Chapter 83: High Sportsmanship

After the match ended, the members of the Seidou High School baseball team collapsed directly onto the field.

Before, they had been holding on with their last bit of energy, but now that they had relaxed, the exhaustion returned immediately, and one by one, they were completely drained.

On the surface, it seemed that the Seidou baseball team didn't perform much in this match. Apart from Sawamura, the others merely fulfilled their duties, and there was no particularly outstanding performance from anyone.

However, if you thought they didn't contribute much because of this, you would be terribly wrong.

Simply competing against a team of such high caliber is already a heavy burden on both their mental and physical strength.

Just the fact that they managed to hold their ground is already an impressive achievement.

If they hadn't held their positions, even with Sawamura's exceptional performance, it would have been impossible for them to tie with the Dream Team.

After the match ended, the Seidou High School baseball team members all wore expressions of having survived a disaster.

If the match hadn't been limited to nine innings...

If the game had continued...

Then the Seidou team's situation would definitely have become very awkward.

The players of the Dream Team were well aware of this as well.

Coach Walter scratched the back of his head, his face showing a bitter smile.

The Seidou baseball players did indeed perform well in this match. They played perfectly, even exceeding their usual capabilities.

But even so, Coach Walter found it hard to accept a tie.

If only they hadn't underestimated the Seidou High School baseball team before the game and had prepared better...

If this hadn't been just an ordinary practice match, but a real game with extra innings, such as the tenth or eleventh inning...

If they could replay the game...

Coach Walter couldn't say it was a certainty, but he at least felt he had an 80 to 90 percent chance of beating Seidou High School's team.

Unfortunately, there's no such thing as "what if."

The result was that the match between the nation's champions, Seidou High School, and the Manhattan Academy ended in a tie.

Seidou High School's baseball team had effectively stepped on the Dream Team's head to climb to a higher position.

Just thinking about this made Coach Walter feel uncomfortable in his stomach.

Although he wasn't Coaching the New York team anymore, his feelings for them had never changed.

Especially his feelings for the Dream Team were even more genuine.

'For the last match of the Dream Team to end like this...'

Coach Walter couldn't accept it.

But what could he do?

This was the reality.

No matter how much he didn't want to accept it, this fact couldn't be changed.

Seidou High School was destined to become famous, destined to make a big splash.

Originally, after the game, the organizers had arranged an interview session.

The Coaches of both teams could bring the players they thought performed well during the game to the interview.

But at first, the reporters from America weren't very enthusiastic, and there were few reporters who could make it from Japan.

So the event wasn't particularly large.

They just stood by the roadside and had a quick chat.

But soon, Robert and his team began regretting this foolish decision.

Before the game had even ended, one favor after another landed on his shoulders.

Both from America and Japan, some phone calls were coming in.

Some favors were even difficult for his big boss, Dawson Jr., to refuse.

Let alone Robert, who was just a small fry.

So he had to quickly rent a lobby at a hotel near the stadium.

The interview session turned into a full-blown press conference.

Later, Robert thought about it more carefully, and he realized that he had made a mistake.

Even without considering Seidou High School's reputation in Japan, how could the battle between the two nations bests not be a massive attraction?

He was feeling like he was a fool, even his team felt the same.

'Maybe I should really quit this job…'

Reporters who liked to get involved in such events were bound to swarm over.

Not to mention that the American side had all-star players. Whether they joined the Major League or Minor League, since they had just joined, their status within the teams wasn't particularly high.

How were they doing after entering the professional leagues?

That was another topic of great interest to the reporters from America.

Before, they had always been unable to find an opportunity, but now that so many people were gathered, the reporters naturally wouldn't let the opportunity slip by.

As a result, Robert urgently contacted the interview location, while on the other side, the Seidou High School baseball team members had been sitting on the field for a while, finally starting to recover.

They slowly began to rise to their feet.

Even Sawamura was no exception.

As the Ace of Seidou High School's baseball team and the main force against the Dream Team,

Sawamura's physical exhaustion was definitely the highest.

Even for him, the fatigue had reached a point where it was hard to bear.

When Sawamura stood up, he was suddenly surrounded by a group of big men.

The Dream Team players were swarming Sawamura!

Seeing this, the players of Seidou were bewildered, some were even panicking.

'What was Going On?!'

It wasn't until Bill, with his braided hair, took the initiative to make a friendly gesture.

He directly asked Sawamura, "That last ball, how did you throw the ball just now?"

Are athletes this simple?

Someone boldly asked, "How did you throw the winning pitch?"

It felt like being asked, "How much money do you earn?" 10 minutes after they met.

Though it's not an impossible question to answer, it certainly feels quite awkward.

If you don't have low emotional intelligence, it's hard to even ask such a question.

