Chapter 1
I was an average guy with an average life. There was a time when I dreamt of being someone great. I even tried hard to achieve it.
I was an aspiring cricket player and I was a mind blowing all rounder. There was even a time when everyone would call me 'The Magician' because of my ability to throw any type of ball.. Fast, swing, leg spin, out spin.. you name it. Along with that I was an excellent batsman.
But my dreams and life were destroyed by money and the man it belonged to whose son was my rival.
The man destroyed my future as a cricketer. He bribed my trainer to sabotage my blood and urine tests and got me banned for life.
I couldn't even get a proper job because of my drug record. The only way left for me to survive was to become a worker on a landlord's farm.
Life.. was not worth it anymore. I distanced myself from my family and lived as a complete loner.
It was a cold night and I had just finished watering the farmland. The bonfire beside which I was resting was the only source of warmth in my miserable life.
Without even realising, I fell asleep.
A sudden stinging pain in my leg caused me to scream and wake up. From my bleary eyes I could only make out something slithering away as the pain in my leg intensified.
By the time I realised what had happened I was flailing on the ground with white foam coming out of my mouth. It was a bad way to die and I couldn't be happier.
'Miserable end for my miserable life... how fitting.'
I suddenly gained conciousness as my eyelids twitched.
I felt so tired.. I was barely able to open my eyes as I heard chatter around me in a language I couldn't understand. Once I could see clearly, the shock struck me like lightning. The people around me were gigantic!
'What the hell!? I am a guy with perfectly average height! These make me seem like a lilliput!!'
Then, a young woman with soft and delicate features noticed that I was awake.
I began panicking and was unable to think of a way to escape. I flailed my weak limbs around and tried to call for help but the only voice that escaped my mouth was..
"Gyaaaa.. Waaa..!? Gaaaaahhh...!!!?"
Forget the earlier shock... This was what felt like lightning striking me.. that too directly to the balls.
The young woman who was probably my new mother got concerned and picked me up. She began singing a soothing lullaby in an attempt to calm me down.
'I'm a baby!! A bed wetting, spit bubble blowing, breast milk drinking baby who has no control over his bowels!! I don't wanna shit my underpants every other hour!!!'
My new mother got even more worried and stripped me down, checking if I had peed myself or shat in the diapers. Then, she said something which made everyone else leave the room, leaving me with her, alone.
The next thing I know, she was putting the diaper back on and lifting her blouse up to feed me some milk.
'Hey! Lady! Have some shame!!'
I stopped crying and saw that she had stopped worrying. Instead, she was smiling.
I just gave up and decided to roll with it. I suckled on her teet until I was full.
A baby needs to drink his mother's milk until it's six months old. I knew that and stopped the day I was of that age. That was one less embarrassing thing I had to deal with.
Aside from that, I learnt that my name was Sawamura Eijun. It was somewhat familiar. Like I had heard or read that name somewhere in my previous life.
I ignored it at the beginning. But it all became too much for a mere coincidence when I began going to Kindergarten and met Aotsuki Wakana.
I realised at that very moment that I was in the fictional world of Diamond no Ace.
That day when I returned home and went to my room to take a nap, I recalled my life when I was an aspiring cricketer.
The flame of a dreamer was reignited in me and it blazed like wildfire.
'Japan may not have cricket.. doesn't mean I can be a great sportsman. Watch out, baseballers, I'm gonna leave you all in the dust.'
Right at that moment, something happened that changed my life for the better.
[Baseball System activating...
1%
5%
9%
.
.
100%
Congratulations for winning the lucky draw of reincarnated souls. Given host's knowledge of the fictional world he was reborn in and his desire to be a baseball player, system has been modified to assist the host in achieving his dream.]
I was blown away. I finally got my golden finger.
'Status.'
[Name: Sawamura Eijun
Title: Budding dreamer
Age: 5
Choose your path:
Pitcher
Shortstop
1B
2B
3B
CF
LF
RF
Catcher]
'That's.. different. I choose pitcher.'
