"Relieve the tension in your shoulders and relax!" The individual supervision began.
"Ha!" Then Sawamura's arms swung back and forth like a swing.
"Is your arm broken?" Sendou went up and kicked him in the butt!
"It hurts so much! It doesn't usually hurt this much!"
"The boss told me to relax!" This guy had clearly forgotten what he said a few seconds earlier.
"Like this, just don't let your shoulders stiffen. That's not relaxation!" Sendou placed his right arm on his left arm and gently swayed his entire shoulder.
Even in crucial moments, Sendou doesn't lose sight of the situation, and Sawamura, following suit, found that his shoulders were indeed less stiff.
" Sendou! Teach me a few more moves so I can go up there and hit a Home Run!"
"...!" Sendou was speechless.
"There's no such thing as a magic bullet. If there were such a method, I'd want to learn it too!" Miyuki complained.
"Is that so? Sendou's move was really effective just now!"
"Shut up and listen to the lecture!" Sendou said.
"Ha!" Sawamura knew Sendou wasn't joking anymore, so he saluted.
"Just do what you can!" Coach Kataoka knew that Sendou was helping Sawamura relax, so he patiently waited for two seconds before continuing.
"This is a meal! There's only one thing I want you to do!"
That's good! When you're in the Batter's Box, your every move is being observed by the opponent!
Make sure you hit the first ball with all your might!
"Then I'll give you the Signals code!" The coach patiently explained, looking at Sawamura, who was making an inverted V-shape and imitating the fierce look of Isashiki.
"That's right! Your swing is too fast. If it's Slider, change the rhythm. Change the 1, 2, 3 rhythm to 1, 2,... 3."
Even if you miss, the speed and timing of your swing will still surprise them!
As for the other Changeup, if you swing them as fastballs, your opponent won't suspect anything, which is something Sendou didn't mention.
Moreover, given Harada's personality, he's likely to become paranoid, especially since Coach Kataoka is giving him individual guidance here!
Sendou Dao was certain that he wouldn't think of it in a simple way.
Miyuki, however, understood the meaning behind it and gave him a "you sneaky bastard" look.
Sendou replied with a "tit-for-tat" response!
"1, 2,... 3.
"... What if we manage to hit him?" Sawamura asked.
"Don't worry, in your eyes, a swing that's 'one millimeter' off by 10 centimeters is impossible to hit."
"What did you say? What do you mean by that?"
That's exactly what I mean!
"Damn it! You bastard!" The two of them went back to normal.
"If you can get into rhythm and see the ball clearly, you might become a power hitter in the future!" Sendou said with a smile.
In his previous life, he used a short-bat stance before batting to correct his swing speed and inaccurate ball reading, which is why his batting percentage increased significantly when he used a short-bat stance.
"What do you mean? Why are you making that face?" Sendou asked, noticing Sawamura's slightly pouting lips and scrutinizing gaze.
"After we've finished discussing this important matter, who knows if what you're saying is true or false?" Sawamura bluntly spoke the truth.
"Don't worry! This is absolutely the truth!"
"You should have said so earlier! Hahaha! So you thought I was that great!" Sawamura said shyly.
"Alright! Get back to the Batter's Box now!"
"Ah! I understand, boss!"
"Remember to relax! A tense guy isn't intimidating at all!" Sendou said.
"I got it!" Sawamura, holding a baseball bat, imitated Miyauchi-senpai and walked towards the Batter's Box.
Upon reaching the Batter's Box, he pretended to tidy up the dirt, and once again exhaled through his nose like his Miyauchi-senpai.
"Come on!!!" Sawamura shouted, pointing the other end of his baseball bat at Narumiya Mei.
"It's most likely to be a short-sleeved outfit, right?"
Sawamura Eijun has made no contribution in the Batter's Box except for short batting. Although this is partly due to his low batting attempts, his short batting is always superb, and he always misses the target by several centimeters!
He's most likely a short-hitting player, and a left-handed hitter who can be a great help to runners. The opposing coach has been giving him individual coaching for so long, there must be some purpose behind it, right?
Infield Shift!
"First ball! Slider to the outside corner! Watch the batter's reaction!" Harada analyzed the situation in his mind based on data from past official matches.
This was in accordance with Coach Kataoka's instructions and Sawamura's powerful battering stance in the Batter's Box. (Imitating Sendou, this is Sawamura's signature move...)
All of this made Harada hesitant to make a decision, so he decided to test the waters.
