Chapter 107: Chapter 6: Differences
Bottom of the first inning, the United States City Youth Academy Team is on the offense.
In the first half of the inning, the Japan High School Team took the lead, scoring 2-0.
Shimabukuro Hiroshi stood on the pitcher’s mound, glancing casually at the batter next to home plate—
The first batter for Team USA, named Smith, was a Black player taller than 190 cm with massive muscles stretching his uniform.
Just his appearance put pressure on Shimabukuro Hiroshi: tall and long-legged pitchers can exert pressure on batters with explosive power and a downward throwing motion; conversely, power hitters with explosive muscles can also give pitchers a lot of pressure.
After exchanging a few signals with Yamakawa Daisuke crouching low at the baseline, Shimabukuro Hiroshi swung his arm and pitched the ball—the championship battery combo from Konan decided to start with a fastball.
Although Shimabukuro Hiroshi’s fastest pitch could reach 145 km/h, to ensure control, his fastball speed typically ranged between 138-140 km/h—for Japanese high school batters this might suffice, but against American batters accustomed to fastballs, it was clearly insufficient.
"Clang—!!!" The incoming baseball was hit solidly by Smith, who sent it soaring high into the right outfield with tremendous force.
In the right outfield, Goto Junta, nicknamed "Gunma’s Ichiro," took just a fraction of a second to judge the baseball’s drop point and then swiftly moved to make the catch.
It’s well known that Gunma Prefecture produces fast-footed athletes due to its terrain, and Goto Junta was no exception: from the trajectory of the ball, he sprinted full speed toward its landing point; finally, before the ball could land, Goto Junta made a spectacular sliding catch, securing the ball in his glove.
Seeing himself caught out, Smith, who was initially sprinting between bases, stopped his steps; there was no anger on his face, as he even smiled wryly before quickly walking back to his team bench.
The game continued, showcasing the different philosophies of youth baseball development between two countries.
It must be said, American batters have exceptional physical talents—despite appearing to exert little force while swinging, they manage to send the ball soaring high and far;
unlike the Japan team, even with runners on base, the United States City Youth Academy Team avoids small-ball tactics, choosing instead to have each player swing with all their might, leaving nothing in reserve.
However, compared to their power in chasing fastballs, American batters showed moderate capability when dealing with breaking balls, particularly the Forkball, which every Japanese pitcher seemed to master—
This was exactly Shimabukuro Hiroshi and Yamakawa Daisuke’s strategy in the following innings: they noticeably increased the ratio of breaking balls in their pitches, which helped the Japan Team get through the first two innings without giving up runs.
But in the bottom of the third inning, Smith, who was previously caught out, gave his Japanese opponents a taste of American power hitting—a 2-out, bases-occupied situation; having increasingly adapted to breaking balls, Smith grabbed hold of a curveball from Shimabukuro Hiroshi and with one swing, launched it into the sky.
The baseball flew through the blue sky until it vanished into the bushes far from the field—boom! A 3-run homer!
While Smith jogged back to home plate, celebrating with dancing teammates who had been ready for him, the Japanese defensive players on the field wore expressions of utter shock as if hit by a heavy hammer "thud" on their heads.
In fact, even after conceding the home run, the Japan team still maintained a 2-run lead—thanks to a large number of hits and small-ball tactics in the first three innings, they consistently scored in every inning;
The shock mainly came from Smith’s stance as he hit the homerun: his hitting stance defied conventional batting theories, seemingly forcing the ball out with raw power—this kind of shock was immense for Japanese players who from a young age were taught to cultivate good habits.
By the end of nine innings, although the Japan Team won 9-6, apart from a solo homer by Nagakoshi Seiji, most of their points came from small-ball tactics with precise hits;
Throughout the match, the Japan team’s outfield trio was undoubtedly the busiest group—
When playing in high school games, the outfielders rarely faced intensive defensive tasks, sometimes not even catching a single pop fly per game, sometimes nearly freezing in the outfield;
But against the American players, who seldom pursued bunt singles, instead opting to hit high fly balls whenever possible, they hit two home runs and many long hits, resulting in several batters being caught out multiple times—leaving the Japanese outfielders exhausted.
After the match, coaches and managers from both sides gathered to discuss the game; nearby, players engaged in heated exchanges with baseball as a universal language.
Lin Guanglai approached Smith, who had hit a homer, and found beneath his muscular exterior lay a humorous soul.
After some small talk, Lin Guanglai questioned Smith about his batting posture.
Hearing the question, Smith paused for a moment before bursting into laughter and countering:
"Lin, I’m a Boston Red Sox fan—have you watched the Red Sox games?"
Although unsure why Smith suddenly asked this, Lin Guanglai nodded: "Of course, I’ve watched them."
"Then, what do you think of Big Papi’s batting stance?"
"Big Papi" is the nickname for MLB Boston Red Sox’s star player David Ortiz, who once led the Red Sox to the only comeback from trailing 3-0 against rival Yankees, breaking the "Curse of the Bambino" to win the World Series, becoming a hero for Boston.
After thinking for a while, Lin Guanglai carefully chose his words and hesitantly spoke: "Uh... not exactly standard—at least to me, it doesn’t look as good as Ken Griffey Jr.’s."
Smith nodded in agreement: "You’re right, Big Papi’s batting stance isn’t standard or pretty—but he achieved everything a batter could dream of."
"The so-called batting theory was developed as a basic guide—baseball, at its core, is simply about hitting the ball out, isn’t it?"
"Everyone has their own habits and characteristics—if everyone batted according to so-called theories, baseball would become a factory assembly line, wouldn’t it?"
After saying this, Smith patted Lin Guanglai’s shoulder with his large hand: "Lin, you’re only 15; you have plenty of time to explore these things—my first coach once told me something, and now I’ll pass it on to you."
"The best is what suits you—let those who oppose or try to conform you go to hell!"