Baseball: A Two-Way Player-Chapter 257 - 127: Record Breaker

With two outs, he swung his bat and swept the ball deep down the first base line. The ball landed fair and continued rolling quickly towards right field, resulting in a double. He then seized the chance to steal third base.

The cleanup hitter and shortstop Matsuboto Gou continued his impressive performance today, sticking to his contact-hitting approach, delivering an economical single to bring the runner home.

"A timely hit—Imperial Capital narrows the gap to 2 points! 5 to 3! The game isn’t over yet!"

Returning to home plate, Takuro Ito celebrated with his teammates, feeling a weight lift off his shoulders.

In this game, he had started but failed to suppress the opponent, allowing them to score 5 runs—this run relieved a lot of his pressure, fueling his determination to contribute to the team’s victory with his hitting.

Although Waseda Jitsugyo allowed a run, unlike the chaos in the first inning, the players now remained relatively calm—the past few half-innings had built their confidence, giving them absolute belief they could respond quickly in their offensive rounds.

Nonetheless, the reality was that the score gap had shrunk, and the suspense of the game was back at a 5-3 score.

During the changeover in the fifth inning, Lin Guanglai quickly donned his batting gear and walked to the open area in front of the dugout to take practice swings.

Under the sunlight, his tall and upright figure shone brilliantly, his bat whistling through the air like a beautiful marble sculpture from ancient Greece—live broadcast cameras were locked on him.

Seeing his handsome face on the screen, many viewers, besides marveling at nature’s favoritism, felt a tinge of anticipation:

So far in today’s game, Lin Guanglai has hit home runs in two consecutive at-bats—will there be more?

Moments later, the broadcast at Koshien announced that the lead-off batter for this half-inning for Waseda Jitsugyo was the third batter, Kenshu Yasuda.

Having roughly learned the habits of this reliever from his teammates, Kenshu Yasuda was in no rush to swing, but patiently tangled with Ishikura Masaya—the longer the battle, the better he could read the pitch and hit it.

After a back-and-forth of six or seven pitches, Kenshu Yasuda was caught by a tricky high breaking ball, forcing a grounder, and was thrown out before reaching first base.

Confirming the third batter Yasuda was out, the live broadcast camera instantly shifted focus back to Lin Guanglai’s face.

Taking advantage of the break, commentator Sakaguchi Yuji began introducing the historical records to the audience:

"In the nearly hundred-year history of Summer Koshien, only 45 people have hit two home runs in a single game—the last being Lin Guanglai himself last summer;"

"In the 93 years of Summer League, only two players have hit three home runs in a single game: Kiyohara Kazuhiko from PL Academy against Eiyou High School in the 1984 tournament, and Hirata Ryosuke from Osaka Tsubaki against Tohoku High School in 2005."

"And now, Lin Guanglai, recognized as the top talent of his generation, stands at the crossroads of history once again!"

"In this game, he has matched his own record of two consecutive home runs from last year; every step he takes next will create new history!"

"If he hits another home run in this game, he will tie with the previously mentioned two players, becoming the third in history; moreover, if this at-bat results in an out-of-the-park home run, three consecutive home runs will set an entirely new historical record!"

"Dear audience, how fortunate we are! Every minute of this game from now on, we are witnessing history!"

Sakaguchi Yuji’s words slowly unfolded, stirring up the atmosphere of the entire game, and making everyone watching feel a bit tense.

Just as the audience’s emotions were reaching a peak, the broadcast at Koshien echoed throughout the stadium:

"Fourth batter, pitcher, Mr. Lin."

"Fourth batter, pitcher, Mr. Lin."

"Woooooo——!!!!!"

Koshien erupted into noise, thousands of spectators let out a tremendous roar; in the Alps Stand, Lin Guanglai’s dedicated cheer song played concurrently.

As the first person rose from their seat to watch, then ten, a hundred, a thousand, ten thousand... in the end, no one in the entire Koshien stands could sit quietly anymore.

Countless people leaned forward, eager to see more clearly; some even dared not blink, fearing to miss the chance to witness history.

Even Sakaguchi Yuji, who had been talking non-stop, fell silent: akin to the unwritten rule of not mentioning a no-hitter in progress, Sakaguchi Yuji feared that emphasizing this achievement could cause Lin Guanglai to miss the opportunity to make history.

As a professional in the industry, he knew how difficult it was to hit three consecutive home runs—something even players in Major League Baseball who hit over 50 home runs a season might not achieve in a lifetime;

Yet, as an experienced commentator, Sakaguchi Yuji hoped that this historical moment, possibly discussed endlessly in years to come, would be something he could personally witness and commentate on.

Suppressing his excitement, Sakaguchi Yuji began explaining the pitching and batting situation:

"The first pitch, an outside slider, perfectly controlled—strike."

"The second pitch, still an outside ball, but this time a fastball—no swing from Lin, ball."

"The third pitch, catcher Ishikawa Ryo stubbornly called for another outside pitch, again it was passed, the umpire called a strike."

"The substitute pitcher Ishikura Masaya is quite composed, securing a 1-ball 2-strike advantage after three pitches—it’s clear that Imperial Capital is resolutely executing their suppressing power-hitting strategy, continuously pitching outside balls."

"Especially since Lin Guanglai is a left-handed batter, facing outside pitches from a left-handed pitcher feels entirely different."

"The batter is cornered into having to swing now, let’s see how Lin Guanglai responds next."

From the commentary booth, Sakaguchi Yuji rubbed his palms, finding them sweaty—he was possibly more nervous than Lin Guanglai in the batting box: though hitting two consecutive home runs is a remarkable achievement, Koshien has always been a stage for prodigies, so it’s natural for commentator Sakaguchi Yuji to have high expectations for Lin Guanglai.

In the batter’s box, Lin Guanglai raised his bat again and stood ready, waiting for the pitch; shortly, Ishikura Masaya was prepared as well, his arm swung down to throw: the starting motion, the release point from his left hand, and the pitch’s trajectory were almost identical to the previous ones—as the catcher, Ishikawa Ryo indeed showed courage, daring to call for four similar outside pitches against a top-level batter.

Lin Guanglai’s reflexes quickly reacted, instinctively prompting his body to swing without hesitation, attacking the pitch with full force.

"Crack—!!!"

For the third time this game, Lin Guanglai’s swung bat connected solidly with the incoming baseball—but unlike the previous two times, this time Lin Guanglai didn’t rush to run the bases.

Just from the satisfying feedback in his palms at the moment of hitting, he knew—

"It’s gone!!!"

Standing still, he watched the ball fly out of the field, over the stands, and into the crowd, causing ripples of excitement. Only then did Lin Guanglai start running the bases, circling the infield and scoring at home plate.

He didn’t seem particularly excited, as if it was just a commonplace occurrence.