However, he was completely unaware that he had been completely predicted by the Sendou.
Narumiya Mei had no objections and simply assumed the pitching stance.
"Call out!"
" The Slider is ready at the 1, 2,... 3 time!" Sawamura saw it was Slider and made his move at the time Sendou had suggested.
"Ping!"
"Call out!"
"Smack!"
"Outside the boundary!"
"Got it!..." Sawamura said, a little bewildered.
Although Sawamura is a bit silly and cute, he's not really stupid. He knows his own level of skill, and part of his silliness is just him deliberately trying to liven things up.
So he was the most surprised.
"We... we hit them!" Maezono and the others exclaimed in surprise.
They naturally had no idea what Coach Kataoka had said, and were quite surprised.
"Haha! You scared me!" Sendou laughed.
"That's a bit of a pity!" Miyuki said.
"Ah!" Sendou did not turn around.
"Ah! What a pity!"
For Seidou, it was a surprise or a pity, but for Inajitsu, it was a shock!
Why did both sides show signs of regret and shock?
Unlike his previous life, Sawamura hit a weak foul ball that was about ten centimeters off target and not far from home plate—a very ordinary foul ball.
But just now, Sawamura hit a real long serve, which was also 10 centimeters off.
However, if the ball lands inside the fair zone and bounces out of the fair zone like this, given Shirazu's speed, he could at least reach third base, and given their Infield Shift approach, it's not impossible for him to return to home plate.
A difference of ten centimeters could have resulted in a double-base Long Hit going out of bounds, and both sides would naturally feel that way.
"Wow... that was close! I was going to miss but I accidentally hit it." Sawamura was covered in cold sweat and glared fiercely at the bat.
Others probably thought he also felt it was a pity!
Actually, my heart was pounding so hard it was almost bursting.
It wasn't that Sawamura was unaware of the impact he had suffered; rather, he was only surprised and afraid of causing trouble for the team by disobeying the coach's instructions. He didn't even see where the ball went.
Still blaming myself for not shooting so accurately at this moment!
During training, even when others were a meter away, he couldn't hit them even when he threw the ball slowly!
The people on the Seidou bench didn't know what to say!
Like Head Manager Oota in his previous life, should we tell him he didn't forget his mission? Or is it a pity that the ball didn't go in?
"This guy! He was aiming at me?" Harada was even more surprised and uncertain.
"Could it be that this guy is a hidden powerhouse in Seidou?"
Before, when the swings were only a few tens of centimeters off, were you just playing around with confidence and not caring?
Otherwise, the difference between his previous performance and his recent display of skill would be impossible to explain!
If that's the case, this guy is probably a more dangerous hitter than that Kominato, but he's hiding it because he's a pitcher.
Are both of Seidou -year pitchers this year capable of both pitching and batting? Harada's thinking is gradually becoming more sophisticated; he's working on his own strategy.
Narumiya Mei is in such good form right now that even Shirazu hesitated to try this kind of Slider.
"Don't let your guard down! Cry!"
At the same time, Harada dared not let the infield Infield Shift, otherwise, if the space between the infield and the outfield fell in, it would be at least a double.
He now treats Sawamura as a power hitter.
"Although it was a bit of a pity just now, that coincidental blow should have puzzled the other party, if we think about it optimistically."
"This is an opportunity, and if we're going to make a move, we should do it now!" Senior Chris thought.
Coach Kataoka had the same idea and gave Signals.
Taking advantage of the opponent's initial shock from the swing, make your move as the infield retreats!
After all, when you know a batter is not hitting well, Infield Shift, specifically to defend against short hits. Even Sawamura would have a hard time making a successful short hit, which is why Coach Kataoka used this simple strategy to achieve that.
However, an unexpected surprise occurred.
Narumiya Mei was naturally unafraid of strong hitters, looking down at them with an air of Head-on Showdown.
This is actually Inajitsu's winning capital.
Over at the Bullpen, even if Iguchi is preparing, the pressure on the advantageous relay and the forced relay by Narumiya Mei for any reason are different, and it is not possible to cope with every situation as Itsuki thought.
"Thump!"
"Thump!"
Sawamura's heart was pounding nervously, and the benches on Seidou's side were almost full of support.
"My shortcomings, etc."
... There are just too many!
Even so, they're still willing to use me!
Even the slightest bit, I want to respond to that expectation! Thinking of this, Sawamura put away all his mimicry and glared at Narumiya Mei through gritted teeth.
