NOVEL NEXT Chapter 18 - Reporting to the Baseball Team (3)
Chapte18 Reporting to the Baseball Team (3)
Among the new trainee assistants, he was the oldest.
A married man with a daughter already.
However, the voice that came from his phone was that of a cute little girl.
“…….”
“…….”
At that moment, Ji-seop didn’t think much of it.
He wasn’t the type to judge others based on their hobbies.
He was just surprised to hear a woman’s voice in the previously quiet room.
But from Go Chang-deok’s perspective, it seemed to be a much more complicated issue.
[Wh-what should I do about this?]
[I’m pretty sure I heard that guy used to be a player…….]
[Aren’t athletes supposed to hate Japanese anime or something?]
[Even if that’s the case, what if rumors spread in the company…….]
[My wife insisted I keep a low profile here, but to think something like this would happen on the first day…….]
Maybe he had a similar experience before.
Ji-seop couldn’t help but feel a little sorry for Go Chang-deok, who seemed utterly flustered.
He looked at Go Chang-deok’s pale face, drenched in cold sweat, and felt a bit of sympathy.
Ji-seop made his choice—he quietly stared into Go Chang-deok’s eyes.
And then he said,
“Ah, isn’t that *Magical Girl Yurie-chan*?”
“W-what?!”
Go Chang-deok’s eyes widened in surprise.
“N-no way…… How does Ji-seop know about Yurie-chan?”
“Didn’t I mention during the introduction? I played in Japan’s independent league a few years ago.”
Ji-seop continued,
“One of my teammates liked anime, so…… I remember watching it with him a few times.”
And then he added,
“It was pretty fun, actually.”
“R-really?!”
At that moment, Go Chang-deok looked as if he had just encountered an angel in the depths of hell.
* * *
The next morning.
Ji-seop had breakfast a little later than his peers.
He had a good reason, though—he had done a light morning workout in the gym attached to the players’ dormitory, but just as he finished, his mother called.
She asked if he was eating well, if he had made any friends, and if the work was too tough.
Answering each of his mother’s concerned questions, he realized that breakfast time was almost over.
‘Oh well.’
By the time he reached the cafeteria, his peers had already finished eating, and there was hardly any food left.
Just a bit of scrambled eggs that were starting to harden, and a few pieces of slightly stale bread.
‘……Well, it can’t be helped.’
Ji-seop was about to pick up a tray, when an unexpected voice reached his ears.
“Ji, Ji-seop! Ji-seop! Over here!”
The voice belonged to Go Chang-deok.
“I already got your food, Ji-seop! Come over here and eat!”
“What?”
It was true.
In front of Go Chang-deok were two trays.
One was Go Chang-deok’s, so the other must have been for Ji-seop.
“Ah…….”
This unexpected act of kindness.
Ji-seop bowed his head slightly as he sat across from Go Chang-deok.
“Thank you.”
“No need to thank me.”
Go Chang-deok scratched the back of his head.
“I saw you talking on the phone near the cafeteria entrance…… and it didn’t look like you’d be coming in soon, so I grabbed a tray for you just in case.”
“You didn’t have to.”
“Come on, you shouldn’t skip breakfast. Besides, it looks like we’ll be worked hard as soon as we get to Jeju this afternoon.”
Go Chang-deok handed Ji-seop a fork and knife from the utensil stand.
“I didn’t know what you liked, so I just grabbed a bit of everything. Eat up. We need to get ready for work.”
“Thank you.”
After a brief nod of appreciation, Ji-seop quietly started his breakfast.
As he ate, Go Chang-deok, who had been watching him quietly, confirmed that no one was around before speaking.
“Ji-seop.”
“Yes?”
“To be honest…… you’ve never actually seen *Magical Girl Yurie-chan*, have you?”
“What?!”
How did he know?
Ji-seop tilted his head in confusion.
Go Chang-deok chuckled wryly as he continued.
“Yesterday, I was too flustered to realize it…… but after thinking about it, I remembered that *Yurie-chan* is a new anime that just came out this year.”
“Ah.”
Ji-seop, who had at most only watched *SlamXunk*, learned for the first time that new anime series were released every year.
“You were in Japan eight years ago, right? So the story about watching *Yurie-chan* with your teammates doesn’t make sense.”
“Ah, well…….”
Ji-seop was slightly flustered, but Go Chang-deok’s face was lit with a contented smile.
“Ji-seop, thank you.”
“What?”
“You saw how flustered I was and made up that lie for me, didn’t you? I’m not so clueless that I couldn’t figure that out, my friend.”
In that brief moment, Ji-seop had spoken up to spare his teammate some embarrassment.
Go Chang-deok seemed to really appreciate Ji-seop’s thoughtfulness.
‘Could it be that he set aside my breakfast for the same reason…….’
Feeling reassured that he had made the right choice, and pleased to have found a good teammate in Go Chang-deok, Ji-seop’s heart felt a warm sense of satisfaction.
Just as they finished their meal and were heading back to their rooms, Ji-seop suddenly remembered something and asked Go Chang-deok.
“By the way…… Chang-deok hyung.”
“Hmm?”
During the meal, they had decided to address each other as ‘hyung’ and ‘dongsaeng.’
“How did you know that I played in Japan’s independent league eight years ago…… Did I mention that during my introduction?”
