5 - Safe Bets, Risky Bets

Source: Crunchyroll
Translator:
Editor:
Timer:
QC:
(Please feel free to edit the speaker names if incomplete or inaccurate. Names are handled on a best-effort basis depending on the info on the source file. Dialogue is left as is.)
[00:12] ump
    Out!
[00:14] ump
    Out!
[00:15] shibu
    Yes! I've pitched enough innings for the win!
[00:19] shibu
    I'm going to get my first win
     of the season at last!
[00:23] bon
    Today's starter, Shibuya Akira,
[00:25] bon
    has held the other team to one
    solo home run up to the fifth.
[00:29] sako
    Natsunosuke.
[00:31] sako
    Switch with Murashita.
[00:32] sako
    Yes, sir.
[00:33] sako
    Akira looks good to go another two innings.
[00:37] sako
    I bet we'll need you to
    get a lefty out after that.
[00:39] bon
    You got it.
[00:45] bon
    It all started right after the season opener.
[00:55] bon
    That guy's here again today?
[01:01] bon
    He'd been sitting in the front row
    every day, just staring at the bullpen.
[01:07] bon
    I found myself saying hello to him.
[01:11] bon
    A few days later, Support Staff Manager
    Degawa-san said...
SIGN    Hey, Natsunosuke!
SIGN    That manga artist I mentioned is here for his research.
SIGN    A pleasure to meet you.
SIGN    I'm Miyahara, an editor for Shonen Magazine.
SIGN    And this is our artist, Makiba Haruhiko-san.
SIGN    A pleasure. I'm Makiba.
[01:34] bon
    Believe it or not, it was him!
SIGN    A p-pleasure...
SIGN    But are you sure you want to talk to me?
SIGN    I'm just a middle reliever.
SIGN    It's my dream to get a baseball
    manga published in Magazine.
SIGN    I know that a story about a relief pitcher might be unusual for a shonen manga,
SIGN    but I want to take a chance on a story no one's ever done before!
SIGN    Safe Bets, Risky Bets
[03:31] bon
    What a shock...
[03:33] bon
    So that guy was a manga artist!
[03:37] bon
    Then, unconsciously,
[03:38] bon
    I got a little worked up
    about showing off for him
SIGN    1st 2nd 3rd 4th 5th 6th 7th
[03:45] bon
    and gave up the lead!
SIGN    Japanese-Style Dining Ebizo
[03:54] bon
    Wow.
[03:55] bon
    When was the last time
    I had a one-on-one interview?
[04:01] bon
    When I joined the ball club, I think?
[04:04] bon
    I feel like a real star!
SIGN    Now for my next question.
SIGN    What's the hardest part of being a relief pitcher?
SIGN    Oh, you know.
SIGN    Getting called when you aren't ready.
[04:16] ugu
    Pitcher: Bonda.
SIGN    But all I've done is play some catch!
SIGN    You get sent to the mound with no warm-up!
SIGN    I guess that kind of thing really happens, huh?
SIGN    It does!
SIGN    But the opposite happens too, right?
SIGN    Yes! The opposite is even worse!
SIGN    You're warming yourself up, expecting to go in,
SIGN    but the call doesn't come that inning.
SIGN    The next inning, you go even harder, thinking "this time, for sure..."
SIGN    But you're not called then either.
SIGN    That happens three or four times in a row...
SIGN    And in the end, you don't get to appear in the game at all?
SIGN    Right! That's the worst!
SIGN    You can tell he really means it, huh?
SIGN    We're really getting expert testimony.
SIGN    But, given that,
SIGN    would you say being a relief pitcher is harder than being a starter?
SIGN    W-Well, being a starter is hard in its own way...
SIGN    Your pitch counts in the bullpen are drastically different.
SIGN    A starter only throws thirty to forty pitches in the stadium bullpen per week,
SIGN    and then goes right to the mound.
SIGN    Obviously, there are times when they throw nine innings,
SIGN    but they can also be knocked out of the game in the third.
