'Just one more inning… 3 more outs. Then they'll make a substitution…'
After letting out a deep breath, Daichi composed himself. He made the sign, calling for a regular fastball on the inside of the right handed batter.
Kei nodded, kicking out his leg and performing his wind up.
The moment the ball left his fingertips, he knew that it was bad.
Daichi's eyes widened in shock as the ball veered off its course and headed straight for the Ricardo in the batters box.
Thud
The sound of the leather ball hitting flesh caused Daichi's heart to jump into his throat.
"Hit by pitch, take your base."
Ricardo winced in pain for a moment before sending a deathly gaze towards Kei on the mound. If it wasn't for the fact that the tall guy looked extremely apologetic, he might have thought that it was on purpose.
"T-Timeout please."
Daichi quickly called for a timeout before running up to the mound in order to have a few words with Kei.
"The ball slipped sorry." Kei said plainly. It was evident on his features that he was annoyed with both himself and Daichi for calling the timeout.
"Man we're really in a pinch now. I need you to step up, we can't afford pitches like that against the twins."
Ken saw the entire play from his position in the outfield and started to get a little nervous. His eyes moved to his father and Coach Takashi in the dugout, trying to guess what they were thinking.
'Surely they won't let him pitch against the Lopez twins after a ball like that?' He thought.
Yet the two seemed unmoved, almost as if they'd resigned themselves to whatever would happen in this inning.
Apart from being shocked, Ken was a little annoyed.
'They know that I'm ready to pitch… So why are they hesitating?'
Japan were only up by 2 runs right now. With the additional runner on base thanks to being walked, both Manuel and Jorge were capable of taking the lead if they were to clean up right now.
Being in such a dangerous position, wouldn't it make sense to substitute a fresh pitcher in now? Especially since Kei looked so fatigued?
However, what Ken was hoping for did not happen. Daichi returned to his position behind the plate and were faced with the first Lopez twin.
"Batting 3rd, 3rd base, Manuel."
The big guy looked intimidating as ever as he stepped up to the plate. Even from Ken's vantage point he could feel the power in the stance of the Cuban player.
"Ball."
"Ball."
The next two pitches were outside of the strike zone, making Daichi cringe. Despite their chat earlier, Kei looked to be deteriorating as time went on.
'Damn it! What am I meant to do?' Daichi cursed inwardly.
He called for a two-seam fastball, placing his glove in the middle of the strike zone.
It seemed that Kei's control was suffering due to his fatigue, so he could only call for pitches that were easy enough to throw. As long as the speed didn't dip too much, they might have a chance to salvage this inning.
However, he was wrong.
DOOOONG
The ball rocketed into the left outfield, beating Riku for pace and landing just before the back wall. In a flurry of movements, he was able to send it back towards the infield in time to stop Ricardo from approaching home plate.
Manuel sat on 2nd base and caught his breath, yet there was a smug smile on his features after hitting the double.
"Batting 4th, 2nd base, Jorge."
Once again Japan were faced with the dangerous slugger Jorge. Despite his last at bat resulting in him being run out at 2nd base, no one underestimated him.
There was also the fact his expression was now lacking any humor. All pretenses were dropped and he was now seriously playing in order to win.
Apparently his previous mistake was enough to motivate him.
'This is the worst.'
Daichi began to panic. Now with 2 runners on base, if Jorge were to smash the ball, they would lose the lead they built up at the start of the game.
He grit his teeth and called for a ball, wanting to try and bait a swing and get ahead in the count. He felt as if his hands were tied with the way Kei was pitching right now.
Kei wound up and threw the ball, making use of his unorthodox form.
Daichi was surprised as soon as the ball left Kei's fingertips. Somehow the sharpness had returned, making him question if the guy was fatigued at all.
He regretted wasting this pitch since it was one of the best he'd thrown since the beginning of the match.
However…
WHOOOOSH
DOOOONG
Despite being outside the strike zone, Jorge chased it down and smacked it with all of his might. The ball skyrocketed into the air, its destination clear to everyone in the arena.
This time there were no doubts that the hit was going over the back wall, and there was nothing that anyone could do to stop it.
"Nice hit Jorge!"
The Cuban bench erupted as Jorge nabbed a 3-run home run, sending both the runners and himself home. Even the meager crowd cheered and chanted at the wonderful display of strength and dexterity in the hit.
Daichi could only watch as the ball sailed into the empty stands, feeling his heart drop. Everything seemed so inevitable at that point, all because the coach's did not want to make a change on the mound.
He felt bitter and a little betrayed, but there was nothing that he could do about it.
It wasn't just him, the Japanese players slumped their shoulders as they watched their lead slip away thanks to what had just transpired.
Ricardo and Manuel waited for Jorge at home plate after crossing it, only to shower him with high fives and celebratory words.
"Back on top!" Jorge said with a grin.