"What did our lovely girls bring us? It's 30, what does that mean?"
"Thirty means thirty Homeruns!"
Kameshima's eyes were full of smiles. This was the second time he had fallen deeply in love with a high school player. The last time was last year, with a player from Ichidai Third High School who shared his surname.
That was Ichidai Third High School's previous Ace. Because they had the same surname, he naturally felt a sense of closeness, and that player's performance on the field was indeed extraordinary. He naturally became a fan.
When that player graduated, he no longer obsessed over a single player like before. Although Zhang Han at that time had already performed very well, even becoming a super rookie at Koshien, he clearly hadn't completely captivated Kameshima yet. There was a missing catalyst.
It wasn't until the last game, when Zhang Han hit three Homeruns and two hits, achieving a 100% hitting rate, that Kameshima watched with his own eyes as Zhang Han, with his powerful swing, led Seido to a resounding victory. That catalyst arrived. From that moment on, he became obsessed with his second high school baseball player.
This player was Zhang Han.
As expected of the man he favored, his performance was fierce. He had already hit his 30th Homerun so quickly.
Don't look at 29 Homeruns and 30 Homeruns as only one difference; these were two completely different concepts. Among players capable of hitting Homeruns, throughout their high school baseball careers, those who could hit more than twenty Homeruns likely numbered in the thousands. However, those who could hit 30 or more were reduced a hundredfold, at most only seventy or eighty.
Why was the gap so large? The reason was actually very simple: there weren't that many opportunities.
For a powerful batter, to achieve a high number of Homeruns, not only must their own strength be great, but the team's strength must also be great. High school baseball games were basically elimination rounds. If the team was weak and got eliminated in the first round, no matter how strong the batter was, it was impossible for him to hit many Homeruns.
For example, take Azuma Kiyokuni. How terrifying was Azuma Kiyokuni's swing? Everyone knew. With his strength, could he really only hit forty-something Homeruns? If he were given enough opportunities and enough games, that number could very likely double.
But Seido had not made it to Koshien before, and only participated in the Kanto Tournament once. As a result, his number of games was almost half that of players who made it to the end. It was a miracle that he managed to hit over 30 Homeruns before the Summer Tournament in his final year.
Not to mention his final year, Seido High School Baseball Team performed well, reaching the quarterfinals of the Summer Koshien. Even if their record had been poor in their final year and Seido had been eliminated, Azuma Kiyokuni's record alone would have been enough to attract professional baseball attention. He would definitely have been drafted.
Looking back at Zhang Han's record now. Before the game against Yakushi High School Baseball Team, his Homerun count, while impressive, had not yet reached a level that would cause a sensation. After all, at least several hundred players had achieved 26 Homeruns.
It wasn't until the Yakushi battle, when he cleanly hit three Homeruns, that it sparked discussion online. People were speculating when Zhang Han would join the 30-Homerun club. No one expected Zhang Han to be so fast. Just one game later, he hit his personal 30th Homerun in the Spring Tournament semifinals.
At this moment, everyone was very excited.
The commentator, the umpire, the TV station manager, the Seido High School Baseball Team's coach and players. They watched Zhang Han, who had run a lap around the infield, return to Home Base. They seemed to see a halo around Zhang Han.
This was, of course, an illusion. However, from now on, no matter where Zhang Han went, people would likely have such an illusion. Not because of Zhang Han's appearance, but because of the achievements he had made, or rather, the miracles he had created.
He had already hit 30 Homeruns as just a second-year student, at the very beginning of his second year. This was already enough to engrave his name in high school baseball history. And he still had a full year and a half to continue breaking his own record.
Every step he took would likely cause a huge sensation. In recent years, Azuma Kiyokuni, who hit over 40 Homeruns, was called a monster. He was a first-round draft pick. But even Azuma Kiyokuni, who was called a monster, only had a single-digit total of Homeruns at the beginning of his second year.
The score on the field was 1:1.
No matter how shocked people were, the game had to continue. Next up at the batter's box was Seido High School Baseball Team's fourth batter and captain, Yuuki Tetsuya.
When Zhang Han passed him, Yuuki Tetsuya looked deeply at his junior. A surging fighting spirit emanated from him.
Isashiki Jun in the dugout kept shaking his head as he watched Yuuki.
"There's no need to be like this with your junior..."
"What nonsense are you talking about? Get ready to bat."
Coach Kataoka criticized him sternly. Yuuki was the fourth batter, and Isashiki Jun was the fifth batter. To Isashiki Jun, Coach Kataoka was as cold as an Antarctic glacier. But facing Zhang Han, who had hit a Homerun and returned to the dugout, Kataoka was very kind and amiable.
"Well done!"
"Thank you, Coach!!"
With a hand injury, it was difficult to become a true Ace in high school. Although Zhang Han didn't show anything on the surface, he was still a bit bothered by it. He thought for a whole night before deciding to change his focus. Since he couldn't practice pitching much, he would re-focus his energy on hitting.
Zhang Han already had an extraordinary intuition for hitting. This was his talent. Now that he started practicing diligently and no longer distracted himself with thoughts of pitching, Zhang Han suddenly found that even hitting had many interesting things about it. At the batter's box, it tested not only the player's strength but also their emotional and intellectual quotient. This feeling of battling wits with opponents made Zhang Han a little addicted.
"Ping..."
Just as Zhang Han was talking to Coach Kataoka, the sound of a bat hitting a baseball suddenly rang out behind them. Turning back, Zhang Han saw the ball hit by Yuuki Tetsuya fly into the left field stands.
Right after Zhang Han had hit a Homerun, the fourth batter, Yuuki Tetsuya, followed up by blasting the ball out. Seido High School Baseball Team began their counterattack, even with Koudai Affiliated already having two outs. In just two at-bats, they reversed the deficit.
The score became 2:1. The difference was still one run, but the leading team had become Seido.
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