SIGN    Even when that happens, they don't throw in the bullpen until their next start.
SIGN    A middle reliever never knows if he'll play or not,
SIGN    but game after game, repeatedly, he has to warm up in the bullpen
SIGN    under the pressure of a real game!
SIGN    Doesn't a reliever expend much more energy in the bullpen compared to a starter?
SIGN    And it adds up across the months to an absurd degree.
SIGN    I don't have proper data on this,
SIGN    but I have a feeling that the career span of middle relievers is much shorter!
SIGN    Plus, starting pitchers get paid a lot more.
SIGN    W-With starting pitchers,
SIGN    they bear about 70 to 80% of the responsibility for a game's outcome.
SIGN    That's the crucial part.
SIGN    Now, my final question!
SIGN    Bonda-san, do you want to become a starting pitcher someday?
SIGN    I don't think there's a middle reliever out there who doesn't feel that way.
SIGN    Excuse me.
SIGN    This is just my opinion, off the record,
SIGN    but, Bonda-san, after watching you in the bullpen at Jingu,
SIGN    I've become a real fan of yours!
SIGN    A fan?
SIGN    You do all the grueling work of a middle reliever every game,
SIGN    like it goes without saying!
SIGN    Let's make a vow right here and now!
SIGN    I'm going to make my upcoming baseball manga a hit.
SIGN    And Bonda-san...
SIGN    You need to become a starter before the season's over!
SIGN    B-But...
[07:18] bon
    I somehow ended up
    being part of an absurd pact...
[07:20] de
    Natsunosuke!
[07:22] de
    This was sent by the publisher.
[07:25] de
    It's Makiba-sensei's manga.
[07:28] bon
    Thanks!
[07:30] bon
    So his baseball manga's starting, huh?
[07:33] de
    Let me check it out later, okay?
[07:43] bon
    Huh? Wait, what?
[07:47] bon
    It's not in here.
SIGN    Makiba Haruhiko-sensei's new series!
SIGN    Battle of Juro
SIGN    Makiba Haruhiko-sensei's new series! Battle of Juro
[07:52] bon
    Battle of Juro?
SIGN    New series: Battle of Juro
    Kuro's little brother is the new hero!
[08:00] bon
    What the heck? That's not
    a baseball manga at all!
[08:03] bon
    What happened? He seemed
    so confident about it!
[08:07] bon
    And that was that.
[08:09] bon
    I don't know much about the manga world,
[08:12] bon
    but I'm sure he had his reasons,
    whatever they may be,
[08:17] bon
    so I decided to focus on my match!
[08:19] bon
    Or so I thought...
[08:22] sako
    Natsunosuke.
[08:24] sako
    Start warming up.
[08:26] bon
    Sure.
[08:32] bon
    Makiba-sensei? When did you get here?
[08:38] bon
    H-Hey there.
SIGN    7th 8th 9th
[08:41] bon
    The top of the 8th.
[08:45] bon
    The hitters got a hold of Akira.
[08:48] ana
    Shibuya had been pitching well,
    holding them to one run,
[08:50] ana
    but he's given up a hit
    to the pitcher's pinch hitter!
[08:52] ana
    It's 4-3! Down to a one-run game!
[08:55] shi
    Damn...
[08:57] ana
    The Blue Comets are back
    to the top of their lineup.
[09:00] ana
    If he gets a hit, it's all tied up.
[09:03] ana
    And Manager Tanabe says...
[09:04] ana
    Bonda will be pitching for Shibuya.
[09:08] ana
    He's sending in the southpaw, Bonda!
[09:11] shibu
    Counting on you, Natsunosuke.
[09:13] shibu
    Tonight has to be the night!
[09:14] bon
    I need to get Akira his first win!
[09:19] bon
    I'm going to get you out!
[09:26] bon
    Yes!
[09:27] bon
    Natsunosuke!
[09:28] bon
    Bonda-san!