[Host has chosen 'Pitcher'
Pitcher lvl: newbie
Pitch type: -nil-
Choice skills: -nil-
Talents: -nil-
Host will have to learn pitch types and make his own chices for choice skills. Talents will be rewarded as the host completes the quests generated by the system. Host can accept or reject the quests without concequences.
Once the host begins playing proper baseball, his pitcher level will be upgraded to F0.
Levels for pitcher and batter are as follows:
F0 ---> F5
E0 ---> E5
D0 ---> D5
C0 ---> C5
B0 ---> B5
A0 ---> A5
S0 ---> S5
SS0 ---> SS5
SSS0 ---> SSS5
The highest level ever achieved by a player in the history of baseball is SSS1]
'Well... that's a lot of information to process. Don't I get a gamer mind or body?'
[The system has been modified so that the host gets the best experience of being a baseball player and not become a cold sociopath]
I blinked and thought, 'That's... one way to put it. Anyway, I was a left hand bowler in my previous life and Sawamura was a left handed pitcher. There's no need to change that.'
[Choice skill acquired
Super left arm - lvl 1 - Improves left-hand proficiency. Increases the left-handed pitcher's speed and control by 30]
That's quite nice.. wait, do I have stats?
[Stats:
STR: 10 (strength)
INT: 60 (intelligence)
MNT: 80 (willpower)
DEX: 10 (dexterity)
Host's high INT and MNT stats are as a result of his knowledge of baseball and his past experience in a similar sport. But, they are far lower than they should be due to host's physical limitations.
Pitcher stats:
SPD: 37 (Pitching speed. Affected by STR and DEX)
H DOWN: 47 (Hit down - Reduces the chance of allowing a hit. Affectedby INT and MNT)
HR DOWN: 110 (Home run down - Reduces the chance of allowing a home run. Affected by INT and MNT)
CTRL: 53 (Pitching accuracy. Affected by INT and DEX)
XBH DOWN: 7 (Extra base hit down - Reduces the chance of an extra base hit. Affected by STR and DEX)
STM: 30 (Stamina. Affected by STR and MNT)
Congratulations for discovering stats on your own.
New Talent acquired: Alert - lvl 1 - Slightly increases 'Pickoff rate' when there is a runner on base]
It didn't take me long to calculate how the pitcher stats were determined. Figuring it out gained me five more INT points.
I spent the entire evening mapping out my future progress.
In the end, I was simply too tired and fell asleep.
I asked my parents to buy me a softball and they agreed. It was the beginning of my path to become the greatest pitcher to ever exist.
(PLAYBALL!)
"Eijun-kun! You'll be too tired for the next game if you keep running any longer!"
"Don't worry Wakana-chan! I have enough stamina left to run cross country!!"
That was after I had been running for two hours.
In my previous life, I had read about it as something recreational. But eventually, it happened to me. I was reincarnated into a fictional world and like many other protagonists of their stories, I too got a blessing that gave me an edge over the rest of the world.
'Status'
[Name: Sawamura Eijun
Title: Monster pitcher - Pitch speed greatly increases.
Age: 14
Stats-
STR: 355 (375)
INT: 340 (360)
MNT: 360 (380)
DEX: 330 (350)
Pitcher stats-
SPD: 242 (362)
H DOWN: 247 (337)
XBH DOWN: 242 (272)
HR DOWN: 560 (590)
CTRL: 237 (357)
STM: 252
Pitcher lvl: B2
Pitch type:
Four-seam: A0
Cutter: B3
Two-seam: B4
Curve: B2
Choice skills:
Super left arm: lvl 3 - Increased SPD and CTRL by 120.
Pitcher's resolve: lvl 1 - Learn what it takes to be a pitcher - Increases all stats by 20.
Double step: lvl 2 pitching style - Increases H DOWN by 60.
Talents:
Hit Blockade: Skillfully prevent a hit - lvl 1 - Increases H DOWN by 30.
Speed Control: Being able to rest well is also a skill - lvl 1 - Increases stamina recovery after each inning.
Heavy ball: Enhances ball movement and power - lvl 1 - Increases XBH DOWN by 30.
