Seidou High School's game against Hoshiryu High School is still going on.
Two Outs, no one on base.
The score is 0:2
Hoshiryu High School is two points behind!
With two Outs and no runners on the base, Nanami Haruka chose to have a head-to-head duel with the fourth batter of Seidou High School.
Ping!
After the white ball was hit, it drew a perfect arc and flew to the outfield.
The anticipation of a stunning hit had the Seidou High School supporters on the edge of their seats, buzzing with excitement.
"Seidou!"
"Yuuki!!"
The moment the crowd's chant resonated through the stadium, the atmosphere shifted dramatically.
Seemingly out of nowhere, a figure almost materialized at the exact location where the baseball was destined to land, and with remarkable agility, secured the ball in his mitt.
This scene made the audience's cheers come to an abrupt end.
In the rest area of Seidou High School, Eijun's face was somewhat hilarious.
"Starter Hattori!"
'I didn't expect this guy to change from catcher to outfielder!'
The difference is a little big.
Hattori's speed significantly enhances his defensive range in the outfield, surpassing that of the average player. This attribute allows him to cover more ground and make plays that others might not reach, contributing to a stronger defensive presence on the field.
Three Outs, offense and defense exchange.
In the first half of the fourth inning, Hoshiryu High School attacked.
"First Batter, shortstop, Oda-kun."
By the second time they played against Tanpa, the players of Hoshiryu High School had obviously found a way to restrain Tanpa's pitching.
Ping!
After entangling with two pitches, Oda skillfully connected with the ball, sending it skillfully between the third baseman and the shortstop.
Then he hurried to first base.
"Wow!"
The third baseman of Seidou High School, despite his huge size, is not slow at all. He is like a tank running at high speed, scooping up the ball and passing it to first base in one motion.
SNAP!
"OUT!"
One Out, no one hits base.
"Good job, Masuko!"
"Nicely done."
"One Out!"
"One Out!!"
The players on the field of Seidou High School, as well as the supporters off the field, all shouted excitedly.
In the position of the catcher, the expression on Chris' face was not easy.
'They are starting to keep up with Tanpa's balls!'
Out of the corner of his eyes, he glanced at the dugout of Hoshiryu High School.
Hosho Ryuki stood at the front of the team's dugout, his looks were very deep and calculating.
This convinced Chris that the people at Hoshiryu High School had already laid out clear tactics when they just took a break.
Combined with the previous hit by Oda Honjo.
'Hoshiryu High School is now aiming at Straight balls and Forkballs.'
Their resolve is impressive, and their decision-making is swift. Within a single round of the lineup, they conducted a comprehensive analysis of Tanpa's pitching style and formulated effective strategies accordingly.
'The opponent's level is stronger than we expected!'
Having made a judgment on the strength and plan of Hoshiryu High School in his mind, Chris immediately gave Tanpa a sign.
'Next, let's change the Game Calling, utilizing the high-drop Curveball as the centerpiece!'
The meaning of this sign is that as long as he does not play a special sign, all the balls thrown will be high drop Curves.
In the game, Coach Kataoka chose not to have Tanpa Koichiro pitch the entire game, allowing him to avoid conserving his physical strength.
The strategy was for him to focus solely on effectively suppressing the opposing team's batters during his time on the mound, which was deemed sufficient enough.
"STRIKE!"
"STRIKE!"
Two consecutive high-drop Curveballs made Keiba Sato, who was aiming for the Straight ball, unable to make contact with the ball.
The third ball No matter what kind of ball Tanpa is going to throw, Keiba Sato must swing the bat, or he will be struck Out.
'Damn!'
Now Keiba Sato feels very bad as if his intentions have been completely seen through.
In this case, he can only try to swing the bat to get out of this pinch.
The small white ball flew to the inner corner as if it was about to hit the batter.
Keiba Sato, who has gradually become familiar with Tanpa's pitching, knows that this is the course of Tanpa's high drop Curveball.
'I'm not going to trip in the same place twice in a row!'
Keiba Sato decisively swings the bat!
But the baseball did not fall as he wished.
The small white ball, almost wiping his clothes, got into Chris's open Mitt.
SNAP!
"STRIKE BATTER OUT!!!"
On the strike zone, Keiba Sato's expression was as if he was suffering from stomach ache.
'It turned out to be an ordinary Straight ball! And that Pitch should still be a strike, rubbing the edge of the strike zone and flying into the catcher's Mitt.' He looked back at Chris in shock.
Keiba Sato smiled bitterly.
'It seems that I really do not have the talent to be a catcher, I have been tricked like this, and I still do not completely understand what is going on.'
Two Outs, no one on base.
"Third, third baseman, Tsuchihara-kun!"
"STRIKE!"
"STRIKE!"
The battery still uses two consecutive high-drop Curveballs to obtain the number of Strikes.
The count is two Strikes and no Ball!
As a result, the batter has to swing the third ball.
A flicker of wariness passed through Tsuchihara's gaze.
The ball-calling plan that Chris used now is almost the same as when he solved Keiba Sato before.
What does this mean?
This shows that the opponents have cracked their own tactics.
'In this case, I can only aim for Straight balls!'
'No, right now the catcher is likely to do the opposite and continue to use the high-drop Curveball!'
'Straight or Curve?'
'Straight or Curve?'
'What to do?'
Tsuchihara suddenly wondered, why did he have to be hesitant.
'Tanpa is different from Sawamura. His Straight balls and Breaking balls should be clearly distinguished.'
'As long as you calm down and observe calmly, you will be able to tell whether it is a Curveball or a Straight ball.'
Whoosh!
Just as Tsuchihara braced himself mentally, the white ball soared over.
Tsuchihara did not miss a single detail of the ball, and finally, he was convinced that it should be a Straight ball.
'The Curveball does not have such strong momentum!'
'Let's go!'
When the timing was right, Tsuchihara decisively swung the bat.
But just as he was about to hit the white ball with his bat, the harmless ball suddenly sank.
'No! Wait!'
Tsuchihara's face became ugly, and when he was just thinking, he seemed to have missed something.
Tanpa seems to have a third option besides Straight and Curve.
SNAP!
'He got me..'
"STRIKE BATTER OUT!!!"
Three ups, three downs, two strikeouts.
In the first half of the fourth game, Tanpa Koichiro's pitching was in the zone.
In the dugout of Hoshiryu High School, Everyone's faces became extremely heavy.
Even Hosho Ryuki, who was the Coach, had an ugly expression on his face.
"The pitcher who can freely switch between the Curveball, the Forkball, and the Straight ball is scary.
But even more scary is the Catcher! He seems to be able to see through our tactics. But it doesn't make sense, even if Oda swings at the Straight ball, it could also be a coincidence, isn't it? Doesn't he need more experiments to determine our tactics?"
Hosho Ryuki was puzzled.
...