With a career totaling 2725 hits and 435 home runs, he also hit 8 home runs in the 2004 playoffs, setting a record for the most home runs in a single postseason, a feat only three people have achieved.

Although this former superstar is now a 40-year-old man whose raw power has greatly declined, his skill and experience still make Lin Guanglai wary of him, especially since this is at the opponent's home field, and the bases are loaded.

In the batter's box, Beltran's demeanor is rather relaxed at the moment, perhaps even overly so:

If it were a fair duel between pitcher and batter, this old-timer nearing retirement wouldn't have much confidence in defeating the currently unstoppable Lin Guanglai; but now, with external factors helping, things have become much simpler.

Beltran set a simple goal for himself: get a hit off Lin Guanglai, at the very least send the third base teammate home, and continue the offensive, aiming to reverse the score — knowing the opponent's pitch type gives him that bit of confidence.

As the umpire announced the game resumed, in the catcher's seat behind home plate, Gary Sanchez's right hand between his legs began signaling the pitch again, and this scene was captured perfectly by the Astros' high-definition cameras placed in the outfield—

Almost the instant the catcher signaled, the clear image was transmitted to the electronic screen behind the Astros' player zone, and the team members responsible for this task quickly deciphered the pitch type.

Until Lin Guanglai's pitching motion began, no sound came from the player zone, solely relying on this signal, Beltran knew Lin Guanglai's next pitch would be a fastball.

Watching that white baseball darting from Lin Guanglai's hand, getting closer and closer to him, Beltran couldn't resist curling the corners of his mouth and decisively chose to swing powerfully at the incoming ball — simultaneous to the swing, he even imagined how the home crowd would praise his performance after helping the team tie the score.

However, moments later, the expected sensation of hitting the ball did not come: the signal stolen by the Astros was accurate, the pitch was indeed a fastball;

But the problem is, sometimes even though the batter knows the pitch type, it only helps increase their odds in the duel, the contest between pitcher and batter remains a supreme test of will, skill, and split-second judgment, and doesn't guarantee they can hit the ball into play for a hit.

At least, for Carlos Beltran, who is already 40 this year, with power and explosiveness far inferior to his peak, Lin Guanglai's super fastball with speeds exceeding 100 mph, intense upward spinning effect, and being among the top ranks in Major League spin rate has indeed reached a point he can no longer handle.

With a "bang," the baseball flew straight into Gary Sanchez's glove, emitting a loud explosive sound; Sanchez, who had steady control of the ball in his glove, glanced towards Beltran on the right, a faint smile of disdain curling his lips:

"Even if you know the signal, so what? Giving you the ball to hit, does it mean you will definitely hit it? Ridiculous!"

Tossing the baseball back to Lin Guanglai on the pitcher's mound, Gary Sanchez assessed the situation on the field, thought for a moment, then requested a quick forkball from Lin Guanglai, while his body shifted one or two steps towards Beltran's inside corner.

The next second, corresponding sounds of banging on trash cans came from the Astros' player zone, "Duang, Duang" sounds were masked by the noisy cheers of the fans, and even deliberately listening would only think it's some fans creating distracted noise for the pitch.

Upon hearing this familiar signal, Beltran knew Guanglai's next pitch was most likely going to be his forkball-type pitch, his expression unwittingly turning solemn:

Compared to the relatively easier-to-hit fastball, Lin Guanglai's forkball-type pitch was practically his ultimate weapon throughout the Major League, with a velocity not much different from the fastball, massive movement, and subtle differences in the trajectories between the two pitches, challenging the batter significantly;

If it were the season-highlighted Jose Altuve here, he might be able to hit these two pitch types into hits, but Beltran didn't have much confidence in himself.

As for letting the pitch go without hitting, he never considered it from the start: batters daring to gamble on Lin Guanglai's control issues have already met their demise, moreover, knowing the pitch type yet not attacking aggressively would be too cowardly.

When the baseball darted from Lin Guanglai's hand, Beltran wasn't fooled by the first-half trajectory; in the box, he solely focused on the high-speed spinning baseball, waiting for the moment it would change trajectory — as long as he could catch the drop-off point of this forkball-type pitch to hit, there's a high chance of a long hit or even a home run!

Yet ideals are rich, reality taught this veteran a stern lesson: the substantial vertical displacement expected to occur before crossing home plate never appeared, Beltran stood motionless in the box, watching the ball fly straight into home plate, caught steadily by the well-prepared Gary Sanchez.

The umpire raised his right arm, signaling a strike without error.