Chapter 28: Level 5

After the practice match ended, Seidou High School's training proceeded as usual.

Batting practice, fielding drills, then pitchers and catchers moved to the bullpen where they would do sets of pitching.

Following Coach Ochiai's instructions, pitchers trained with a focus on real-game scenarios.

Given Sawamura's rhythm, he could get three outs in just about ten pitches.

So, he only needed to throw 10 pitches per set!

12 sets of training, each with 10 pitches, with rests and dashes every set.

This training method seemed casual but closely mimicked real-game conditions.

Furuya and Kawakami followed the same training regimen. However, lacking Sawamura's pitching rhythm, they couldn't limit themselves to just 10 pitches per set.

They adjusted based on their own pitching rhythms.

For example, Kawakami did 20 pitches per set for 6 sets.

Furuya did 25 pitches per set for 5 sets.

After Chris left the team, Miyuki became Sawamura's official partner.

They were the team's main battery and often practiced together, strengthening their on-field chemistry.

"Which pitch do you want to practice today?"

Before practice, Miyuki sought Sawamura's opinion.

"What do you think I'm lacking right now, as a pitcher?"

"That's a tough question."

Miyuki looked at Sawamura thoughtfully.

To Miyuki, Sawamura seemed almost perfect.

Though Sawamura hadn't reached the pinnacle in many aspects, those were often limited by the time needed to develop them rather than talent and effort.

Like pitch speed!

Everyone knew the benefits of speed. If Sawamura could increase his speed by 10 km/h now...(6 mph)

Not just in high school, but even in professional baseball, Sawamura would be very scary.

Miyuki couldn't even fathom the shock such a monster would cause.

As a first-year high school player, a pitch speed of 143 km/h(89 mph) was nothing to scoff at.

Strictly speaking, it wasn't slow at all; it was quite impressive. It just couldn't compare to Monsters like Furuya and Hongou.

Next was control. If Sawamura's pitch control could improve further, his overall level would grow significantly.

Take Yoh Shunshin, for example!

Yoh Shunshin didn't have great ball speed, just over 130 km/h(80 mph). But with exceptional control and game calling, he had Seidou High School wrapped around his finger.

If Sawamura Eijun's control could reach Yoh Shunshin's level, he would undoubtedly improve.

For pitchers who are already at a level of control similar to that of Yoh Shunshin, achieving further progress wouldn't be easy.

These were all ideal, perfect, and dangerous to play against.

But Miyuki didn't believe Sawamura could make a huge breakthrough in a short time.

Even throughout high school, if Eijun could make small advances in these areas...

He thinks that Seidou will not take responsibility for the monster that they released into the baseball world.

"I really don't understand what you're trying to get at."

If he didn't understand, Miyuki didn't feel embarrassed and said it directly.

Sawamura didn't know that Miyuki had thought about a lot at that moment.

Regarding pitch speed and control, Sawamura was currently facing a significant milestone for him. His current speed and control were already close to what they were already close to the peak of his time in the Major League.

If he could push further, it would greatly aid his growth. But easier said than done? These were also limited by the time he was given.

From his regression until now was four years going five. As his body continued to develop and his training continued, Sawamura was thankful for the possibility of further progress.

In this scenario, if Sawamura wanted to make a breakthrough in a short time...

He needed to unlock the breaking balls he used in his previous life.

A pitch that even if the batters guessed its course, they couldn't hit.

"I want to practice a new breaking ball."

"Aren't your current breaking balls sufficient?"

"How is that possible? Those are all low-level balls—Level one, Level two, Level three."

'What?'

Miyuki widened his eyes in disbelief, looking at Sawamura as if he were looking at an unknown monster.

"The type of ball I want to practice next would be classified as Level Five based on your previous standards."

Even in Sawamura's time in the Major League, he hadn't fully mastered a pitch of this level.

If he could fully grasp this breaking ball, Sawamura believed that even if his speed and control didn't increase much after, he could elevate his strength to a higher level.

***

After playing that first practice game, Seidou High School proceeded to practice against two more opponents.

They won all three games.

However, this didn't make the coaching staff relax. Each of the three opponents was weaker than the last, making it impossible to discern any problems with Seidou High School at present.

"If they enter the autumn competition like this, it always leaves one feeling uneasy!"

Now, not to mention Coach Kataoka and Coach Ochiai, even President Ota, who is usually the most optimistic, was somewhat worried.

Despite the team winning all three games, scoring more than ten points in each match, Sawamura still didn't get a chance to pitch.

Regarding Sawamura's stability, both Coach Kataoka and Coach Ochiai have great confidence.

If they face a strong opponent, it wouldn't hurt for Sawamura to face them and see the performance of the team in this situation.

But with opponents like these, even Kawakami and Furuya are enough to bully them, let alone give Sawamura a chance to play.

It's like using a sledgehammer to crack a nut.

Half a month has passed since the start of the school year, and all the teams that advanced in the previous Fall Tournament qualifiers must now draw lots for the official competition.

As mentioned before, the qualifiers consisted of four teams playing a round-robin match, with the team achieving the highest total score advancing.

Throughout the qualifiers, there were hardly any upsets.

Mostly, it was the strong teams that advanced.

That's the advantage of seed selection.

When the main games of the Fall Tournament begin, a draw will be necessary. In the previous qualifiers, the organizers had the final say, using the seed selection system.

Under the seed selection system, it's natural for seeded teams to advance. It would be news if a seeded team failed to advance.

Unfortunately, no such news emerged during the entire autumn competition qualifiers.

Yakushi, Inashiro, Sankou, Akikawa...

None of these standout teams stumbled in the qualifiers.

Just thinking about Seidou High School's newly formed team having to face these giants without any real test is enough to make President Ota uneasy.

If the team truly had no visible issues, that would be one thing. But previously, they led a team that played against strong teams all over Japan, and they have gotten a vision from this at the very least. Now, they understand the level of this current team.

Leaving aside the grandiose statements, truthfully speaking, the current team's composition has dropped by about two grades compared to the previous team.

This is even considering the battery and the core.

If we disregard the battery, the current team has nothing in common with the previous National Powerhouse team.

You don't even need to compete; you can see it clearly just by looking at them.

The disparity between the two teams is just too great.

Yet despite this, during the practice games, this team didn't show any problems. Even if they wanted to make adjustments, they couldn't.

How can one feel reassured about this?

In baseball games, sometimes even a small mistake can directly influence the outcome.

Does the current Seidou High School baseball team have any weaknesses like this?

That's certain.

But up until now, no weak points have appeared. No one is sure where the weaknesses lie. Where are the gaps?

What should be done to remedy that?

Just when the coaching staff of Seidou High School was at a loss and scavenging for any training opponents, those third-year Senpais who seemed to have been forgotten in the corner took action

…