"Ahhh!!!"
bring it on!!!"
Finally, his body continued to mimic Sendou, even taking a light breath, because he knew that every time Sendou stepped into the Batter's Box using this mimicked routine, his opponent would become extremely nervous.
And that's true. Unlike Captain Tetsu, Onii-san, and even Miyuki, Sendou is a true powerhouse. When a strong hitter relaxes and loses his tension, the opponent will definitely become tense.
Sawamura felt that Harada was also a power hitter, and that was enough.
"So noisy! He's in the same position as that jerk! It's so annoying."
I will absolutely not give you another penny!
"Runners, get going!" Yamaoka shouted as he was about to release the ball in the later stages of his Narumiya Mei.
At the same time, shift your weight forward and observe the direction of the batter's short-range attack, ready to charge forward at any time.
"They're actually letting the power hitter have a short bat?" Harada asked in surprise, but he was sure he would give the base this time, since the other side had sacrificed a power hitter's at-bat.
First base!
"Bite!"
"Absolutely brilliant!" Narumiya Mei quickly Backup Position as he watched the ball roll along the first base line.
Yamaoka knew from Sawamura's posture that he needed to step forward, so he did so a step earlier.
After receiving the ball, he didn't pick it up to make a pitching motion. Instead, he used his fingers to throw the ball to first base.
"Smack!"
"Out!"
"Safety!"
Shirazu easily advanced to base, and Yamaoka's decisiveness prevented Inajitsu from getting a Safety Bunt, barely managing to Force Out Sawamura at first base.
"Yoshi! Yoshi yoshi!"
Yoshi! Yoshi yoshi!
"At least the short-range attack was successful!" Narumiya Mei thought to himself, puzzled and angry.
I'm incredibly angry at Sawamura's smugness!
"A beautiful short-sleeved shirt!"
"A beautiful short-sleeved shirt!"
"Damn it! What's going on? This feeling of security!"
While those in the support section offered their approval, Kanemaru loudly complained.
"Yoshi! Yoshi yoshi!..."
"Why won't you let me fight?!" Sawamura suddenly spoke up, as if he had just thought of something.
"You couldn't hit me even if you tried, right?"
"Idiot"
"What a coincidence!"
Even though Sawamura showed some promise, Maezono and Kanemaru, who were in the support group, still thought it was just a coincidence.
This isn't intentionally pessimistic; it's an alternative way of expressing oneself, like a sarcastic remark.
I hope he will perform well, but I'm worried that his personality will ruin everything, although the content of his speech is somewhat problematic.
He wouldn't care if Sawamura was belittled, and Sawamura wasn't really stupid enough to think his teammate had malicious intent. But...
"A coincidence? Is it real? Or is it a smokescreen?" Harada wondered, hearing the shouts from the supporters' section.
This reminded him of that incompetent teammate of Wildcats back then.
"Surely Seidou's substitute players aren't that stupid?" Harada shook his head again. Although he had a seed in his mind, he still wasn't sure.
"Can I kill those two spies, Jinjin and Yuanyuan (the Japanese pronunciation starts with 'zuo'... a pun on Sendou's name), who leaked information?" Sendou asked Miyuki.
" Maezono!" Miyuki understood what Sendou meant and sighed, covering his head.
"Go and remind them!"
"Why aren't you going?" Miyuki asked, puzzled.
"Because I'm not suitable!"
"Why?"
"Hey! I'll prove it to you!"
Sendou walked to the front of the support seats.
"Can everyone please stop saying such discouraging things?" Sendou could only say this in order to avoid leaking information.
Sendou's understanding of Harada is evident even if we exclude their elementary school days, based solely on what Harada said during their recent interactions.
Although Harada has the demeanor of a great general, he is still a bit simple-minded and has a strong suspicion of Seidou.
After all, with two cunning old foxes like Sendou Miyuki on the other side, how could he, a double victim, not suspect something was amiss?
However, this also made it harder to expose Sawamura's lie about taking the lead, and Sendou was even prepared to play the match for fourteen innings or even reschedule it.
As a result, his two teammates, Maezono Kanemaru, who dragged him down, dealt him a fatal blow.
This left Sendou feeling quite helpless, but even if he wanted to complain, he still went over.
Requesting votes...
My mom is having surgery tomorrow and will be hospitalized for 15 to 20 days. Although I don't need to take care of her, I will have more things to do. I can only say that I will try my best to keep updating. If I don't update, just consider what I'm saying as entertainment.