Diamond No Ace: Life As Sawamura Eijun

Chapter 239: The Importance of Pitchers in the Battle Against Ikuei

High speed, precise control, and that velocity.

145 km/h—no wonder it's hard to follow with the naked eye.

That pitch felt heavy, not quite like Narumiya Mei's overpowering fastball, but the ball quality made up for it.

Its impact was almost on par with Narumiya's, despite the differences in style.

Eijun gave his bat a light swing, silently contemplating.

"The arm motion seems fluid. I can't see any obvious issues."

Matsushita, the opposing catcher, scrutinized every detail of Eijun's movements as he swung his bat. However, one swing wasn't enough to reveal much.

"Second pitch. Another outside pitch, but this time lower in the zone. Keep it in the strike zone, Kimura!" Matsushita subtly signaled.

The ball zipped toward the plate, its sharp trajectory cutting through the air.

The chill in the pitch's movement nearly tempted Eijun to swing, but he held back at the last moment.

The low trajectory was clearly heading out of the strike zone—a pitch Seidou had consciously decided to avoid late in the game.

"Pop!"

The ball hit the catcher's mitt cleanly.

"Ball!"

"The second pitch was also an outside, low trajectory ball, but it missed the strike zone. The count is now 1-1."

Not even a hint of a swing?

Matsushita raised an eyebrow, a trace of confusion crossing his face.

Even if a batter doesn't swing, there's usually some reaction—a feint or hesitation. But this batter? His discipline in pitch selection was exceptional, almost unnerving. It made probing Eijun's condition a difficult task.

Eijun, meanwhile, felt a small sense of relief. His decision not to swing had been correct.

Although subtle, the pitch had indeed been low and out of the strike zone.

Swinging at it would likely have resulted in a ground ball or, at best, giving the pitcher an easy strike.

Still, there was something about the pitch's energy—it almost lured him into swinging.

This pitcher's style seemed designed to provoke the batter's instinct to swing.

Third pitch.

The ball sped toward the plate, a brilliant flash streaking through the air.

Eijun stepped forward, adjusted his stance, and lowered his bat slightly as he swung.

"Swish!"

"Ping!"

"Thud!"

"Foul ball!"

The back-and-forth continued.

Eijun remained disciplined, letting every low pitch go by.

Gradually, Matsushita began to piece together this information.

Yet, it was also part of Seidou's deliberate strategy.

Kimura, the pitcher, struggled to control low pitches, a fact Seidou had exploited earlier in the game.

Initially, Matsushita thought Seidou was targeting every potential pitch, but now it was clear—they had shifted their approach.

Finally, the next pitch came—a sharp outside pitch.

The pitch was exquisitely placed. Eijun's pupils gleamed with a peculiar light as he contemplated stepping forward for a swing.

Yet, gritting his teeth, he restrained himself, much to Matsushita's frowning curiosity.

"Pop!"

The ball zipped into the catcher's mitt under the watchful eyes of the crowd.

"Ball!"

The umpire's call resonated through the field.

"Full count! Both players are locked in a fierce standoff in this second duel. Seidou High's Sawamura Eijun refuses to yield even a single pitch, while Ikuei's ace, Kimura, is determined to secure the upper hand!"

The stadium buzzed with a mixture of cheers and shouts:

"Kimura, take him down!"

"C'mon, Kimura, you've got this!"

"Let's go, Sawamura! You can smash it!"

"Seidou! Seidou!"

"Ikuei! Ikuei!"

In the batter's box, Eijun's thoughts churned. "Is he really committing to outside pitches for this duel?"

Unbeknownst to him, Matsushita wasn't focused on getting him out but rather on gauging his arm extension and overall condition.

Yet, such an analysis wasn't straightforward.

The differences in motion between swinging a bat and throwing a pitch—angles, space, direction, posture—made it nearly impossible to draw definitive conclusions.

Moreover, Matsushita couldn't afford to focus entirely on observation.

Misreading or missing a pitch could result in a costly mistake.

For now, he could only conclude that Eijun was dealing with minor fatigue from extended play.

However, how this might impact his pitching remained unclear.

"Next pitch—outside breaking ball. Let's end this at-bat and get a better read on him." Matsushita decided, with a glimmer of caution.

"Whoosh!"

Kimura unleashed the pitch.

At the precise moment the white flash left his hand, Eijun instinctively stepped forward.

His fluid arm motion, coupled with an impeccable swing, turned this into a textbook reaction.

"Ping!"

A sharp crack resounded as Eijun made contact with precision, more accurately than any previous swing.

Matsushita's face darkened with alarm.

"Whoosh!"

The ball shot into the air, blazing past the pitcher's mound.

Kimura leaped desperately, but the ball soared beyond his reach.

It sped through the infield and into right-center field.

"Thud!"

The ball landed just short of the right fielder.

"Safe! Base hit!"

Eijun reached first base with ease.

From behind home plate, Matsushita clenched his fist, silently berating himself. "Damn it, I let my focus slip." Even though Kimura's pitch had been executed flawlessly, Eijun managed to capitalize on the opportunity, intercepting it with uncanny precision.

"This first-year player..." Matsushita thought in amazement. "His judgment and reaction time are exceptional. If not for being slightly overpowered by Kimura's pitch strength, that ball might've traveled even further."

Eijun's performance as a pitcher was remarkable, but now, as a batter, he had proven his potential.

Despite his relative inexperience, his presence on the field was anything but ordinary.

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