[09:29] bon
    Made it to the 9th! Now Segawa-san
    just needs to hold them down!
[09:32] bon
    But...
[09:34] ump
    Ball!
[09:36] ana
    The closer, Segawa, just gave up a walk
    with one out in the inning.
[09:40] ana
    Next up is cleanup hitter Bobby.
[09:42] ana
    Anything to say, Guest Commentator
     Takahashi Hisanori?
[09:44] taka
    Well, this guy has power,
[09:46] taka
    so try to pitch around him if you can.
[09:48] ko
    Bobby and the guy in the five hole
    are both 0 for 4 today.
[09:51] tana
    Bobby's one hell of a slugger, though.
[09:55] tana
    At times like these, we should stick
    with the safe bet and not rush things.
[10:00] ko
    Get the outfielders ready for a long fly.
[10:06] ko
    The battery can attack the corners,
    but if they fall behind in the count,
[10:11] ko
    just walk him and go after the next guy.
[10:20] both
    Oh, heck!
[10:21] ann
    The right fielder doesn't even move!
    That ball is out of here!
[10:26] sign
    Bobby's massive two-run homer, his eighth
    of the season, turns things around!
[10:31] bon
    Poor Akira...
[10:33] bon
    Another blown save,
    another game without his first win!
SIGN    1st 2nd 3rd 4th 5th 6th 7th 8th 9th
[10:50] maki
    U-Um,
[10:52] maki
    did you see the new Shonen Magazine issue?
SIGN    Japanese-style Dining Asa
[10:56] bon
    Y-Yeah, just before the match.
[10:59] maki
    I'm sorry!
[11:01] bon
    What are you doing?
[11:03] maki
    I wanted to apologize in person.
[11:05] bon
    Please, stop that!
[11:07] maki
    The reason I'm doing Battle of Juro
    instead of a baseball manga...
[11:10] maki
    I wanted to explain it to you in person.
[11:16] maki
    To be honest,
[11:17] maki
    I chickened out at the
    last minute. It's pathetic.
[11:21] bon
    You chickened out?
[11:24] maki
    After I pushed you to try to become
    a starting pitcher this season,
[11:29] maki
    I'm so embarrassed with
    how things have turned out!
[11:31] bon
    But I'm sure you had your reasons...
[11:34] maki
    Before I tried to put together
    that baseball manga,
[11:37] maki
    I spent about five years publishing
    Battle of Kuro in Shonen Magazine.
SIGN    Battle of Kuro
SIGN    Makiba Haruhiko
[11:43] maki
    It's a fighting manga.
[11:45] maki
    It got twenty-three volumes published.
[11:48] bon
    Right.
[11:50] bon
    I'm sorry, but I've never read them!
[11:52] maki
    To be honest, I think it was a
    pretty good accomplishment.
[11:56] maki
    That's why the editors gave me the chance
    to do a baseball manga this time.
[12:01] maki
    But the manga industry is just as
    competitive as the pro baseball industry.
[12:07] maki
    If the reader polls are really bad,
    they'll cancel you right away.
[12:10] maki
    There's a swarm of hungry new creators
    all vying for your spot, you see.
[12:16] maki
    You can't let your guard down for a second.
[12:19] maki
    I have to constantly prove to editorial
    that I'm better than they are.
[12:26] maki
    It's always, "What have you
    done for me lately?"
[12:30] bon
    That is pretty similar
    to the pro baseball world.
[12:35] maki
    The hero of my new series, Juro,
    is Kuro's little brother...
SIGN    Battle of Juro
SIGN    Battle of Kuro
[12:40] maki
    It's a spin-off of my last work.
    It's "Battle of Kuro 2."
[12:45] sign
    A safe bet, you could say.
[12:47] sign
    But a baseball manga about
    a middle reliever in pro baseball
[12:51] ---
    is a really daring concept.
[12:56] sign
    It's a risky bet.
[12:59] maki
    Even if I got it published,
    there'd be no guarantee that it would hit.
