Starting with the fourth batter, Anzai's hitters changed their momentum. Everyone swung aggressively. Anzai's cleanup hitter, Tomiyama, even made contact with Su Qing's pitch.
Tomiyama could be said to be one of the most driven players on To Koyasu Nishi. He had neither despaired just because his opponent was Inashiro nor placed all his hopes on Coach Lin's gamble. For the past week, he had hit pitches as fast as 160 kilometers per hour every day. After a full week, his eyes had adapted to that kind of speed.
His body still had trouble keeping up with his reactions, though. But Su Qing's pitches did not reach 160, so Tomiyama caught up! Yet Su Qing's Fastball had more than just velocity—it also had spin and movement.
As a result, Tomiyama not only failed to hit the sweet spot, but also lacked the power to drive it, turning it into an infield Ground Ball that was easily forced out.
"Is his Pitching Power that impressive?"
Miyuki held binoculars and could clearly see Tomiyama's expression.
"A 2,500-rpm Fastball. What do you think? Good thing he didn't hit the sweet spot, or his hands would've gone even more numb from the vibration."
"Who cares? I want to see breaking balls! Breaking balls!"
Chen Xin rolled his eyes. Come on, try seeing whether you could hit the Fastball properly before thinking about breaking balls!
This half-inning remained the same in one respect: Su Qing still effortlessly retired the side Three Up, Three Down. What changed was that he only needed five pitches to do it. Two batters made contact with his pitches, though neither hit them well.
"His Fastball isn't that terrifying. It can still be hit. Look, Anzai's fourth and sixth batters both got a piece of it."
Chen Xin admitted that Tomiyama's