Ace of Diamond: Return of the Pitcher

"They're back!!"

"They're back!"

The bus drove directly to Seidou High School, stopping outside the baseball field.

The teammates each packed their luggage and got off the bus.

The players from the Second and Third Strings gathered around, like heroes welcoming a triumphant return, eagerly approaching.

They laughed and talked with their teammates.

The atmosphere was cheerful.

Sawamura was also surrounded by a large group of people.

These were mostly first-year fans, along with a few second-year players at his level.

Although everyone was on the same team, given Sawamura's current status, it was hard for the first-year players to treat him as an equal.

They viewed Sawamura as their role model and idol.

Sawamura couldn't help but feel a little helpless about it.

Since he chose this path, there were things that couldn't be changed.

"How about you? Is the Second String's games going well?"

Naturally, Sawamura had nothing to say to his fanboys, so he proactively asked about Kariba and Kaneda.

He was more familiar with Kariba and Kaneda in the Second String.

Kariba's expression was very interesting, a bit awkward, and he hesitated.

Sawamura immediately understood. This meant that he shouldn't ask any further.

He wasn't being pushy and smiled as he changed the topic.

After Coach Kataoka returned to school, he instructed the players to take some free time.

Then, he headed straight for the coach's office.

Having been away from school for six full days, he had many things to discuss with coach Ochiai, and President Ota, who had stayed behind.

"I know the Second String won all eight of their practice games, and we won all six of ours. What's the situation with the Third String's practice games?"

Despite focusing most of his attention on the First String, Coach Kataoka still cared deeply about the Second and Third Strings.

"We won too!"

President Ota appeared especially excited. "The First String went on an expedition with six practice games. The Second String played eight practice games here at our school, and the Third String won both of their games. Throughout the Golden Week, there were 16 practice games, and we won them all!!!"

This was certainly great news.

Even Coach Kataoka couldn't help but get excited when he heard it.

The victory of the First String was to be expected.

After all, they didn't face very strong opponents, so the chances of losing were very slim.

As long as the players could learn from their shortcomings during the competition, the practice games were not in vain.

However, the opponents for the Second String were different.

The Second String had faced challenges from the Second Strings of four famous high schools, as well as four strong schools from the Tokyo area.

The coaching staff had analyzed the situation beforehand, and if the Second String could win six out of the eight games, it would be considered a very good result.

They hadn't expected to win all of them.

This was an absolute pleasant surprise!

"Mainly, a few freshmen performed really well," Coach Ochiai said leisurely, stroking the small goatee on his chin.

He had every reason to be proud.

The practice games for the Second String had been conducted under his guidance. Winning them all could not be separated from his strategy.

"Who are they?"

Coach Kataoka had already promoted a few promising players. Some moved to the First String, while others went to the Second String.

The three who entered the First String performed well.

Although they didn't shine against national-level opponents, they didn't hold the team back either.

This was already very good.

After all, they had only joined Seidou High School's baseball team a little over a month ago.

In such a short time, they had already kept up with the pace of Seidou High School's competition.

Those three players definitely deserved praise.

Nishiyama, Yuuki, and Yui Kaoru...

The others, who caught the eye of Coach Kataoka and the coaching staff, were also placed in the Second String.

This included Kagami, who seemed plain but was resolute when it came to pitching.

There was also Kuki Youhei, synonymous with fighting spirit.

Takuma, who had excellent speed and technique.

Hirota, whose batting strength was on par with Yuuki Masashi's.

And Okumura, who performed exceptionally well on the field.

Each of them had very strong potential.

But just like real steel needs to be refined by fire, potential alone wasn't enough.

Although they had all performed well in the orientation game, a person's true ability couldn't be judged by that alone.

More games were needed to verify their capabilities.

The Second String had gone through eight practice games, with each player participating many times.

Moreover, the opponents were no pushovers.

Any player who could continue to showcase their strengths in such a competitive environment had earned the right to be treated differently by Coach Kataoka and the Seidou's baseball team coaching staff.

President Ota and Coach Ochiai exchanged a glance, their expressions tinged with complexity.

"Say whatever you want."

"I'm not sure if this is a good thing or a bad thing," Coach Ochiai said while stroking his chin.

"Thanks to the freshmen, we did really well. Though the older students also tried their best, they..."

Coach Kataoka was shocked.

No wonder Coach Ochiai and President Ota showed such expressions.

It turned out they were worried.

Now, the Second and Third-year players in the Second String were all trained by Coach Kataoka. The fact that they couldn't compete with a few freshmen was something that made Coach Kataoka feel ashamed as their teacher.

