Baseball: A Two-Way Player-Chapter 528 - 114: Blow for Blow, Neither Side Yields

When Lin Guanglai hit the baseball into the stands on his very first at-bat of the game, the commentator from Fukuoka TV Station seemed to go mad, jumping up from his seat and shouting in excitement:

"Lin Guanglai! Lin Guanglai!! Lin Guanglai!!! A home run on the first at-bat, a home run on the first at-bat! This is a genius, a genius way beyond his time, defying logic, belonging to Fukuoka, belonging to our SoftBank Team’s genius! This home run symbolizes our determination to win, I have reason to believe—the 2014 Pacific League victory will ultimately belong to our Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks!"

As a dedicated commentator, these words really shouldn’t have come from him; even if they were meant to be said, they should have been reserved for when everything is settled.

But as a local Kyushu man, the commentator from Fukuoka TV Station couldn’t care less about the rules—he simply wanted to vent the frustration accumulated over the past few years as a fan, to express the words he’s long suppressed in his heart.

And when Lin Guanglai, before returning to home plate, pointed to Manager Akiyama Koji outside the players’ area and then performed that classic sidehand flip backward somersault, the commentator’s expression froze instantly.

In front of the away stands at the Kyocera Dome, Masao Otake, who was cheering enthusiastically, also froze; besides him, those watching on TV who had lived through Japan’s baseball golden era of the 80s and 90s similarly showed a similar expression of shock. 𝓯𝓻𝒆𝙚𝒘𝓮𝙗𝓷𝒐𝓿𝙚𝒍.𝙘𝓸𝙢

Such a celebration move imprinted in the minds of the old fans brought them back for a moment to the youthful times:

In that era, Japanese baseball was ruled by a dynasty team named Seibu Lions, even super aces like Hideki Awano or Iribu Hideki had to bow before Seibu Team’s near-invincible "AK Cannon"—

Among them, K referred to "Boss" Kiyohara Kazuhiko, and the Mr. A who would always perform a backward somersault after hitting a game-winning home run is none other than Akiyama Koji, currently standing outside Softbank Team’s players’ area.

Just like Lin Guanglai mentioned in an interview before the game, Manager Akiyama Koji is his guide on his professional career path, and thanks to his wholehearted support, Lin Guanglai could take on the Dual Swordsmanship challenge in pro baseball; whether during training or matches, he always strictly demanded himself and ensured protection.

If Lin Guanglai truly achieves some remarkable feats, even ones to be etched in the history of baseball in the future, then Manager Akiyama Koji would definitely appear many times in his career retrospectives.

Actually, ever since Manager Akiyama announced his retirement at the start of the season, Lin Guanglai had been thinking of how to express his gratitude towards the manager—winning the championship, which should be theirs, seemed far from enough, Manager Akiyama deserves more respect.

And now, using this classic celebratory move from Manager Akiyama’s player days, in tribute after hitting the home run, is a plan Lin Guanglai had pondered over for a long time.

After completing the backward somersault and returning to the players’ area, receiving warm greetings from his teammates, Lin Guanglai stepped out again to face Manager Akiyama, and in front of the camera, gave his mentor a big hug.

"Manager, this home run is dedicated to you. Today’s victory in the Pacific League is just an appetizer—I promise, we will advance to the Japan Series and bid you farewell with a double crown!"

"You brat, do you know how dangerous that was just now? What if you lost your footing and fell? Haven’t I always told you, if you want to be the best player, protecting your body is your top priority?"

Although tears in his eyes were about to fall, Manager Akiyama Koji still reprimanded him relentlessly, "I’ll let you off this time, but don’t do such celebratory moves again, you hear me—even if you don’t get injured, do you think that move won’t provoke the opposing pitcher to hit you?"

Feeling the care and affection in the manager’s words, Lin Guanglai naturally nodded in agreement.

The camera focused on the top VIP seats at Kyocera Dome, where, including SoftBank Group’s chairman and the SoftBank Team’s owner Sun Zhengyi, and honorary chairman Wang Zhenzhi, the guests leapt from their seats, raised their arms, and embraced in celebration; below them, the stands for away team fans had already turned chaotic.

With this heartfelt scene of deep mentor and disciple affection ending, everyone’s attention finally returned to the ongoing game: marked by Lin Guanglai’s solo home run, SoftBank Team received a splendid start in this crown-winning battle—they almost carried a 1:0 lead into the game!

However, perhaps due to overexcitement, the other members of the SoftBank lineup didn’t capitalize on the great opportunities of this half-inning, with subsequent appearances by Imamiya Kenta and Nakagawa Seiichi hitting consecutive fly balls caught in the outfield, and fourth batter Lee Dae-ho swung and missed after a full count duel, striking out, failing to further widen the lead.