'…Shit!'
The sensation in his hands clearly told him he had guessed wrong!
The opponent hadn't pitched the ball exactly as he expected.
This was plagiarism, a modification of his own tactics.
At that moment, Sawamura's anger flared.
The opponent was too careless, blatantly copying his tactics but altering them.
'How shameless!'
The white ball, after being hit, bounced and was caught by the first baseman.
Instead of returning to first base, Yamazaki Kento threw the ball to second base.
The shortstop from Yamamori High School, who had been waiting there, stepped on second base and then relayed the ball back to first base.
"OUT!"
"OUT!"
Double play!
Facing no Outs with a runner on first base, Yamamori High School executed a beautiful double play.
Their previously low momentum surged dramatically.
Sawamura, dejected, returned to the dugout.
His teammates quickly came over to comfort their Ace.
"Everyone makes mistakes, and even the best players can falter. An occasional mistake is nothing."
"Just come back strong next time!"
None of the teammates blamed Sawamura. Instead, they showed a very easygoing attitude.
But Sawamura's face was red from embarrassment.
How could he explain what just happened?
No matter how he explained it, it seemed wrong.
What a shame!
If there had been a crack in the ground, Sawamura would have gladly crawled into it.
He thought he had outsmarted the opponent only to be outsmarted himself.
With his own tactics nonetheless.
"Yes! We can't dwell in the past! Lost hits won't come back! We have to score more!" So he decided to hide it with emotions.
"Eh?"
"Huh?"
"Yeah, right!" Which made his teammates bewildered as he suddenly became loud and vocal.
"Now, let's cheer for the next batter! We are counting on you CAP!"
Ping!
With a good hit, Miyuki got on base.
"Yeah!"
"As expected of you!"
"Nice batting!"
"Follow suit Shiratsu!"
Ping!
"OUT!"
Unfortunately, Shiratsu's assignation attempt failed and he couldn't sustain the offensive.
Seidou High School's offense ended at the fifth batter.
In the top of the seventh inning, Yamamori launched a fierce counterattack.
Ping!
Leading the charge was Yamazaki Kento.
The player who had been guarded by Sawamura and Miyuki finally showed his prowess.
Against Kawakami's tricky breaking ball, he made a powerful hit to the outfield.
He raced to second base in one swift motion.
The situation: no Outs, runner on second base.
'They are finally starting their attack, huh?'
With Seidou High School ahead by three points and only three innings left, Miyuki Kazuya judged that Yamamori wouldn't be satisfied with just one run.
'So, the game calling should be focused on tricky breaking balls.'
Unexpectedly, Yamamori High School played an unconventional card.
'A bunt!'
Ping!
The second batter's bunt advanced Yamazaki to third base.
The situation changed from no Outs with a runner on second base to one Out with a runner on third base.
It was clear that Yamamori High School was determined to score, no matter what.
'At this point, we should focus on getting outs and deal with the next batter.'
Miyuki had the same plan.
This was how the game unfolded.
Yamamori High School adopted a forced scoring tactic without hesitation.
They sacrificed one more Out to bring Yamazaki home.
The score was now 3-1.
The gap between the teams was reduced to just two points.
"There's no point dwelling on that run. Let's concentrate on the next batter," Miyuki signaled to Kawakami.
At this stage, they had already secured two Outs.
Despite losing a point, the situation wasn't entirely dire.
At least in Miyuki's view, their situation wasn't hopeless.
Kawakami nodded, putting the impact of that run out of his mind.
He focused on facing the batter.
His current opponent was the fourth batter from Yamamori High School, the catcher, Kotari Kazuto.
A batter who had been outsmarted by Sawamura's fastball twice before.
'Sawamura has his style, and you have yours. Show your winning shot here!'
Kawakami's winning shot was a slider that dropped sharply toward the batter's feet.
This pitch had a significant break, and its tricky placement made it difficult for the batter to swing.
It was a high-quality breaking ball.
'Here it comes!'
Seeing Miyuki's signal, Kawakami seemed to channel all his energy.
He threw the pitch with a sidearm delivery.
Whoosh!
The ball seemed to come from behind the batter's head.
Facing this unexpected pitch, Kotari Kazuto remained calm.
He stepped back, fully stretching his stance.
Aiming carefully at the incoming ball, he took a solid swing.
Ping!
The ball soared into the sky.
From his position, Miyuki Kazuya watched in disbelief, his expression darkening.
'He had anticipated this!!'
'Even the course was predicted!!!'
'The ball was clearly intended for a hit!!!!'
"O-OUT OF THE PARK!!!!!!"
"OOOH!!"
"What was that?!"
"Suddenly a homerun like that!!"
"Was Kawakami's pitch bad?"
"No, the batter was anticipating it!"
The white ball traveled nearly 100 meters, soaring from left field into the stands.
In the Batter's Box, Kazuto was smiling widely.
Although they hadn't been able to defeat Sawamura Eijun, they were still holding their ground against the other opponents.
'If Seidou High School continued to be overconfident and let Sawamura stay in the outfield position, Yamamori had no problem staging a dramatic comeback.'
A clean home run had reduced the gap between the two teams to just one point.
The score was now 3-2.
In Seidou High School's dugout, Coach Ochiai was increasingly restless. He stood up and walked toward Coach Kataoka.
As he walked, he mentally prepared his words.
Coach Ochiai wasn't sure how to persuade his Boss.
But he believed they couldn't take any more risks.
'The two runs they had lost were not entirely Kawakami's fault; the catcher also had some responsibility.'
'But the situation was as it was, and the opponent was clearly well-prepared.'
'They had a strategy for dealing with anyone other than Sawamura.'
If the opponent faced Sawamura Eijun, with Yamamori High's current attack power, scoring would be very challenging.
This was clear not just to Seidou but to Yamamori as well.
They had come up with a countermeasure against Kawakami from the very start.
Otherwise, it wouldn't make sense that Kawakami was targeted so aggressively right after he came in.
'Similarly, Furuya was likely to be targeted next.'
'In this situation, the semifinals and finals seemed like distant concerns. Sawamura had to be brought back as soon as possible.'
Otherwise, if they stumbled in this game, they would have no chance at the finals or semifinals.
When Coach Ochiai reached Coach Kataoka, he didn't have a chance to speak.
Coach Kataoka spoke first.
"One hit!"
This was the limit of his tolerance.
If Kawakami allowed another hit now, he would immediately bring Sawamura back.
But if Kawakami could stabilize the situation this time,
The outcome would be vastly different.
In this Koshien tournament, Sawamura Eijun remained steady.
Even with his recent improvements to his fastball, his performance had subtly enhanced.
Furuya's progress was even more significant!
If not for Sawamura's monstrous talent and achievements, Furuya Satoru would likely be a national sensation by now.
'If Kawakami's performance improved further, Seidou's entire pitching lineup would be perfect.'
But how could Kawakami improve?
It required both opportunity and trust.
If Kawakami was replaced now, he would likely stagnate.
Being in his third year, he had only about four months left to contribute to the baseball club.
Coach Kataoka remained steadfast in his original intention.
Of course, he wouldn't sacrifice the team's interests.
If Kawakami failed to meet expectations, Sawamura would be brought back to the mound before the situation got out of hand.
What is the role of a trump card?
Isn't it to lead the team to victory in crucial moments?
Coach Kataoka was resolute, and Coach Ochiai had nothing more to say.
In fact, Coach Kataoka's plan was similar to Coach Ochiai's opinion.
The only difference was that he was a bit softer and more willing to give bench players a chance.
…
T/N: Thank you all for reading and!!
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