CLANK!
"Oh, another one! This time, it is for the fight fielder!"
"Is this going to be the first home run of the day?!"
"Not yet! Look, Hiroto is running!"
"No, he wouldn't be able to stop it! The ball is too high!"
"Hey, look! He runs through the wall and jumps! What the hell?! He catches it?!"
"OH! WHAT A ROBBERY!"
The cheers exploded from the supporter side as they saw Hiroto jump spectacularly, crashing his body through the wall while extending his arms to catch the ball that would go outside if it passed his defense. He huffed, patting the dust out of his dirty pants while accepting the hand offered by Isashiki.
"Good job, Hiroto!" The center-fielder patted his back.
It was Saturday morning, and the first warmup match Seido had was against Osaka Kiryuu, a strong team from the west. To the other players' surprise, the one who started as the pitcher was Furuya. But after thinking about it, they accepted the coach's decision since they thought it was just a warmup game and it would be good to give Furuya more experience on the mound.
Unfortunately, Furuya hadn't recovered from the hell week completely, and his performance was a mess. Out of the three innings that had been played, he had lost seven runs already, and if not for the superb defense by the fielders, he would suffer more.
The superb play to rob the homerun by Hiroto before wasn't the first impressive play coming from Seido's defense. Before that, Isashiki did the recovery job successfully after the long hit from Osaka Kiryuu's cleanup hitter landed in the area between him and Shirasu in the left field. Even though it allowed the runners on the second base to come back home, at least Isashiki managed to send the hitter out before he could reach the third base. And it wasn't just the outfielders. Even the infielders were on their guards 100% for the grounders and the liners that would come in their direction.
But it wasn't enough.
Osaka Kiryuu, a strong team from the other prefecture completely showed them that Furuya wasn't good enough for the team yet. They used their specialty as the offense team that would always stay connected from one batter to another to keep pressuring Furuya until the first-year pitcher reached his exhaustion point. Even though Seido only lost seven runs, calculating from the start, Furuya had already suffered about nine hits and four walks, which was not good for his statistics. Coupled with the number of his pitches that almost touched 80 in just three innings, the direction of the game was not in his favor.
"Come on, Furuya! Just one more!"
"End him now!"
"Yeah! Show us your cannonball!"
Even though Furuya played badly, it was the duty of the others to keep supporting him. The other players kept shouting his name, reassuring the pitcher that they had his back and just to pitch freely without thinking about anything.
Furuya himself tried to put his focus back on the batter in front of him. He knew his performance was terrible, but since Kataoka-sensei hadn't changed him yet, it was he who was in charge of the mound, and he would fight for this with all he might.
The pitcher raised his left foot, starting to do his windup again. It was the situation without any runners on the base, so he didn't have to worry about the distraction from the others. Without hesitation, he threw his ball with all his strength, aiming it toward Miyuki's mitt.
BAM!
"Ball!"
Miyuki winced when the referee didn't even flinch and judged the ball correctly even with his quick framing ability. He sighed, starting to feel bad for his partner while also worried that Furuya would break from this pressure. However, after remembering what he said to Kataoka-sensei, he threw away that thought and decided to trust that Furuya would be able to get out of this slump soon.
"Furuya will not be in his 100% condition tomorrow due to exhaustion and he will suffer a lot of hits. But I think it would be good for his development." Kataoka raised his eyebrows when he heard what Miyuki just said.
"Explain yourself, Miyuki."
"Hai! Right now, Furuya still thinks it is enough to conquer Japan with just his cannonball and he didn't want to learn anything new. So, why not use this chance to show him that when he cannot rely on the speed of his pitches, control is the only weapon he can use."
Since he had already talked big to Kataoka-sensei that this would be good for Furuya's development, he had to accompany the pitcher to the end. He shifted his position slightly, putting his mitt close to the batter's body.
'Come on, Furuya! I know you didn't want to suffer a long hit again, but running away by throwing an outside pitch wouldn't help. Here, come on! Throw it inside!'
Fortunately, Furuya didn't disappoint this time. Even though the direction was off, after several times throwing outside pitches, the sudden change of route was enough to catch the batter off guard, forcing the batter to swing the ball impatiently which landed back perfectly to the pitcher's glove.
"Nice catch, Furuya!"
"Send it to the captain!"
BAM!
"Out! Three outs, change sides!"
"YEAAAAH!"
After three hits, two walks, one base-loaded, and three runs lost, the inning was finally over, and it was time for Seido's batters to attack. Masuko as the first batter of the next inning was already on deck circle, waiting for his turn. Hiroto who was after him also started to do his warmup, swinging his bat several times to get the feeling of it. However, before Masuko went to the batter box, Kataoka-sensei asked the players to gather around him.
"Anyone can see the scoreboard?" The coach asked casually. Several players, especially the senior ones bowed their heads, ashamed to even look at it. There they could see the outrageous score that Seido shouldn't suffer in the first place.
