Chapter 352: The Decision of the Future Pillar
"Third batter! Left fielder, Isashiki-kun!"
"All the good stuff is mine—watch me devour them completely!!!"
"Sendo!" At this moment, Tetsu called out to Sendo.
"Hm?"
"This time it's a slider! I'm counting on you!"
"Got it!"
"Shut down their finishing pitch, huh? Tetsu-san! Not a bad call!" Sendo replied, instantly understanding Tetsu's intention.
This had nothing to do with whether Coach Matsumoto had seen through Sendo and Tetsu's plan.
The idea of "shutting it down" meant that, knowing the pitch type, if the opponent threw a slider, Tetsu would have a hard time mishitting it, allowing him to focus entirely on other pitches.
"One out, runners on first and third, and now it's Seidou High's third-round core lineup! The score difference is only one run—one hit ties it, an extra-base hit turns it around!" the commentator emphasized the tension of the situation.
"Will they do it? A squeeze play?" Nagumo frantically scanned the runners. With no one on first and enough outs, this was a perfect chance for a squeeze.
That previous bunt had already caught him off guard.
"But in this situation, it's better to prepare to give up a run! Focusing too much on preventing the squeeze will only make things worse." From Kuramochi's at-bat and Coach Matsumoto's guidance, Nagumo already understood the coach's stance.
Even without looking, he knew what his coach wanted him to do and wouldn't panic like before.
"Be careful! Tachi!"
"Yeah!" Tate nodded slightly.
"Whoosh!"
"Whoa! Big spicy shrimp!!!"
"Crack!"
"First pitch—outside!!!"
"Thud!"
"Haha! That pitch… even Jun-san couldn't pull it to right, huh?"
"But it still becomes a hit! The runner from third scores! Seidou adds another run! Now it's one out, runners on first and third!"
Even though he said he'd "devour everything," Jun-san still played his role steadily and didn't chase a long hit.
That's the job of the third batter.
In a classic batting order, the strongest hitter is the cleanup (fourth), followed by the third, then the fifth.
Usually, the third batter has the highest batting average, setting the table and stacking runners.
The fourth is the strongest, and the fifth has the most power.
But Seidou has two cleanup-level batters, making it a bit unconventional—still, it shows Jun-san's importance in the lineup.
"Fourth batter! Center fielder, Sendo-kun!"
"Keep it going, Sendo!"
"Hit it!"
"Sendo! Just hit a home run! A home run is enough!" Sawamura kept saying annoying things.
As if home runs were easy to hit.
"He stepped in without hesitation… so he was aiming for the first pitch after the bunt? He even guessed I'd go outside on the first pitch! Looks like I need to be more careful with my pitch calling." Nagumo glanced at Isashiki on second base, thinking.
And in this situation—
Even Tate couldn't smile anymore.
But he had his coach.
"Tachi!" Coach Matsumoto stepped onto the edge of the bench and shouted loudly.
"Hm?" Everyone on the field looked over.
"Just suppress them! Hold them down! You can do it, right?"
"That's right, Tachi! You can't miss out on a heated battle like this!" Captain Shibata chimed in beside him.
"Tachi! Just focus on the batter! We've got your back!"
"Yeah! Shut them down! Don't worry about giving up runs—we'll get them back!"
With one sentence from Coach Matsumoto and the encouragement of his teammates, Tate's expression changed again, his fighting spirit reignited.
"As expected… that man is a great coach. Kiryu is a terrifying team. They're completely different from the teams we faced in the previous rounds!" Miyuki couldn't help but admire again.
"Sendo! Hit it for me!" Isashiki shouted from first base.
Meanwhile, Sendo himself seemed completely unfazed as he stepped into the batter's box.
"Let's settle this!"
"Whoosh!"
"Pop!"
"Strike!"
"First pitch slider! The batter watches it!"
"This guy… he saw it was a slider! Well, makes sense.
Standing that far back, and with his reflexes, he can see the moment the pitch breaks before swinging. Off-speed pitches won't fool him that easily!" Nagumo saw the pitch land in the strike zone but felt little joy.
"As expected… no matter how many times I see it, that slider is sharp!"
