The first two games of the World Series had been close matches with back and forth from both teams. Despite only a single run being scored in the first game, many believed that it would be a game that would go down in history as one of the most exciting 1st games of a World Series.
The second game had seen a lot more scoring, but Detroit had managed to eek out a close victory once more. This was why many analysts and fans were expecting the 3rd game to be similar.
So when the final scoreline of 9-0 was reached at loanDepot park, the whole baseball world was shocked.
Not only had Miami played well, they had essentially toyed with Detroit from the beginning. They managed to score 3 of their 9 runs in the opening inning, instantly putting the Ligers on the back foot.
From there onward, the Blue Marlins dictated the pace, putting on a defensive clinic to shut out their opponents. Unfortunately for Mark Williams the Detroit coach, he was the one who received most of the criticism at the end of the game.
"Coach Williams, was there a reason why you substituted many of your players in the 4th inning? Some might say that you had intentionally thrown the match by doing so."
The reporter went straight to the crux of the matter, throwing out false accusations that was aimed to damage his reputation.
But who was Mark Williams? How many times had he stood in front of arrogant reporters who wanted nothing more than to incite a reaction whenever they could.
"I disagree," he stated calmly, "this is a long series, I could see many of our players were tired and believed that substituting them was the best move for the team. Unfortunately, we weren't able to capitalize."
"You may disagree, but it seems rather apparent from an outsider perspective." The reporter continued, "If you had kept your batting line up as it was, you would have had a much higher chance of scoring runs."
Mark laughed, "Young man, I don't mean to be rude, but have you ever been a coached a team before?"
The man seemed taken aback, "This isn't about my coaching abilities, I'm simply aski—"
"I don't think you were asking a real question. It seems more likely that you are trying to spread false rumors that I was throwing the game, something that does not benefit me, nor the baseball fans around the world." Mark replied calmly, yet his eyes belied his annoyance.
"I'm happy to answer questions from anyone else." He finished, promptly ignoring the unruly reporter.
Thankfully, the person in charge of the microphone moved away from the man so no one had to hear his voice again tonight.
"Over here coach. What is the update on Daichi's injury? Will we see him back on the field before the end of the series?" The next reporter asked.
Mark smiled softly in response, "Daichi is recovering well, we're doing our best to get him ready for game 5."
"That's great news. What sort of impact do you think Daichi brings to the team? And do you believe that his absence is a reason why you lost so decisively tonight?" The reporter continued.
"He's the Home Run Derby Champion, of course he brings a huge punch to our offense. But in my opinion, his position as catcher is far more impactful, at least for our team. As for your second question, I think there are many reasons why we lost tonight, but we will be back better than ever tomorrow night." Mark replied, expertly skirting the questions.
Oftentimes reporters would take things out of context, providing headaches in the future. It was better to be vague and not place the blame squarely on one thing, otherwise it could lead to bad headlines in the paper the following morning.
"If there's nothing else, I will leave it at that." Mark said, standing up and heading towards the door. It had been a long night and all he wanted to do was go eat some dinner.
"That must have been tough to hold your tongue out there, you did well." Cheryl the PR manager said, giving him a soft smile.
"It's the same every night Cheryl. If I wasn't prepared to talk to people like that, I wouldn't have taken the job in the first place." Mark retorted with a small chuckle.
After gathering his things, Mark returned to the hotel, arriving later than the rest of the team. He still had a meeting to prepare for the following day, so he decided to take his laptop to dinner.
Finding a secluded spot in the dining area, Mark opened his laptop and was about to begin his work.
BUZZ BUZZ
Mark retrieved his phone, seeing an unknown international number calling.
"Hello, this is Mark speaking." He answered professionally.
"Mark… Did you tell the boys?"
"Hajime… Why are you calling me at such a time?" Mark said incredulously.
"What do you mean? It's only 9pm for you right? That's not important, did our grandsons seem interested in playing for the men's National Team?" Hajime Takashi replied impatiently.
His English was surprisingly good, though there was a clear accent. Having been exposed to Japanese-American accents majority of his life, Mark had no issues understanding the man.
"You really called to ask this? Of course Kenny looked like he would jump at the chance. I had to remind him that we were in the middle of the World Series."
"HAHA! I knew it. Now that I have the majority say in selections, I'll be able to bring those two with me."
"Is that all Hajime? I still need to eat dinner and I have a mountain of work left." Mark added, letting out a small sigh.
"Mmm, as long as you tell me that you'll be the coach of the US team, I'll leave you alone… He he he."
BEEP BEEP BEEP
Mark hung up the phone promptly, turning his attention to his laptop.