"In the bottom half of the eighth inning, Seido High School's attack, one-bat, shortstop, Fukuda-kun."
After Taro Fukuda stepped into the batter's box, he kicked the ground with his left foot, held the bat in his right hand and shook it, then raised his left hand to hold the bat upright, and turned to look at the pitcher on the mound.
"call out!"
"Bang!"
“bad shot.“
The hitter was about to swing his arm and throw a ball that was obviously wide and low in the outside corner. Faced with such a ball, the batter Taro Fukuda would not swing the bat to hit it at all.
When the catcher stood up to pass the baseball back to the pitcher, Taro Fukuda waved the bat twice in front of him with one hand, then raised the bat again and turned to look at the pitcher's mound.
"call out!"
"Bang!"
“bad shot.“
The batter bends down to avoid the high inside corner pitch that is about to be thrown, and then falls downwards and is caught in the catcher's open sleeve.
After the catcher stood up and passed the baseball back to the pitcher, Taro Fukuda held the bat with one hand and waved it up and down with his calf and head forming a circle on both sides. Then he held the bat with both hands and swung it forward toward the pitcher's mound.
, wait for the pause to end.
Because at the same time, Kaname Manaka, the top three pitcher in the city, was talking to his teammate, first baseman Yohei Tanaka. I don’t know if they were comforting each other or exchanging tactics.
Soon the timeout for the Big Three was declared over after Tanaka Yohei returned to first base.
"call out!"
"Bang!"
After the timeout ends, Manaka must quickly throw a ball in the inside corner and fly into the catcher's open pocket before the batter can react.
"Good shot." The referee raised his right hand to indicate that the shot was a good shot.
"call out!"
Manaka looked at the signal signal given by the catcher, nodded, raised his leg, stepped forward, swung his arm, and threw the baseball in his palm.
"Whoa!"
Taro Fukuda aimed at the baseball flying from the pitcher's mound and swung the bat downwards.
"Ping!"
After the bat he swung hit the baseball flying from the pitcher's mound, he fished the bat out from the bottom and at the same time, the baseball flew high into the sky.
"Left field!" catcher Shuhei Ikenaga stood up and yelled.
Left fielder Ryu Miyai was hit by a batter's swing when a baseball thrown by the pitcher was hit, and the baseball that was knocked away was still flying towards this side. He was deep in the left field and close to center field.
He stared at the baseball flying from home plate and ran from left to right. Finally, he was only one or two steps away from the third base sideline. He stretched out his left hand and opened the ball sleeve to catch the baseball falling from mid-air.
.
"Three outs, exchange offense and defense."
After leaving two remaining bases, first and third base, the three players from the city successfully ended the game in the second half of the eighth inning. They left the field with smiles on their faces and jogged back to the dugout on the third base side.
…
After Jinguji finished his pitching warm-up with Chris, the voice of the female announcer rang out: "In the first half of the ninth inning, attack from the city's three major high schools, one bat, shortstop, Araki-kun."
After Ikuya Araki stood in the batting box, he waved the bat in his hand, then raised the bat upright, as if waiting for a hit.
"call out!"
"Bang!"
“bad shot.“
Pitcher Jinguji swung his arm and threw a high-pitched ball in the outside corner, and the batter still didn't know how to swing the bat to strike.
Chris knelt down on one leg, raised his hand and passed the baseball he just caught back to Senior Jinguji.
Ikuya Araki lowered his hands, swung the bat, then raised it high again, turning to look at the pitcher on the mound.
"call out!"
"Whoa!"
"Ping!"
Jinguji's pitch, which was high in the inside corner, was hit by the batter's swing, then flew high into the sky and gradually moved away from home plate.
Center fielder Daiki Murasuke looked up at the baseball flying from home plate while running, and then opened his ball sleeve to catch it as it fell.
"Crack!"
Murasuke Daiki took out the baseball from the cover, waved it and passed it to the second base, and then passed it from the second base to the pitcher. At the same time, the batter Iku Araki also turned around after seeing that he was caught by the defense.
Jogging back from the dugout on the side of the base.
"In the first half of the ninth inning, attacks from the three major universities in the city, second baseman, third baseman, Ohmae-kun."
After Takahiro Ohmae stood on the batting cage, he turned to look at the pitcher's mound, held the bat with both hands and waved it, then raised the bat upright, waiting for the pitcher's pitch.
"call out!"
"Bang!"
Jinguji raised his legs, stepped forward, and swung his arms to throw a low ball in the inside corner that seemed to be inward. The batter had no time to do anything else except change his line of sight, such as swinging the bat to hit.
"Good shot." The presiding judge raised his right hand and made a verdict.
After Chris stood up, he held the baseball in his right hand and threw it back to the pitcher. Then he squatted down again and gave his signal to Jinguji-senpai.
Ohmae Takahiro held the bat with one hand and swung it to his side twice, then held the bat tightly with both hands and swung it forward. He turned to look at Jinguji Kazu on the pitcher's mound, waiting for his pitch.
"call out!"
"Whoa!"
"Bang!"
Jinguji swung his arm and threw a curveball that dropped diagonally from the batter's waist and abdomen (non-strike zone) to the low inside corner, causing the batter to swing the bat from the base of the baseball.
It swept across the top, and then missed the swing.
“good shot.“
Seeing this, the referee raised his right hand and made a fist to indicate that the pitcher's ball was a strike.
Jinguji took the baseball passed back to him by the catcher with a pitch cover, then bent down and pinched the powder bag next to him, then looked up at the batter who had re-positioned next to home plate, waiting for Chris's signal to match the ball.
"call out!"
"Whoa!"
"Ping!"
Ohmae Takahiro swung the bat and hit the high inside corner ball thrown by Jinguji with his arm. The flying baseball was hit by the swinging bat and bounced to the sand in front of home plate.
"Crack!"
The baseball bounced off the sand in front of home plate, hit the pitcher's mound, and rolled all the way to second base.
When Jinguji next to him reacted, he could only watch helplessly as the baseball, unguarded, rolled smoothly across the sand at second base, then the infield lawn behind second base, and finally rolled into the center field area.
.
"Second base!"
Center fielder Daiki Murasuke, who ran out from deep center field, crouched down and stretched out his hands to catch the rolling baseball. After standing up, he immediately raised his hand and passed the baseball he just caught to Fukuda, who had already run behind second base.
The batter Takahiro Ohmae who had already passed first base had no choice but to stop when he saw what was happening before him, turned around and retreated to first base.
He stepped on the first base bag with one foot, took off his glove and batting gloves amidst the cheers of the audience in the stands, and then stretched out his hand to the player who came to get something.
"In the first half of the ninth inning, attacks from the three major universities in the city, three bats, second baseman, Sato-kun."
When Kenta Sato, the city's top three slugger, stood up and left the batter's box and stepped into the batter's box, the female announcer's voice also sounded above the stadium. This chapter has been completed!