Although it was just one hit, Kuramochi had already given Raizou a bad premonition.
It seemed that Kuramochi had targeted that pitch. He'd known from the start which way the pitcher, Tomobe, was going to throw.
If that were true, the Yakushi High School baseball team would need to change pitchers immediately.
But Todoroki Raizou hesitated, judging so quickly after just one pitch wasn't quite enough.
After all, there's always the possibility of coincidence.
Should they substitute the pitcher now, or wait until they secure the final Out?
According to Raizou's previous plan, he'd hoped to wait and get that final Out first.
Before the match against Seidou High School, Raizou had done all sorts of simulations. For two straight days, he hadn't been able to sleep.
Whether people called him arrogant or overly ambitious,
the truth was, before the match against Sankou High School, Raizou had never really taken them seriously. In his view, their chances of defeating Sankou High were high.
Though their strength wasn't weak, and they had once been a powerhouse in West Tokyo (Sankou: WE STILL ARE!),
Raizou had predicted that, given the current comparison of their strengths and the factors of style clashes, their chance of defeating Sankou High was at least 70%.
What truly concerned him, however, was the finals, whether they faced Seidou High School or Inashiro Industrial.
For the Yakushi High School baseball team, both were enormous challenges.
Who would their opponent in the finals be?
Raizou had already made a prediction. While Inashiro Industrial's baseball team was quite strong in all aspects, even comparable to Seidou High in certain areas,
considering the Coach's influence, it seemed Inashiro Industrial had a better chance.
Of course, this was just a paper-strength assessment.
If you took people into account, the first person Raizou thought of was Sawamura. Once he thought of him, he immediately stopped doubting the outcome of the game.
In his mind, he couldn't picture a scenario where Sawamura would lose.
So no matter how the game went, the Yakushi High School team would definitely meet Seidou in the end.
Once the opponent was determined, they needed to assess the strengths and weaknesses of both sides.
Yakushi High did have some advantages, though they were not obvious, but their weaknesses were more apparent.
Yakushi High's biggest flaw was their Ace pitcher.
Sanada was an excellent pitcher!
For Raizou, having the chance to train Sanada was like receiving a blessing from the heavens.
Who would've thought that such a weak school would have a diamond like him hidden away? And a diamond that had already been well-polished.
But, when comparing Sanada Shunpei's excellent pitching ability with Sawamura's,
he didn't seem so outstanding anymore.
This wasn't Raizou putting himself down; it was something anyone with eyes could clearly see.
Anyone who watched the two pitches could immediately tell the difference.
In this situation, if they went head-to-head with Seidou in a pitching duel, they didn't have a chance.
According to the usual style of the Yakushi High School baseball team, if pitching didn't work, they'd switch to a hitting battle. After all, hitting was their forte.
After all, who would be foolish enough to attack someone else's strength with their own weakness? That would be suicide.
If possible, Raizou would certainly find a way to do this.
But the question was: Could they?
If you look at all the footage of Sawamura's games when has an opponent ever scored more than three runs off him?
Even games where they scored two runs off him were no more than three.
The total number of games where an opponent managed to score off him wouldn't exceed ten.
'Such a monster—no one has ever been able to turn a game into a hitting battle against him.'
So, when facing Sawamura, there were only two outcomes.
Either they got crushed, or it turned into a losing pitching duel.
Standing on the mound, Sawamura exuded a dominance that said, "This is my territory."
Every time Raizou thought of this, it felt like his brain was going to explode.
'Such a player, and he's just an ordinary high school student!'
Whenever this thought crossed his mind, Raizou found it surreal.
But no matter how he felt internally, this was reality—and it was something he had to face.
What he needed to do next was simply how to deal with this reality.
'One pitcher alone wouldn't be enough.'
Raizou had quickly concluded this.
When one pitcher can't make it, what should they do?
Raizou came to the same conclusion as last year's Kataoka.
They would have to use the "pitching wheel" strategy.
One pitcher, three innings.
Previously, the Yakushi High School baseball team didn't have the confidence to do this.
To get Outs against Seidou High School, their pitcher would need true skill.
Even if they were bluffing, they would need an elaborate lie to bluff.
But the previous Yakushi High team didn't have that. Except for Sanada, they didn't even have pitchers who could bluff.
But this year, with the new recruits, they suddenly received a great windfall: two super pitchers.
Igarashi Sora and Tomobe Sakito.
Igarashi Sora didn't need much introduction; his pitching speed had increased by 10 km/h in half a year. (10 mph)
He had truly undergone a transformation.
Even facing Seidou, he could hold his own.
Tomobe Sakito was a little immature, but he was smart, and most importantly, his style was different from the Yakushi High team's.
It wouldn't work to face Seidou head-on with his ability.
He'd likely be wiped out in no time.
'But bluffing for a few innings was still possible.'
Raizou was truly bold.
He thought like this and acted on it, doing so without hesitation.
He immediately put Tomobe Sakito on the mound.
Luckily, Tomobe didn't disappoint and even exceeded Raizou's expectations.
Though his pitching wasn't as good as Igarashi Sora's,
Tomobe was absolutely the type of player suited for big games.
The bigger the stage, the better he performed.
Had Raizou made this decision before this game,
he would've probably taken Tomobe off after seeing the same situation, knowing exactly what their team was like.
Once the bluff was exposed, it was almost certain that Tomobe's pitches would be hit.
And that was the result the Yakushi High team could not afford.
So, Tomobe would've been replaced.
But now, after seeing his performance on the field,
Even Raizou wasn't as decisive anymore.
Tomobe's performance made people excited and eager to see what he would do next!
Even Walking Sawamura, besides the hit by Kuramochi, Tomobe's performance hadn't disappointed anyone.
If a player is in good form, they should be trusted without hesitation.
This had always been the principle of the Yakushi High baseball team.
Had it been Sanada or Igarashi on the mound,
Raizou would have trusted them without blinking.
Because their strength deserved his trust.
But with Tomobe, things were a little more complicated.
As for Tomobe's current state, Raizou trusted him completely.
But when it came to Tomobe's pitching ability, it was still a little worrisome.
So for a moment, Raizou felt conflicted.
He lazily lifted his backside, only to sit back down.
His gaze fixed on the mound.
'One more pitch! Let's see him throw one more pitch!!'
Raizou ultimately still had expectations for Tomobe's performance.
So he wanted to see him throw one more pitch before making the final decision.
There were already two Outs. Just one more, and Tomobe Sakito could exit unscathed.
If he could do this, it would be hugely beneficial for both the Yakushi High team and Tomobe personally.
Greed is a sin. Even though Raizou thought he had everything figured out, he still couldn't help making this mistake.
No substitution order!
On the mound, Tomobe Sakito was burning with determination.
He had originally thought that the Coach would take him out now.
He wasn't the most handsome, and even within the team, he'd been pushed around. Though the team's Ace, he had never been particularly conspicuous.
The most popular players in the team were never him.
Habit is a scary thing.
Being ignored for so long, even Tomobe himself had gotten used to it.
When others were taking the spotlight, he would be replaced.
Though he hated injustice and always intervened when he saw something wrong, when it came to himself, he felt helpless and weak.
As the weakest pitcher on the team, he had never thought the Coach would rely on him in a crisis.
That was Tomobe's original thought.
But now, he realized he had underestimated the Coach.
Raizou had never shown any intention of replacing him.
On the contrary, he believed in him.
This was the first time Tomobe had been trusted like this.
He didn't want to disappoint Raizou, so he was determined to get that last Out no matter what.
On the mound, Tomobe Sakito took his stance, ready to pitch.
At first base, Kuramochi, who had been waiting calmly, started to act.
...