Thinking that, Sendo blew on his hand lightly and reset his stance.
"Pop!"
"Whoosh!"
"Pop!"
"Ball!"
"Second pitch—low and outside at the edge of the zone!"
"He didn't swing again! Why? He's not the type to patiently wait like this! And in previous games, he's swung at pitches like this almost every time! I really can't read this guy at all! In this aspect, he's even harder to read than that glasses guy!" Nagumo thought briefly.
"I have to throw an inside pitch! Maybe a curveball?"
The moment he thought that, his eyes widened.
"No! Narumiya Mei's changeup is that same low inside slow pitch—and he hit that 140–150 meters!
Damn it! High inside! Aim at the batter's chest—doesn't need to be a strike, just use the angle to push him back! If he's aiming inside and swings, we win big—then we finish him with an outside pitch!"
"Pop!"
"Whoosh!"
"He stepped back! Is he avoiding it? Huh? No way…" At first, Nagumo felt regret seeing Sendo retreat, but when he noticed the bat move, he realized something was off.
He recalled footage from previous games!!!
"Crack!"
Sendo stabilized his lower body, dodged with his upper body, and unleashed a diagonal downward slash!
This guy really likes that spur-of-the-moment batting style Isashiki came up with—it's already become his signature weapon.
Nagumo finally remembered seeing this swing before. He had thought it was just a coincidence, but when Sendo actually swung, he realized it was anything but.
"Thud!"
"Yes!!! It dropped!"
"A long hit down the right field line!"
"That guy really loves that swing!!!
Hahaha!"
"And it breaks through the outfield in one go!"
"Yes!!!"
On the bases, the only one shouting like that while running was Isashiki.
He dashed all the way to third base!
Meanwhile, Kuramochi, who had been on third, easily returned home.
Sendo jogged to second base—though compared to others, he wasn't slow at all.
He knew that because of the downward swing, the ball would be very fast before landing, but would lose most of its momentum upon bouncing and wouldn't travel far.
So even though it pierced the outfield defense before landing, Isashiki couldn't make it home—there was no need for Sendo to sprint.
"Yes!!! Wait… does that mean Sendo was completely aiming for inside pitches this entire at-bat? Completely ignoring your instructions…" Ota shouted excitedly, then realized something was off and spoke awkwardly.
"Yeah. But he's the kind of batter you can trust to judge the situation himself. Aiming inside was probably to avoid revealing too quickly that we were targeting outside pitches. And he's confident in himself!!! That kid…" Coach Kataoka saw through Sendo's thinking at a glance and smiled in a good mood.
"Huh? Is that so?" Ota asked blankly.
"You've known him long enough—he's full of these kinds of calculations! Even Miyuki can't compare to him in that regard!" Coach Kataoka hadn't yet returned to his usual stern expression.
It showed just how satisfied he was with Sendo's decision in that at-bat.
Since he had entrusted him to judge the situation himself, Sendo combined his own abilities, the team's tactics, and the game situation to act.
This was exactly what Coach Kataoka wanted to see.
On one hand, Sendo truly had a sharp mind; on the other, this was also about helping him grow mentally, since they would have to rely on him in the fall.
Although it wasn't the time to think about the future during Koshien, it didn't conflict—in fact, it achieved two goals at once.
After all, once the third-years graduated, Coach Kataoka had already realized how much weaker the lineup would become.
So the lineup needed a leader—a pillar like Tetsu, someone to serve as a model.
Even though Miyuki became more reliable in the latter half of the fall tournament in the original story, showing full concentration with runners on base, his overall ability still wasn't enough.
At the beginning of the new team, Miyuki's batting average dropped significantly, and he failed in key moments—it was painful to watch.
And the new team in the original had over a month more to prepare than now.
No one wanted to return from Koshien only to be crushed by teams in their own district.
So at the very least, they needed to cultivate a definitive core player to draw pressure away from other batters.
As for the rest—since Koshien wasn't even over yet—Coach Kataoka couldn't afford to think too far ahead.
In fact, many Diamond no Ace fans don't fully understand Coach Kataoka's level.
This needs to be mentioned.