[13:02] maki
    Because of that,
[13:03] maki
    I began feeling this tremendous
    pressure while working,
[13:07] ---
    grew more and more nervous,
    and lost my confidence.
[13:12] maki
    Meanwhile, for whatever it was worth,
    Battle of Kuro was a hit,
[13:18] maki
    and fans were clamoring for a continuation.
[13:21] maki
    A spin-off would pull in guaranteed numbers,
[13:25] maki
    so I went to editorial and begged them.
[13:28] bon
    Y-You're saying you ditched the risky bet
    to go with the safe bet?
[13:35] maki
    Wh-When you say it to me like that,
    it really does sound awful.
[13:39] maki
    But you're well within your rights
    to take it that way.
[13:43] maki
    After I put you through that
    interview and everything...
[13:46] maki
    I'm really sorry.
[13:52] bon
    C-Come on, Makiba-sensei.
[13:55] bon
    As a pro myself,
    I can't really criticize your decision.
[14:01] bon
    You made that decision because
    you're a professional, right?
[14:05] bon
    Don't let it bother you.
[14:07] bon
    Pro baseball is a world where they
    always go for the safe bet, too.
[14:12] bon
    So please, do your best with Battle of Juro!
[14:18] maki
    Bonda-san...
[14:22] bon
    The next day,
SIGN    Spiders' Ace Closer Segawa Dropped to Minors "Shoulder feels off..." Replacement closer will be Bonda or Tominaga
[14:24] bon
    our closer, Segawa-san,
    was dropped to the minors,
[14:27] bon
    and me and Tominaga were considered
    the top picks to replace him.
[14:31] maki
    I saw the sports paper, and I just
    had to come right out to the stadium!
[14:35] maki
    Even if it were just temporary,
    it'd be amazing for Bonda-san to be closer!
[14:40] maki
    It's the 3rd inning. If he's
    been chosen as the closer,
[14:44] maki
    they won't want to bring him
    to the bullpen yet.
[14:47] maki
    The closer usually shows up
    around the 5th inning.
[14:51] maki
    Now, which will be the fill-in closer?
[14:54] maki
    Tominaga or Bonda?
[14:58] maki
    And here he comes now!
[15:02] bon
    Hey, Sensei!
[15:05] maki
    So disappointed...
[15:09] bon
    Wait, did he come out here
    because I showed up in the sports paper?
[15:13] bon
    Sorry, but Tominaga
    was named the fill-in closer...
[15:14] sako
    Natsunosuke, put down your
    bag and start your stretches.
SIGN    While Segawa's out, Tomi will be handling closer duties.
SIGN    M-Me?
SIGN    We need all hands on deck to get through this.
SIGN    I'm counting on all of you guys!
[15:29] bon
    It's hard to make a southpaw closer, anyway.
[15:35] bon
    How many famous left-handed closers
    have you heard of, Sensei?
[15:40] maki
    I told you to become a starter
    and then betrayed you.
[15:45] maki
    But if you could be the closer,
    I want that for you.
[15:49] maki
    I'm rooting for you!
[15:51] bon
    Sensei, it's harder to become a closer
    than it is to become a starter.
[15:57] bon
    Because each team only has room for one.
[16:01] bon
    My first pitching practice...
[16:07] sako
    Natsunosuke. Switch with Nitta.
[16:10] bon
    Sure.
SIGN    1st 2nd 3rd 4th 5th
[16:12] bon
    The fifth inning.
[16:13] bon
    Our new closer shows up in the bullpen.
[16:17] bon
    The sixth. Our new closer
    plays some light catch.
[16:21] bon
    I'm getting in my second pitching practice.
[16:23] sako
    Okay, Natsunosuke, switch with Fukuyama.
[16:27] bon
    Yes, sir!
[16:27] tomi
    I'm going to move to light pitches.
[16:36] sako
    Natsunosuke, warm up.
[16:38] sako
    They might send out a lefty pinch hitter.
[16:41] bon
    Sure thing!