Monstrous Pitch: Throws a freakishly powerful ball - lvl 1 - Increases HR DOWN by 30.
Bold: Gains courage to overcome pressure - lvl 1 - Increases SPD by 35 at first pitch.
Alert - lvl 4 - Greatly increases pick off rate.
Steel arm: Efficient pitching is the key to victory - lvl 2 - Reduces STM use during each pitch.]
As for my stats as a fielder and a batter..
[Batter stats
H UP: 237 (depends on INT and DEX)
HR UP: 252 (depends on STR and MNT)
MOV SPD: 178 (226) (depends on INT and
DEX)
CATCH: 185 (depends on DEX and MNT)
XBH UP: 245 (305) (depends on STR and INT)
BAT CTRL: 247 (337) (depends on INT and
MNT)
THROW: 221 (depends on STR, DEX and
MNT)
Choice skills:
Full swing: Batter stance - lvl 2 - Increases XBH UP by 60
Talents:
Tenacity: Don't let any situation bother you - lvl 3 - Increases BAT CTRL by 90
Four-seam hunter: Gains confidence facing certain pitches - lvl 2 - Increases H UP by 30 when opposing pither throws a four-seam.
Target sighted: Stays focused when at bat - lvl 2 - Increases HR UP by 35 against the first pitch.
Provoke: A psychological warfare begins! - lvl 2 - Provokes the opposing pitcher to moderately loose stamina
Roadrunner: Get some swift moves - lvl 1 - Increases MOV SPD by 48.]
That's that... I could feel that even God got tired while reading all that.
*AHEM*
Anyway, just like in canon, our school was going to be demolished. I had pulled the team to the finals but baseball isn't a one man game. One player wasn't enough to pull the team through and everyone knew it.
I liked the friends of canon Sawamura. Throughout the years of us playing together and going to the same school, I had come to consider them as my dear friends too. So, I tried my utmost to pull the team as far into the tournament as I could.
Turning my face, I stupidly grinned towards Wakana as she sighed and shook her head in defeat.
Wakana was a worrywart when it came to me. I was a training junkie and she would always worry for my health. We were the closest of friends. But I knew better. Children are much easier to read than adults.
I liked talking to her. Since she was a catcher it gave us more time to spend together. I never had a girl or a woman as a friend in my previous life so it was different to have one, in a very nice way. It humbled me and made me less of a hooligan.
Yes, I liked Wakana. But I could never bring that up. In front of her, I was just an awkward teenager with a huge crush on his best friend.
On the day of the finals, I pitched for the entire game. I was the clean up and hit a home run. Yet, we lost.
Wakana was not able to catch all of my pitches and there were many fielding errors. I tried my best to keep the morale of the team up but from the look of their faces, they were feeling the guilt.
It was our last game together.
As we were shaking hands with the opponent team, I saw them laughing at my friends who were crying. They even made fun of Wakana for being on a boys team.
It reminded me of canon.
So I thrashed them all in front of the spectators and when the umpires tried to stop me, they too got an ass kicking of their lives.
As I was being pulled out of the stadium by my friends, I saw Takashima Rei, the scout and assistant coach of Seidou, smirking and adjusting her glasses while subtley glancing towards me.
I was called to the Principal's office the next day and was scolded for my conduct post game. I admitted to be ashamed for losing to a group of pansies.
Later that day when I returned home...
"I'm back!"
My grandfather came out of the living room and said, "Oh, Eijun. You're back already? Right. You have a guest.."
"A guest?" I asked as I turned my head to look at him.
"Yeah.. They came all the way from Tokyo just to meet with you!! Hurry up and wash your face and get to the living room!"
A few minutes later, I was sitting opposite to the buxom Takashima Rei while being surrounded by my family. She used to be one of the women of my fantasies and looking at her was surreal.
She slowly slid her card towards us and said while adjusting her glasses, "Nice to meet you. I am Takashima, the assistant coach of Seidou High School's baseball club."
Excited, Grandpa exclaimed, "Hey, Eijun! The Seidou School from Tokyo is famous amongst the famous!"
