In the evening, everyone was engrossed in their own emotions.
Those who received their numbers were thinking about how to contribute to the team and how not to let down their teammates, Coach, and coaching staff.
They represented not only themselves but also all the players who didn't make it into the First string and didn't get a number.
The other players, considering the feelings of the third-year students, couldn't make any extra fuss.
Everyone chose silence, and the first night after receiving the numbers passed peacefully.
Then, the next day.
The third-year players, who had almost received notice to leave the team, not a single one was late; they all arrived at the practice field early and ran with all the other players.
This set a good example for the first and second-year players who had not yet received their numbers.
Everyone was deeply moved, including the first and second-year players who made it into the First string; their hearts were incredibly touched.
"Although this year's senior class is called a 'poor harvest year,' in my opinion, they are the most outstanding group," Kuramochi said with emotion.
His words were absolutely not meant to be polite; they expressed his truest thoughts.
Not only him, but many first and second-year players felt the same way.
This group of senior students was truly admirable.
It was because of their guidance that Seido High School Baseball Team has its current style. Thinking of the days and nights spent practicing with the senior students, remembering the sweat and tears they shed.
Including the third-year regular players, everyone felt a surge of confidence from the depths of their hearts.
They had no problem.
Having won the Kanto Tournament, they would surely overcome all obstacles and reach the end in the subsequent Summer Tournament, including the games after making it to Koshien.
Before, even though Coach Kataoka had made 'dominating the nation' the slogan of Seido High School Baseball Team, it became their sole goal to strive for.
But as players, especially those whose talent wasn't as outstanding, they couldn't help but question it deep down.
Is it really no problem?
There were quite a few with this thought. In fact, it could be said that the vast majority of Seido's teammates believed that just making it to Koshien and achieving a good result there would be good enough.
As for dominating the nation, they hadn't not thought about it, but they just considered it unrealistic.
But now, they suddenly felt an endless surge of power within them.
With the guidance of these senior students and their past efforts, they believed they could definitely reach a higher level.
Summer Tournament, Koshien.
Come on.
We've been impatient for a long time.
Zhang Han was also deeply moved.
Although a similar scene occurred last year, the morale of those third-year senior students at that time was somewhat low.
Their negative emotions were very severe.
It was just that the good education in the school had cultivated their self-disciplined personalities, so they didn't express these negative emotions.
But now, these third-year senior students gave a completely different feeling.
After losing their chance, they were disappointed and frustrated, but they didn't have too many negative emotions.
After just one night, they figured out what they could do and what they should do now.
All the third-year senior students who lost their chance almost simultaneously sought out Coach Kataoka and the coaching staff's coaches.
They requested to help the First string teammates train together.
The coaches felt their eyes welling up; how could they bear to make such a decision in front of such a group of children?
Only Coach Kataoka, after carefully looking at all the players, nodded and agreed.
"If this is what you wish, then go ahead."
The third-year senior students who stepped down, even if they weren't selected for the First string, still had strength superior to the first and second-year players.
Even the first-year players who made it into the First string couldn't confidently say that they were better than these third-year senior students who stepped down.
From this perspective, these third-year senior students seemed more qualified than some of the first-year players to represent Seido High School Baseball Team in games.
But now, they, who were stronger, willingly assisted the first-year players who took their positions.
Sawamura and Furuya Satoru, not being so thick-skinned, appeared very uncomfortable.
After Chris saw this, he proactively approached them. Currently, Chris not only serves as the team's substitute catcher but also bears the important responsibility of guiding the two first-year pitchers.
This guidance is not just about baseball techniques but also psychological support.
"You don't need to feel bad, because valuing your future and letting you experience the intensity of high school games in the First string early is also for the future development of the team."
Although Chris said that, senior students are senior students after all.
And their strength was clearly more stable than their own.
"Is it really okay for us to shamelessly occupy the senior students' positions?"
"This is not something you or I can decide; this is a decision made by the Coach and the coaching staff after comprehensive consideration. If you feel uneasy, then make good use of this remaining month to diligently improve your strength. Don't let these senior students who silently support you feel that their efforts and sacrifices were meaningless."
When it came to ideological work, Chris had truly learned from Coach Kataoka and was very skilled.
