The bottom of the sixth and the entire seventh inning saw both teams retire in order, maintaining a 6-3 scoreline as we headed into the top of the eighth. If the game stayed on track, my turn to bat would come in the bottom of the inning.
Before taking the field, I glanced at Manager Kimitsu and Head Coach Ichikawa. *Would they sub in Iida for defensive reinforcement?* But no such command came, so I jogged out to my position.
The Tokyo Chariots went down quickly in the top of the eighth, and soon it was my fourth at-bat. Returning to the dugout, I looked again at the coaching staff. *Would they call for a pinch hitter?* Batting Coach Onda caught my eye and nodded. *I guess it's up to me.*
*I have to make this count,* I thought, gripping my bat tightly and feeling its familiar weight. Under the stadium lights, the bat seemed to glow.
"I can hit it. I can hit it. I can hit it," I muttered to myself, stepping into the batter's box.
Tokyo had replaced their pitcher with Nakazawa, a right-hander in his sixth year. Righty versus righty. *Not ideal,* but I couldn't let that shake me.
There were no signals from the bench. *Swing away,* they seemed to say. I briefly considered a safety bunt; third baseman Kaku stayed put in his regular position.
The first pitch was a low inside fastball. *Looks low,* I thought, and let it go.
"Strike," the umpire called. Kaku had dashed in, reading my bunt intentions. *Good thing I didn't try.*
The second pitch was a high outside curve. It caught me off guard, but it was out of the zone. One ball, one strike.
The third pitch was a fastball down the middle—or so I thought. I swung, but it split, dropping just before the plate. *A splitter.* I barely managed to foul it off, the ball dribbling slowly toward third. Kaku charged in.
I sprinted for first base. *Did I make it?* I turned to see the umpire's call.
"Safe!" he declared, arms outstretched. *My first professional hit.* Ishikawa, the first baseman, handed me the ball.
"Congratulations on your first hit," he said.
"Thank you," I replied, staring at the ball. *It wasn't pretty, but it was mine.* My seventh at-bat had finally yielded a hit. The ball boy took my commemorative ball for safekeeping.
Next up was Arai. Theory said he should bunt, but with his earlier three-run homer and our lead, the coaches let him swing away.
I saw the sign from the bench: green light. *Steal if there's an opening.* I took my lead, keeping an eye on Nakazawa. He threw over, forcing me back to the bag. *They're watching me.*
I led off again. Another pickoff attempt. Nakazawa was quick to the plate; stealing here would be tough. The third pickoff came before Nakazawa delivered to Arai, who grounded out to short. I was forced out at second, ending my bid for a steal.
The game ended 6-3 in favor of the Shizuoka Oceans. Arai, with his three-run blast, got the hero interview. If my hit had been ruled clean, maybe I'd be standing there instead. *A bit disappointing.*
"Takahashi," someone called as I headed to the locker room. It was Okaya from the Tokyo Chariots.
"Here," he said, handing me the ball. "I did my best, but I couldn't catch it. That's a hit no matter what anyone says. Nice batting."
"Thank you," I said, genuinely touched.
"And nice defense too. You robbed me twice. If my salary drops, it's on you," he added with a grin, his stern face softened by the joke.
"My third at-bat defense was poor. I thought another hit was erased," I admitted.
"Who would've thought you'd catch that ball?" Okaya said, laughing as he walked away.
I clutched the ball he'd given me. Despite being rivals, he'd shown such sportsmanship. *A kind person despite his stern appearance.*
A few days later, the Sky League Federation revised the records. In the fifth inning, Okaya's error was overturned, and my hit was ruled a double with two RBIs. Officially, that was my first hit and my first extra-base hit as a professional. *Even achieving my first hit isn't straightforward.*
In my dorm room, I displayed two balls side by side: the one from Okaya and my infield hit ball. This was where my journey to 2,000 hits began.
*Looking back, I wish it had been that way...*