Diamond Ace's Passionate Swing

With the first-team roster decided, Seido High School's baseball team has entered a new phase.

The next morning.

Morning exercise time.

An unusual atmosphere prevailed on the field.

Looking around, the third-year students were still practicing as usual, their figures appearing particularly resolute in the sunlight, every movement filled with their love and dedication to baseball.

However, there were not many first- and second-year students present.

Moreover, their faces seemed shrouded in gloom, and their resentment seemed to oppress the surrounding air.

In the stairwell of the school building, several second-grade students were gathered together, discussing quietly.

"It's understandable that Ryosuke's younger brother was chosen."

"Why did Sawamura get promoted to the first team too?"

"If it weren't for Chris, we would have lost yesterday's game."

"Instead of picking that guy for the first team, we might as well bring up some of the other senior students."

"The coach is indeed heartless."

"We gave up on him so easily."

Listening to this conversation, they were extremely dissatisfied with the result. Some even protested by not participating in morning exercises, seemingly trying to tell the coach that his choice was wrong.

But they didn't realize that this student-centric approach simply wouldn't work with Coach Kataoka.

in contrast.

Such behavior will only worsen the coach's impression of them.

Even if they originally had the ability to enter the first team, their current performance will make the coach question their abilities.

Afternoon club time.

In the indoor practice room.

Lin Xiao, Sawamura, and Furuya gathered together.

After struggling with his conscience and feeling guilty the previous day, Sawamura finally resolved his inner conflict with Chris's patient guidance.

now.

Chris is coaching the three first-year pitchers individually.

"Lin Xiao, Sawamura, Furuya, listen carefully." Chris's voice was firm and powerful. "In baseball, the pitcher's position is crucial; he is an indispensable part of the team."

As he spoke, he bent down, picked up a twig, and carefully drew a fan-shaped area on the sand.

"A pitcher's real weapon isn't just the speed of the ball, but here..." He pointed to the two outermost corners of the 3x3 grid, "...the ability to accurately throw the ball into the edge of the strike zone."

Sawamura, curious, squatted down and peered over, asking, "But isn't Furuya's fastball just a matter of making it go in?"

Chris shook his head slightly, turned his gaze to the silent Furuya, and slowly said, "The faster the ball speed, the easier it is to predict the trajectory."

"During last week's practice game, the ball that Teito's fourth batter hit to home run was a 149km fastball that went straight to the red center, right?" Upon hearing this, Furuya subconsciously tightened his grip on the ball.

The knuckles turned slightly white from the force applied, making a soft cracking sound.

"And Lin Xiao's 160km fastball..." Chris then pulled out a diagram from his notebook and explained, "In the eyes of a Koshien-level batter, the trajectory will be locked after the third throw."

"Although the probability of being hit is not high, we cannot let our guard down and still need to keep improving."

Lin Xiao nodded seriously, though he was very confident in his ball speed.

But I also understand that I can't be blindly confident; in the world of baseball, learning is a never-ending process.

"Next is the bunt handling," Chris said, tossing the ball toward first base. "Assuming there are runners on first and second, the batter performs a sacrifice bunt."

Seeing this, Sawamura rushed out to catch the ball, but when he turned around, he tried to throw it to third base.

"Wrong." Chris immediately corrected him, drawing three white lines on the ground with his foot as he patiently explained, "First principle: Ban them if you can."

"When the third baseman is in position, you should throw to first base."

He then turned to Furuya and personally demonstrated the standard movements.

He took a side step, his movements as fluid as a compass turning, and then threw the ball steadily.

Seeing this, Furuya instinctively lunged to catch it, but because he was a fraction of a second too slow, the white ball bounced off the edge of his glove and crashed to the ground.

This detail clearly shows that, apart from pitching, Furuya's defensive ability is indeed very poor.

"That's why we require you to practice short-distance sprints," Chris said, bending down to pick up the ball. Just then, his wrist suddenly twitched involuntarily.

But he quickly composed himself, looked at Lin Xiao, and said, "Lin Xiao, if it were you..."

"First, observe the runners' movements."

Lin Xiao reacted quickly, stepping forward to intercept the simulated ground ball, and calmly analyzed, "If the third base runner is slow to get going, I will throw the ball directly to home plate."

As he spoke, he made a swift arm-swinging motion.

The ball traced a beautiful arc in the air.

It landed precisely in the glove that Chris had placed on home plate.

Sawamura scratched his head and muttered, "This is too complicated! Can't we just let the guards handle it?"

"No mistakes are allowed in any game." Chris's voice suddenly turned low, and his expression became extremely serious. "One mistake could give the opponent an opening to launch a fierce counterattack."

"Therefore, the pitcher is not only responsible for pitching, but also the ninth fielder on the field."

His gaze swept over Lin Xiao, Sawamura, and Furuya in turn, and he spoke solemnly.

"We'll practice double-kill coordination tomorrow." Chris composed himself and began assigning tasks.

"Ren Sawamura, first base cover."

"Focus on dealing with short hits to third base."

"Lin Xiao, hmm... Keep it up, very good." He paused for half a second, then continued, "You'll be in charge of simulating command and response under various tactical scenarios."

"Yes," the three pitchers answered in unison and loudly.

First day of training.

Seido High School's traditional hellish training camp officially kicked off under the scorching sun.

A stadium.

The sounds of blows rose and fell.

when!

when!

when!

The crisp sounds intertwined.

The team members were still full of energy on the first day, and every swing of the bat was full of power. The club members responsible for assisting the first team stood aside, their eyes full of amazement.

Watching their seniors hit the ball powerfully time and time again, they were filled with admiration for their hitting ability.

Among them, Lin Xiao was undoubtedly the focus of everyone's attention.

From his initial strength in short-range hitting to his current astonishing ability in long-range hitting, his progress has been terrifyingly rapid.

He swung the bat and hit the ball, which shot out like a cannonball, tracing a beautiful arc as it flew into the distance.

Meanwhile, Yuki's team was also hitting home runs non-stop.

Every shot he made was full of power and confidence, demonstrating his exceptional hitting ability.

Although this was just a batting practice, not everyone can hit a home run as easily as they can, and their skill was on full display on the field.