Baseball: A Two-Way Player-Chapter 442 - 74: A Sweeping Victory

"Lin Guanglai, another solo homer! SoftBank’s lead has further expanded; it’s still the fifth inning and they are already ahead by 5 runs. For a climax series, this is already a really significant gap!"

"Let’s take a look at the replay of this ball—this, oh... Logically speaking, when facing a batter in such fine form, a walk should be the most reasonable choice at this moment; the catcher chose to call an inside pitch, but the pitch from Takayuki Kishi missed the target by about half to a whole ball’s distance—indeed, the Seibu pitching and catching duo was affected by the full count, wanting to see if they could get the out..."

"But against Lin Guanglai, who is in outstanding form today, this kind of inside pitch really has no standing power and was immediately hit hard and sent flying!"

When his eyes saw the baseball fly up to the Yahoo Dome stands for the third time this game, Takeshita Yohei first passionately narrated as per the usual, then began analyzing the situation from a third-party perspective for the viewers in front of their TVs.

After he finished speaking, as the Seibu Lions’ representative for today’s crucial game, Ito Kei let out a barely noticeable sigh before speaking with a serious tone:

"Watanabe, the Seibu manager, really needs to think carefully about how to strategize the rest of this game—frankly speaking, a 5-run gap is neither too big nor too small; it hasn’t reached a point where it is completely unreachable but is also not something that can be chased up easily."

"Why do we always say the first game of the first round in the climax series is so important? Because in a best-of-three format, the team that wins the first game can directly proceed to match point and gain the upper hand in the second game."

"Whether to strategically abandon this game to save the bullpen strength and go all out for tomorrow’s second game, or to believe in our players’ ability to mount a comeback and fight SoftBank head-on—it’s now the time where the team’s manager must make a decision."

By the player zone on the field, Seibu’s manager, Watanabe Hisashi, sat there with his arms crossed, battling internally in his mind.

To give up or to continue? That is the question.

If our batting lineup could launch a series of consecutive hits in the following innings, a 5-run deficit isn’t all that large; however, judging by Takayuki Kishi’s form today, continuing the fight will surely consume a large portion of the bullpen’s strength;

But if we strategically give up and let Takayuki pitch one to two more innings and then bring in the losing pitcher to handle, it essentially transfers all the pressure to tomorrow’s do-or-die second game, with which Watanabe Hisashi himself is also a bit dissatisfied.

After much consideration and discussion with other coaching staff members, Watanabe Hisashi ultimately made up his mind, issuing his final command:

"Let Takayuki finish this inning first; if the 5-run gap remains unchanged and we can claw back a bit in the top of the sixth, then let’s fight SoftBank for one more game! Otherwise, just bring in the younger players to handle the loss."

In the bottom of the fifth, after Lin Guanglai hit his second home run of the game, Takayuki Kishi quickly readjusted his mindset, consecutively dispatching subsequent SoftBank batters through flyouts; although the process was still somewhat nerve-wracking, he managed to uphold the 5-run gap.

Meanwhile, it didn’t take long for the ideal situation to unfold for Watanabe Hisashi in the player’s zone—the top of the sixth inning saw Seibu Lions launch their best offensive surge of the entire game.

The sixth batter, Seibu’s primary slugger, who returned from injury in the mid-to-late season, Nakamura Gouya, showcased his formidable ability as a four-time home run champion: Facing a 1-ball, 2-strikes unfavorable situation, he swung decisively at Shetsu Shou’s breaking ball directed towards the strike zone’s inside corner, forcibly sending the ball into the stands with his monstrous strength surpassing 100 kilograms.

Encouraged by such a timely home run, Seibu batters followed it up with a fierce attack, even the composed Shetsu Shou couldn’t hold firm—quickly, the situation on the field turned into one-out with bases loaded.

Seeing this, home audience members in the stands grew restless, repeatedly issuing boos and jeers, trying to disrupt Seibu’s batters in this way.

"SoftBank players need to be careful; this is Seibu’s best offensive opportunity of the game—pitching and catching coordination, and infield and outfield defenses must remain steady! If they can hold without conceding runs in this situation, it would boost Seibu players’ morale no less than consecutive home runs."

In the studio, Kohkubo, who had been watching the match with a relatively calm demeanor, instantly shifted to a serious expression. Meanwhile, by his side, Ito Kei silently kept his eyes fixed on the situation on the field.

Even when the team was facing a major crisis, from SoftBank’s side, Akiyama Koji still showed no inclination to switch pitchers; he simply stood up from his seat in the player zone, walked into the open area, signaling the catcher to go communicate with the players quickly.

At such a potential turning point where the team could shift from prosperity to decline, Akiyama Koji chose to trust Shetsu Shou, the ace he had groomed himself!