I smiled at him and said, "I know that, old man. What I don't understand is why such a prestigious school approaching me of all people. We lost the regional finals, didn't we?"
Rei smirked and said, "I watched the match the other day. It seems to me that Sawamura-kun has unusual untapped potential which he will only achieve with world class training given at Seidou."
As I was thinking, she continued, "I noticed that for the entire match, you could have thrown some breaking balls. You were pulling back. May I know why?"
I chuckle mirthlessly and said, "So you were able to see that, huh? Yeah, I could have thrown them but the thing is, none in my team can catch them. I held back because I didn't want my team to be demoralized by the difference in our skills. Baseball is a team sport. If I was selfish and threw my best every time we wouldn't even have won a single match."
Rei once again adjusted her glasses and said, "Then come to Seidou."
I huffed and said, "I'd rather stay where my teammates get along with me."
Grandpa, who was sitting beside me, decided it was enough and smacked me at the back of my head and said, "Stop being so rude!! She came here to recruit you so stop giving her that attitude!!!"
I rubbed the back of my head and shouted back, "What's wrong with that!? I don't see the point of joining a school far away from my friends. I bet they look down on everyone who's not elite like them!!"
Rei smirked and said, "Then come with me to Seidou and see for yourself. If you are still unsatisfied after that then I'll be out of your hair."
The moment I glanced at her, she raised her eyebrow at me. I couldn't help but huff.
"Alright, when do we leave."
\(^_^)/
The train ride was.. not much eventful. I did try the old 'slept and fell on the girl's chest' but Rei saw through my plan and reprimended me for being unruly. Yeah, not the best of my behaviors and I apologize for that. I am but a man and men are the worst.
When we reached Seidou, I was amazed by the massive size their baseball training facility. It was mind-boggling.
I could feel the smug look on Rei's face as I gazed upon the players working their hardest, fueled by testosterone and adrenaline as they pushed through their fatigue.
The rush, the intensity was... intoxicating.
I looked at Rei and said, "This place is wonderful."
As we walked around, I arrived at the practice area. That's when I heard..
"Hey, you stupid pitcher!! What kind of lousy pitch was that!? You looking down on me? That wasn't even good enough for practice! Give me a livelier throw! If you can't even try, go back to your farmhouse, you shit! I'm losing my edge going against dillweed pitchers like you!!"
I remembered seeing it in the anime yet it still boiled my blood. That was no way of talking to an animal, much less a junior doing his best.
Standing beside me, Rei said, "Kiyokuni Azuma. He hit 42 homeruns throughout highschool so far. At the moment, he's the contender for this year's draft."
*CLANG*
The sound echoed as Azuma sent another pitch flying.
"Huh!? What a lame reply that was! How'd you get this far being such a weak-ass!? You're done already! Somebody throw him outta here! Send him and his weak arm back to his village!"
I ground my teeth together and asked Rei, "You are a teacher here and the assistant coach. You'll just stand there and let that fat dude bully his junior? I was right. Players who ridicule their teammates. You really think he'll make it in the big leagues with that attitude and physique!?"
I had said that loud enough for the entire field to listen.
Azuma looked around to who had insulted him and when he noticed that it was me, he stomped towards me like a crazed bull.
I continued, ignoring his charge, and said, "For you have the gall to demean someone with whom you practice every single day... Has this school forgotten that baseball is a team sport!? Have you forgotten the importance of that!?"
By the time Azuma reached me, I was done saying what I wanted to say. He tried to push me back with his fat body but I didn't budge at all. It shocked him for a moment but he went back to glaring into my eyes.
Rei pulled Azuma back and tried to placate him by saying, "Sorry about this, Azuma-kun. This kid just left his friends behind coming here and doesn't understand any of this."
But it only added fuel to his arroganceand he said, "So, this is your first trip into the world alone, huh? Should I show you some bating?"
I looked dead into his eyes and replied, "You want some good pitches, yeah? I'll pitch circles around you and you won't even be able to get a single hit in."
