The Seido High School Baseball Team supporters sitting next to the media reporters were practically wagging their tails with glee at this point.
They deliberately raised their voices, chatting loudly with their companions.
"So this is the legendary Wada High School Baseball Team? From what I read online, I thought they were some incredible team. Now it looks like they're nothing special."
As he spoke, he specifically glanced at the media reporters.
It was as if he was afraid the reporters wouldn't know who they were talking to.
"You can't say that."
His companion quickly pulled him back, looking earnest.
"How can you question what the online reporters say? They're professionals. Besides, the Wada High School Baseball Team isn't bad. Look at that guy, and that other guy, didn't they play very well?"
"Who's 'that guy'?"
The fan who was pulled back looked at his companion, utterly bewildered.
He was genuinely confused.
During the game so far, had any Wada High School Baseball Team players performed exceptionally well? He had been watching from the start of the game until the bottom of the fourth inning, and honestly, almost half the game was over.
He hadn't noticed anything!
"Just 'that guy'."
His companion said with a smile, "The man sitting in the dugout, like a Buddha statue in a temple."
"Yasuda, the Coach?"
The first fan to speak had thought he was already quite scathing.
But compared to his companion, his words were mere trifles.
What his companion said was the real killer blow.
Didn't he see quite a few reporters in the press box whose expressions had changed?
"The game isn't over yet, isn't it a bit early to make definitive statements?"
A middle-aged reporter angrily retorted.
As qualified reporters, they made their living by wielding pens and tongues. A bunch of snot-nosed kids dared to challenge them here; they had a group of fellow reporters behind them, after all.
They were simply courting death.
Let alone the game not being over, anything could happen.
Even if the game ended, and the Seido High School Baseball Team won, and won by a large margin, so what?
As long as they processed it with their flowery prose, no matter how well the Seido High School Baseball Team players performed on the field, they could still pick flaws and find a host of problems with the opponent.
He just wouldn't believe it!
After he finished speaking, he had expected countless companions behind him to chime in with support.
Although they were few in number and didn't have as many mouths as the other side, considering they were all reporters who wielded pens and tongues, even if they didn't achieve a complete victory in a debate, they could at least hold their own.
To his surprise, after he spoke, there was dead silence behind him.
A reporter who usually got along well with him covered his face with his hand and hurriedly pulled him back.
"What's wrong with you guys? This is so disloyal!"
The speaking reporter felt a surge of grievance with nowhere to vent.
In his impression, reporter friends were very united, especially gossip media reporters.
When chasing news, it was every man for himself, and it was normal for them to fight each other to the death.
But normally, if one reporter encountered a problem, the stance of the other reporters was always very firm.
What was going on today? He had taken the initiative to stand up, so why hadn't anyone responded?
"Aren't you clearly telling them that you're the one slandering Seido online?"
His companion's words instantly brought him to a sudden realization.
Although the media reporters who slandered the Seido High School Baseball Team online, or rather, the reporters who pointed out the Seido High School Baseball Team's weaknesses, were not small in number, relatively speaking to the total number of comments, they were still a minority, probably only accounting for one fifth, or even less.
In this situation, the other reporters chose to feign ignorance, not because they weren't truly angry.
The main reason was that they didn't have the courage to admit they were talking nonsense online.
Thinking about what they had said online, and then looking at the Seido High School Baseball Team, who were already leading the opponent by a full six runs after four innings and hadn't given up a single run, one should know that in this game, the Seido High School Baseball Team hadn't even shown their full strength yet.
Putting aside everything else, just look at their pitcher.
No matter how you evaluate him, Kawakami is definitely the weakest among the Seido High School Baseball Team's main pitching staff.
Which of the remaining pitchers isn't stronger than him? Even Furuya Satoru, whose overall strength is relatively weaker, the terrifying pressure he brings to opponents with his pitching alone is much greater than Kawakami's threat.
In this situation, Kawakami is currently on the pitcher's mound for the Seido High School Baseball Team.
Even if the players on the field for the Seido High School Baseball Team are all their main players, and core main players at that, you still can't say that the current Seido High School Baseball Team has already shown their full strength.
Just the difference in the Ace greatly weakens the overall strength of the Seido High School Baseball Team.
At most, they've only shown eighty percent of their strength.
But even so, the Seido High School Baseball Team is absolutely crushing the Wada High School Baseball Team.
In the face of this absolute strength, even the media reporters who were dissatisfied with the Seido High School Baseball Team had no way to openly complain about Seido.
This was also the reason they were unwilling to admit it; they were afraid of being humiliated once the game ended.
The reporter who had just started speaking had been impulsive for a moment, but after the impulse passed, his brain quickly calmed down.
He also understood why all these cunning guys around him were silent, like gourds with their mouths sealed.
It turned out they wanted to get away with it.
It was just that he was more upright and didn't have as many hidden motives as them, so he directly brought up the topic.
In the end, only he himself was embarrassed.
Those guys all looked away, as if they hadn't heard the discussions of the Seido High School Baseball Team players.
"Hmph, the game is far from over."
At this point, even if he wanted to learn from others, it was too late.
Words spoken are like water spilled; it's impossible for him to take back what he said.
He could only choose to stubbornly stick to his guns and fight to the end.
What if a miracle happened? Perhaps he could still regain his face.
Even if he really was humiliated, at most he would just slink away.
As for these Seido High School Baseball Team supporters, although they were sitting next to them and yelling aggressively, in reality, their influence was not much.
