Ken tossed his bat to the side, feeling the effects of Crunch Time wear off. His hands still felt the sting of smacking the ball, but instead of being painful, it felt invigorating.
In the corner of his vision, the bat he'd thrown to the ground suddenly snapped in two, causing him to freeze in place. Ken cleared his throat before tentatively checking to see if anyone noticed.
Thankfully, everyone seemed to be focused on the ball flying into the distance. Saying a silent prayer for his first wooden bat, Ken began his jog around the bases.
"What a monster…" Tony muttered, shaking his head incredulously. He had come here with no real expectation of finding any prospects, but Ken had shined brilliantly from the moment he laid eyes on him.
The ball seemed to hang in the air for such a long time that Ken was able to almost reach 2nd base before it disappeared over the fence.
Upon rounding the corner, he saw the grinning faces of Nico and Latrell waiting for him, ready to celebrate.
"Damn dude, nice homer."
"I'll be surprised if you don't get MVP of the tournament at this rate." Nico added, dishing out a few high fives.
However he was surprised to see Ken's face dim at his words. "What's wrong? You don't want to be the MVP?"
"Ah, no that's not it…" Ken replied with a sigh.
The mention of the MVP had reminded him that there was no system mission, which meant he was essentially participating in the tournament for free. It might seem like twisted logic, but Ken was used to being rewarded for his performance.
Latrell's face lit up in understanding a moment later, "Ah I know, you're upset that your bat broke." He said, causing Ken to freeze in place.
Without getting a chance to respond, Latrell jogged over and retrieved the bat which had seemingly split right in half. He returned and handed it to Ken, "Here, you might want to keep it as a memento."
Ken didn't know whether to laugh or cry, accepting the gesture from his teammate.
'Damn it… Will the coach make me pay for the bat?' Ken thought, remembering just how expensive these wooden bats were.
Upon returning to the bench, he was congratulated by the team for a stellar home run. Steve especially gave him a warm welcome, excitement painting his features.
It was clear that he wanted the game to end fast, to avoid any embarrassment when dealing with the repercussions of his spicy lunch.
Ken's gaze moved, only to see Coach Wyatt staring at him weirdly. The guy looked down at his fractured bat, his expression stern. Without out a word, he held out his hands, only speaking after a while, "Give it here."
Ken swallowed, passing the two pieces to the coach. He was about to apologize, when Coach Wyatt produced a black sharpie from his back pocket and handed it to Ken.
"What?"
"Sign this for me." The coach said, more of a statement than a request.
"Okay…"
Ken quickly put his signature on the larger part of the bat before handing the marker back to the coach, still not understanding what was happening.
The coach nodded in satisfaction, placing the bat into his bag wordlessly.
"Nice work out there." He said simply before shooing Ken off.
"Eh?" Ken looked around to see if anyone else had seen the interaction, but it seemed they were all focused on Max who had just stepped up to the batters box. Ken was forced to shrug it off and go take a seat.
However, he was a little thankful that the coach hadn't demanded to be compensated for the bat since they were so expensive.
Back on the field, the Dodgers looked similar to zombies. Now down 8 runs at the top of the 5th inning, their hopes at winning the match were all but dashed. In fact, they were now in position to lose via the mercy rule.
With Max the clean-up batter now in the batters box, things seemed even more dire for them.
Even Cade who had seemed unflappable during the first Grand Slam was showing signs of fatigue and emotion. Having worked so hard over the past 4 days, being this far behind in the final match was not something easily overcome.
Coach Roberts also seemed to be at a loss, his nails already losing a good chunk of their length thanks to his nail biting.
"It's over." Lorenzo stated, his expert eye moving over the field. "The Dodgers players look like they don't even want to be there anymore."
"Mmm, I wouldn't be surprised if your prospect sends it over the fence again." Tony replied, his tone showing that he'd lost interest in the game.
As if to back up his words…
THWACKK!
The crowd shouted in awe as the ball sailed into the outfield with force. The sound was like the dropping of a gavel, putting an end to the trial between the Dodgers and Gladiators.
To no ones surprise, the ball flew over the fence, bringing the score to 9-0 in favor of the Gladiators. By now, the victor of the match was evident, it was just a matter of time as to when it would finish.
The Dodgers battery managed to get both Steve and Dion out in their next at-bat's, but the damage had already been done.
"3 outs, changeover."
With the top of the 5th inning now in the books, the Dodgers were now on the fence. If they failed to secure two runs in this inning, the match would end via the mercy rule. Sometimes this was a blessing, but for it to end this way in the final match would leave a bad taste in their mouth.
As the Dodgers team congregated at their bench, Coach Roberts looked at his players. It was clear that morale was at an all time low, and nothing that he said would likely give them the motivation to turn this around.