So it was set. As I went away to change, Rei addressed Miyuki Kazuya who had volunteered to catch for me.
"Miyuki-kun, give your all when you are catching for him. He says that he will join our school if a catcher is able to catch his pitches. I was skeptical in the beginning but given what I have seen around his house, he throws very strong pitches."
Miyuki looked towards me as I was stretching and said, "Heh.. Insane, going up against odds like that."
As Azuma was warming up, Miyuki and I began our own by catching and throwing the ball at each other.
The ball was different from those used by middle schoolers. It was hard yet with each throw I could feel myself getting used to it.
Meanwhile, Azuma was mouthing off and saying, "What's with that ball? You're worse than the usual lineup.. I'd tap that kind of ball out of the park with my eyes closed."
I payed him no heed and got on the mound to throw the pitch.
Miyuki started with his mitt positioned at the out-low. It was text book. So, I decided to throw a four-seam, nice and fast, right into the mitt.
The ball spun hard as I threw it how I usually did with Wakana.
Azuma didn't swing at the pitch and then..
*CLAP*
The ball was caught by Miyuki.
[Pitch speed: 146 kmph]
"It's in, right?"
As he threw the ball back at me, Miyuki couldn't help but think, 'That was a nice, sharp ball.. nothing difficult to catch.'
Once again, Miyuki positioned his glove in the out-low. But this time, I wanted to take up a notch.
I swung my arm hard and threw the ball with incredible force.
*BANG*
In the next moment, it was already in Miyuki's glove. Azuma couldn't even blink much less swing his bat to hit the ball.
I smirked and said, "I guess you 'can' catch my fast ball."
[Pitch speed: 156 kmph]
Everyone around was shocked silent. Rei had her hand covering her open mouth as she couldn't believe how fast I, a mere middle schooler, threw that pitch.
I smirked mockingly at Azuma as his whole face twitched in anger and frustration.
Miyuki then got up and walked up to me. There was no amused smile on his face as before.
"That.. was a very fast four-seamer. You think you can throw another one?"
I huffed and answered, "I think can throw even faster. I know how to throw curve, two-seam and cutter if you want me to."
Miyuki smiled at me like a cheshire cat. Honestly, it made me feel exposed. I knew some witch's brew was being cooked up in his devious mind.
As the play resumed, he positioned his glove at out-low and gave a sign of four.
I nodded and wound my arm and threw my best four-seamer right at the edge of the zone.
This time, Azuma had swung his bat right at the moment the ball left my hand. He managed to touch the ball with his bat but the ball flew back into the cage. It was a foul.
The next pitch, I jammed him with a cutter and again, it was a foul.
I threw ten pitches against Azuma and honestly, it was the best I ever felt. Being able to pitch with my all.. I had never experienced it before. I struck Azuma out.. and it changed me forever..
(RE:)
Later that evening, Rei accompanied me to the train station..
"Nice job today. I think it was a good experience for Azuma. I wanted him to be a little more humble before he became pro."
I was deep in thought. I really wanted to join Seidou and throw incredible pitches but I also wanted to play with my friends. I was troubled by indecision.
Rei, who had noticed it given the dumb expresion on my face, continued saying, "Tokyo is a battleground with experienced players. No matter how hard you try, it might never pay off. Even so, if you decide you want to challenge our school, contact me. You have the right to choose, after all."
For my entire journey back home, I was plagued by the choices. I was a passionate cricketer in my past life and I uad the ambition the be the best. It should have been an easy decision for me. But, no matter how much I tried, I couldn't.
There were many thoughts jumping in an out of my mind.. But there was one that remained constant... the sound of my pitch hitting the mitt.. kept echoing inside my head.
(PLAYBALL)
A/N: I've adopted this fanfic from @Strongarm. Anyone who has read the original fanfic would clearly notice that I've introduced a system. It is based on Baseball Superstars 2021, the game that inspired @Strongarm. Readers won't need any knowledge of the game so you can rest easy. Also, I will be nerfing MC a little because in the original he was made too strong too early. This doesn't mean he will be stepped on by others.