Ace of Diamond: Return of the Pitcher

V7_Chapter 11: Ready

[THE KING IS BACK!!!]

The headlines in the high school sports newspapers and sites the next day almost universally echoed this sentiment.

Seidou High School’s performance in the previous game was truly captivating.

Seidou High School’s team also saw the newspapers.

Their feelings were mixed upon seeing the headlines.

Coach Kataoka, as usual, rejected the media’s interference. He allowed them to observe but not to interview the players.

“We are the losers!”

During training, Coach Kataoka repeatedly used this phrase to motivate the team.

‘Not only should the outsiders know, but we must also remind ourselves that we are still losers.’

“This chance is once in a lifetime. Forget the past honors and achievements; they are irrelevant to us now. Our future depends on our own efforts.”

“Yes sir!”

The team was united in determination.

Their mindset had improved greatly after their previous failure. They now approached their opponents and upcoming matches with hunger and determination.

“Tomorrow’s starting pitcher is Furuya. Sawamura, be ready. If anything happens during the game, be prepared to step in.”

Yesterday’s game was finished by Kawakami, who pitched the entire five innings without a substitution.

For tomorrow’s game, the responsibility fell to Furuya.

Coach Kataoka thought this way, but since the opponent was Ouya High School, he was concerned about relying solely on Kawakami. Therefore, Sawamura was also asked to be prepared.

“That should cover all bases.”

“Is it really necessary to be this cautious against a public school?” Ochiai, stroking his chin, looked at Coach Kataoka.

“They reached Koshien a few years ago, and Coach Araki’s strategies are very good. Also, I still remember their Ace, Wakabayashi Gao. We had invited him before, but he declined. We thought he would join Teito or Sankou, but he ended up at Ouya.”

“Oh~”

Ochiai appeared quite interested.

“If the opponent is as talented as you say, would it be too risky to rely solely on Furuya?”

Coach Kataoka nodded. “That’s why I asked Sawamura to be ready. However, Kawakami has performed very well this month, and his skill is likely to surprise the opponent.”

***

Tokyo Metropolitan Ouya High School.

In the world of high school baseball, dominated by numerous private schools, this team stands out as truly unique.

Their players excel academically, a stark contrast to the typical baseball powerhouse schools where players often focus more on their athletic skills.

Ouya High School is also known for its emphasis on academic performance. At their school, if players don’t meet a certain academic standard, they aren’t even eligible to compete for the school.

Of course, this doesn’t mean that baseball players from other schools aren’t academically accomplished; it’s just less common.

For example, at Seidou High School, most players, except for a few, have average academic records, with several even failing subjects.

In contrast, every student at Ouya High School maintains excellent academic performance while also excelling in baseball, truly embodying the balance of both academic and athletic prowess.

“Quite rare!” This is the general opinion about Ouya High School.

Their success is attributed to their smart play and hard work. Given the intensity of their training, achieving such results is indeed impressive.

The upcoming game between Seidou High School and Ouya High School has attracted considerable interest.

While watching a one-sided game can be thrilling, it can also become monotonous over time. A match against a challenging opponent invigorates the audience.

On game day, many spectators showed up.

Most of them were there to support Seidou High School. Before the game began, their thunderous cheers echoed throughout the stadium.

“It’s just different lives for different people.”

“Even though they play the same sport, the differences are so striking.”

“Don’t be envious. They’re the King Seidou. We’re just a normal High School.”

“Right? If we won a game with a score of 19-1 in just five innings! I think I will put it in my résumé when I am applying for a job.”

“Idiot and what good will that do!”

“You are the idiot! It will tell them that I was good at sport!”

The players from Ouya High School teased each other.

Their players appeared calm and undaunted by the imposing presence of their opponents.

The boy with the mushroom haircut snorted, “Even if you’re pretending not to care, shouldn’t you come up with something more relaxing than a job interview?”

The surrounding friends continued their banter, unperturbed.

On the other side, in Seidou High School’s dugout.

Seeing the relaxed demeanor of their opponents, Miyuki felt uneasy.

