Shun watched Sugawara's throw, the ball's trajectory was perfect, heading straight for the third baseman's glove. He quickly analyzed the situation and realized he would need to dive, so he dove with his arms extended toward third base.
PAH
Almost at the same moment Shun touched his hand to the base, he felt the third baseman's glove tag his back. He looked at the umpire with a confident smile.
"Out!" - The umpire announced after a few moments.
"Huh?" - Shun looked at the umpire, astonished, not for a second thinking he could be thrown out while stealing a base.
"What?" - All the Shoto players were speechless. This was the first time Shun had ever been caught stealing a base.
After so many games where Shun stole bases at will without ever being caught, it was natural for the inexperienced young players to believe it was impossible for him to be thrown out. Unfortunately for them, baseball wasn't that simple. there's no absolute play with guaranteed success in this sport.
In a world where even professionals struggle to hit 3 out of 10 pitches, thinking you'd never get caught doing the same play over and over was pure arrogance. At that moment, Shun stood up, dazed, remembering his captain's words:
"It's going to be tough to get many hits off him, so we need to take full advantage of any chances we get with runners on base."
"Fuck!" - Shun clenched his fists in frustration, looking at the white-haired catcher, smiling victoriously. But that wasn't what made him angry, he was mad at his own stupidity.
"Damn! I didn't think I could get thrown out... I underestimated the catcher, I was... arrogant." - Shun realized his mistakes and walked toward the dugout with his head down, but before entering, he looked again at the mound and the catcher.
"Next time! Next chance I get, I'll take them down!" - Shun's eyes were burning with fighting spirit.
"Hahahaha, that's right! Go back to the bench, you loser! Keep your head down forever, hahaha!" - Sugawara was practically shooting fireworks of happiness, his maniacal side waking up from the thrill of defeating his "rival".
Meanwhile, in the stands...
"That steal was a bit reckless," - Toji said, disappointed. His friend had been playing really well, but for some reason, Shun had tried an unnecessary steal, and the way he executed it was also sloppy.
"What was he thinking?" - Kenshin seemed disheartened as well. No matter how he looked at it, that was a terrible steal attempt. Ignoring the fact that the opposing catcher was excellent and that Shun clearly didn't execute the steal well, the steal itself was simply unnecessary in that situation.
With a runner in scoring position, no outs, and with the team's best hitters coming up next, it wouldn't have been difficult to score a run. Besides, this would have been the first run of the game, a run that would have opened the score and given Shoto Junior High the mental edge.
PAH
"Out! 3 outs, changeover!"
The umpire announced when he saw the ball in Sugawara's glove.
"Yeeeaaahhhh!" - The crowd's roar was loud as the players on the field quickly returned to the dugout, excited.
"Nice pitching, Kohei!"
"Great job stopping the steal, Captain!"
The team didn't hold back on praise for the battery's excellent performance.
"Tch! Listen, from now on we'll attack like this..." - Sugawara knew this wasn't the time to be happy with compliments. He hadn't finished destroying his opponents yet. He quickly gathered the team and shared his attack plan for the rest of the game.
"Hehe, looks like he has a plan after all." - Kohei smiled, seeing Sugawara's reaction. Even though this maniacal version of his friend was a bit tough to handle, it was much more fun playing baseball with him when he wanted to win.
"Damn it!" - Kenta returned to the dugout, frustrated. He was clearly unsatisfied after being retired in just 3 pitches.
"Don't worry! We'll score next inning. Let's focus on defense now!" - Kazuki spoke loudly, putting his hand on Kenta's shoulder. He then started running out to the field by himself.
"Yeeaahhh! Let's go, Shoto!" - The players were energized by their captain's words, their fighting spirit reignited. They quickly followed Kazuki onto the field.
The top of the second inning was about to begin, with the score still tied. Hokuto's fifth batter walked confidently toward the batter's box, his captain's plan still fresh in his mind:
"Listen up, avoid ground balls toward the second baseman or the shortstop. Focus on sending the ball to the outfield, it can be to center field or left field, but don't send it to right field! Their pitcher is trash, so let's force him off the mound and finish this quickly!"
"Hehe, by some miracle, you managed to get through the first inning without giving up any runs, but that just means I can finally be the first on the team to score!" - The fifth batter smiled confidently as he watched Sora pitch.
WOOSH
DOOONG