NOVEL NEXT Chapter 326
The baseball stadium, which was enveloped in silence, was first shaken out of its stupor by the commentary team.
-169 km…? What on earth is happening?!
-It can’t be a measurement error, no. Our KBL checks and replaces the equipment annually, so…
-Among all the celebrities who’ve thrown the opening pitch, this is the best record ever! Just looking at the pitch speed, it’s a record that even pros would struggle to achieve!
-At this level, this person could join any team; they’re an incredible talent that should be in the big leagues! It’s almost a shame to waste such talent!
[169 lol Is this real? lol]
[No wonder it looked fast!]
[So Junbum wasn’t just bad; he was facing a fastball from the start.]
[Sh*t Bum-Joon couldn’t throw a strike with his opening pitch! He should get struck out in the actual game too. lol]
[Bum-Joon is just being polite by not hitting it, right? ^^ That’s how it is ^^]
[How can Bum-Joon hit 169? lol He can’t even hit an 80 km Arirang ball properly!]
[No one can hit 169, no matter what—idiots.]
[But Ohtani can hit it?]
[Wait, are they seriously throwing 169?]
[A left-handed 169 fireballer whoa!]
[KBL doesn’t even see pitches exceeding 160, lol.]
[Just throw it hard, and it gets faster, right?]
[Isn’t this just luck?]
[How can luck throw 169, you fool?]
[There are so many people who know nothing; if it were that easy, anyone could be a baseball player.]
[Even throwing super hard, it’s tough to break 130; how did they do it?]
[Does anyone even understand baseball??? Seriously clueless.]
[How is this talent not in the Major Leagues…?]
[What’s that person’s name again?]
In the field and online, chaos erupted as everyone was following the real-time updates. What Kayak had just done was truly unprecedented.
-Let’s watch the replay one more time. She gets set on the mound and throws right away. Yes, it’s a fastball going right to the center. You can see Junbum, the batter, reacting a bit too late. It’s customary for batters to either take a swing or just go through the motions.
-Looking at it now, her pitching form is outstanding. It looks like she pulled her arm back to the maximum height and just slammed it down.
-The power of that pitch is astonishing for a woman; it’s surprising that she can throw so hard and still have control.
-That overhead throwing posture puts a lot of strain on the body. I blew out my shoulder doing that when I was a pro—.
[Can’t figure it out even in slow-mo, lol.]
[How did she do that, you sh*t?]
[Can’t we kick out Gaeseok-hwan and let Kayak or whoever that is pitch instead?]
[Seriously lol She looks 20,000 times better than Gaeseok-hwan, lol.]
[Kim Yong-ha is catching that in the middle of all this.]
“Oh, they actually caught that!”
“That’s only because Kayak threw a fastball; if it had been a curve, they wouldn’t have caught it.”
“Look at Bum-jun and Kim Yong-ha suddenly panicking, haha!”
“Do you really not look flustered when the pitcher throws faster than the pros?”
“Is this person a former baseball player? An athlete?”
“With that face and those skills, there’s no way she hasn’t made headlines.”
“She must just be some crazy talented prodigy.”
“A left-handed pitcher at 169 is truly a disaster.”
“What were Olivers scouts doing all this time not bringing in pitchers like that?”
There have been many cases where a pitcher threw quickly in a pre-game ceremony, but this kind of attention had never been seen before.
A first pitch is usually a light event meant to kick off the game, often humorous and entertaining. But today was different.
The commentary team analyzed the pitching form seriously, while excited viewers flooded the chat with messages. This was an unusual scene, but no one dared to interrupt. Rightfully so.
The ball Kayak just threw was something that could hold up in the pro league. Even those who don’t know much about baseball understood how impressive it was through the commentators’ analysis.
Thus, the level of interest in her pitch was entirely different from other first pitches. There’s no way to even compare. The ball she just threw simply shattered the wall between professional and amateur.
Before the main match, a first pitch by a celebrity takes place to warm up the crowd for the main event. That’s the kind of role it usually plays.
However, Kayak’s first pitch went beyond just warming up; it filled the stadium with cheers.
“Kayak! Kayak! Kayak! Kayak! Kayak! Kayak!”
She unintentionally became the star of the first pitch.
“Oh, Kayak is leaving now.”
“Does she even realize what she just did? That smile is so innocent!”
“Yes, fans of Olivers and even Titans fans have been completely captivated. Is it okay to heat up the atmosphere like this before the game even starts? Meanwhile, Titans’ Yang Sang-hyun, who declared himself a fan of Kayak, is showing a very enthusiastic reaction.”
“Don’t go! 
”
“Just throw one more pitch! Let’s see if you can throw 169 again!”
“Fans are more curious about Kayak’s baseball skills than the actual game, haha!”
“Isn’t she going to bat?”
