"Heads. Japan, you choose."
"We'll bat first." Masayuki said confidently.
"Alright, Japan has won the coin toss and elected to bat first. United States, please take the field." The umpire announced, making some hand gestures.
"Let's do this!"
Masayuki was fired up as he returned to the dugout alongside everyone.
Both Riku and Masayuki put on their helmet and grabbed their bats, ready to roll. Yet they waited for Coach Takashi to step forward like he always did before every game.
The Head Coach addressed his players, his expression solemn.
"The day has finally come where we face our toughest opponent yet." His tone was serious as he moved his gaze amongst the players.
"But, now is not the time to be nervous or have reservations. We're going to hit them hard and fast from the very beginning. We'll need to give everything we've got if we want to beat this team, and I mean everything."
The players nodded along in agreement.
"Remember the game plan. Steer clear from the center outfield and look for opportunities to get on base. As long as we can play our brand of baseball, it won't be a matter of IF we can win, but WHEN we will win."
"Yeah!"
"Alright bring it in everyone." Chris said, walking into the middle of the dugout and raising his hand high.
"Victory on 3!"
1
2
3
"VICTORY!"
The team was filled with adrenaline after the pep talk. They shouted out words of encouragement to Riku who was stepping up to bat.
"Get on base Riku!"
"You can do it!"
"Just hit the ball!"
Everyone turned to Aki who had said the last phrase, each thinking the same thing.
'Is this guy an idiot?'
Yet Aki didn't seem to care as he continued to shout out obvious instructions like "Don't get struck out" and "Don't hit a grounder."
Riku ignored the stupid instructions yelled at him, his gaze focused on the pitcher.
It was at the same time that the trio of Ken, Hiroki and Daichi saw Ryan on the mound. Grins formed on their faces as they looked at each other.
"Be cool guys." Ken warned, though he was also filled with excitement.
Riku shuffled his feet, limbering up his body with a few dance moves as he made his way over to the batters box. He could hear a few jeers and laughs from the crowd, but that did nothing to groove.
"Batting 1st, Left outfield, Riku."
The US catcher Leo watched on with a stone-like expression as Riku approached the box.
"Such foolishness…" He stated, loud enough for anyone in the vicinity to hear.
He shook his head, quickly ignoring Riku and squatting his perfect body into position. He turned his attention to Ryan upon the mound and gave the signal, not even waiting for a response.
To him, pitchers were tools. If a pitcher didn't listen to him, they were merely a useless tool that didn't deserve to be on the field.
Ryan was well aware of Leo's disposition, especially since they played on the same High School team. In fact, Leo had never let him down ever since he'd taken the Ace position, therefore he trusted him wholeheartedly.
He lifted his leg close to his body before stepping out with force. The moment his foot planted, his right arm came flying past like a whip, sending the ball firing towards the outside of the strike zone.
Riku's eyes were focused solely on the ball as it rocketed towards him.
'That's outside the zone.' He concluded, not even bothering to swing.
PAH
"Strike."
"Eh?"
"Damn… 98mph." Daichi said, his face turning a little serious.
"The kid is fast, but not faster than me." Ken replied, sounding like an old man.
"Kid!? He's older than you." Hiroki sounded incredulous as he pointed out this crucial piece of information.
Riku's eyes widened as he turned to the umpire with a questioning gaze. He had watched the ball go into the catchers glove the whole way, there was no doubt in his mind that it was a ball.
However, he quickly composed himself. There was no point in causing a fuss, this situation was not entirely uncommon, especially when there was a skilled catcher behind the plate.
He had no doubts that Leo had framed the ball perfectly, making it seem like it was still in the strike zone.
Riku cracked his neck, moving his head from side to side. He would need to swing on anything that looked like it was going to be close to the zone.
Seeing that Riku had easily accepted the decision, Leo nodded inwardly.
'Seems like the Japanese team might be difficult to break.' He thought.
However, now that he'd implanted the fear of getting struck out by balls outside of the strike zone, it was now time to move onto the next phase.
Leo sent the signal to Ryan who nodded in response.
The next ball seemed a little slower than the last one, yet it was on a similar course.
'Not this time!' Riku shouted inwardly.
WHOOOOSH
PAH
"Strike!"
'Cutter?'
Riku felt a hint of frustration, mixed in with awe. The cutter had broken so late that he hadn't even noticed that it wasn't a fastball until it was too late.
He turned his attention to Leo whose expression was as stone-like as ever.
'This guy is tough…'
While others had lauded Ryan Smith as a great prodigy, Riku could already tell that the biggest threat in this game would come from the calm and collected catcher behind him.
The idea of stretching out his strike zone before sending a wicked cutter that bordered on the edge of the zone was ingenious. Even if he had managed to hit the ball, it would have likely been driven into the foul zone.
Riku felt a little out of his depth for the first time in the World Cup, but that didn't deter him at all. He faced Ryan once more, gripping his bat tightly.
WHOOOOSH
PAH
"Strikeout!"