Even Zhang Han, after hearing this, couldn't help but give a thumbs up.
There's no way to refute it.
Not to mention Sawamura and Furuya Satoru, those two guys whose brains aren't fully developed.
They were all pumped up by Chris's words, nodding constantly like chickens pecking at rice.
They had figured it out; now that things had come to this, all they could do was redouble their efforts.
They aimed to have a chance to pitch and contribute to the team in the upcoming Summer Tournament.
On the other side, Zhang Han also received special treatment.
Last night, considering the third-year senior students who had practically left the team, everyone behaved very calmly.
Now, those third-year senior students were even more active than them, so there was no need for anyone to worry.
Everyone naturally shifted their attention to the team's current Ace, Zhang Han.
"Don't worry, we're here."
"You don't have to pitch every ball with full strength; we can provide cover from behind. Let the opponent hit it over..."
It was fine when they didn't know Zhang Han's specific situation, but now that they did, they almost treated him like a national treasure.
It seemed like everyone was calculating Zhang Han's pitch count.
When Zhang Han practiced defense with everyone, and it was his turn to pitch, his teammates' eyes were glued to him, afraid he would overexert himself and get injured.
"I'm not made of glass; I'm not that fragile," Zhang Han said irritably.
His teammates, after hearing this, became slightly more restrained.
But they were only a little restrained; once practice truly began, they still focused all their attention on Zhang Han.
Zhang Han was helpless about this.
"Practice has been over for three days, and we only played two practice games in between. Your stamina should have recovered, right?" Miyuki eagerly ran to the pitcher's mound.
Zhang Han originally thought this guy, like the others, was coming to advise him to hold back on his pitching.
Unexpectedly, what Miyuki said first was this.
Zhang Han instinctively moved his shoulder, then his arm, wrist, and fingers.
The feeling of muscle soreness had completely disappeared; in fact, when they played the second practice game yesterday, Zhang Han's condition had already recovered by seventy to eighty percent.
After a night and a morning of recovery, he could no longer feel any damage from the practice.
"Of course, no problem."
This feeling of his body being unrestricted was truly wonderful.
Zhang Han smiled.
"Then let me see what level your fastest pitch has reached, shall we?" Miyuki looked expectant.
Zhang Han looked around and saw that both the third-year senior students and his same-year teammates were looking at him with concern.
He nodded heavily.
"Okay!"
In this situation, even if Zhang Han said anything to his teammates, they probably wouldn't listen.
Instead of doing such useless work, it was better to prove to everyone who cared about him with actual actions that he was truly fine.
With this intention, Zhang Han's fingers gripped the seams of the baseball tightly.
The four-seam Fastball is the most traditional and standard Fastball. This grip allows for the fastest possible pitch.
"Heh, I won't go easy on you!"
Kuramochi, who was first to step into the batter's box, had a brilliant smile on his face.
This guy was even more annoying than those third-year students who cared about Zhang Han.
No waiting.
The moment the baseball flew over, he had to swing the bat.
Otherwise, even a slight hesitation would leave him no chance to make contact with the ball.
Kuramochi's heart thumped.
He was waiting for the moment the baseball would fly.
He saw every one of Zhang Han's movements clearly; his left-handed pitch was becoming increasingly fluid. It was almost as good as his right-handed pitch.
"Whoosh!"
Here it comes.
The baseball in Zhang Han's hand finally flew out.
Kuramochi gripped his bat tightly, ready to swing.
But the moment he saw the baseball, it flew past his eyes like a bullet.
During this process, Kuramochi didn't even have time to react.
It was a good thing the baseball wasn't aimed at him initially; if it had been, he might have been shot in the head.
"Thwack!"
"Strike!"
Miyuki felt the tailing spin of the baseball in his hand.
He couldn't suppress the smile on his face.
Just as he had thought, after the special training, Zhang Han's pitch had improved again.
Previously, Zhang Han's pitch, apart from its speed, had no other distinguishing features.
Once strong hitters found a pattern, they still had a chance to hit the ball. But just now, he felt the baseball come out like a bullet.
Too fast.
And too sudden.
Even if a pattern was found, it would be difficult to make contact with such a pitch.