“Hmm? Didn’t I tell you?”
Go Chang-deok tilted his head.
“I’ve been active on [Baseball Finders] for almost ten years.”
“[Baseball Finders]…….”
One of the top three baseball statistics websites in the U.S., alongside [Baseball Reference] and [FanGraphs].
A site whose player evaluation data was influential enough to be reflected in Major League players’ salary negotiations.
“Sure, all I did was leave snarky comments on other people’s analysis articles…… but do you really think I wouldn’t know your name?”
“Ah, so that’s…….”
Realizing this, something began to nag at Ji-seop.
“So, by any chance…….”
As Ji-seop carefully started to speak, Go Chang-deok responded as if he already knew what was coming.
“What? You’re wondering if I know about your career in China…… is that it?”
Ji-seop felt a little startled, like someone had just hit the nail on the head.
But Go Chang-deok just smiled faintly and nudged Ji-seop’s side with his elbow.
“Even though I knew, was there really any need to bring it up? If you didn’t mention it, I figured there was a reason for that.”
Go Chang-deok, who usually had a somewhat spaced-out expression, suddenly looked serious for the first time.
“Not mentioning your career in China was a wise choice. It’s true that people in the baseball world have a bad habit of judging others based on things like that.”
“…….”
“But I hope you don’t feel ashamed of your experience in China.”
“You have a good career.”
Go Chang-deok spoke firmly.
“Learning about other leagues’ cultures, players, and potential for growth…… isn’t that essential information for someone who’s going to work in a baseball team’s front office?”
“…….”
At that moment, Ji-seop thought to himself.
Go Chang-deok wasn’t the only one who had found a good teammate—Ji-seop had as well.
Of course, what followed was something he hadn’t expected to hear at all.
“But wait a second?”
“Why?”
“How did someone who’s never even watched anime…… know the title *Magical Girl Yurie-chan*?!”
“Come on, be honest.”
Go Chang-deok continued with a mischievous smile on his face.
“Ji-seop…… You’re actually into anime, aren’t you? Right?!!”
“……I told you, I’m not.”
* * *
And so began day two.
In the morning, the new trainee assistants went to KH Cannons Field to receive additional orientation.
After lunch, they moved to the airport and boarded a plane to Jeju Island.
Another hour-long bus ride later, they arrived at Gangchanghak Stadium in Seogwipo, Jeju.
This was where KH Cannons’ second team would be holding their spring training camp for the season.
“From now on, we need to move quickly! Spring camp starts tomorrow, so there’s no time to waste!”
Go Chang-deok’s earlier prediction that they’d be worked hard after arriving in Jeju turned out to be accurate.
As soon as they got off the bus, they were bombarded with tasks, with no time to catch their breath.
“Trainee assistants, please hurry!”
Some of the lucky ones were assigned to the PR team, where they were put in charge of filming YouTube videos, but most of the trainee assistants were given physical labor tasks.
While large equipment like pitching machines and giant nets had already been delivered, smaller training equipment like baseballs, tees, temporary bullpens, and pitcher protection nets had not yet arrived.
‘They say 90% of the work in a baseball team is moving stuff…….’
After stocking the warehouse with training equipment, they grabbed rakes and went out to the field to flatten the ground.
Next, they walked around Gangchanghak Stadium, setting up flags, banners, and other decorations to boost the atmosphere.
By the time Ji-seop and a few others had finished hanging a huge banner that read [Let’s Go, Cannons! Rise, KH!] on the outfield netting, the sun was already setting.
“Thank you for your hard work, everyone.”
The trainee assistants, now exhausted and heading back to the bus, were greeted by a man named Manager Kim from the KH Cannons’ Development Team.
He was someone who had been running around the most during the day’s work, so the trainee assistants were already familiar with him.
“For the next roughly 50 days, your accommodation will be about 20 minutes by car from Gangchanghak Stadium.”
Manager Kim continued,
“Please get plenty of rest at the accommodation tonight, and report for duty again at 6 a.m. tomorrow.”
The mention of ‘6 a.m.’ made the trainee assistants’ faces darken.
Even though they were all here because they loved baseball and wanted to work in the front office, none of them had anticipated such a grueling schedule.
“And we’ve placed a guidebook for the spring camp in front of each of your seats. Please keep it handy and refer to it as you work. Thank you for your hard work today!”
As Manager Kim turned off the microphone and sat down, the trainee assistants, without any hesitation, reached for the manuals in front of their seats.
‘So, 48 players in the first-team camp, and 27 in the second-team camp…….’
Including the coaching staff, front office employees, and trainee assistants, there were nearly 150 people combined between the first and second teams.
Just as Ji-seop was realizing the significance of spring camp for the baseball team,
“Hmm?!”
Go Chang-deok, who was sitting next to Ji-seop, began pointing at the guidebook with a puzzled expression.
“What’s wrong?”
“Hmm? No, I just noticed something strange about the second-team spring camp roster…….”
Go Chang-deok pointed to the player list in the guidebook.
“Look at this. Ryu Jang-ho is listed on the second-team roster.”
“……Ryu Jang-ho?”
Even Ji-seop had heard that name before.
“Ryu Jang-ho…….”
“Yeah, the Cannons’ cleanup hitter.”
Go Chang-deok continued,
“Ryu Jang-ho, the so-called Trout of Korea.”