As for his own colleagues, who hasn't had an embarrassing experience?
Such things are naturally selectively forgotten.
If anyone firmly keeps it in their mind, wouldn't they be a big fool?
Under everyone's expectant gaze, the reporter who had previously looked like a frost-bitten eggplant quickly lifted his head.
So much so that several reporters next to him slapped their thighs in annoyance.
They had also been among those complaining online, so why hadn't they thought it through, worried about their reputation, and not stood up?
If they had been willing to stand up, perhaps it wouldn't just be the middle-aged reporter who spoke earlier feeling proud right now.
They too could have straightened their necks and enjoyed a moment of glory.
A single mistake can lead to eternal regret.
Because they themselves didn't dare to take risks, even if the game truly progressed according to the scenario they had envisioned, they wouldn't be able to share in the glory.
In the bottom of the fourth inning, the Wada High School Baseball Team's hitters gradually got used to Kawakami's pitching, and they devised a counter-strategy against it.
The first batter to step up to the plate for the Wada High School Baseball Team was their Second Batter.
As soon as he stepped up, he kept his body tightly pressed against the edge of the strike zone.
Seeing this, Miyuki's heart trembled slightly.
Although Kawakami hesitated somewhat when pitching extreme inside pitches, especially low-angle inside pitches, this was mainly due to some previous incidents and didn't greatly affect Kawakami's performance.
If the opponent locked onto inside pitches, with Kawakami's control, he could completely pitch the ball to the outside edge, or directly inside.
Especially directly inside, with the Wada High School Baseball Team's batters standing as they were, how could they hit the ball out?
No sooner said than done.
Miyuki was not someone who would show mercy upon seeing the opponent's weakness.
In the Wada High School Baseball Team's dugout, the chubby Yasuda stroked his large belly.
"Dealing with smart people is the simplest."
The smarter a person is, the narrower the range of solutions they choose.
They don't aim for how many pitching methods there are, but for the optimal pitching position and method.
Since it's optimal, it must be the opponent's weakness.
When the Wada High School Baseball Team's player actively exposed his weakness to Miyuki, Miyuki also unhesitatingly aimed at the opponent's weakness and began his attack.
However, Kawakami's pitch almost hit the batter.
Kawakami is a sidearm pitcher, and his pitches already seem to come from behind the batter.
From the batter's normal perspective, such pitches are inherently difficult to deal with.
Now, the Wada High School Baseball Team's batter was pressed tightly against the edge of the strike zone.
This made Kawakami's pitches seem as if they were aimed directly at their bodies.
This pitch ended.
The batter himself was startled.
Kawakami, the pitcher, wasn't doing much better; cold sweat instantly broke out on his forehead.
He seemed to recall some unpleasant memory, causing him to struggle to get into rhythm for the subsequent pitches.
The Wada High School Baseball Team's batters weren't foolish; they quickly noticed that Kawakami's pitches weren't as precise as in the previous innings.
Although they didn't know why this was happening, they couldn't possibly miss such a golden opportunity that fell from the sky!
The batters successively got hits and successfully reached base.
The Seido High School Baseball Team barely managed to get one out through their defense.
But the Wada High School Baseball Team not only caught up by two runs in one go but also sent their runner to Third Base.
Originally, in the eyes of the Seido High School Baseball Team's companions, although the Wada High School Baseball Team's players were skilled, it was still very difficult for them to pose a threat.
But that was under the condition that the Seido High School Baseball Team didn't make mistakes or show weaknesses.
Once the Seido High School Baseball Team had a problem, even if it wasn't a very big one, it would quickly trigger a chain reaction.
Just like now, they gave up two runs in one go.
And the opponent's offense showed no signs of ending.
"That's it."
Coach Yasuda stroked his big belly, muttering with a smile.
His disciples, overall, were still making him proud.
Their performance might not be flashy, but it was absolutely excellent.
Next up was Ogata Jūjirō, their Ace Pitcher.
Although Ogata Jūjirō was batting sixth, his hitting ability was definitely more than that.
It was just that because he bore the heavy responsibility of pitching, Coach Yasuda specifically moved him from the core lineup to the sixth spot, which significantly reduced the pressure on his hitting offense.
He could fight the opponent relatively easily.
"Get one more run, it's up to you!"
"Go for it!"
Although the Wada High School Baseball Team's offense in this inning was very good, their players did not have arrogant expressions on their faces.
Even though they had already caught up by two runs, they were very likely to catch up by a third run next.
But as long as they worked hard little by little, and caught up one run at a time, sooner or later, they would see the moment when the situation changed.
Thinking of this, Ogata raised the bat in his hand high, posing as if to decide the match against the pitcher.
The Seido High School Baseball Team's defensive players instinctively retreated a few steps.
This kind of ball was very likely to be hit far.
However, when Kawakami actually threw the ball, the opposing batter immediately pulled back his bat and then assumed a bunting stance.
"Suicide squeeze?"
Several Seido High School Baseball Team infielders quickly ran forward.
In fact, they had already anticipated this possibility when they retreated.
They believed that as long as the opponent dared to bunt the ball into the field, they would be able to deal with the opponent.
However, to their surprise, Ogata, who was clearly about to bunt, suddenly pulled his bat back again.
Although he was called a swing and a miss by the umpire because he couldn't pull back the bat in time, the Seido High School Baseball Team's companions still felt a strong threat.
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