After nearly a year of training, Zhang Han was finally beginning to reveal the true characteristics of his pitch.
This way, even when facing strong hitters, they would have other tactics they could rotate through.
Miyuki was very pleased, while Kuramochi, who had just boasted, was in discomfort.
"Could it be that this guy recovers even faster than I do?"
This was just Kuramochi's guess.
But very quickly, this guess became reality.
On the second pitch, he still didn't have time to swing the bat, only able to watch the baseball fly past his eyes.
On the third pitch, having learned from the first two, Kuramochi finally bit the bullet and swung his bat.
But he quickly realized he was wrong.
His bat had only swung halfway when the baseball had already flown past his eyes. Even though he swung the bat the instant he saw the baseball.
But he was still too slow; by the time he swung his bat, the baseball had already flown past a step ahead.
Kuramochi could only watch as the baseball entered Miyuki's mitt for the third time.
"Thwack!"
"Strikeout!"
"Strikeout!"
"Strikeout!"
Including Kuramochi, Zhang Han struck out three First string regulars in one go.
And all of them were strikeouts.
This performance silenced all the Seido High School Baseball teammates who had been worried about his condition.
Given their own situation, what right did they have to judge such a pitcher?
How thick-skinned must they be to criticize such a pitcher?
"Aside from Kominato and Yuuki, it's probably very difficult for anyone else to hit Zhang Han's pitch."
When Zhang Han practiced pitching, Yuuki, Isashiki Jun, and Kominato Ryosuke did not participate in hitting.
This was like their own spear and shield; Coach Kataoka did not want them to clash before the Summer Tournament began.
No matter who was affected or had their condition impacted, it would be an unimaginable disaster for Seido High School Baseball Team.
Therefore, such a thing should never happen.
Their focus should be unified against external opponents.
Amidst such orderly practice, a week passed.
If one were to ask who made the most progress in these seven days, then without a doubt, it was the two first-year pitchers, Sawamura Eijun and Furuya Satoru.
They were already just a step away, and after half a month of joint practice with their Seido High School Baseball Team teammates, they had gradually caught up.
Without looking closely, it would be hard to tell that these two had only been exposed to formal baseball for a few months.
It was during this period that the draw for the Tokyo Summer Tournament began.
Seido High School Baseball Team, as the champions of the Tokyo Spring Tournament, was the first seed.
They were number one, allowing them to rest and await their opponents who would make it into the top 64 after the first two rounds, to compete for a spot in the top 32.
Ichidaisan Third High School, as the runner-up, was the last one, number 126.
For them to meet again, they would have to both make it to the finals.
The draw for these two teams was predetermined, so they didn't need to participate.
However, to get the match groupings as soon as possible, Seido High School Baseball Team still sent a super luxurious lineup to participate in the drawing ceremony.
Ochiai, and the team's Vice Coach Takashima Rei.
The grouping situation was much, much better than they had anticipated.
Yakushi High School Baseball Team, the super dark horse they had only beaten by one run in a practice game, drew into the lower bracket, number 81.
This meant they would first have to contend with Ichidaisan Third High School for a chance to reach the championship.
Other notable strong teams, like Sensen, Seikou, etc...
Were basically all in Zone C and Zone D.
"It looks like the only real threat is in the finals!"
Ochiai stroked his beard, a smile he couldn't hide on his face.
This luck was off the charts.
West Tokyo is the most famous battleground in the country.
To emerge from this region, strength is certainly paramount.
But luck is also incredibly important.
Seido High School Baseball Team's current grouping is very good; if nothing unexpected happens, they should be able to smoothly reach the finals.
"No, there's one more."
Takashima Rei, however, did not relax, her hands still tightly clasped.
"Don't worry, our side of the top eight is almost full, with only one spot left in Zone B. There are still three spots over there, and Inashiro's probability of being on this side is only twenty-five percent."
"Next up, Inashiro Industrial High School Baseball Team."
The representative sent by Inashiro Industrial was their team's Coach, a middle-aged man with a receding hairline.
The middle-aged man walked steadily onto the podium, reached into the box, and pulled out a number. He glanced at the number, his expression uglier than crying.
"Number 44!"
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