Osaka Kiryu 1 3 4
Seido High 2 0
Even though their defense was a mess due to Furuya's horrendous performance, Seido's strong point was always their offense. To see them only scored twice while the opponents had already had eight runs was unheard of. To add more salt to the wound, the two runs they scored in the first inning basically came from the sacrifice fly from Hiroto that allowed Tetsu and Isashiki to come back home safely.
Other than that, the only clean hit they managed to land was just a groundball that if not for Ryousuke's speed, would only end with another out.
"I don't know if this was due to exhaustion or another factor, but you all know this is not the level that Seido should have in the first place." Even beneath his sunglasses, Kataoka's sharp gaze could still pierce everyone around him. "So, I want the three next batters to show me your true level. Can you three do it?!"
Masuko, Hiroto, and Miyuki who would be on the box later straightened their back simultaneously, shouting at the same time, "YES, SIR!"
The other senpai, especially Tetsu who could only send a ground ball in the last inning clenched their fists, anger burned inside them. Kataoka was right, this wasn't the level Seido should show at all. This was a disaster, something that they would rectify after this.
Clank!
"Foul!"
Hiroto kneeled on the deck circle, narrowing his eyes as he tried to observe the opponent's pitcher more. As far as the game went, the ace of the Osaka Kiryuu, Tachi Hiromi had already sent two strikeouts and just suffered from one hit and four walks, a solid result especially considering they were playing against Seido with heavy lineup batters.
Tachi Hiromi himself was a fastball-type pitcher, basically the less-speed version of Furuya but with far better control in his pitch. The combination of his heavy four-seam ball and nasty forkball seemed to be enough to deal with Seido's lineup in the first three innings.
However, this time, it would be different.
Clank!
"Foul!"
"Oh! Another foull! Masuko is pressuring him!"
"Come on, Masuko!"
It had already been the eighth ball between those two, and it seemed Masuko was successful in wearing Tachi Hiromi off. While Seido's vice-captain still had determination burning in his eyes, Hiroto could see Tachi Hiromi started to get nervous, and he knew the pitcher would make a mistake sooner or later.
BAM!
"Ball four!"
"Yeah! Nice observation, Masuko!"
Hiroto nodded, knowing this would happen sooner or later. He put his helm on and started to walk on the box with his bat, ready for his turn. With one runner on the first base, he knew this was his chance to shorten the score gap between the two teams.
"Come on, Hiroto!"
"Slam it hard!"
Hiroto narrowed his eyes, raising his bat as he made eye contact with the pitcher, both trying to intimidate each other. He kept staring intently as Tachi Hiromi started to wind up, and when the ball was released, he was still unmoved, letting the first pitch slide.
BAM!
"Strike!"
Hiroto huffed, relaxed a bit as he saw the pitch was exactly as he noticed. Even though Tachi Hiromi was an excellent pitcher, the catcher was too timid to utilize his ability further. Once one pitch worked, it would take a long time for this catcher to change his mind about it, and this was what Hiroto aimed for.
'Come on! Give me another low four-seam ball again! Gotcha!'
When he saw the next ball was as he predicted, Hiroto swung his bat without hesitation, and the sound of the metal making contact with the cowhide from the ball echoed all over the field, making every spectator gasped in astonishment.
"Oh! Finally, Seido!"
"Nice long hit, Hiroto! Run!"
Hiroto clicked his tongue in annoyance when he saw the ball was a bit shorter than he expected. It seemed he still underestimated how heavy the pitcher's fastball was as usually, he would be sure this kind of long hit would result in a home run.
"Let's dwell on it later."
He kept speeding up, aiming for the third base. Even though the ball fell shorter than his expectation, it hit the wall first before falling onto the ground, making it bounced wildly and the center-fielder who was responsible failed to catch it. This was the textbook triple and Hiroto would make sure he arrived at the third base safely.
"Come on, Hiroto!"
While running, he still managed to take a glance around and saw Masuko was already back at home while the ball was already on the player's hand, ready to be launched to the third base. Knowing that, he increased his speed, and once the plate was within his reach, he slid his body through the ground in style to avoid a collision with the third baseman while still trying to touch the plate before his opponent could send him off.
"SAFE!"
"Oh! Nice one, Hiroto!"
Hiroto patted the dust on his seemed to be dirtier pants before and fixed the position of his helm while subtly giving Miyuki a signal on what to do. It was a simple, direct signal that told the catcher to swing from the first pitch. The opponent's catcher should be in shambles right now, hesitating whether he should change his strategy or stick with it until the end. This was the best moment to score more, and he didn't believe Miyuki wouldn't be able to see that too.
That was why when all the eyes were on Miyuki and Tachi Hiromi, he took a few steps aside sneakily, ready for a steal. And when the ball was within the pitcher's tip already, he started to dash in, stealing the home plate while giving a distraction for the pitcher.
