"It'll be interesting in the fall! This kid's sharp tongue is really annoying!" Coach Kataoka with a light laugh, looking at Sendou at second base.
"Huh?" Head Manager Oota didn't quite understand the meaning behind Coach Kataoka's words, even though he knew how terrible Sendou's sharp tongue was.
"For a long time, Miyuki and the other second-year students have relied on our generation to some extent!"
But after we retire, I'm afraid it will be difficult to guarantee our offensive power in the short term.
Especially Miyuki...
Sendou is similar, but he also has his own strength.
When he realized that the support his teammates were providing in terms of offense was different from what we were getting this generation... Senior Chris chuckled slightly as he said this.
This is why the scene was a bit noisy, and the game was clearly at a critical moment, with the players on the bench almost rushing onto the field to cheer, so no one paid attention to the conversation between these people.
Head Manager Oota understood what the two meant. Given Sendou's personality, what would he do if his teammates weren't up to par and he was exhausted?
They need to be properly "spurred on"!
As for Sendou's sharp tongue, Head Manager Oota Ota silently mourned for the future members of the new team for three seconds...
Miyuki will probably get special treatment! (I can picture him sitting on a small stool during Miyuki injury, taunting the pitchers.)
Coach Kataoka had already imagined the scene in his mind: the two scoundrels parting ways, and Sendou chasing after Miyuki's butt and babbling incessantly.
It's similar to when Harada was the captain, and the white-haired guy was nagging on the side, but that white-haired guy didn't have Sendou's sharp tongue.
Since Sendou is now the Main Gun, he has the power to insult people, and no one can refute him, so they can only keep quiet.
Harada can still resort to violence when he can't hold back, but if Miyuki's generation can't perform, they'll only get a one-sided lesson.
However, to be honest, even if you want to, it seems like it won't make much of a difference, it all depends on whose standard the Sendou uses.
If Sendou were to use his distance to mock the group, he could taunt Miyuki and his group until they retreated from the Miyuki...
Head Manager Oota was momentarily eager to see this joyful time arrive!
Although it might be hell for some people!
Inside the venue,
Captain Tetsu was ready, but Coach Matsumoto stepped off the bench at that moment and sent Captain Shibata to give the order.
"Supervisor's order! Walk him!" Shibata said to everyone gathered on the Pitcher's Mound.
"Why? Wouldn't it be worse to just let the batter win?" Nagumo was the first to raise an objection.
"The manager said that since that guy is on second base, he can't go toe-to-toe with Yuki!"
"I still don't understand!" Nagumo was a little agitated, as this would dampen the Fighting Spirit of his ace player.
Hirobi Tate is not without the ability to compete with Captain Tetsu.
"So don't rush me to finish speaking!"
The guy behind him and Yuki probably communicated beforehand and decided on a ball type.
That guy can see the way Kan grips the ball when he pitches. If he sees the way they grip the ball to decide the type of pitch, he can tell Yuki by faking a base steal.
Then..." Shibata didn't finish his sentence, but the last word, which was emphasized, revealed everything he wanted to say.
"Really?" Nagumo said incredulously.
Hirobi Tate also glanced at Sendou with some hesitation.
"I don't know! But the coach said that considering some strange phenomena in previous matches, this possibility is very high!"
"However! Then what about the other fighters...?" At this point, Nagumo understood.
"That's true!"
Other hitters can't multitask either! Not even for a moment. " Nagumo said the second half of the sentence in a strange tone.
"Good that you understand! The reason I was sent to relay the order is so that you won't overthink it!"
"The supervisor has never doubted you." Shibata smiled and patted Nagumo on the shoulder.
After all, this captain has a somewhat optimistic personality.
The real goal is to allow the pitcher and catcher to focus their attention and suppress subsequent batters without being distracted.
Losing a few points is not a big deal, but the ace's mentality must not be compromised.
Then, to everyone's disbelief, Kiryu sent Captain Tetsu.
This is due to a lack of information; Seidou didn't know that Coach Matsumoto had seen through Sendou and Captain Tetsu's tactics.
Seidou is completely baffled by this extremely unreasonable recommendation that handed them an advantage.
But when others give the Captain Tetsu free bases, you can only silently endure it.
Coach Matsumoto couldn't guarantee that his judgment was correct, but Captain Tetsu was not without the ability to Long Hit; he was just conserving his energy to maintain a stable batting average.
However, if Sendou had the help and knew the Ball Trajectory's trajectory in advance, that would be terrifying.
