang Si-hwan’s mind turned to Kang Do-bin.
Now called a senile player, but he’s always been sincere and actively participates in training with enthusiasm. However, it was frustrating that his skills weren’t improving despite his efforts, but recently training alongside Kang Ho-jin, I could see his abilities growing noticeably.
“He and Ho-jin have good chemistry too?”
“Those two are a perfect match.”
From Manager Jang Si-hwan’s perspective as well, if those two were promoted to the 1st Team, they’d likely show the most impressive performance.
Even in Jang Si-hwan’s opinion, if those two move up to the 1st Team, they would show the most noticeable performance at least.
With Kang Ho-jin displaying a completely transformed appearance as he altered his pitching form, and Kang Do-bin improving his skills while catching his pitches, if they ascended to the 1st Team together, they might feel a sense of stability that would allow them to perform at their usual level.
“Ho-jin is coming because Manager Bong wants to see him in the first place. We’ll prepare Kang Do-bin alongside him at that time.”
“Yes, Manager.”
“Coach Bae, do you have any other players you’d recommend?”
At those words, Pitching Coach Bae Ki-chan responded with an expression of difficulty.
“Jo Sang-hyuk, Jung Ji-hoon, and Choi Sung-hyuk would be sufficient, and since we need bullpen pitchers anyway, it works out perfectly. However, those kids are still quite lacking.”
At that remark, Manager Jang Si-hwan spoke as if resigned.
“That’s up to Manager Bong’s discretion. For now, we’ll prepare with those kids, and tomorrow we’ll check their condition and try calling up a few more.”
After the two coaches left, Manager Jang Si-hwan, now alone, placed a cigarette between his lips and contemplated.
‘If those kids are pulled out right now, the 2nd Team’s performance will suffer. But the 2nd Team is a place that must always be prepared to receive call-ups to the 1st Team whenever and wherever needed.’
So he hoped the players would seize tomorrow’s opportunity.
The stage where countless spectators roar with excitement, the 1st Team stage that every professional dreams of.
He hoped they would prove themselves on their own.
‘But the team’s record…’
He couldn’t bring himself to say more.
The stage that should shine brightly seemed destined to become a desolate, empty one.
A bittersweet and melancholic record indeed.

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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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