The plane landed at Tocumen International Airport, and the hot and humid climate of Panama City carried away the last bit of winter chill from New York. Through the window, Lin Guanglai looked out, seeing a lush, vibrant green spreading out before his eyes—not the meticulously landscaped nature of Central Park, but the wild, untamed feeling unique to the tropical rainforest climate of Central America.

With the official arrival of 2018, the new season of Major League Baseball is about to ignite once more; returning to the baseball field after a long hiatus, Lin Guanglai felt an unprecedented sense of joy.

The influence of winning the World Series is immense, not to mention Lin Guanglai also has a face that rivals Hollywood stars in its attractiveness, along with the towering presence of the New York Yankees behind him. All this has greatly enhanced his commercial value beyond comparison.

In the past few months, Lin Guanglai hardly had a moment to stop, constantly traveling around the world: participating in brand endorsements and ad shoots, working with the team on post-championship promotions, receiving invitations to various variety shows in North America and East Asia... Even in New York's celebrity scene, he couldn't avoid indulging in it.

But now, he finally had time to calm down and refocus himself back on baseball:

A new season was about to begin, and after making a splash in the previous season and garnering almost all honors, Lin Guanglai was destined to become the target of attention from every team; therefore, he knows he must continue to improve to carve a path through the siege and lead the team in pursuit of the first defense of glory in the 21st century.

This is precisely why Lin Guanglai appeared in Panama during the self-training phase before spring training started:

His purpose is to participate in a charity event held by Yankees legend Mariano Rivera in his hometown, and incidentally, to seek advice from this greatest closer in history on the secrets of the cutter pitch—not just any cutter, but the one revered by many as the Bible, dubbed the "most deadly weapon," Mariano Rivera's cutter.

After retiring from Major League, Rivera returned to his hometown, the Pueblo Nuevo community on the outskirts of Panama City. As the car passed houses with colorful iron roofs and walls adorned with faded baseball graffiti, children with bare feet chased a worn rubber ball on the dusty ground.

"Thanks to Mariano, whether during his career or after retirement, he never stopped giving back to the community..." the driver, in enthusiastic English tinged with a Spanish accent, began conversing with Lin Guanglai.

Pueblo Nuevo used to be a poor fishing village, but now, thanks to Rivera's contributions, it has transformed: close to his childhood home sprawls a baseball field established by Rivera himself, used daily for local kids to enjoy the fun of baseball.

The 48-year-old Mariano Rivera stood right outside the little gate of the field, dressed simply in a white polo shirt and khaki pants, wearing an old Yankees cap—if someone not familiar with baseball saw him, they might merely see him as an ordinary middle-aged man.

"Lin, welcome to Panama!" Rivera walked up with a smiling face to warmly embrace Lin Guanglai as soon as he stepped out of the car.

Lin Guanglai took the opportunity to shake hands and greet this historically greatest relief pitcher and future Hall of Famer—the hand, apart from the calluses from years of competing, was surprisingly soft, completely unlike a hand that has achieved 652 saves.

Real instruction began the following morning; before formal one-on-one guidance started, Rivera posed a question to Lin Guanglai: "Lin, as far as I know, your range of pitches already includes the cutter, correct? And I've watched videos of you pitching the cutter; it may not be the top tier, but definitely above Major League standards… So, what's the reason you're seeking my help?"

Lin Guanglai answered without much thought, blurting out, "The reason is simple, Mariano—my current cutter can handle most general batters, and sometimes, with certain pitch combinations, even defeat elite batters. However, this pitch can't yet help me against players like Trout and Harper..."

"Last season's championship naturally made us the center of attention, but neither my teammates nor I will be satisfied with merely one win—our goal is to replicate your late-century three-peat achievement. So, I need to become even stronger, invincible, and so strong that my opponents can't find the slightest weakness!"

His straightforward remarks, filled with intense emotions, caught even the battle-hardened Rivera's attention.

A while later, a gratified smile appeared on the face of this greatest relief pitcher in Major League history, "Excellent, Lin! You've shown me the most critical trait of a baseball player, a Yankee, which is the constant pursuit of victory—so, let's begin!"

"Pitching essentially entails the application of physical laws, hence there's naturally a principle of equivalent exchange," Rivera's voice echoed in Lin Guanglai's ears from the pitching mound, "Generally speaking, to pursue ultimate speed, throwing a fastball exceeding 100 miles per hour, you must sacrifice path movement; conversely, to chase top-tier slider or curveball movement that's immensely delightful, fastball speed will inevitably decrease..."