Sawamura stared dumbly at the innocent Bill and instinctively replied, "Of course, I threw with my hand!"

Upon hearing this answer, the Dream Team's talented players all reacted as if they had just swallowed a fly.

It was disgusting.

But then again, it was understandable that the other side didn't share the secret. With Sawamura's abilities, joining the Major League was just a matter of time. In the future, their relationship would either be that of teammates or opponents.

And whether they were teammates or opponents, there was no reason for Sawamura to tell them his secrets.

After understanding this, the group laughed.

Sawamura and Seidou also laughed along.

One reporter, having stayed later than the rest, happened to witness this scene.

For some reason, he thought the moment was incredibly nice.

He immediately raised his camera and captured the moment.

Click!

At the same time, a brilliant idea struck his mind.

He decided to give the photo a fitting name and post it online.

Good Games and Good Players.

This photo became famous later as a gesture of high sportsmanship.

After the game ended, the players from both teams were eager to exchange thoughts.

However, aside from Sawamura, the other members of the Seidou High School Baseball Team had little to say.

There was a reason for this—the language barrier.

Although they could communicate through gestures, it wasn't the same as talking to someone fluent like Sawamura. Using gestures and body language felt too low compared to talking directly.

Even though the Seidou players deeply respected Sawamura's abilities, they couldn't quite accept this.

Deep down, everyone was incredibly proud.

No one would genuinely admit that they were impressed by someone else, even if that person was Sawamura.

So they raised their heads and smiled politely.

Meanwhile, Sawamura actually made several friends, even exchanging contact information with several members of the Dream Team.

When it was time to go change clothes, Allen slapped Sawamura on the shoulder.

"I'll be waiting for you in the Major!"

That was his final parting message to Sawamura.

"Okay!"

Sawamura agreed with enthusiasm. He was bound for the Major Leagues, no matter what.

'Although we might meet again way sooner than that…' Sawamura thought of one place where they could play against each other way sooner than this.

It is just that he doesn't know if he will be invited.

"When that time comes, I'll be the one who wins!" Allen's eyes were filled with seriousness.

In today's game, the Seidou Baseball Team fought equally with the Dream Team.

Not talking about luck or how the process went...

Just looking at the result, the two teams were tied.

However, when it came to the direct confrontation between Sawamura and Allen...

Sawamura had an absolute advantage.

Many American supporters might not accept this.

But Allen himself recognized it.

As far as today's game was concerned, he had definitely lost to Sawamura.

"I won't go easy on you!"

Sawamura muttered.

He said this quietly, but his tone was exceptionally firm.

It was as if he was making a vow.

After changing clothes, Sawamura and Miyuki, under the guidance of Coach Kataoka, went for the interview.

They had initially thought it would be a simple interview—standing, surrounded by microphones, with reporters asking questions they could answer.

They would say whatever sounded good, whatever the reporters wanted to hear.

Then, it would be done.

Sawamura and Miyuki had gone through this many times before and were quite used to it.

However, when they arrived at the interview site, they quickly realized it was nothing like that.

There was a podium ahead, with six seats in total.

Below, there were at least fifty or sixty small chairs scattered around.

These seats were all occupied, and there were even cameras set up on both sides of the hall.

The setup was similar to a formal press conference.

Sawamura suddenly realized he had underestimated the significance of today's game.

It was far more impactful than he had imagined.

Looking around, there were at least dozens of media outlets present.

A quarter of them were from Japan, and the rest were from America.

The scale of the event made Sawamura feel a bit overwhelmed.

Though he had seen similar scenes before, he was never the main focus, merely watching from a TV or a corner.

Now, he was one of the six sitting at the podium.

Soon after, people from the American side arrived.

Coach Walter led the group, followed by Allen and Bill.

One was the ace of the team, and the other was the fourth batter.

The lineup of both teams was pretty much on the same level.

Robert, acting as the host, stood in a suit, holding a microphone and talking away.

After a series of pleasantries, he signaled to the reporters that they could begin asking questions.

"Coach Walter, who do you think is responsible for today's loss?"

The American reporter asked sharply.

Thankfully, Coach Walter was no rookie and didn't flinch at the sudden question.

Instead, he responded calmly.

"The Seidou Baseball Team is a respectable opponent. They've competed with other teams before, and it's clear they are a solid team. Our players were assembled last minute, and we didn't have much understanding of them..."

Walter spoke smoothly, and Sawamura admired him greatly.

'As expected, he was a seasoned veteran—everything he said was flawless, and no one could find fault.'

If it were Sawamura, he couldn't have handled it so smoothly.

"Then Coach Kataoka, what do you think allowed your team to tie today's game?"

The reporter asked condescendingly.

If Kuramochi had been there, he might have already slapped him across the face.

…