Abe vs Kazuki part I, a concerned Mihashi, blocking the home plate, seesaw battle, second to the last inning, Abe’s three-year promise, and do interpreting with Tajima in…

Ookiku Furikabutte 22 – Defend! 「防げ！」

• Bottom of the eight, Mihashi strikes out Aoki for the first out.
• Kazuki hits a single.
• Momoe signals to go for a double play.
• Kazuki gets a head start to second, while Motoyama hits pass the infielders. This makes it 1 out with man on first and second.
• Junta fakes bunt and hits the ball pass Tajima. Abe tries to block the home plate, but Kazuki bumps him off. Kazuki scores and Tosei leads by one again!
• Yamanoi hits Mihashi on the head. Mihashi retrieves the ball, but seems baffled as to what to do next. Abe shouts for him to throw the ball to him. This time Abe successfully blocks the plate, stopping Tosei from increasing their lead.
• Abe requests for timeout right away and grabs Mihashi by the collar, scolding him for hesitating to throw him the ball.
• Mihashi, who is unable to explain himself, motions several gestures to which Tajima interprets. Mihashi saw that the third runner was rather a big fellow, thus possibly bumping Abe from home plate once again. This show of concern infuriates Abe more. Abe reminds him that he has not been injured for the many years he has played baseball.
• Finally, Abe lets go of Mihashi, leaving him on the brink of tears. Tajima reassures Mihashi that Abe is no longer angry. Mihashi also recalls Abe’s promise that he will not get injured for the next three years.
• Mayakawa strikes out for third out. The inning ends with a score of 3-4, Tosei leading.
• At the Nishiura dugout, Abe tells Mihashi that he is no longer angry. He also instructs him to conserve his strength for the last inning.
• Tajima remarks that if they won’t be able to tie it, then there would be no need for them to defend.
• Abe gets ready to take up bat.

Thoughts

Mihashi being worried of Abe is really cute. Though, there really is a concern when a catcher chooses to block the plate. It may be true that the catchers are well-padded, but since they are to absorb the runner’s momentum and the impact, the chance of injury is greater for them. Mihashi is so afraid of losing Abe as the catcher, that for a split-second, Mihashi actually thought of not throwing the ball to Abe.

Now, there is a real need for Nishiura to score and tie, at the very least. If they fail to do so, then there won’t be a need to finish the game and Tosei will be declared winner. This tournament is single elimination. If Nishiura loses, they will need to wait it out till next year for another shot.

Notice

This is still a work in progress. Come back soon for the final write-up.

Episode 23 - Closely 「ゲンミツに」