Although the freshmen performed well, Sawamura didn't think much of it.
'Most of them came from junior leagues and were quite confident in their abilities. Given their skill levels, such results were expected.'
Conversely, if they lacked even this level of ability and still dared to challenge themselves at Seidou High School, Sawamura could only say they didn't know their own limits.
Once their tests ended, it would be time for Takashima's best recruits to take the stage.
Among all the freshmen, these recruits were the grand finale.
This arrangement was intentional for several reasons.
Setting powerful players as the finale not only follows tradition but also has significant mental benefits.
Firstly, the stark gap in strength would make the previously confident challengers feel what awaits them in the team.
If they were forced to confront the skills of these strong newcomers without realizing their limitations, it would be hard for them to accept their positions on the team.
This was Rei's objective: to make them aware of the strength disparity as it would be easier to convince them to leave afterward.
As for those who performed equally well as her special recruits?
These players would be pleasant surprises and would undoubtedly join the ranks of regular members alongside the special recruits.
"Yuuki Masashi!"
The first special recruit to step up was Yuuki Masashi.
To showcase the strength gap effectively, a fierce competitor had to go first.
In Takashima's evaluation, Yuuki Masashi was undoubtedly the best physically among the new recruits.
He was the cleanup hitter for his team and led his squad to national competitions with impressive results.
His skills were exceptional across the board, especially with his powerful arms.
His presence alone was enough to intimidate the other newcomers.
"That's the younger brother of Tetsu-san!"
"He looks even stronger than his brother."
"He's extraordinary."
The second and third-year players who came to assist whispered among themselves.
Hearing this, Sawamura lifted his head.
'Finally, familiar faces began to appear.'
Sawamura had no doubts about Masashi's abilities.
Unlike his older brother, Yuuki Tetsuya, who was a hardworking genius, Masashi was a true talent.
He possessed natural, unmatched strength and a bold swing, making him the quintessential power hitter.
This was precisely the type of batter that Seidou High School lacked the most right now.
Currently, there were only two and a half players in the team capable of hitting for distance.
One was Miyuki Kazuya, the other was Sawamura Eijun, and the half was Furuya.
Although Furuya could hit long balls and had excellent power, his swings were too inconsistent, so he could only be counted as half.
With the addition of Yuuki Masashi, Seidou's batting lineup received a good boost.
Whoosh!
The deafening sound of air being sliced through filled the space.
All the newcomers were dumbfounded by Masashi's pitch.
Previously, the farthest throw recorded was just 87 meters.
That distance was impressive, but compared to Masashi, it was nothing.
Masashi launched the ball over 100 meters with minimal error
In comparison to them, Masashi was on another level.
Takashima Rei tapped her notebook with satisfaction.
Sure enough, her judgment was correct.
Masashi's talent was among the top three of this year's recruits.
"Yui Kaoru!"
It seemed that Takashima Rei might be doing this intentionally, as she lined up almost all the strongest players at the front.
Whoosh!
"90 meters! Range: 0.95 meters!!"
The result left everyone even more shocked than when they witnessed Yuuki Masashi's throw.
"So strong!"
"It was understandable for Yuuki to throw far given his build, but Yui? At barely 1.6 meters tall, how did he achieve such distance?"
"It's Yui Kaoru! Is it really him?"
"Who else could it be?"
"Truly impressive."
"Itou Taiga!"
"90 meters! Range: 1.23 meters!"
"Hirota Hikaru!"
"85 meters! Range: 0.91 meters!"
"Asada Hirofumi!"
"85 meters! Range: 0.5 meters!"
"Matsumoto Jun!"
"95 meters! Range: 0.96 meters!"
"Kagami Kouta!"
"100 meters! Range: 0.8 meters!"
"Seto Takuma!"
"100 meters! Range: 1.34 meters!!"
"Okumura Koushuu!"
"100 meters! Range: 0.9 meters!!"
Sawamura smiled when he saw Okumura.
'He still joined Seidou, good!'
Although he had seen him in the dorm before, seeing him fine and well made Sawamura happy that his butterfly did not affect this part.
'It's really nostalgic.'
Eijun really missed the young wolf and was looking forward to playing with him again.
One by one, the players took their turns, each scoring commendable results.
The freshmen, who had felt proud of their achievements, were now left speechless.
These special recruits were like monsters.
"They're the elite group specially recruited by the school."
"It's over. I thought I had a chance, but now it seems I overestimated myself."
"So strong!"
"Even the Senpais seem…"
"If Sawamura's generation was the golden age, then this generation might be the super platinum era!"
A second-string player remarked, struck by the newcomers' impressive displays.
Even as an upperclassman, he was taken aback by how the freshmen were performing.
Players continued to take their turns, and the scores were recorded.
It must be said that the recruits Takashima had gathered, who initially appeared to be misfits, were proving their worth in skill.
Even their average was remarkable, not to mention each had their own unique talents.
With that, the strength of these newcomers was almost impossible to gauge.
"Nishiyama Kibo!"
Nishiyama was the second to last player to step up.