“The other side is clearly well-prepared!”

Sawamura seemed unconcerned.

“We’ll find out when the game starts. Some gaps are impossible to bridge.”

The second round of the playoff began with Seidou High School facing Ouya High School.

In the top of the first inning, Seidou High School was up to bat.

“First batter, shortstop, Kuramochi-kun.”

Whoosh!

Facing the first ball, Kuramochi swung without hesitation.

Ping!

“FOUL!”

Snap!

“BALL!”

Kuramochi was trying to read to get the pitcher to throw more balls to get more information on the pitcher while for a wake or an easy hit.

And then he got what he wanted.

Whoosh!

The ball wasn’t easy to make contact with but also wasn’t hard to hit. So after he hit the ball forward, he ran toward the first base directly.

Snap!

“OUT!”

‘Eh?’ just when Kuramochi was close to the first base, the ball returned, solving him Out.

‘Wasn’t this a bit fast?’

No matter what anyone said to him this return throw was unusually very fast.

One Out, no one on base.

Next up was the second batter, Haruichi, who remained very composed. Unable to figure out the opponent’s tactics, he aimed to make them work hard for every pitch.

After seven pitches, Haruichi saw a good opportunity and swung at the ball.

Paak!

The white ball was hit high, flying along the first base line, and landed just beyond the first baseman’s reach.

“Nice!”

Behind the first baseman was a large defensive gap.

Seidou’s players were thrilled.

The supporters in the stands erupted with excitement.

The first hit came faster than expected.

Despite Ouya High School’s impressive reputation, they were still just a public school.

There was a significant gap in strength compared to National Tyrants like Seidou High School.

However, what was surprising was that the ball, which was clearly aimed at the gap, did not fall as expected.

Ouya’s outfielder had been waiting for the baseball.

He calmly caught the ball and secured it in his mitt.

“OUT!”

“Why was he there?”

“That guy moved way out of his position! Isn’t that too far?” Miyuki frowned.

“He didn’t move out of position. He was prepared and positioned himself there.” Kuramochi noticed as he was starting to get what was going on.

Two Outs, no one on base.

Ouya High School’s opening performance seemed solid.

But pitcher Wakabayashi didn’t feel the same.

“Damn it!”

On the surface, he had handled the opponents well.

But the reality was more complex.

‘The first batter, Kuramochi, had been dealt with only after six pitches.’

‘The second batter, Kominato, had forced him to throw seven pitches.’

“Really persistent!”

‘Even ignoring the base runners, just counting the batters, each Out required around six and a half pitches.’

‘With nine innings and 27 Outs to achieve, maintaining this pace would require 175 pitches.’

He’d be worn out before the game even ended.

“I can’t keep this up!”

Wakabayashi felt a growing sense of urgency and knew he had to reduce his pitch count.

Unfortunately, just as he decided to cut back, his next opponent was Sawamura Eijun.

Sawamura took the Batter’s Box with ease.

His bat was held high, and he stared unblinkingly at Wakabayashi.

“This guy!”

Just observing Sawamura was enough to make Wakabayashi feel intense pressure without even pitching.

“No wonder he’s the Demon King!”

The pressure was so overwhelming that Wakabayashi felt he could barely breathe.

He had known Sawamura was a great pitcher, but he hadn’t realized how intimidating he could be at bat.

‘Truly extraordinary.’

If the situation weren’t two Outs, Wakabayashi would have considered Walking Sawamura.

‘But with two Outs, there was no need to do that.’

‘Let’s go!’

Whoosh!

The baseball was thrown, and the ball soared through the air.

Wakabayashi was a very talented pitcher. Though his style wasn’t flashy, his pitching was highly precise.

Combined with his agile mind.

It made his pitching uniquely captivating.

‘Really impressive!’

Even Sawamura, with his discerning eye, could see Wakabayashi’s strong points.

However!

These strengths alone didn’t faze Sawamura.

Ping!

The white ball was ruthlessly hit.

Sawamura, with a smirk, swung his bat and ran smoothly to second base.

Two Outs, runner on second base!

…