Baseball: A Two-Way Player-Chapter 568 - 134: Winds and Thunder Stir Across Kyushu

As his teammates filled all three bases, Lin Guanglai walked steadily and powerfully from the on-deck circle to the batter's box next to home plate. 𝚏𝕣𝕖𝚎𝚠𝚎𝚋𝚗𝐨𝐯𝕖𝕝.𝕔𝐨𝕞

The journey wasn't particularly long, but at that moment, time seemed to stretch on endlessly. As Lin Guanglai advanced, the flashlights in the press section continuously flickered, and the home crowd erupted into thunderous cheers—all anticipating that he could seal the victory and secure the championship with a long hit!

Lin Guanglai thought the same; of course, he was also prepared for the Hanshin Tigers to choose to intentionally walk him, at the cost of one run.

If that happened, he would feel a bit disappointed; yet he firmly believed that his teammates would retaliate with a fierce offense, making the Hanshin Tigers pay the price.

But just as Lin Guanglai stepped into the batter's box, he noticed that from the Hanshin Tigers' bench, their manager Wada Toyohiko came out and signaled to the umpire for a pitcher change—and the one brought in was Randy Mason, the American giant who started the first game of the series.

"So, does their manager or the players themselves think they're capable of striking me out, which is why they're choosing to change pitchers at this moment...?" Lin Guanglai stared puzzled at the Hanshin bench, thinking this to himself.

But soon, the emotions in his eyes were swept away, and the corners of his mouth curved upwards slightly, "In that case, I'll just have to give my answer with actual actions."

The Hanshin Tigers' actions could be seen in a certain way as underestimating Lin Guanglai—they thought that by relying on a foreign pitcher who'd rested just over three days, they could strike out Lin Guanglai and resolve the current bases-loaded crisis; if so, Lin Guanglai didn't mind showing them something.

Mason quickly replaced Ando Yuuya on the mound, began his final warm-up in the center of the field, while Lin Guanglai watched Mason's warm-up from outside the batter's box.

It has to be said that in terms of stamina and endurance, no one in Nippon Professional Baseball today can compete with Randy Mason:

His peer Shetsu Shou can barely manage 6 to 7 innings now, but Mason can still come in as a reliever with just three days' rest and throw with good velocity—his performance is beyond what mere talent can explain.

It's said he places great emphasis on endurance training in running, regardless of game days or off-season, he maintains the highest frequency and intensity of stamina training among the Hanshin team.

Because of this, although Lin Guanglai was determined to make a statement, he didn't underestimate Mason in the slightest.

Soon, Mason finished his warm-up throws; as the cheers of more than forty thousand home fans at the Yahoo Dome roared back to life, Lin Guanglai stepped into the batter's box, ready in his batting stance.

Almost simultaneously as he entered the batter's box, Lin Guanglai immersed himself fully into a state of flow:

The din inside Yahoo Dome was filtered by his brain into white noise-like background sound, nothing but his breathing and heartbeat were audible;

His vision narrowed sharply, leaving only the pitching mound 18.44 meters away, and his teammates prowling around the bases, waiting for their chance.

With one out and the bases loaded, Lin Guanglai stood before the massive gates of victory and championship, the key to triumph held in his hands—that LIN21 bat gleaming under the ballpark lights, ready to unlock the final challenge.

Behind Lin Guanglai, Fujiwara Akira shielded the batter's possible line of sight with his wide, heavy catcher's mitt, while his other hand moved swift and covertly beneath, until it finally set in position.

For the critical first pitch of the showdown, Fujiwara Akira chose to trust Mason's power and control, positioning the battle at Lin Guanglai's inside corner, intending to apply internal pressure and unsettle his stance.

Randy Mason nodded slowly, fixing his gaze as he drew a deep breath, lifted his leg, and swung his arm, transferring the force through his torso to his fingertips.

A fastball about 150km/h barreled in on an inside line like a white bullet, whistling faintly as it sliced through the air straight at Lin Guanglai's chest!

This is a common strategy for confident pitchers on the first pitch, meant to push the batter back, disrupt his stance, and establish inside corner dominance while opening space for outside pitches.

Eyes locked on the incoming ball, Lin Guanglai's pupils contracted slightly, the ball vividly clear in his vision; instinctively, his body wanted to retreat half a step, but his mind refused this retreating impulse a moment later.

With the aid of his strong core muscles, Lin Guanglai steadied his balance immediately, his body and bat stood like a rock, unwavering, not yielding an inch.

As the ball crossed home plate, the home umpire's deep voice sounded from behind Lin Guanglai: "Strike!"