The Extra in a Baseball Novel

Phoenix has a nickname, “Bomnix.”

This nickname stems from the team’s tendency to start strong with great win rates during exhibition games and early in the season, exciting fans, only to fall back to their usual performance after spring ends.

[Even Phoenix, known for doing well in exhibition games, is now struggling in even those games? Crisis for Phoenix, despite their promises of change!]

└ The reporter clearly knows nothing about baseball, lol. If you don’t see what’s different this year, you’re missing it.Nôv(el)B\\jnn

└ Yep, performing well in exhibition games means nothing.

└ True, Phoenix always performs well in exhibition games, then ends up at the bottom. Haven’t you seen that?

└ This time, though, Phoenix feels different somehow, doesn’t it?

As usual, Phoenix fans don’t care much about nicknames and instead hope for the best in the new season.

It’s akin to an Indian rain dance: they pray for rain until it comes, and when it does, they claim the dance was a success. The difference here is that even the Indians succeed after about a month, whereas Phoenix fans have been “dancing” for over 30 years without success.

“Don’t you feel like this year will be different, Taehyun?”

“Yes, I do. It definitely feels that way.”

While I can’t guarantee that this 30-year rain dance for a championship will be successful, Phoenix does seem to be changing. I don’t want to sound arrogant, but ever since I joined the team, we’ve at least sorted out the shortstop position and the starting pitcher rotation.

“But teacher, aren’t you tired from coming over every evening to cook for me?”

Recently, Ms. Miyeon has been visiting my house to make dinner every evening. The reason is simple: she just wants to.

“Oh? No, I’m not tired. Actually, it reminds me of when we used to share lunch together, so it’s fun for me.”

Ms. Miyeon smiled as she ladled some soup and took a small taste.

“Mmm…”

She tilted her head slightly and offered me the ladle.

“Can you taste it for me?”

I took a small sip.

“It’s delicious!”

It really was. I almost felt bad for Jihyun, who would miss out on this amazing meal because of night study sessions.

“Really? I’m glad to hear that. Just wait a little longer; I’ll make it even better.”

While sitting at the table, I asked her,

“Are you really coming to the opening game? It’ll be tough to make it to Incheon.”

“Of course! I wouldn’t miss it. But in exchange, you have to hit a home run!”

“Sure. I’ll try to hit as many as I can.”

“Yes! Let’s win the opening game!”

Well… I’ll be pitching too, so it’s not just home runs—I’ll aim for strikeouts as well.

But I’ll keep that a secret. Surprises are more fun that way.

The spring breeze began to blow gently as the eagerly anticipated opening day of the professional baseball season approached.

Fans eagerly awaited their team’s opening game to be held in their home cities, but the world of professional baseball can be harsh. Only the top five teams from the previous year get to host their opening game at home, so Phoenix, having finished last, had to travel from Busan to Incheon for an away game.

“Wait, isn’t this Incheon? Why are there so many Phoenix fans here?”

“I don’t know. A guy in a Phoenix jersey earlier even asked if I had extra tickets to sell.”

Despite the inconvenience, Phoenix fans’ passion burned just as brightly as their team colors. After all, if they could stick by the team through 30 years without a championship, what’s a long-distance trip? Though their numbers were smaller compared to the home team, the sheer amount of Phoenix fans who traveled from Busan to Incheon was impressive.

“Phoenix fans, you never cease to amaze!”

Seeing these enthusiastic fans made Miyeon’s shoulders lift with pride.

“Here we are again, cheering for Phoenix… but I hate Phoenix!”

“Haha… Suyeon, we’re definitely winning today, though!”

“You say that every time, and we always lose! Dad, you’re a liar!”

“No, no! Cha Taehyun is going to hit a ton of home runs today!”

Miyeon, sneaking glances at the father-daughter duo beside her, was suddenly distracted by the stadium’s growing buzz.

“Huh? What’s that?”

“Did the scoreboard glitch?”

“Why does the pitcher’s name show up as a batter too?”

The stadium grew noisy, as both Phoenix and Dragons fans alike stared at the scoreboard.

[P Cha Taehyun]

“Wait… Taehyun is the starting pitcher?”

That was surprising enough, but then:

[4 Cha Taehyun]

Seeing his name in the cleanup hitter spot made people wonder if it was a mistake.

└ What’s happening? Where’s the designated hitter?

└ Lol, are they seriously making Cha Taehyun do double duty as a pitcher and batter?

└ I thought he quit pitching after high school, didn’t he switch to being a batter?

└ Will he crash and burn or turn into a diamond in the rough?

└ Is this even a good idea?

└ Sure, he threw over 150 in high school, but nobody’s seen him pitch for long innings before…

└ Why didn’t they just use Sooho for the opener? Is this the right move?

It wasn’t just the fans who were confused.

“What’s going on?”

“Seriously, starting a rookie as both pitcher and batter on opening day? Phoenix has gone insane.”

Occasionally, a batter might take the mound in an emergency, like when a game stretches too long. But starting a batter as the opening pitcher, and having him play both roles? It was practically unheard of.

The Dragons players weren’t just confused—they were offended.

Opening day is the season’s most significant game, meant to set the tone. The Dragons had even gone as far as to start Jin Taehyun, their ace who’s often called a national team-level pitcher, in order to secure a sure win. But Phoenix had placed a rookie on the mound to both pitch and bat, and it was an affront to the Dragons’ pride.

Dragons catcher Lee Kangchul stared at the scoreboard with an annoyed expression.

“This is ridiculous. Are they opening a science experiment on us or something, Taehyun?”

Jin Taehyun, with his typically indifferent expression, glanced at the board before letting a small smirk form on his lips.

“Let’s see what this rookie’s got.”