<88> The Terrifying Average Pitch Speed!
Chapter 88: The Terrifying Average Pitch Speed!
"My God!!"
The chubby reporter let out an exclamation.
Many people around him instinctively turned their attention to the chubby reporter.
Throughout today's game, this particular reporter had already made several surprising remarks.
Although everyone was watching the same game, each person's perspective was slightly different.
Especially for a professional like the chubby reporter, he often noticed things that others overlooked.
"What is it?"
Faced with the crowd's curiosity, the chubby reporter didn't act mysterious. He directly shared his discovery with everyone present.
"It's the pitch speed!"
At first, when they heard the chubby reporter say this, the crowd of bystanders couldn't believe their ears.
Otherwise, why would the reporter they had high expectations of say something so obvious?
A pitch speed of 155.5 km/h by Furuya was something they had all witnessed.
For Furuya's speed to increase even further was a huge deal, and the crowd believed they understood the significance clearly.
If this was what the chubby reporter was referring to, they would definitely feel disappointed.
Seeing the disappointment in the eyes of those around him, the chubby reporter shook his head with a wry smile.
These guys really didn't understand anything.
"I'm not talking about the fastest pitch speed. I'm talking about Furuya's average pitch speed. Didn't any of you notice?"
Before the chubby reporter pointed it out, none of the spectators had really paid attention to this detail.
But after his comment, it was as if a light bulb went off in their heads, and they instantly grasped what he was saying.
"Are you saying...?"
Seeing their reaction, the chubby reporter nodded.
"Just now, while striking out the batters from Inashiro Industrial, Furuya used nothing but ultra-fast fastballs. And every one of these fastballs was over 150 km/h!"
The chubby reporter was also deeply impressed as he spoke.
Even though Inashiro Industrial High School's baseball team is the reigning powerhouse of West Tokyo and a national top-tier team, they surely had some strategies against Furuya.
But based on the result of their showdown, it was clear that Inashiro's players couldn't find a single chance to hit the ball.
This meant that Furuya's pitching was flawless.
"His average pitch speed exceeds 151 km/h!"
As an experienced baseball reporter, the chubby man knew a few things about powerful fastball pitchers.
But someone like Furuya, with an average pitch speed at such an extreme level? That was unheard of.
"That's exactly why the Inashiro players have been so passive on the field."
Meanwhile…
In Inashiro Industrial's dugout, the players had clearly noticed the issue that the chubby reporter had pointed out.
Their expressions had turned grim.
"This monster seems even tougher than we expected," murmured Shirakawa.
Though the other Inashiro players didn't speak, the way they looked at Furuya said it all.
Their thoughts were exactly the same as Shirakawa's.
Even though they were fully prepared to face off against Furuya, it turned out their expectations were far too naive.
"It's fine! Although we couldn't disrupt Seidou's rhythm, that first-year monster from Seidou has also consumed quite a bit of energy," Coach Kunitomo reassured confidently.
On the surface, Furuya seemed calm and unbothered, as if nothing had affected him.
But that was just a facade.
Through subtle details, Coach Kunitomo could see signs of fatigue in Furuya.
To put it more bluntly:
From the perspective of the fans in the stands, Seidou's monstrous first-year player was dominating the field.
However, in reality, Furuya was also pushing himself to his limits.
He was just a 15-year-old boy who had only recently joined high school.
Even though Seidou's training regimen was among the toughest in the country, how much of that training could a newcomer like Furuya endure?
Taking all this into account, Furuya's terrifyingly powerful performance came with a price—one that was unimaginable to most people.
As the game continues, Furuya's pitching is bound to encounter problems.
From another perspective, Seidou's strategy of rotating pitchers wasn't entirely bad for Inashiro.
For instance, if Furuya's stamina held up and he pitched effortlessly until the end, given the form he was in today, Inashiro Industrial High might not score at all.
If that happened, Inashiro would truly be in a desperate situation.
Seidou swapping out pitchers would actually give them a chance.
Not being able to deal with Furuya didn't mean they couldn't handle Tanba or Kawakami.
Under the current circumstances, Inashiro could place their hopes of scoring on those other pitchers.
Bottom of the second inning, Seidou was on offense.
Tokyo's "Prince," Narumiya Mei, showed no hesitation in facing the challenge from the younger Furuya.
He first forced Yuuki to hit a high fly ball, then followed up with a sharp breaking ball to strike out Masuko.
Facing Seidou's sixth batter, Miyuki, Narumiya used a change up, causing Miyuki to swing and miss.
"Out!"
"Strikeout!"
"Strikeout, out!!"
"Three outs, inning over."
Furuya, with nine consecutive fastballs, swiftly struck out three batters.
Initially, the fans in the stands thought that Seidou's first-year monster was already fast enough.
But Narumiya's speed in getting outs seemed even quicker.
"As expected of the number one pitcher in Kanto, the Tokyo Prince! Even compared to Seidou's monster first-year, we're not falling behind at all!!"
The third inning began.
Inashiro Industrial was up to bat.
"Boom!"
From Furuya's first pitch, the sound of the ball slicing through the air was deafening.
Even the spectators could hear it clearly, let alone the batter in the box.
Inashiro's seventh batter was left completely stunned.
It wasn't that he didn't want to swing and hit the ball!
It's just that he couldn't.
"Strike!"
"Strike!!"
"Strike!!!"
"Strikeout!"
"Strikeout!!"
"Strikeout!!!"
"Three outs, inning over!"
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