Therefore, he would rather let the subsequent batter hit Long Hit than face Captain Tetsu Sendou second base.
With one out and the bases loaded, this situation presents a difficult choice for Seidou as well.
If you play well in a short-range forced scoring game, there's no problem; however, most of the time you might get caught and double-killed.
However, from a player's perspective, if he is out of the game, forcing a point or sacrificing a high fly ball is a reliable way to score points and decide the outcome head-on, which is actually the best option for Kiryu.
But the fact that they gave Kiryu an elimination for nothing...
Although the initiative lies with Seidou, it is difficult for them to make a choice.
So when Masuko looked at the bench before stepping into the Batter's Box, Coach Kataoka did hesitate for a moment.
But just two seconds later, Coach Kataoka had just glanced at Sendou, gave him the Signals.
Masuko-senpai nodded and officially stepped into the Batter's Box.
The Signals was clearly Head-on Showdown.
What gave Coach Kataoka confidence was that they had a target for the Ball Trajectory, and his previous instructions to Kuramochi, as well as Sendou's cover, made Coach Kataoka certain that the opponent would not be able to detect it.
The Batter's Box is Masuko by a heavyweight batter, so giving up a guaranteed run and taking this risk is worthwhile.
At this point, the pressure on the opponent is completely different between being eliminated once and being eliminated twice, so you can't easily give the opponent a number of eliminations.
After all, not every hitter is Sawamura, leaving no other choice... (laughs)
"Ping!"
"Huh?" The ball was hit out before Nagumo could even react with disbelief.
"Puff!"
"We've landed!"
"Long hitter to right field!!!"
Isashiki and Sendou also returned to base, celebrating with the players who rushed out of the bench.
This was Timely Hit from Masuko.
The score is now 5-2, and the game remains one out, second and third base!
"Everyone shot quite well after aiming at the outside corner!" Head Manager Oota with a relaxed smile.
"Ah!
After all, it's the third round, and they've already put up a good fight against this pitcher, so they've gotten used to the batting lineup to some extent.
If you aim at the winning Ball Trajectory without the opponent's knowledge, you can still hit it.
"After all, Masuko is a player with the ability to Center Batting Lineup!" Coach Kataoka nodded seriously in response.
"Seventh batter! Catcher, Miyuki-kun!"
"Hit you in an instant!!!" the audience sang along.
"Keep going, Miyuki!"
"Eat all the good stuff! You lucky bastard!"
"This is your favorite situation, with someone in the scoring circle!"
"Get them out of here!"
"Charge!!!"
"Now is my chance to become a man! Miyuki Kazuya!!!"
"Let's fire it here! Black-bellied Glasses!" Sendou mentally encouraged himself after Sawamura shouted.
Sendou also realized that simply doing this was far from enough to crush Hirobi Tate, so he had to use the point difference to secure an advantage, and that was now his biggest advantage.
When Miyuki stepped into the Batter's Box, Coach Matsumoto frowned, deep in thought.
He then picked up the scorebook and, still somewhat puzzled, gave a few coded Signals to the people inside the arena.
Then,
"Call out!"
"Smack!"
"Nice shot!"
"The attacker is out!"
"Change the scene!"
That's right, after Coach Matsumoto gave two Signals, he struck out Miyuki and Tanba in a row.
"You really can't relax for a moment, Kataoka-kun!"
"And Sendou-kun, what a cunning kid!" Coach Matsumoto exclaimed with some admiration.
Coach Matsumoto didn't figure out Coach Kataoka's tactics, but he noticed something strange about the scoreboard. Apart from Sendou, all the kicks that were hit were from the Outside Corner Ball!
Coach Matsumoto felt like swearing whenever he thought about it.
The main reason was that Coach Kataoka covered it up too well, plus Sendou gave us a smokescreen.
If it weren't for Coach Matsumoto's experienced guidance, I would have felt something was off and glanced at the scorebook, completely unaware of what was going on.
Although looking at the scorebook only suggested this possibility, the moment they actually gave the order using the Signals, the whole thing was exposed.
Miyuki is not Sendou; he could never beat Coach Matsumoto in a one-on-one fight.
It can be said that Coach Matsumoto acted as a temporary catcher, Nagumo became the receiver, using the Outside Corner Ball that Miyuki was unlikely to hit as a decoy, and striking him out with the Inside Corner Ball.