Many anime viewers just skim through, and Coach Kataoka comes across as someone tough on the outside but warm inside, maintaining strictness and distance while caring deeply about every player.
They see him as a "hot-blooded" coach.
And "hot-blooded" coaches are often perceived as inexperienced and lacking tactical depth.
But even just up to the end of the fall tournament, if you look closely, you'll see that although Coach Kataoka still had areas to improve, his overall ability didn't lose to any great coach—he truly inherited Coach Sakaki's teachings.
That's why Coach Sakaki could confidently entrust Seidou to him.
A few examples are enough to understand his in-game command ability.
Against Sensen, he decisively ordered targeting curveballs and gave one-on-one batting guidance to Kominato.
Against Akikawa, he pulled Kuramochi aside for direct instruction and even sent Tanba to the bullpen to apply pressure.
Against Inashiro, he conducted thorough pre-game analysis and decisively abandoned off-speed pitches during the game, instructing hitters to wear down Narumiya Mei's stamina, and in the eighth inning, executed a fake move followed by a bunt strategy with Sawamura.
There are also many examples in the fall tournament—various details all prove Coach Kataoka's ability as the one who controls the team.
No coach or insider would ever underestimate Coach Kataoka; they only feel it's a pity.
A top reporter like Mine Fujio follows Seidou every year. On one hand, Seidou is a hot topic; on the other, it's because he recognizes Coach Kataoka as a person.
Seidou has never declined. "Decline" would mean a drop in strength, but coaches from all sides—whether from Ichidaisan, Inashiro, Sensen, Teito, or Kiryu—all acknowledge Seidou's strength. They just haven't been able to make it to Koshien.
Failing to reach Koshien is related to Coach Kataoka, but not because of his ability.
Coach Kataoka is young and had only taken over Seidou for a few years, so it was difficult for him to gain the trust of top junior high players.
Even Narumiya Mei thought that way.
These famous junior high players mostly focus on the Summer Koshien. They also have their own games in summer, so no one goes to watch the qualifiers.
They only know that Seidou is strong and doesn't lose to others, but they still have doubts about Coach Kataoka.
By autumn, many players like Narumiya Mei had already decided which school to attend. For example, that white-haired guy had already gathered a group to go to Inashiro and would likely only watch Inashiro's games. Seidou was still strong, but if they couldn't make it to Koshien, it didn't mean much.
Only players like Asou and Azuma—those who wanted to prove themselves and had confidence—would choose Seidou.
Leading Seidou to Koshien would bring a lot of attention and higher evaluations.
That's why Rei-chan is so impressive. A player like Chris-senpai didn't really have many reasons to choose Seidou—he isn't the type who seeks the spotlight.
Players like Tetsu and Isashiki were mostly local players whose junior high performance wasn't particularly outstanding.
Many of them weren't even starters in their junior high baseball clubs but were substitutes in youth leagues.
Unlike Tetsu's younger brother, who was the cleanup hitter in youth baseball—that's why that year was called a "bumper crop." Normally, top junior high stars like Narumiya Mei and Miyuki wouldn't choose Seidou.
Unlike someone like Toujou, a "pseudo-celebrity" who relied on upperclassmen to reach the national top four.
Oniisan, being from Kanagawa, came from a region with overall weaker strength compared to Seidou, and he personally wanted to train at a prestigious school far from home. Of course, as a first-year, he wasn't particularly outstanding at Seidou either.
Otherwise, he wouldn't have been just a bench player on the first string in his second year, only becoming a starter after Azuma's generation retired in the fall.
Didn't the Sensen coach also say that Oniisan's generation only rapidly improved starting from last fall?
A lack of strong incoming talent, combined with bad luck, is one of the reasons Seidou hasn't been able to reach Koshien—but no one doubts that they are a top-tier national team.
In the spring, reporters in the press box even said that if they had a strong pitcher, winning the national championship wouldn't be just a dream.
The Inashiro coach said during a practice game that this year's team shouldn't be underestimated.
The Kiryu coach, while encouraging Tate, also said that this was a national-level team.
All these details show that this is a top-tier national team that has simply been unlucky in failing to reach Koshien.
And Coach Kataoka is a coach who doesn't lose to any of the greats.
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