Chapter 509 - 509: The Determination of the Team's Core Ace!

"Starting pitcher, Furuya Satoru."

"Tanba, begin warming up from the third inning. Sawamura, you'll take over from the fifth."

The moment Coach Kataoka announced the pitching rotation, the members of the Seido High School Baseball Team stirred.

"This is already the third game."

"And we're still not letting Zhou Hao pitch?"

Before this, Coach Kataoka had been carefully managing Zhou Hao's workload. To prepare for the stronger opponents waiting ahead, the fewer pitches their Ace threw, the more stamina he could preserve for the critical matches.

But this was already Seido's third game of the tournament.

No matter how much they wanted to conserve Zhou Hao's strength, they should at least confirm his condition on the mound. Even if it were only to silence the rumors spreading outside, allowing him to pitch a few innings seemed reasonable.

Yet Coach Kataoka showed no intention of doing so.

More surprisingly, Zhou Hao himself remained completely calm.

It was obvious that the two had already reached an understanding.

Perhaps they had discussed it long before today's meeting.

The Seido players knew their Coach and Ace well.

In fact, Coach Kataoka had already spoken with Zhou Hao about the matter.

At the time, the first-year pitchers were practicing with their respective partners.

Furuya Satoru was working with Miyuki Kazuya, while Sawamura Eijun was paired with Chris.

Furuya's blazing fastball had already attracted plenty of attention, and he had recently begun mastering the Forkball.

For a power pitcher, it was an indispensable breaking ball and would likely become one of his most important weapons in the future.

Meanwhile, Sawamura had begun focusing on refining his Four-Seam Fastball alongside his Moving Fastball.

The unpredictable movement of his pitches, combined with his sharp inside-corner attack, earned high praise from Chris.

Although he couldn't compare to Zhou Hao while Zhou Hao was still around, Chris firmly believed that after Zhou Hao graduated, Sawamura had the potential to become Seido's next Ace.

Everything seemed to be progressing smoothly.

Especially after the first two tournament games, where both rookie pitchers had delivered impressive performances.

Naturally, everyone paid close attention to them.

The coaching staff was no exception.

However, unlike the fans who simply enjoyed the excitement, the coaches had already discovered the problems hidden beneath those performances.

"Furuya's high fastball certainly induces swings, but the pitch itself has a very high ball rate. His shoulders are too stiff, making it difficult for him to consistently keep the ball down."

"Sawamura also lacks polish, especially when attacking the inside corner."

To put it bluntly, both first-year pitchers had reached a bottleneck.

Ordinary practice alone would not be enough for them to break through.

They needed real-game experience.

More importantly, they needed opponents capable of putting genuine pressure on them.

Only under those circumstances could they be tempered by fire and emerge stronger.

When the coaching staff reached this conclusion, everyone fell silent.

To develop two first-year pitchers, Seido would not only have to take certain risks but also allow Zhou Hao to endure criticism from the outside world.

Perhaps those criticisms meant nothing to Zhou Hao.

As the nation's number one player, a little gossip couldn't shake him.

But that didn't mean the coaching staff could simply ignore the issue.

To a certain extent, doing so violated Seido's principle of fairness.

Then there was Akikawa High School.

Other opponents were one thing.

But Akikawa was different.

The coaches could clearly sense the threat posed by that team.

Especially if Zhou Hao didn't pitch.

In fact, they believed Akikawa might very well cause Seido considerable trouble.

As the reigning national powerhouse, was it really necessary to go this far just to cultivate two rookie pitchers?

Even the usually decisive Coach Kataoka found himself hesitating.

"I'll think about it."

After hearing his answer, Manager Ota and the others obediently left.

From their perspective, they understood the Coach's dilemma.

Both choices carried weight.

On one hand, according to Seido's traditional approach, Zhou Hao should start against any opponent whose strength remained uncertain.

At the very least, he should secure the first few innings and establish control of the game.

On the other hand, Coach Kataoka had never been someone who focused solely on results.

If he had been, Seido wouldn't have spent so many years reaching the semifinals and finals without breaking through to become champions.

Developing Furuya and Sawamura was equally important.

Although they still had plenty of time ahead of them, breaking through now was fundamentally different from breaking through during their second or third year.

At this stage, they still had Zhou Hao supporting them.

Even if something went wrong, there was someone capable of stabilizing the situation.

Once they became the team's main pitchers, however, no one would be there to cover for them.

Lost in thought, Coach Kataoka wandered around the training grounds.

Soon, he noticed Sawamura still practicing long after the others had finished.

Chris was catching for him, while Kanemaru stood in the batter's box simulating a hitter.

Kanemaru was another highly regarded first-year player who had already established himself within the Second String.

"Whoosh!"

The white baseball screamed toward the inside corner, passing so close to Kanemaru that it nearly brushed his uniform before diving into Chris's glove.

Pop!

Cold sweat instantly ran down Kanemaru's forehead.

"Are you trying to kill me? Do you think it doesn't matter if the ball hits me?"

Sawamura blinked innocently.

"Does it matter?"

"Of course it matters!"

Kanemaru felt like his internal organs were about to explode from frustration.

Sawamura didn't just treat him like an outsider.

Half the time, he didn't even seem to treat him like a human being.

How could getting hit by a baseball not matter?

Wasn't he made of flesh and blood too?

Even though resentment filled his heart, Kanemaru didn't retreat.

Instead, he raised his bat once more.

Practicing against a live batter was completely different from pitching alone.

By helping Sawamura, Kanemaru was also helping him improve.

And for Kanemaru himself, this was a valuable opportunity.

Opportunities had to be fought for.

As one of the team's most promising rookies, Sawamura naturally attracted the attention of the coaches.

