As long as at least one person got a hit, he'd have another chance to bat in the 9th inning.
So he watched the first ball, scrutinizing it intently. It was the deadly slider right away, which seemed almost impossible to hit.
"Strike."
Ken's face never changed and he got back into position. There was no need to rush anything.
PAH
"Ball."
PAH
"Strike"
Now that the count was 1-2, he was in a tough position. However, seeing the last few balls gave him enough confidence to try and hit the next one.
Antonio entered his wind up and sent another sinker Ken's way, this time on the inside.
Ken's eyes locked onto the ball and knew that the angle was tricky. Even if he got a hit, it was likely going to be difficult to get any real distance from it.
He twisted his body and tracked down the trajectory while swinging through, intending to foul the ball and buy himself some more time.
DING