Troy could only gulp, feeling a shiver run down his spine.
'Wait… I'm not batting next inning.' He thought, letting out a sigh of relief.
In fact, Ken was currently on track for a perfect game, having not given up a single hit or walk in the previous 8 innings. As long as he continued, Troy who was the lead-off batter would not get another chance to bat.
However, remembering the cold tone and terrifying grin on the guy's face, he had a bad premonition.
'He wouldn't give up a perfect game just to get back at me right?' He thought, suddenly feeling regret well up from inside.
Ken returned to the bench, his mood slowly recovering. If he didn't have his Dauntless trait, it was very possible that he would have snapped and done something that he would have regretted.
Despite considering walking the 9th batter and pitching to Troy once more, he had already discarded this idea. Perhaps if he had actually been injured he might have resorted to such things, but he now had a cool head.
"What was that all about man?" Steve asked as he approached the bench. The Gladiators bench was on the 3rd base side, too far away from the action to properly see what had happened.
It wasn't just him, Ken's other teammates were also curious as to what could have set him off. To them, he was a calm and collected individual, never getting angry or heated about anything. Unless it was training of course.
"The bastard almost crushed my hand." Ken said simply, however he spoke as if it had happened to someone else.
"What!?" Steve shot to his feet, anger evident in his features. He sent a death stare towards Troy on 1st base, ready to yell some threatening words his way.
However, Ken placed his hand on the guy's shoulder, already feeling a little better. To see that his friend was angry on his behalf was enough for him.
Meanwhile in the audience, Tex frowned after seeing the altercation on the field. Despite being so far away, he had a better angle than the Gladiators bench and could see Ken move his hand off the base.
"What do you think happened?" The other scout asked, his face showing he was a little uncomfortable.
Tex didn't respond for a moment, as if deep in thought. "That guy probably tried to step on his hand." He said confidently.
"Really? You sure it wasn't an accident?"
Tex instantly shook his head. He had seen plenty of such plays from desperate and dirty players who were pissed at people much better than themselves. It was almost human nature to want to destroy something that one felt inferior towards.
"His team is getting destroyed by Ken's pitching, he probably wanted some form of vengeance. Unfortunately for him, he just tried to ruin the best prospect we've seen in a very long time."
There was a hint of anger beneath the tone of the large Texan, it was clear he had been offended by the dirty play.
"What was his name? Troy Knight? I'll be sending a few emails out tonight." Tex stated, writing the name down in his notepad.
The other scout was thoughtful for a moment before doing the same thing.
"We're just lucky that he was quick and smart enough to move his hand out of the way…" The scout said, letting out a sigh of relief.
If Troy had known that his actions would essentially blacklist him from being recruited by colleges, he definitely would have rethought his actions. Performing such a dirty play was not usually in his nature, but anger and his inferiority complex had gotten the better of him.
"3 outs, changeover!"
The plate umpire yelled, bringing an end to the top of the 9th inning.
Troy made his way back to the bench, sending a skittish gaze towards the opposing bench, or more accurately, the tall frame of Ken. The moment he saw the guy's unreadable expression, he gulped.
'Is he gonna hit me?' He cried inwardly.
After returning to the bench, he agonized over what he would do if Ken really gave up his perfect game to pitch against him. 'Do I ask for a pinch hitter?' He thought, bringing his nails up to his mouth and chewing them.
Ken on the other hand, had almost completely forgotten about the guy. To him, someone who would resort to such dirty plays was not worth his attention.
In reality, he wanted to quickly finish this game. They still had another two matches scheduled for today, and if he was going to be walked after the first inning in both of them, he wasn't exactly looking forward to playing.
The thought actually reminded him of someone he hadn't thought of in quite a while. Carlos Toro, the cleanup hitter for Shuei, who had disappeared for quite some time.
'I wonder how he's going?' Ken mused inwardly.
But his thoughts were interrupted by the next batter who arrived into the box.
WHOOOSH
PAH
"Strike."
PAH
"Strike"
PAH
"Strikeout."
Ken quickly and easily dispatched the guy. Despite throwing around 80 pitches so far, they were as crisp and accurate as his first pitches, showing his almost godlike precision and consistency.
The next batter also posed no problems, falling to another 3 pitches.
Shortly after beginning the bottom of the 9th, the Panthers were already at 2 outs and were about to lose the game.
As the 9th batter came up, everyone had basically checked out already, including the batter himself. He looked rather defeated, which no one could blame him for.
However, the whole field went into a state of shock when Steve stood up and made the motion to walk the batter.
"EH!?" Troy jumped up in fright, instantly feeling his body quiver with fear. His worst nightmare had come true, and he would be stuck facing a pissed off pitcher who could throw literal bullets at him.
But a few moments later, a laugh could be heard from the field as Ken quickly waved off Steve's antics. He was rather amused since he hadn't asked to walk the final batter, yet his friend had made the first move.
The situation left the audience in confusion, apart from a couple of men who were seated next to each other.
"Hahaha! I bet that put the fear of god into that kid." Tex guffawed, his large belly bouncing from the action.
The other scout was also wearing a grin, appreciating the joke that the catcher put forward.
PAH
"Strike."
"Strike."
"Strikeout!"
"Game set, Gladiators."