Baseball: A Two-Way Player-Chapter 604 - 150: Punitive Pitching
As we reach mid-June, the 2016 exchange match is nearing its end. With SoftBank leading by 1.5 wins over second-ranked Chiba Lotte, they sit atop the exchange match standings—given the current situation, they're poised to secure their third victory in four years. 𝙧𝙚𝙚𝔀𝒆𝓫𝓷𝙤𝓿𝒆𝙡.𝒄𝙤𝓶
Despite Matsuzaka Daisuke's return being uncertain and Shetsu Shou having completely faded from the main pitching rotation, with Wada Yu's return, SoftBank's pitching lineup still maintains ample dominance:
Besides Lin Guanglai and Wada Yu, two top-tier pitchers, Chika Huangda, who just transitioned from reliever to starter this season, has also performed exceptionally well. Together, they form SoftBank's pitching fortress, enabling them to lord over teams like the Ham Team and Rode with a significant lead in the Pacific League.
Especially Lin Guanglai, in his last season before heading to America, he's been like a Celestial God: having started 10 games this season, he boasts a luxurious record of 9 wins and 1 no-decision, averaging 10 strikeouts per game with ease; it's even become a minimum baseline.
After finishing a three-game series against the Yakult Swallows at the Meiji Shrine, without a moment's rest, SoftBank's players boarded a plane from Tokyo to Osaka the next morning, arriving at their base in Hyogo by noon—yes, their final opponent in the series is none other than the Hanshin Tigers, with whom Lin Guanglai shares an intricate bond.
"Who's in charge of recording Hanshin's starting rotation table? Who are they expected to start tonight?" Before the afternoon's practice session began, in the Koshien visiting team's locker room, Kodama Komei turned to his assistant and asked—the lineup deadline was approaching, and he wanted to adjust the batting order based on Hanshin's starter.
"Let me check," the assistant coach glanced at his forms and confirmed the most likely starter for Hanshin today before revealing a mischievous smile, teasing, "Hmm... Coach, you might have to pull all the right-handed batters or position them at the bottom of the order—Hanshin's probable starter today is Fujinami Jintaro."
"Ah, Fujinami... that means we'll have to make significant adjustments to the lineup—looks like we have some work ahead," Kodama Komei rubbed his forehead, showing an expression of concern, quickly reminding the players, "Hanshin's starter today might be Fujinami, right-handed batters need to be careful while hitting to avoid injuries!"
A sparse chuckle echoed in the locker room, but Lin Guanglai, who had a certain camaraderie with Fujinami, sitting in the corner, couldn't laugh.
If one had to describe Fujinami Jintaro's season in a word, "high start, low descent" fits perfectly:
Having achieved double-digit wins in his debut season and even clinched the strikeout king title last year, Fujinami Jintaro was once deemed the future ace pitcher of the Hanshin Tigers; however, this season, his performance suddenly collapsed.
The control issues that plagued him since high school have fully erupted, resulting in his prolonged poor form: particularly, he struggles with controlling his pitches to right-handed batters' inner corners, with pitches that drift, remaining uncontrollable, making him a nightmare for right-handed batters—in the past two seasons, he has consistently held the league's record for most hit-by-pitches, including the infamous head shot chaos, repeatedly.
Just as Kodama Komei arranged before tonight's game, whenever Fujinami Jintaro takes the mound, many team managers opt to use as few right-handed batters as possible, often resorting to pinch hitters instead, fearing that a hit-by-pitch might ruin their star right-handed batter without recourse.
During private meetings in the off-season, Fujinami Jintaro himself sought Lin Guanglai's advice on control issues. Based on Fujinami's narrative, Lin Guanglai felt that multiple factors contributed to his comrade's significant decline.
Firstly, Fujinami undoubtedly lacks proper techniques to control his body, especially after entering professional baseball, with increased training intensity and muscle mass further exacerbating his originally mediocre coordination and control abilities; continuous hit-by-pitches and head shot incidents increased his mental pressure while pitching, further impairing control performance.
But beyond personal issues, Hanshin Tigers' development and utilization of him might be the biggest reason for the sudden downfall of this genius, once on par with Lin Guanglai and Ohtani Shohai—to put it bluntly, Hanshin Tigers' development system could be described as "inept".
Whether Lin Guanglai or Ohtani Shohai, SoftBank and the Ham Team used a protective approach in their early careers, limiting appearances to roughly 22 games per season, gradually increasing the number of innings pitched based on plans and conditions; when Ohtani Shohai struggled with early control, the Ham Team kept him in the minor leagues to build confidence and get acclimated gradually.
