If Shin Kō's cleanup hitter had faced the Narumiya Mei from the first inning, he might have had a chance to steal a hit from him. But the one before him was Narumiya Mei firing on all cylinders.
Shin Kō's fourth batter, Ishikawa, had swung hard at all three pitches, but he could not even touch the ball. He was struck out swinging in the end.
The next two batters fared no better. One was caught on an infield fly, while the other was caught in foul territory.
But Narumiya Mei was thoroughly dissatisfied with that Three Up, Three Down, because two people had made contact with his pitches. That should never have happened!
And Narumiya Mei clearly would not get another at-bat. In the bottom of the second, Inashiro Industrial's first batter was their eighth hitter, Van Masami. Inashiro's offense was indeed fierce, but to keep the lineup going all the way to fifth batter Narumiya Mei required not only ability, but also a little luck.
This time, Inashiro's luck was not so good. Shin Kō's relief pitcher had clearly adjusted to pitching on the field. His ability was indeed lacking, but Shin Kō's defense was decent as well. In the end, Shin Kō successfully recorded three outs through their defense, while Inashiro's lineup stopped at fourth batter Harada.
And Narumiya Mei was up next. This infuriated him so much that he dragged over Yoshizawa, who had hit an infield grounder and given Shin Kō the final out, and gave him a thorough scolding.
Yoshizawa also felt that he had played terribly. He was currently the only starting batter on Inashiro's roster without a hit.
In the end, Narumiya Mei angrily covered his head with a towel. He did not want to see Su Qing take the mound, looking so smug! Absolutely not!
"In the top of the third inning, Inashiro Industrial High School has requested a substitution. Pitcher Narumiya will be replaced by Su. Pitcher Narumiya will be replaced by Su."
Inashiro's Pitcher Change did not cause an uproar like Seido's had next door, because Inashiro was currently leading by a huge margin. They could completely end this one-sided game after five innings under the mercy rule.
Inashiro's supporters did feel regretful that they would not get to watch Narumiya Mei pitch anymore, but they were also eagerly anticipating Su Qing's pitching. What exactly would it be like?
When Su Qing had been pitching in the bullpen on the first-base side earlier, the huge commotion he created had already drawn the attention of all Inashiro supporters. Everyone was curious whether this pitcher whom Coach Kunimoto had exceptionally promoted into the First String could make a name for himself in one stroke like Narumiya Mei had before him.
They had heard that Seido next door had gotten a kid with insane velocity, someone who could throw over 150 km/h. It would be a lie to say they were not envious. Before today, Inashiro's supporters had kept consoling themselves: they had Tokyo Prince Narumiya Mei, while Seido's pitcher was merely a first-year kid with poor control who might implode someday.
But when they discovered that Su Qing's velocity also seemed explosive, Inashiro's stands instantly erupted. Everyone was talking about Su Qing. Unfortunately, Su Qing had not warmed up for long before stepping down, while Inashiro's offense had dragged on far too long.
The supporters had originally thought they would have to wait another inning to see Su Qing take the field. His appearance so soon caught them completely off guard.
Unlike Furuya Satoru, who slowly walked up to the mound, Su Qing ran onto it. This was his first official game since being reborn, and Su Qing was truly excited.
He had already forgotten when he had last run onto the mound with such excitement. In any case, after entering professional baseball, his passion had declined again and again. By the end, he felt that he could no longer find joy in playing baseball.
After retiring, Su Qing had truly felt relaxed all over. He no longer needed to go through all kinds of training to maintain his condition, nor did he have to rack his brains studying every batter.
He could go home, drink a little, play baseball with the kids, and see whether he could rediscover the happiness he once had. Unfortunately, Su Qing had not gotten the chance to do any of that before he transmigrated. What a pity. His first plan had been to support the neighborhood where he grew up.
But here, Su Qing seemed to have found that old joy again. He played and practiced not to live up to the salary the club paid him, but for himself, for the team. For his friends?
Narumiya Mei might not think so, but Su Qing believed that he and Narumiya Mei were already friends. Perhaps they would become close brothers in the future, like Jiang Gu and Little Angel from Seido next door. That might be pretty nice.
Su Qing picked up the newly replaced rosin bag. After thoroughly drying his fingers, he began another round of warm-ups.
After throwing a few pitches according to Harada's instructions, Su Qing felt his shoulder had warmed up.
On Shin Kō's side, their reaction was much the same as Yokogaku's. No! Inashiro was clearly looking down on them even more! They had directly taken Narumiya Mei out! They obviously believed Shin Kō had no chance at all of turning the game around.
How could that be possible!
Shin Kō's batters, who had yet to get on the board, were already rubbing their hands together, wanting to take hit after hit—and even Home Runs—from Su Qing to tie the score!
But they were clearly dreaming. Against Su Qing, Shin Kō's first batter, their seventh hitter, could not even swing his bat. He could only watch as Su Qing sent one pitch after another—pitches whose type he had no idea about—into the strike zone.
Da Gu Da Gu: Even though this isn't my first time seeing it, the streamer's Fastball still gets my blood pumping! A 96 mph heater—that's 154 km/h—and it moves too! If I were the batter, I'd be scared stiff too! What kind of godly Fastball is this?! It breaks after entering the zone! And the spin rate! An average spin rate of 2453! Doesn't it feel like the streamer is just bullying kids?! Can anyone in high school really hit a pitch like this?! I really feel for the kids' shoulders. If one of them accidentally makes contact, wouldn't his whole arm go numb from the impact?!
Su Qing had no time at all to check the Livestream and read the viewers' rainbow farts. Nor did he need to, because the entire stadium was now roaring for him!
Even Shin Kō's supporters could not help crying out. The commentator's voice was nearly hoarse from shouting. Damn it, he had only thrown three pitches.
Su Qing was happy as well. Although he was not satisfied with his velocity, he was very satisfied with both the break and spin rate of those pitches.
What made him even happier was the batter's expression. For a pitcher, that was its own reward. In his previous life, countless powerful batters had resentfully pulled back their bats and walked back the way they came after facing Su Qing's pitching. Yet Su Qing was still happy to see such an expression once more.
At that moment, Su Qing finally felt youth completely and utterly. This burning body, free of any pain, told him that he was healthy, young, and full of vitality.
The pitches he threw could make the spectators cheer for him and leave batters dejected!
Su Qing felt as though, at this moment, he could do anything!
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