Baseball: A Two-Way Player-Chapter 502 - 101: Shocking the Past and Present (Part 2)

On the pitcher’s mound, Kei Igawa clearly understood this principle as well, and his pitches were equally cautious: after grabbing a good count with the first outside fastball, the next two tricky sliders were both chosen by Matsuda Naohiro, bringing the count to 2 balls and 1 strike.

For the crucial fourth pitch, Kei Igawa sent the ball high towards Matsuda Naohiro’s inside corner, aiming to induce a pop fly; Matsuda Naohiro’s reaction was just as quick, the bat decisively swept out, sending the baseball in the direction of third base—a ground ball neither too fast nor too slow!

Almost simultaneously with hitting the ball, Matsuda Naohiro threw down his bat and sprinted towards first base like a starting cheetah; Orix’s third baseman Geman reacted just as swiftly, rushing forward to scoop up the ball and hurriedly threw it to first base.

The baseball’s trajectory was somewhat unpredictable in the air, adding some difficulty for first baseman T-Okada to catch it, especially as Matsuda Naohiro’s speed was quite fast, almost reaching the base.

With a "thud," the baseball flew into T-Okada’s glove as Matsuda Naohiro’s front foot nearly simultaneously reached the base, both looking towards the umpire, awaiting the decision—this call might just alter the historical timeline!

"Safe on base!" The first base umpire extended his arms.

In an instant, Yahoo Dome erupted in a tremendous wave of sound, the flames of hope ignited at this moment!

No outs, man on first base.

Following Matsuda Naohiro’s stride, batter number seven, Yanagida Yuuki, entered the batter’s box: pointing his bat forward, he immediately let out a loud "Ha" as a way to energize himself.

Yanagida Yuuki is a true power hitter, his batting stance aggressive, almost touching home plate as he hit—Kei Igawa and Ito Mitsuo exchanged a glance, deciding to show him some color first.

With a "swish," the arm swung violently, and a fastball with a menacing inside corner was thrown by Kei Igawa towards home plate; however, his poor control came into play at this moment, and the ball’s trajectory went awry, directly flying towards Yanagida Yuuki’s body.

Normally, in such situations, the batter would instinctively dodge to avoid being hit on the wrist, elbow, or other parts, leading to injury; surprisingly, Yanagida Yuuki stood motionless, choosing to take the hit by the pitch raw.

The baseball struck heavily on his back, causing Yanagida Yuuki’s face to darken slightly.

"Hit by pitch, batter awarded first base!" The home plate umpire indicated for Yanagida Yuuki to proceed to first base.

Tossing the bat aside, Yanagida Yuuki rubbed the spot on his back where the ball hit, while giving a thumbs up to Lin Guanglai on the bench—his gesture was somewhat touching to Lin Guanglai.

The atmosphere on site became increasingly fervent: no outs, men on first and second base, with only one step remaining to a full house of bases!

Batting eighth, Takeshima Shinya might be considered the most unstable player in this lineup: after all, compared to others who rely on hitting to make a living, Takeshima Shinya relies more on defense and guiding the pitcher; as such, his task in this at-bat was relatively simple—as long as he didn’t give the opponent a chance for a double play, wasting a few pitches would be good.

Indeed, upon taking the field, Takeshima Shinya engaged Kei Igawa in a tug-of-war: he continued to foul off pitches close to the strike zone, persistently battling Kei Igawa, and drove the count to 3 balls and 2 strikes.

On the eighth pitch of this at-bat, Ito Mitsuo suddenly guided Kei Igawa to throw an outside forkball, catching Takeshima Shinya off guard and unprepared, ultimately resulting in a swing and miss.

"Strikeout!" The umpire’s call was like a cold shower, dampening the enthusiasm of SoftBank fans and players slightly.

One out, men on first and second, and the atmosphere grew tense and thick; after such a missed swing, the next at-bat was critical, and the batter bore more pressure.

The entire atmosphere reached a tipping point.

The ninth batter, Nakamura Akira, stepped into the batter’s box: as the lubricant linking the team’s lineup, he certainly had the capability of hitting a key single; but considering the pressure on him now, it was hard for the audience not to sweat for him.

Another series of exchanges, another prolonged tug-of-war—Orix naturally did not want to become just a backdrop, and SoftBank decided to elevate Lin Guanglai to glory; the pitcher and the batter conceded nothing, bringing the count again to a full count of 3 balls and 2 strikes.

In a decisive pitch, while Nakamura Akira was unprepared, Ito Mitsuo subtly moved his glove to the outside low corner, intending to replicate the pitch that struck out Takeshima Shinya; Kei Igawa on the pitcher’s mound understood implicitly, adjusting before throwing the ball.

Almost as the ball flew towards home plate, Nakamura Akira’s body instinctively moved; yet his brain forcibly reclaimed control over his body, stopping the swing midway before continuing.

The ball thrown by the opponent dropped suddenly before reaching home plate, ultimately landing on the ground, barely covered by Ito Mitsuo.

"Ball four! Ball four! The prerequisite condition for a miracle has really appeared!" The commentator in the studio had just voiced this when his shout was completely drowned out by the full arena’s cheers, to no avail despite thick glass.

One out, bases loaded, and next up to bat is:

"Batting first, designated hitter, Lin Guanglai."

"Batting first, designated hitter, Lin Guanglai."

The moment has finally arrived; all eyes converged like a tide on Lin Guanglai in the on-deck circle.

At the center of the broadcast lens, Lin Guanglai’s face was as calm as water: he did not further interact with the onsite audience, nor did he glance at the pitcher on the mound constantly wiping sweat; he just picked up the black bat in his hands and slowly walked towards the batter’s box.

Stepping into the batter’s box, the soil’s texture was familiar and solid; behind him, Ito Mitsuo looked up at him with eyes full of complex emotions; on the pitcher’s mound, Kei Igawa kept taking deep breaths, trying to dispel the overwhelming pressure threatening to crush him.

Behind home plate, Ito Mitsuo’s right hand between his legs slowly signaled, and Kei Igawa put every ounce of strength into throwing the ball towards home plate—the baseball flew like a streak of fire, straight towards Lin Guanglai’s chest.

In this split second, Lin Guanglai’s body instinctively responded: shifting his weight backward to store energy, his hips and pelvis joint forces, twisting the entire body, arms whipping out as he directly met this inside pitch, using the most direct, concise, and violent method to swing the bat heavily.

"Thud——!!!"

A thunderous noise, unlike any previous hit, resonated under the dome, igniting the stadium’s passion like a volcanic eruption.

The baseball kept climbing up, the trajectory seeming to tear the sky, roaring up the stands, flying over the outfield audience, and finally "bang" it slammed into the LED screen of Eagle’s Vision.

Time seemed to stand still for a moment, Lin Guanglai stood there, watching the ball disappear from his view; in the next second, he tossed the bat, clenched his fists, spread his arms, and let out a long howl at the sky.

"Grand slam home run, achieved!"