To be honest, Tanba didn't throw the ball well. He probably wanted a good ball too much. Starting from the penultimate ball, he never hit the bad ball zone that the catcher wanted.
"Time!" Miyuki ran up to Pitcher's Mound, "Tanba, we will face Central Batting Lineup next. They are not easy to deal with. Please be careful."
"Okay, I just didn't hit the bad ball zone..."
"Pa" Tanba's apology was interrupted by Miyuki's gloves hitting his chest, "Stop saying that, let's deal with them together next!"
"Okay."
But the rare joy between pitching and catching did not last long. After three bats came on, careful pitch selection made it almost inevitable for Tanba's straight ball to be thrown into the bad zone or hit in the strike zone.
The space of Miyuki and Pitching Strategy is extremely reduced.
The situation was both good and bad. Tanba swallowed his saliva when facing the next straight ball Signals.
'Hey, Tanba, don't look so stiff. If there are no straight shots here, there will be no room for Changeup. '
There are too many Changeup for the three sticks to see, and it is easy for the opponent to hit them.
But in the next second, the three-hitter didn't even wait. He took a decisive step and hit the straight ball that penetrated his inside corner hard.
Nitta Manager saw the smooth progress on the field and smiled with satisfaction, "This pitcher may be called a strong player at the regional level, but when it comes to the Koshien field, he seems a bit barren." The commendable Curveball needs to use a tough straight ball to pave the way, but the straight ball has an average speed and was still powerful in the first game of Koshien. After consecutive shots and cracks in the last two games, it has become weak. And even if we keep alternating with Changeup, as long as we wait firmly for the straight ball, we will definitely be able to beat this pitcher. Our player's ball selection ability should not be underestimated. So what do you do, Kataoka Manager? '
Chris also raised questions, "Supervisor, it turns out that Tanba's straight ball can no longer reach Strike Zone, suppressing the player of Kyoma University. Do you want to replace it?"
On the sidelines, Kōshū frowned and looked at Haruichi, "Will you let me play now?"
Listening to the sound of the broadcast, everyone Seido in the support seats wished they could turn around so that they could see the movements of their own Dugout, "Why did you just let senior Tanba go off?"
Doesn't this situation usually involve placing the ace in left field?
"The supervision probably wants to ensure the stability of the entire defense."
But what everyone didn't say out loud was that that position was probably reserved for Kōshū in the future.
Tanba, who held the baseball in his hand tightly and heard his fate on the radio, passed through the surroundings and worried eyes of his teammates and looked eagerly at the field. Only when he saw the sign with the words "Koshien" did he feel relieved. He understood that this was the end of his high school baseball career. Although the game was still going on, the pitcher's position no longer belonged to him.
As if saying goodbye, his eyes paused for two seconds on the three words "Koshien".
Then the ball was passed into the palm of another person's hand.
"Come on, next ACE!"
After saying that, he ran towards Dugout.
"Tanba Senior, well done!"
"Tanba senior!"
He held down his hat and did not look at the people who were supporting him. The current situation on the court was caused by him, a third grader.
On Pitcher's Mound, everyone was staring at Kōshū.
"... What's wrong, looking at me like this?"
Senior Masuko honestly said what was in his heart, "How does it feel? It's such a familiar scene."
Then everyone thought that on West Tokyo Preliminaries, Kōshū was called in at the last moment and solved the crisis of full bases.
"Hmm... So do you still have that method?" Isashiki said hesitantly.
"What method?" Kōshū asked knowingly.
In exchange for a critical hit on the butt, "Don't play dumb for me, it's the same trick you used to trick Harada."
Kōshū could only say helplessly, "How can there be so many opportunities like that? The probability of success is because the opponent is eager to win, but is Kyoma University such a team? Even with someone on first base, they still choose to wait until the ball count is full and risk being eliminated. The risk is that they will not give up until they hit the ball. If it were us, we would have chosen Sacrifice Bunt to send the bases at this time. On the one hand, it was due to tactical reasons, and on the other hand, it was because they did not plan to send out the ball at the beginning and chose to adapt to the pitch as soon as possible, which was a very confident approach."
Sacrifice Bunt Walking the bases is indeed a very solid offensive strategy, but it comes at the cost of an out. It's like using a bomb to beat a drum and pass flowers. You are waiting for a certain bat to be hit in exchange for scoring. When there is still no one behind, the bomb is about to land.
The people around them became quiet. This cautious and aggressive style of play was unlike any other team they had encountered before. It was as if everyone had a four-stick heart and could shoulder the heavy responsibility of fighting.
'No wonder the actual feeling doesn't match their previous scores. ' If you don't prioritize small-ball tactics, you will indeed score less points.
"So?" Miyuki's voice was very calm, piercing everyone's silence. "The next step is the four sticks on the opposite side. What do you think?"
"Of course it's a double kill. If they can use the four sticks to hit a double kill, their vigilance will probably reach its highest level!" Kōshū's evil smile almost came out of his gloves, which made the seniors feel relieved.
"Then give me a good shot!"
"Yo west, the seniors guarding behind, please help me!" Kōshū shouted.
"It's so loud!"
"Don't be like that idiot!"
Everyone on the infield fielding team was no longer particularly worried about the runner on base. When Kōshū said the word "double play", it was as if he could really do it, and it magically soothed the fielding mood.
"Play ball!"
The game started again, but Nitta Manager was no longer in a relaxed mood, "Why are there so many monsters in the first grade this year?"
Seido's Kataoka Manager is really a 'newborn calf who is not afraid of tigers'. He dismissed the third-year pitcher so easily. Do you already regard this first-year as the actual ace?
After Home Plate, Miyuki was not in a relaxed mood. It was too early, because Kyoma University broke through Tanba in advance, disrupting the deployment, and Seido had to play his trump card directly, but it was too early.
Kōshū shook off the excessive Anti-Slip Powder from his fingertips and stared at Signals in front of him, but in his mind was the worried voice of the catcher, "Physical strength, distribute your physical strength well, don't keep Full power like before, be prepared to pitch the whole game."
Really, since I came to Koshien, I have been talking about this issue every day. Don't think that my physical strength is so poor!