CHAPTER 84: CHAPTER 84: EXTRA INNINGS

Top of the ninth inning, Coach Izumi Minoru replaced Left Fielder Kakiwara Yosuke with Uchida Saint.

With this adjustment, some changes occurred in Waseda’s field positions: Uchida Saint took the mound as pitcher, Onoda Shunsuke, originally in Right Field, moved to Left Field, and Lin Guanglai went to Right Field for defense.

This was a choice Izumi Minoru made after careful consideration: for a freshman pitcher, any high school team’s coach would use them cautiously—taking the player’s future into account, sacrificing it for short-term success would be short-sighted.

In this game, Lin Guanglai started and pitched 8 innings, exceeding the 120-pitch limit set by Izumi Minoru; along with the 4 innings he pitched as a substitute last game, Lin Guanglai surpassed 200 pitches within 24 hours.

It’s well-known that a pitcher’s arm is expendable, and excessive use in amateur tournaments is undoubtedly a waste of a pitcher’s talent; thus, international regulations are strict on the pitch count and rest days for young pitchers:

In events for players under 18, no pitcher should exceed 105 pitches in a single game, or more than 150 pitches over two consecutive days—a third above the limits, and the pitcher is mandated to rest for 4 days.

If not for the influence of the "self-sacrificing spirit" of the Showa era still pervasive in Japanese high school baseball, without strict pitch count limits, Koshien tournaments might see a complete reshuffle—after all, most teams with an ace have their ace finish the entire tournament.

Lin Guanglai hasn’t been entirely replaced because Waseda still needs his batting threat: even though Lin Guanglai’s batting performance in this game wasn’t great, as a player capable of hitting three home runs, his presence alone is intimidating to pitchers—it’s unrealistic to expect the opponent to never live up to their potential.

Uchida Saint, coming in as a substitute, showed excellent form as the team’s closer, skillfully finishing his role: one strikeout and two ground balls, not giving Narita’s batters any chance to score.

After the exchange, Waseda, being the home team, had the opportunity for a "walk-off hit"—no matter the method, as long as they score in the next half inning, the game’s over.

However, Nakagawa Ryosuke again displayed his composure as the ace: despite his pitch count exceeding 130, Nakagawa Ryosuke still managed to throw fastballs nearing 140 km/h in the bottom of the ninth, placing them in uncomfortable spots for the batters.

One strikeout, two pop flies—Narita’s defense made no errors, retiring Waseda’s batters one by one.

With regulation play ending at nine innings, the score remained unchanged: Narita 1:1 Waseda Real—under these circumstances, the game would move into extra innings: just like the ninth inning, any difference in score in any extra inning would end the game immediately.

Even as the match approached three hours, the enthusiasm of the spectators in the stands didn’t diminish: throughout Koshien’s illustrious history, many classic memorable games happened during extra innings.

For example, the 19th tournament in 1933, where the Chukyo Commerce and Akashi Middle School semifinal stretched to 25 innings, ending narrowly, an accolade over past and present, etched deeply in high school baseball history;

The most famous would be the 2006 Summer甲 final—Waseda Industries led by "Handkerchief Prince" Saito Yuuki faced off against the consecutive Summer甲 champion Kumamoto University led by "Divine Son" Tanaka Masahiro; both sides battled to a 15-inning draw—under new rules, the game resumed the next day—with only one night’s rest, Saito Yuuki started again, finishing the entire game, simultaneously ending Kumamoto University’s Summer甲 three-peat, he also secured Waseda’s first-ever Summer甲 championship.

Before entering extra innings, the field staff needed to prepare the infield ground—after such an intense match, the dirt was flying, and it was full of pits, no longer resembling a top-tier field.

During this intermission, players from both teams took the opportunity to hydrate, relax their muscles, and prepare for the grueling extra innings; spectators in the stands also needed a slight emotional reprieve.

In the players area, Coach Izumi Minoru was emphasizing overtime tactics to the team—although high school baseball can be intense, it’s still an amateur event, and when a game drags into extra innings, young players’ conditions can fluctuate greatly, making the match difficult to predict.

Izumi Minoru’s instructions to the players were simple: focus on every opportunity to get on base and advance; Waseda, as the home team, just needed to seize one opportunity to completely end the game.

Top of the tenth inning, the freshly substituted, well-rested Uchida Saint maintained his excellent form; even facing Narita’s central batting lineup, he showed no fear—two strikeouts and a pop fly to the infield left Narita’s first half of the extra innings in vain.

Now it was Waseda’s turn for offense, and Koshien’s stadium broadcast echoed once more:

"Ninth batter, Right Fielder, Mr. Lin."

Seeing Lin Guanglai step up to the batting area, the commentator Tanaka Shuji remarked:

"Ah, Lin Guanglai is entering the batting area once again—this is his fourth at-bat in this game."

"In his previous three at-bats, Lin, who has performed excellently this tournament, had nothing to show for it—two times caught out, one forced out, his batting form clearly off today."

"Well—it’s the crucial tenth inning, and crucial lead batter, the player who’s brought us countless surprises before, can Lin bring us another miracle?"

The commentators and audience were all hoping for him to hit a game-ending "walk-off home run," but Lin Guanglai wasn’t thinking that way—going for a home run might be grand, but the chances of a miss swing are higher, especially against a tough pitcher like Nakagawa Ryosuke.

What the team needed most now was timely hits, someone to constantly pressure the opposition on base.

Therefore, when Lin Guanglai gripped the bat, he chose to move his hands up slightly, leaving about a finger’s width between his hands and the end of the bat—gripping the bat short makes powerful long-hits difficult, but facilitates bunts and controlling outside balls.

On the mound, Nakagawa Ryosuke moved, his entire motion accelerating rapidly, releasing the ball with a downward press of his body.

At the plate, Lin Guang moved too, intently watching the ball, bringing the upper body back as he stepped forward with the lower body, swinging the bat powerfully forward, striking the ball precisely.

"Clang!" The baseball was pushed by Lin Guanglai towards the center field, landing in a no man’s land between infield and outfield.

Having driven the ball, Lin Guanglai halted at first base, to ensure contact, he didn’t fully unleash his power, so the ball didn’t travel deeply enough for further advancement.

"Bottom of the tenth in extra innings! Lin Guanglai! He hits a timely single!"

"He accomplished the task of a lead batter successfully! No outs, runner on first!"

"Could this be Waseda Industries’ chance to end the game?!"