Summer Koshien, National Finals.
The two teams competing are the Seidou High School Baseball Team and the Komadai Fujimaki High School Baseball Team.
Before the match, there were many predictions about the Seidou High School Baseball Team becoming legendary. This had already stirred up online discussions before the Summer Tournament even began.
Now, after nearly a month and a half, with regional tournaments already concluded, the Koshien tournament is nearing its end.
Seidou High School Baseball Team lived up to expectations, despite encountering all sorts of challenges during the competition.
However, they overcame each obstacle, emerging in front of everyone with a brand-new image.
They did it!
After a month and a half of hard work and numerous intense matches, Seidou High School Baseball Team was on the verge of becoming a legend.
This idea was already popular when the tournament started.
Seidou High School Baseball Team defending their title and becoming the first team in Koshien history to win three consecutive championships.
However, there were many doubts at that time.
"One thing leads to another, but not everything follows in the same way."
The Seidou High School Baseball Team was powerful, no doubt.
But precisely because of their overwhelming strength, after the Summer Tournament began, they inevitably became the target for all ambitious teams, a thorn in the side.
In such a competitive environment, it was extremely difficult for Seidou High School Baseball Team to make it to the end.
In the 100-plus-year history of Koshien, many formidable teams have emerged.
There were many strong teams, too.
For example, the Osaka Kiryu team, which Seidou had previously eliminated, had once won back-to-back championships.
Summer and spring, or spring and summer! Such opportunities were enough to stun people; it's hard to imagine what could be more shocking.
Why didn't they win a three-peat?
Because of the unpredictable factors involved!
This time, the reigning champion Seidou High School Baseball Team has fought through the challenges.
They have proven their strength to everyone!
Although the difficulty of this accomplishment is comparable to granite.
Seidou High School Baseball Team made it through!
And judging by their current performance, they're only getting better; their display is increasingly impressive.
After several rounds of intense elimination matches.
The reigning Seidou High School Baseball Team doesn't feel depleted at all.
Instead, they seem to shine brighter with every challenge.
No one expected that, in today's final, the two teams would present a situation no one had predicted.
The match's focus was on the Ace pitchers of both teams.
Both demonstrated astonishing abilities.
First, there was Hongo Masamune, the Ace pitcher for Komadai Fujimaki High School Baseball Team.
During the game, he revealed a pitching style he had never shown before.
And he even refined his original pitching technique.
As a result, Seidou High School Baseball Team's batting line struggled against him.
Of course.
The performance of the "Great Demon King" Sawamura didn't disappoint his fans either.
Although their opponent, Komadai Fujimaki High School, had prepared various strategies to counter Sawamura's pitching before the game.
It turned out these efforts were futile.
In the case of the "Great Demon King" Sawamura, these strategies seemed like trivial tricks, laughable, and could bring no real harm or effect.
During the match, Sawamura adjusted his pitching rhythm flexibly, something no normal pitcher dared to even think about.
This was devastating for the players of Komadai Fujimaki High School Baseball Team.
In the words of Fujio, a senior reporter for Baseball Kingdom Magazine.
"This was an unfair match!"
Why such a claim?
The reason is simple.
Firstly, even though Komadai Fujimaki High School Baseball Team had prepared targeted strategies, hitting Sawamura's pitches was not an easy task.
They couldn't hit the ball with their strength alone; it all depended on strategy!
In short, it was all about tactics!
Since it was tactics, there were inherent flaws.
If the opponent didn't fall for it and didn't follow the script, they were helpless!
They had set up a script before the match, wanting Sawamura to follow it.
In past Seidou games, Sawamura had often cooperated with such scripts.
As long as the opponent set the script, he would follow it.
So, they had been outwitted before.
But this time, with no room for any error, Sawamura and Miyuki would not be so naive.
How could they be?
In such an important match, they didn't want any mishaps, so only the most powerful and effective pitching is allowed.
As long as they didn't follow the opponent's script, they would be fine.
Thus, Sawamura didn't use his usual tempo but changed his pitching rhythm.
This rendered the strategies prepared by Komadai Fujimaki High School Baseball Team a joke.
They were like fools, waiting for the rabbit to crash into the tree.
But the rabbit never came!
The situation became awkward, and the players of Komadai Fujimaki High School Baseball Team were struck out one after another.