The more time Kanemaru spent practicing with him, the easier it was for the coaches to notice his own strengths.

At the same time, it allowed him to better understand the gap between himself and the First String players.

Only by understanding that gap could he figure out how to close it.

So far, he had been doing a very good job.

Not only had Manager Ota noticed him, but even Coach Kataoka had begun paying attention.

Kataoka stopped walking.

Partly because of the three players' dedication.

But also because he spotted two familiar figures nearby.

Zhou Hao.

And Miyuki Kazuya, who had come over after finishing practice with Furuya.

Clearly, Seido's core battery was paying close attention to Sawamura's development.

"Coach!"

Seeing Kataoka approach, both greeted him respectfully.

Kataoka nodded before turning toward Zhou Hao.

"How do you feel?"

"About Sawamura's pitching?"

"Or about our next opponent?"

Zhou Hao could already guess what his Coach wanted to ask.

"Of course, the next opponent."

"How was Sawamura's pitching? Coach Kataoka could see that for himself.

As Seido's Coach, what he really wanted to know was how their Ace viewed their next opponent. That would directly influence the team's tactical arrangements.

"Very strong," Zhou Hao replied. "Probably stronger than any of us realize."

Yang Shunchen had allowed one run in one game and two runs in another.

What others thought when they saw those results, Zhou Hao couldn't say.

But when he first saw them, his immediate reaction was that something was off.

Yang Shunchen was unquestionably one of the top pitchers in the country.

His velocity wasn't elite, and his breaking pitches weren't particularly flashy. However, he possessed exceptional control, tremendous stamina, unwavering mental strength, and an extremely complete skill set.

To put it bluntly, he was not inferior to any top-tier Ace in the nation.

The only thing holding him back was the overall strength of Akikawa High School.

That limitation restricted what he could accomplish on the field.

Based on his abilities, Akikawa's performances should have been even more dominant.

Even if they couldn't score many runs, they should at least have been capable of completely shutting down their opponents.

"You think they're hiding their strength?" Coach Kataoka asked.

"Not think," Zhou Hao replied firmly. "I'm certain. That guy probably started preparing for us from the very first round."

The answer sounded outrageous.

But for Seido, it was a reality they had long grown accustomed to.

Most teams treated Seido as their hypothetical final boss.

That meant many opponents began preparing specifically for them long before they actually met in the tournament.

Just like Mishimon High School.

Although Seido had eventually crushed them, Mishimon's hidden Ace had still managed to retire Seido's first five batters in order.

The impression he left was unforgettable.

If Akikawa was taking the same approach, then Seido needed to prepare accordingly.

"You'll start the next game," Coach Kataoka said decisively.

Unexpectedly, Zhou Hao shook his head.

"Give the first-years a chance."

"If I pitch, this game won't be interesting."

Even if he only used a fraction of his true strength, Akikawa's batters wouldn't be able to threaten him.

For Zhou Hao personally, the game offered little value.

It wouldn't improve his skills.

It wouldn't significantly increase his reputation.

But for Furuya and Sawamura, it was completely different.

They desperately needed a high-pressure game like this to complete their growth.

The benefits to Seido as a whole would be enormous.

"Didn't you just say Akikawa is dangerous? Especially that pitcher, Yang?"

Miyuki Kazuya looked at him curiously.

His assessment was actually very close to Zhou Hao's.

Akikawa High School was far more dangerous than it appeared on the surface.

If Seido wanted to defeat them comfortably, they couldn't afford to underestimate them.

"I said Yang is strong," Zhou Hao answered calmly. "That doesn't mean our first-years are weak."

"Besides, there are so many of us here."

He smiled.

"It's not like we'll stand around and watch our juniors get beaten."

"What if we're trailing early?" Miyuki pressed.

"Three runs."

Zhou Hao raised three fingers.

"If we're behind by more than three runs, I'll take the mound immediately."

"And if we're still trailing by the fifth inning, I'll pitch as well."

Miyuki nodded but continued.

"Have you considered the possibility that we might struggle to score? If Yang is really that good, they could simply avoid pitching to you."

As Seido's cleanup-level threat, intentional walks were always an option.

Zhou Hao laughed softly.

"We won't lose."

His answer came without the slightest hesitation.

"I trust our third-years."

"And I trust us."

With Zhou Hao's presence and the complete growth of Seido's senior class, the team's offensive power had become one of the strongest in the country.

Yang Shunchen was excellent.

But he wasn't unbeatable.

More importantly, Seido wasn't playing against Yang alone.

They were facing the entire Akikawa team.

That conversation was ultimately what helped Coach Kataoka make up his mind.

At some point, Zhou Hao had stopped thinking solely as Seido's Ace.

Now, he was thinking as the team's true core.

Everything he considered was for the benefit of Seido as a whole.

As for the criticism and rumors outside?

Compared to the future of the team, those things were insignificant.

If Zhou Hao himself could endure them, then why couldn't he, as Head Coach, do the same?

After finalizing the pitching rotation, Kataoka moved on to the rest of the lineup.

Unlike the previous two games, Seido would be deploying its strongest possible lineup.

Aside from the pitcher's mound, every position would be filled by a regular starter.

The importance the coaching staff placed on this game was obvious.

No matter what happened, they intended to defeat Akikawa High School.

The Seido players had no objections.

In fact, they welcomed it.

"Win this game."

"Advance to the Top Eight."

Compared to Akikawa, the teams waiting in the quarterfinals were far more familiar to them.

Ichidai Third High.

Seisen High School.

Seikou Academy.

And their greatest rival—

Inashiro Industrial.

Of course, before thinking about any of them, there was still one obstacle standing in their way.

The road had to be taken one step at a time.

First, they had to defeat Akikawa.

"The game between Seido High School and Akikawa High School is about to begin!"

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