"Sometimes, talent is something that can't be compensated for with hard work. Unfortunately, this year we've had a bumper crop of talented players," Coach Ochiai comforted softly.

Having been a coach for many years, he vaguely understood Coach Kataoka's thoughts.

It seemed that Coach Kataoka must have been feeling quite down at this moment.

But Coach Kataoka was much stronger than Ochiai had imagined.

In fact, Coach Kataoka had somewhat anticipated this.

The freshmen this year were simply too exceptional.

In the past, when Seidou High School recruited players like Chris, Miyuki, and Sawamura, it was already a stroke of luck to recruit one or two players who could immediately contribute as starting players.

But this year, they had recruited so many excellent players all at once.

When there are many talented players, they naturally stand out in the field.

In the previous Spring Koshien, the second and third-year players who had any chance of making it to Koshien had already been to the tournament.

Now, Coach Kataoka wasn't even considering giving the older players a chance. The selection criteria for Seidou's First String was simple.

Those with ability would rise to the top, and those without it would step down.

"Who are they?"

Coach Kataoka asked again with an exceptionally firm tone.

Coach Ochiai nodded subtly.

"The freshmen as a whole have performed quite well. Of course, there are also a few good prospects among the third-year players..."

This was typical formal talk, and Coach Kataoka wanted to get straight to the point.

"Who among them has the potential to challenge for a spot on the First String?"

Coach Ochiai, who had been preparing to say a few formal words, was directly cut off.

He wasn't angry. After nodding, he immediately named two players.

"Okumura and Hirota."

Talent is like a nail in your pocket — over time, it will inevitably stick out.

Although there were many talented freshmen, after being promoted to the Second String, their performances hadn't been as outstanding.

Players like Kagami Kouta, Kuki Youhei, and Seto Takuma had been incredibly dominant in the freshman team.

It was obvious that they were much stronger than their peers.

But after entering the Second String, they were still decent, but just decent.

They no longer had the same overwhelming presence they had in the freshman team.

However, Okumura and Hirota were different.

Even after entering the Second String, the two of them quickly gained a dominant position.

It was clear from their positions in the Second String that they had already established their dominance.

Okumura Koushuu was now the main catcher of the Second String.

In just six days, he had surpassed Kariba, who had been Sawamura's close friend.

Whether it was catching the ball or commanding on the field,

His abilities completely crushed his senior.

"When he's on the field, we concede very few runs. He's played 27 innings, and has teamed up with Kawashima, Kaneda, and Kuki, and only allowed four runs! Strictly speaking, none of those runs were his fault."

His performance was absolutely flawless.

"Was his junior league team famous in Kanagawa?"

Coach Kataoka wasn't very familiar with the situation in Kanagawa.

Hearing this, he couldn't help but ask in curiosity.

"That junior league team was indeed famous for its strategic approach to baseball. During my time in Kokai Sagara recruited a lot of players from there. The one who honed their baseball skills to this level is absolutely unique."

The term "unique" was very carefully chosen.

He didn't say 'rare' or 'remarkable', but rather 'unique'.

It was clear that Coach Ochiai had an impression of this coach.

Coach Kataoka nodded, noncommittal.

This wasn't really surprising.

The Kanto Tournament was about to begin, and the First String was already at full capacity.

Coach Kataoka had no way of promoting any players at this time.

At best, he would just pay extra attention to them.

"And the other one?"

Coach Kataoka understood why Okumura was being recommended, but what about Hirota?

President Ota and Coach Ochiai exchanged a glance.

Seeing this, Coach Kataoka couldn't help but feel a tinge of jealousy.

When had their relationship become this good?

"Hirota has been up to bat 20 times, with four home runs, three extra-base hits, two infield singles, and a Walk. His on-base percentage is 50%!"

"What?"

Coach Kataoka was visibly surprised.

Even if Nishiyama or Yuuki Masashi were transferred to the Second String, they probably wouldn't achieve such a result.

Even during Kominato Haruichi's time in the Second String's practice games, he didn't have this many home runs.

"How was Takatsu's on-base percentage in the Second String?"

"If we look at the overall stats, it's a little over 30%, just under 40%. But in the last ten practice games, his on-base percentage has been 47%."

Since the opponents were different and the conditions varied, the abilities displayed would naturally differ.

But overall, Hirota's performance now was not inferior to Takatsu's.

Considering Takatsu's performance in practice games, it would be dishonest to say Coach Kataoka wasn't tempted.

'The Kanto Tournament was starting on May 18.'

'That left less than two weeks.'

'No, it's too late…'

…