By this point, the newcomers had become numb to the special recruits' astonishing performances.
They stared blankly at the results, their emotions mixed.
So when Nishiyama took the field, there wasn't much of a stir.
Of course, not everyone felt that way.
There were still some interested parties, like Yui Kaoru and Sawamura.
Before long, Nishiyama became the center of attention.
Boom!
The massive sound of the ball cutting through the air left everyone in awe.
"What was that?"
"How could it be so fast!!!"
"120 meters! Range: 1.1!!"
"Oi isn't that him!"
"I thought I was wrong but it should be him!"
"Nishiyama, the Ace of the National team!!!"
"Doesn't that mean Seidou got the best battery in this batch?! Being the Ace and the main Catcher!!"
"Oh my god!!!"
The seniors from the second and third years who came to help with the skill test were completely stunned.
"Who is that person?"
"Another big shot!"
"Impressive!"
"Last year, there seemed to be someone like this."
"You mean Furuya!"
"No way, the guy in front of us..."
Even some promising candidates had already shaken their confidence, but they were still shocked when they saw Nishiyama perform.
Such a super rookie is hard to find anywhere in the country, let alone at Seidou High School.
On the surface, Takashima Rei appeared calm, arms crossed, but inside she was on the cloud.
If she wanted to intimidate the players eliminated from the practice squad, it wouldn't be enough to rely solely on initial performances.
To truly achieve that, a strong opening and closing were needed.
The beginning was entrusted to Yuuki Masashi, and the ending to the best pitcher in his year, Nishiyama Kibo.
It was worth her effort to bring Nishiyama to Seidou.
When she learned that Nishiyama was considering joining Seidou, she wasn't the only one keeping an eye on him; the admissions directors from all other prestigious schools had their eyes on him too.
Compared to other elite schools, Seidou High had its disadvantages. After all, their current Ace pitcher was a rising legend, moreover, he was a second year.
In the short term, Nishiyama had little chance of taking the Ace position from Sawamura.
However, watching such a promising talent fall into someone else's hands was unacceptable for Takashima so she made her move.
"To be honest, I can't promise you much in the immediate. What I can offer is a chance to compete. As one of the best pitchers in your year, are you interested in going head-to-head with the best pitcher in the country to prove your determination to be the Ace?"
Sometimes, prodding works better than simply offering benefits.
While Seidou High could match the benefits of other prestigious schools, they could also promise Ace numbers.
Just offering advantages wouldn't be enough to win Nishiyama over, so Takashima decided to take a different approach.
She directly set it up for him to compete with Sawamura.
Initially, Takashima lacked confidence. Even she would find it hard to waste a year and a half waiting for the Ace position.
However, to her surprise, Nishiyama agreed almost immediately.
"I want to see this pitcher up close!"
That was his only response, but it was filled with enthusiasm.
"Wait a moment!"
After finishing his pitching, Nishiyama's eyes, sharp as searchlights, were fixed on Sawamura.
Sawamura took the initiative to pause the training and called over his friend Kariba.
"Go get the speed gun from our activity room!"
Once Kariba left, he turned back to Nishiyama: "You're a pitcher, right? What's your current throwing speed?"
"I'm not sure; I haven't checked in a while. My highest speed was around 136 km/h!" (84 mph)
"136!"
"Is that possible? It felt much faster just now."
Whispers spread around, but they continued their conversation, unfazed.
"What about your accuracy?"
Sawamura took out a pen and notebook, making serious notes.
"I can throw to the corners, and nine squares if I tried but I am not confident!"
'Nine squares!'
Sawamura looked at Nishiyama in surprise.
Based on Nishiyama's earlier pitching, if he combined that with nine squares level accuracy...
'His current pitching ability could likely earn him a spot on the first string.'
'It was hard to say compared to Nori-senpai, but he was definitely stronger than Kaneda-chi and Toujou!'
"I got it!"
Just a few moments later, Kariba returned with the speed gun.
"Let's measure your average speed now!"
"Sure!"
Nishiyama readily agreed to Sawamura's suggestion.
The others didn't show any resentment at Sawamura's special treatment.
In baseball, strength is the ultimate currency, and Nishiyama's ability warranted this attention.
Whoosh!
"139 km/h!" (86 mph)
Whoosh!
"141 km/h!" (87 mph)
Whoosh!
"140 km/h!!!" (~87 mph)
After testing several pitches, Nishiyama maintained a speed of around 140 km/h.
According to him, he also had two breaking balls in his arsenal.
'On paper, he was definitely not less than Nori-senpai.'
Of course, true strength needed to be verified on the field.
But it was clear he was already a highly skilled pitcher.
The better catchers among the freshmen looked at Nishiyama with eager eyes, clearly wanting to team up and catch his pitches.
"Not bad!"
Sawamura nodded in approval.
"When the coach comes back for the second round of testing, be prepared."
"Yes!"
Nishiyama's expression was composed, showing neither haughtiness nor subservience.
Neither was it easy to read his true thoughts.
Sawamura didn't mind, signaling the team to continue the tests.
…