Then he carefully observed the movements on the Seidou bench, and then did the opposite, using an Inside Corner Ball kick to lure Tanba out and then finishing Tanba off with an Outside Corner Ball.
This completely disrupted Coach Kataoka's original plan to use Inside Corner Ball kicks after being outmaneuvered, thus saving Kiryu's life and forcing him to weather the crisis.
That's why Coach Matsumoto has the mood to mutter complaints about Coach Kataoka's "insidious" behavior.
In short, Coach Matsumoto is experienced and cunning.
This is something that young coaches cannot do, and even Coach Sakaki could not achieve this level.
Coach Sakaki's style is actually similar to Coach Kataoka's. He hasn't studied psychology in great depth, and his strength lies in his strong and versatile direct tactics.
It's not that Coach Sakaki and Coach Kataoka don't understand psychological warfare, but rather that they're not good at this kind of psychological warfare where they have to guess each other's thoughts.
In this respect, even Sendou is inferior to both master and disciple. Sendou may not be as experienced Coach Matsumoto, but he is far more cunning and cautious than Coach Matsumoto.
It would be interesting if these two were to face off one day.
But no matter what, the result is everything.
Coach Kataoka had been observing for so long, and his first shot yielded such a result, scoring four points in one go and achieving a great comeback from being down by one point to leading by three.
Moreover, if the opponent wasn't the highly experienced Coach Matsumoto, then anyone else, whether it was Coach Kunimoto of Inajitsu, the red-nosed coach of Saibang, or the old man from Kyoma, would probably have been taken down in one fell swoop.
Kiryu's rapid rise from obscurity to prominence wasn't due to the exceptional talent of his players, but rather the formidable skill of his coach.
No matter how sophisticated the tactics, nothing beats the directness and effectiveness of understanding the opponent's thoughts.
"He saw right through me! That old man is amazing!" Miyuki exclaimed as he returned to the bench.
"That's true!"
It's quite rare to see someone get completely fooled like that!
" Sendou! You bastard!"
I'm your teammate!
"Isn't that the enemy over there?" Sendou's remark caused Miyuki extreme discomfort.
Head Manager Oota had an expression that suggested he wanted to laugh but dared not, though his eyes still held a hint of worry.
After all, three points isn't a huge margin of victory!
" Tanba! Center Batting Lineup!
I'll switch players when it's the opponent's Center Batting Lineup!
The point difference is enough; we should suppress them effectively!
"Then get some rest and prepare for tomorrow's match!" Coach Kataoka said to Tanba, who was getting ready to go on the court.
"Hi!!!"
Tanba had no objection to this arrangement, after all, he still had to face Tenzawa, a strong fighter, and it wasn't an escape.
Having spent almost the entire Summer Preliminaries season sitting on the sidelines, Tanba has come to fully trust everyone on the team.
" Furuya! The rest of the game is in your hands!"
"If you can do it!" Coach Kataoka said to Furuya, whom he had called back.
Then,
"Boom!!!"
"Why?"
"!!!"
Furuya's aura surged skyward.
"I see!!
"Leave them all to me! I'll suppress them all!" Furuya said crisply.
"Put away your aura!" Oni-san went up and delivered a chop to the neck.
"That... that Yalu!"
"So soon I'm going on stage! And that boss is actually looking forward to it so much..." Sawamura placed his fist on the railing at the edge of the bench, his expression somewhat distorted, or rather, unwilling, or rather, with his usual face full of resentment, as if he were shutting himself off.
" Eijun-kun! Your eyes have turned into cat eyes!" Xiaochun reminded her from the side.
Others also noticed that Sawamura was being a little sulky, but that's just how Sawamura is right now!
After Tanba fully recovered, he was still able to play thanks to his unique ability to not see where the ball was placed, but at this stage, the frequency of easy Ball Trajectory in the center is still too high.
This also frequently occurred in the Autumn Tournament of the previous life.
Even after overcoming his pitching phobia, he still frequently pitches into both inside and outside corners, but unlike Tanba, he won't be able to hit the ball consistently when aimed at.
However, with Tanba's complete resurgence, it will be difficult for him to have a chance to perform this summer.
Unless it's a game that lasts for more than ten rounds.
Speaking of this, we must mention that in the ancient times (decades ago), there was a duel between two pitchers, and both teams were led by their ace pitchers.
No one managed to score, and the pitching battle went on until the scoreboard was overflowing. It's unclear how many hours it lasted, but in the 25th inning, one side finally scored a run and the game ended.
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