Diamond No Ace: Life As Sawamura Eijun

Chapter 333: Set a Small Goal for Yourself First!

Specialization in Expertise.

When it comes to mastering professional baseball knowledge and teaching players specific baseball techniques, Ochiai truly excels, effortlessly guiding players regardless of their type.

Faced with different types of issues, he is able to quickly provide the most precise solutions.

Moreover, for players with different personalities and physiques, Ochiai tailors his guidance in a way that they can easily understand, enabling them to grasp the techniques he teaches in a relatively short time.

During practical learning, Ochiai also closely observes and points out players' shortcomings or mistakes on the spot.

In this regard, there's no denying that Ochiai clearly surpasses Coach Kataoka.

Whether it's batting instruction or pitching guidance, as long as the issue relates to baseball, Ochiai can usually provide a perfect solution. Though this may sound a bit exaggerated, one thing is for sure:

At the current stage, all training plans for Seidou High School's team are personally crafted by Ochiai. For every player he values, he carefully arranges tailored training methods.

In the original story, Ochiai was known for privately guiding the players he favored. Now, serving as the team's official coach since the start of the Autumn Tournament, he has naturally become even more proactive.

Of course, this involves some requests from Coach Kataoka, especially regarding players whom Ochiai doesn't quite approve of.

Out of respect for Kataoka, Ochiai still offers his suggestions. Even for Maezono, whom Ochiai isn't particularly fond of, he recently provided advice during self-training.

Whether Maezono followed that advice, however, is beyond Ochiai's concern.

In fact, to be honest, Ochiai wouldn't mind if Maezono ignored his advice and continued to underperform.

If that were the case, even if Kataoka highly regarded Maezono, poor performance would eventually force a lineup change—it would simply be a matter of time.

After all, Kataoka had done this before. While he wouldn't completely give up on a player, he firmly prioritized those in better form, stronger, and more stable—a core part of his coaching philosophy.

Nighttime at Seidou High School's indoor training facility.

Close-up guidance allowed Eijun to deeply understand why, in the original story, when Kataoka considered resigning to take responsibility, Seidou's opportunistic principal invited Ochiai to succeed him.

Ochiai's coaching ability was simply too outstanding.

"That's right, maintain that arc. Don't force it; rely on the strength of your lower body."

Whoosh!

Following Ochiai's corrections, Eijun swung his arm again, sending the ball flying.

Pop!

Miyuki firmly caught the ball in his glove. His eyes couldn't help but show a hint of astonishment as he glanced at the squinting coach beside Eijun.

For the first time, Miyuki truly admired this coach.

In just half an hour of practice that evening, Ochiai managed to stabilize Eijun's new fastball through subtle adjustments.

Before tonight, Eijun struggled to control the pitch comfortably.

Now, Miyuki was confident that Eijun had at least achieved basic control.

Never underestimate the significance of control. With this level of mastery, Eijun's fastball alone already made him a force to be reckoned with.

This will be enough to completely throw opposing batters off.

Ordinary fastballs, changeups, and those that appear to accelerate—such pitching strategies were typically reserved for power pitchers like Furuya and Hongou, who relied purely on speed.

But now, Eijun's name should also be included among them. His pitching style, which manipulates velocity to dominate opponents, stands out.

The transition from a changeup to a standard fastball is already difficult for batters to time their swings against. On top of that, Eijun's "accelerated fastball" creates a three-tier velocity sequence.

Eijun firmly believed that even top-tier batters like Raichi wouldn't be able to get past him so easily anymore. In fact, this type of tiered velocity pitching might just be powerful enough to completely overwhelm them, even delivering a decisive strike!

"He's truly an incredible guy," Miyuki thought to himself, tossing the ball back while feeling deeply impressed.

"Yes, that was good. You shifted your weight forward and fully extended your arm. Remember that feeling," Ochiai commented. "Also, Sawamura, don't forget—your strength isn't just limited to the quirky nature of your pitches. You have a rare physical advantage that you need to fully leverage. In the baseball world, there aren't many players with your level of joint flexibility—perhaps none at all.

"If you can maximize the rotation of your wrists and lower body, the resulting power will be tremendous. You need to explore your body's potential and fully harness that strength. Don't just settle for hiding your release point from the batter—that's a waste of your talent. Do you understand?"

After analyzing the pitch, Ochiai turned to Eijun, his usually squinting eyes revealing an uncharacteristically solemn expression.

"If you can fully develop the variations of your quirky pitches and tap into your physical potential to the highest level, you will undoubtedly become Japan's number one pitcher. Do you understand?"

Ochiai's deep voice echoed in Eijun and Miyuki's ears, and the weight of that final statement was unlike anything they had heard before.

Outside the door, a tall and lean figure—Furuya, the power pitcher—stood quietly. His body trembled slightly as his hidden hands clenched tightly. His eyes, however, shone with unwavering determination as he took resolute steps forward.

He would not yield the title of "future number one" without a fight.

Back inside the training facility, Eijun instinctively tightened his grip on the ball. His lips pressed together as he looked at Ochiai, who had seemingly made the bold statement casually.

Eijun's pupils widened, perhaps for just a fleeting moment or perhaps for a long while.

Then, a low but firm voice echoed through the facility.

"Yes, I understand."

Eijun met Ochiai's gaze head-on. In that instant, a golden flame flickered in Eijun's eyes, brimming with ambition.

Japan's number one pitcher?

Yes, that was a good small goal to start with.

In the future, Eijun vowed to become the world's best pitcher—a player worthy of being inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in the United States, the holy ground of baseball itself.

That would be the lifelong goal he would pursue with unwavering determination!