"Akashi-kun did it!!!!"
The commentator from Tokyo TV shouted excitedly.
With one Out, the Japanese team was about to lose.
Fans in the stands, fans in front of TVs, fans in front of internet media...
They were all despondent, believing that the Japanese team was beyond saving.
They were certain to lose!
The reason the fans felt this way was partly because the team's situation was dire, and partly because of the commentators' analysis.
The commentators had also sensed the dire situation, but their stance was firm—they were certainly supporting the Japanese team.
At this point, they had already started analyzing the reasons for the Japanese team's potential defeat.
There were various opinions, but the gist was that the Japanese players, despite losing, were still worthy of honor.
This had always been Japan's character.
If the opponents utterly crushed the Japanese team, they would accept defeat without any objections.
For example, if the score was 10-0 or 20-0, the Japanese would gladly crown their opponents as champions.
But if the gap between the two teams wasn't that large, the situation would be completely different. The Japanese team would definitely hype up their own performance and fight till the end.
And this was the situation Japan was facing now.
With a total score of 3:2, even if they lost this match, the Japanese team would still have some honor.
After all, they were challenging the strongest team in the world, America.
To have reached this point was already an incredible achievement!
Under this subtle encouragement from the commentators, fans naturally thought that the Japanese team had no hope left.
At this point, some fans could no longer bear to watch and turned off their TVs.
What they wanted to see was the Japanese team winning the championship, not America taking the throne.
Just when everyone, including the Japanese players and fans, thought the outcome was sealed,
Akashi, who had been playing terribly, suddenly erupted.
With a seemingly ordinary hit, he was the first to reach base.
The situation changed to one out with a runner on first base.
Normally, an ordinary hit like this wouldn't have been a big deal for either team.
They'd encountered plenty of such hits before, and they rarely posed a threat.
But now, this hit turned the atmosphere tense.
Before this, the Japanese team had no hope at all.
Theoretically, their batting lineup wouldn't even get to the crucial batter, Sawamura, so they lacked the key element for a comeback.
But that hit had just bridged this gap.
Akashi, as the second batter, had hit the ball at this crucial moment.
He made it to first base, which was already a significant threat to America.
But that wasn't even the most important part!
The most important thing was that this hit extended the Japanese team's lineup.
In other words, the lineup would once again circle back to Sawamura.
"Heaven hasn't abandoned me!"
Many fans in the stands shouted excitedly.
They were full of joy.
They had thought there was no hope for the game, but at the last moment, things had taken a sudden turn…
If Sawamura could hit a home run now, the score would flip in an instant.
"Let's not get too optimistic. Didn't America's players start Walking Sawamura already?"
More rational fans weren't so hopeful for the future.
This wasn't because they doubted Sawamura Eijun's ability. They certainly believed in the Demon King's strength.
Forget the single hit—if it came down to a one-on-one duel, hitting a home run wasn't impossible.
In fact, in their previous three matchups, Sawamura had already hit two home runs.
What people were worried about was whether the Japanese team's players would actually face Sawamura head-on.
Hadn't America's pitcher, Benjamin, intentionally Walked Sawamura during their third duel because of the team's needs?
Would Benjamin do the same again to secure America's victory?
To be honest, this was highly likely.
If America's players were shameless enough, the outcome of this game would still be clear.
The Japanese team wouldn't have much hope.
"Having even a glimmer of hope is better than none!"
Other fans, too, understood this principle.
But now that things had reached this point, what else could they do except hope?
They could only hope that America's players would at least keep some dignity.
Though they thought this way, most Japanese fans didn't hold much hope.
If they were in America's shoes, choosing between personal pride and team honor, they couldn't say it would be 100%, but at least 99% of the time, they would choose the latter.
They themselves would make that choice—how could they hope that America's players would be selfish?
Not going to happen!
Despite knowing this, the players still couldn't help but hope deep inside, hoping that a miracle might happen.
Under these eager gazes, the game continued.
America's players were also feeling the heat.
With things reaching this point, there was no way to back down.
On the pitcher's mound, Benjamin was giving it his all.
Despite being involved in several tough pitches earlier, the guy seemed full of energy.
As the game neared its end, there was little sign of fatigue.
The Japanese team's third batter was under extreme psychological pressure.
The Japanese team had reached the critical moment where their fate would be decided. Although his strikeout didn't directly determine the team's fate,
if he didn't do well, the team would be finished.
As he prepared for his turn at bat, he repeatedly told himself that it didn't matter if he didn't do well, but he absolutely couldn't hit into a double play.
Given his current situation, this was undoubtedly his most important task.
The Japanese team already had one out. If he hit into a double play now, the game would be over for Japan.
So, not hitting into a double play became his bottom line.
To hit Benjamin's pitch, the batter had to rely on some luck.
Now, with all these added worries, he became even more cautious.
He tried to swing a few times but couldn't commit.
In the end, he watched as the ball flew by him time and time again.
"STRIKE!"
"STRIKE!!"
"STRIKE! BATTER OUT!!!!"
The young player's refusal to swing led to the inevitable outcome.
Though this wasn't helpful for the Japanese team, it certainly reduced the risks.
At least, the lineup was safely passed to Sawamura.
But his personal future was clouded with doubt.
Such hesitancy would be difficult to thrive in a professional baseball team, where every position is a crucial spot.
Technically speaking, Japan's star players were all elite talents.
They were at the top among players of the same age group.
Players like these, if they participated in a draft, would definitely be selected.
The first two rounds might be competitive, but in the later rounds, they would certainly attract attention from professional teams.
However, for this third batter, the situation was less optimistic.
Skills can be trained, but personality is difficult to change. Especially for players at this age, their personalities have been formed over the years, and it's hard to expect a change at this point.
Bottom of the ninth, two Outs.
America only needed one more out to claim the championship.
For Japan, even though their lineup had reached Sawamura, the current situation made it seem like there was no way to turn things around.
Sawamura stepped up to the plate.
…