“Just throw a pitch instead of Gae Seok-hwan today…”
“Since Olivers had such an impressive first pitch, they obviously have to win today, right?”
“Will they win?”
“Seokhwan threw 169 too, right?”
“Seokhwan’s a man, he should throw 180!”
“Does that person have a VTuber channel?”
“They’re pretty too, so I’m a fan starting today!”
And with everyone’s cheers, Kayak exited.
*
“Unfortunately, the Olivers have lost. Was the Titans’ wall just too high?”
“It’s been a while since the Olivers lost in Yongin. The Titans players really excelled today.”
“Yes, today’s final score was 17 to 6, with the Titans winning and moving closer to the postseason.”
“Seriously, what a bunch of idiots, I can’t even speak from the disbelief, hahahaha!”
“Got beat in their own home, huh?”
“Five Rivers obliterated by the Huang Titans ^^”
“Seokhwan and the Arirang ball again today, lol.”
“Is it true that the rumor about Seokhwan’s shoulder being out because the vice-principal bullied him isn’t just a rumor?”
“Comment detected with inappropriate language by CleanBot.”
“How did they throw worse than an average person during the first pitch;;?”
“17 to 6, is this even a normal score?”
“The defense is a serious problem; it’s not just the Olivers, but if they could just defend properly…”
“Get Kayak’s female friend over here, damn it!”
*
“Kayak is live!”
– Short stream, first pitch review.
“Hahaha!”
“I went to watch the Olivers’ match and saw the broadcast host; Victory Kayak is super awesome, lol.”
“Olivers lost, Teacher, ㅠㅠㅠ.”
“Hello, yes. This is a short stream. Since tomorrow is Monday and you all have work, please listen in like a calm radio in the early morning. Ugh, the Olivers lost. I saw it too. Such a pity.”
That night, Kayak’s broadcast was on. Whether it was nighttime or deliberately set up that way, only Kayak’s slightly echoing voice could be heard through the broadcast, like an ASMR stream.
“My ears are itchy, Teacher.”
“What’s with the voice?”
“Turn on the cam, please!”
“Looks like the host is tired after the first pitch.”
“Seriously, Kayak threw so well, how did they lose?”
“Seokhwan just couldn’t do it – message deleted.”
“What does the first pitch have to do with the actual game?”
“The host’s victory fairy has failed, lmao.”
“Today, there won’t be a cam. It’s a short stream, and I’m just going to briefly discuss the review. Also, insults toward the players will get you banned. It’s okay to say it was disappointing or wish it had gone better, but nothing more than that.”
Kayak managed the chat, and people chatted amongst themselves.
The gathering was lively, and people chatted in small groups.
[The victorious Olivers donated 10,000 won!]
– Broadcast Host: But have you played baseball before? You throw the ball really well, though.
It was a question everyone was curious about and could relate to. Anyone who saw the pitching scene couldn’t help but wonder about Kayak’s baseball skills.
“I’ve never played baseball. I’ve only tried softball a bit in school. What’s the difference between softball and baseball… I don’t even know. But since I was going to pitch, I thought I’d better learn how to throw, so I practiced catch with Jae-jun for the past few days.”
[Wow, LOL, memories of softball]
[Wait, someone who has never played baseball can throw like that?]
[What can’t Kayak do, really?]
[Just a bit of catch practice and she throws like that?]
[I wonder how fast Kayak from the world line of official training could throw….]
“The accuracy was the biggest issue, but Jae-jun helped me a lot. He was a bit of a drama queen, but thanks to him, I managed to finish the pitch well.”
[Oh, Jae-jun]
[Did you use a person as a target or something?]
[Jae-jun had a tough time, give him a bonus or something]
[Extreme job: Kayak editor]
[I was jealous seeing Jae-jun enjoy himself during the cooking broadcast, but I admit this one was well done, yeah]
[Olivers, hire Kayak immediately!!]
Thus, the behind-the-scenes story of Kayak’s baseball skills continued.
[TitansNumberOne donated 10,000 won!]
– Did you get interested in baseball? If so, how about cheering for the Titans, where Kayak’s fans are players?
“Hmmm, I did get a bit interested, but….”
[Titans???]
[Are those fanatics creeping in again?]
[No, Olivers gave the chance for the Broadcast Host to pitch]
[But Olivers got beaten up today]
[What? Olivers didn’t even make Kayak into a winning fairy?]
[Make Kayak the starting pitcher for Olivers!!!]
[Make Kayak a Titans cheerleader!!]
[Oh….]
[Going to the Titans seems right, yeah, it’s definitely not because I want to see her dance like a cheerleader]
[Looks like the Titans won this one]
“What’s a cheerleader even…?”
Kayak let out a smirk, looking perplexed as she watched the chat.