Both teams' Ace pitchers displayed extraordinary pitching skills!
Compared to Hongo, Sawamura was technically superior.
However, the match situation, or rather the balance of victory, didn't fully tip in Seidou High School Baseball Team's favor.
Sawamura was not just Seidou's defensive Ace; he was also their offensive weapon.
It wouldn't be an exaggeration to say he was the strongest hitter.
Everyone in Seidou High School Baseball Team knew this very well.
But even before, when he went up to bat, he made an error.
Although in terms of the match, Sawamura didn't really suffer much from it.
His being solved wasn't entirely his fault.
But still, this was an ominous signal.
It showed that Komadai Fujimaki High School Baseball Team did have the power to compete with Seidou High School Baseball Team.
Whether the members of Seidou were willing to admit it or not, this was an undeniable fact.
Now, Miyuki was facing this very issue.
The opponent was strong!
This was evident from Sawamura's encounter with Hongo.
As Sawamura's batting partner, no one understood his capabilities better than Miyuki.
As long as Sawamura was willing, it seemed like there was no pitch he couldn't hit.
Especially when Sawamura showed that confident expression.
Perhaps ordinary people couldn't notice the difference, but to Miyuki, a close teammate, Sawamura's expressions were extremely telling.
Whenever Sawamura had something on his mind, it would show on his face.
Most of the time, Sawamura was easy-going.
Even during matches, his emotions rarely fluctuated much.
It was only when batting or facing particularly tough opponents on the mound that Sawamura would occasionally show a cold, intense demeanor.
This cold, fierce expression was proof that Sawamura was giving his all.
Whether it was pitching or batting.
Whenever Sawamura showed such an expression, Seidou High School Baseball Team knew they could almost put out the lights for the opponents.
There would be no hope for them at all.
But even in this state, Sawamura struggled against Hongo.
Miyuki could not ignore the situation.
The opponent, while not tall or particularly massive, had an impressive pitching power.
Looking across the country, only Furuya could compete with him in terms of pitching speed.
Compared to others, his speed was leagues ahead.
Such a pitcher demanded Seidou's full respect.
Miyuki raised his bat and waited patiently, observing Hongo's pitching closely.
As for scoring, Miyuki didn't dare to hope too much.
This was their first encounter with Hongo.
The probability of hitting a solid hit was very low.
Miyuki didn't dare to dream about that.
Before achieving that grand goal, his current focus was simple.
To give it his all!
Roaar!!
While he was thinking, the baseball whizzed by.
'So fast!'
Not just the batter, but even the onlookers were shocked when they saw the pitch coming.
It was terrifying!
Miyuki licked his dry lips and focused on the mound.
Incredible!
Hongo Masamune's pitch.
The speed of that pitch was displayed on Koshien's giant screen: 153 km/h!
That speed was almost the peak of Hongo's abilities.
Of course, the speed alone wasn't enough to leave Miyuki so stunned.
As the captain of the Seidou High School Baseball Team, Miyuki had his own standards. If the opponent's ability didn't truly impress him, he would mask his expression.
But during this exchange, Miyuki couldn't hide his shock.
He was completely stunned!
Why?
It wasn't just because Hongo could throw such a fast pitch. Compared to his teammate Furuya, Hongo's speed was not as impressive.
So, if it wasn't the speed, what was it?
It was the control!
Generally, the faster the pitcher, the harder it is to control the ball.
In Major League Baseball, there had been a strange incident where an outfielder, while returning a ball, threw a 160 km/h pitch. (100 mph)
This speed surpassed most pitchers.
After the game, reporters asked why he didn't become a pitcher.
The outfielder was ashamed and frustrated.
He wished he could be a pitcher, but as a child, although his pitching speed was fast enough to be the main pitcher during games with his friends.
Unfortunately, his control was terrible.
So, he couldn't become a pitcher.
This outfielder's accuracy was abysmal.
It was so bad that if rated on a scale, he would be the worst.
That was why he couldn't become a pitcher.
He was good at throwing as an outfielder, but when it came to the mound, where accuracy is critical, he couldn't replicate his outfield skills.
…
T/N: Now the final game, both for this Tournament and for this Team, is now commencing.
Man, it was such a long journey.
Hope you enjoy it, Thank you all for reading.
Have a good day people!
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