"STEAL!"
The distraction worked. The pitch's speed was a bit off, which made it easier for Miyuki who was ready to swing hit the ball. The catcher aimed it toward the tricky area between the third baseman and the shortstop as the ball kept bouncing with a pretty decent speed toward the left field.
"Nice, Hiroto! Miyuki!"
"Finally!"
"This is how Seido should play their baseball!"
With Hiroto arrived at the home plate successfully as Miyuki was able to reach the second base, the score gap shortened to 8-4, and while they were still chasing, Seido still had a chance to add more runs in this inning as they had not received any out yet. This time, it was Shirasu, a silent assassin from the left field who was on the box.
"Shirasu, the pitcher will probably give you his forkball. Be wary of the inside." Hiroto advised.
"Thanks." Shirasu nodded, walking to the box with confidence.
Hiroto predicted that the last hit by Miyuki was the nail that was hit on the head for Osaka Kiryuu's catcher to change his strategy. Now, the catcher would try to make a drastic change, from the outside four-seam ball that worked flawlessly before this inning back to the inside forkball that they left the moment Ryousuke managed to hit that in the first inning.
And true to his thought, the next ball that came from the pitcher was a forkball, which Shirasu had already predicted since the beginning. Unfortunately, Shirasu -and Hiroto- seemed to underestimate the pitcher's ability to transfer his energy to the ball, as even if it was a nasty breaking ball, the pitch was still heavy enough for Shirasu to throw it far to the outfield.
CLANK!
"Shit!" Shirasu cursed as he threw his bat, starting to run with all his strength. He had already predicted that either he or Miyuki would be out this round, so as long as he could attract the attention of the fielders to send him out first, Miyuki would be able to reach the third base safely.
Unfortunately, he miscalculated Osaka Kiryuu's fielders' ability. Even if he hit the ball to the tricky spot between the first and the second baseman, Osaka Kiryuu's second baseman was quick enough to recover the ball, throwing it to the first baseman before the ball flew once again to the third baseman faster than Miyuki could fathom.
BAAAAM!
"OOH! A double play!"
"Nice play by Osaka Kiryuu! They don't want to lose the lead that easy!"
"Sorry, everyone." Shirasu had his head bowed down as he felt downcast for his failure. "I couldn't follow it up and even made us have two outs in one go."
"Bah! Why do you look so depressed, Shirasu?!" Isashiki roared. "Raise your head, damn it! You have already done a good job out here! Leave it to us for the rest!"
"There are still five more innings left. If you feel frustrated, do your best next time to pay it off." Tetsu patted his shoulder reassuringly.
"Yeah. Don't be too harsh on yourself, Shirasu!"
Even though he failed to hit the ball, everyone didn't blame Shirasu. They all had already felt how heavy Osaka Kiryuu's pitcher threw the ball. Usually, facing such a pitcher, it would take at least two rounds for the batter to get used to the pressure, or the pitcher himself would be exhausted first before that. So, they didn't think Shirasu's failure was a big deal.
"Come on! It is Sakai's turn! Let's cheer him up!"
The last batter of Seido's circle was Sakai, the designated hitter that Kataoka-sensei put for Furuya's spot. It wasn't like Kataoka-sensei didn't know Furuya's ability on the box, but he wanted the first-year pitcher to put all his focus on the mound right now.
Unfortunately, Sakai's fate was exactly the same as Shirasu's. After fouling the ball for the seventh time in a row, the eighth time he hit the ball to the foul zone, the first baseman reacted quickly, catching the ball in the air which resulted in another out for Seido, which also meant it was their time to defend once again.
"Good attempt, Sakai! You wore him off pretty badly! Leave the rest to us!" Isashiki patted Sakai's shoulder.
"Come on, Furuya! Get up! Let's end this inning as soon as possible!"
"Miyuki, keep your eyes on him!"
Miyuki could only chuckle bitterly as he had a headache about what to do with Furuya. The pitcher's performance was a mess, and no matter how good he was as a catcher, if the pitcher couldn't do it, he would be rendered useless.
However, to his surprise, when Furuya came out of the bench, there was no hint of depression or pressure shown on his face. Even though he had already lost eight runs, Furuya still maintained his calm expression as he walked through the mound with the aura of the ace surrounding him.
Seeing that, Miyuki chuckled a little before putting his protection gear on while muttering inwardly, 'I hope this is not just a show-off and you can still hold your ground, Furuya-kun, or Kataoka-sensei would have no mercy toward you.'
Osaka Kiryu 1 3 4
Seido High 2 0 2
Author note :
Hey! I have written a few next chapters of this new story and posted it already on my account. If you want to read it in advance, you can visit /ZetaFaes .
You can read this story up to chapter 38, and I will try to update it faster.
Thank you for your support! I appreciate it! :)
-Zeta Faes-