[16:45] bon
    But it's a double play,
    and the inning's over!
[16:51] sako
    Natsunosuke, you can quit.
[16:53] bon
    Yes, sir!
[16:59] sako
    Yes? Yes, understood.
[17:01] sako
    Natsunosuke, I need you
    to keep it up after all.
[17:04] sako
    They're pinch hitting for the pitcher
    if he gets an at bat this inning.
[17:07] sako
    And you'll be sent out
    to start the next inning.
[17:10] bon
    Yes, sir!
[17:13] maki
    He's back!
[17:15] bon
    But...
[17:16] bon
    The pitcher never made it to the plate.
[17:19] sako
    The pitcher's staying in. Take a rest.
[17:24] bon
    Yes, sir...
[17:26] bon
    And in the end, I never got to pitch at all.
[17:31] ana
    New closer Tominaga comes up to the mound!
[17:36] sako
    It's a one-run game. Finish it off, Tomi.
[17:41] bon
    This is where the other relievers
    head back to the bench.
[17:46] maki
    Bonda Natsunosuke threw
    eighty pitches in the bullpen!
[17:49] maki
    And yet, he never got to the mound!
[17:51] maki
    But this is what a middle reliever does!
[17:55] maki
    That's what it means to be a pro!
[17:58] maki
    All that aside, our new closer...
[18:01] tan
    Tomi, we're counting on you!
[18:03] ko
    God, please!
[18:05] bon
    ...didn't seem to have
    the think tank's trust!
[18:09] ann
    Tominaga has a runner on second,
    but he's made it to two outs.
[18:13] ann
    Cleanup hitter Bobby's coming up.
[18:16] ann
    Guest Commentator Takahashi Hisanori?
[18:18] ann
    Bobby smashed the ball out of the park
    to turn things around last night.
[18:21] ann
    First base is open this time. Use it.
[18:25] tan
    I'd like to use a lefty...
[18:29] tan
    Facing a lefty with a righty
    in a one-run game is too frightening.
[18:32] tan
    Especially after what happened yesterday...
[18:35] ko
    But, Coach, you said you were
    making Tomi the closer.
[18:39] tan
    Yes, but I'm a coward.
[18:41] tan
    Tomi's still a risky bet.
[18:44] tan
    Pitcher: Bonda!
[18:47] ana
    Bonda will be pitching for Tominaga.
[18:51] ann
    The southpaw, Bonda,
    heads from the bench to the mound!
[18:54] guest
    That's a surprise.
[18:55] guest
    Bringing out a southpaw means
    they're going after Bobby.
[18:58] tomi
    They made me the closer,
    but I guess they don't trust me...
[19:04] ann
    Now, Bonda...
[19:05] ann
    He came off the bench.
    Is he sufficiently warmed up?
[19:08] maki
    He was throwing his heart out in
    the bullpen! His arm's too warmed up!
[19:12] maki
    But he has one hell of a chance
    to shine right at the very end!
[19:16] ann
    Naturally, there's no pinch hitter
    for cleanup hitter Bobby!
[19:18] ann
    Can Bonda Natsunosuke get this final out?
[19:25] ann
    Bonda with a pickoff move to second!
[19:28] ump
    Out!
[19:29] kana
    Yes!
[19:29] kana
    No way!
[19:30] ann
    Great pickoff, huh?
[19:31] ann
    The game is over just like that!
[19:34] boby
    Oh no!
[19:34] bon
    Yes!
[19:35] boby
    Don't leave me hanging!
[19:40] ann
    The game ends with an anticlimax!
[19:43] maki
    Tense situations tend to end in a whimper.
[19:46] bon
    It'd be easy to write it off that way, but...
[19:49] tan
    The runner let his guard down
    because a lefty was on the mound!
[19:53] ko
    He took a big lead because he thought
    he was in the blind spot!
[19:58] run
    I can go a little further, I think...
[20:03] maki
    A whole world of competition
    packed into this 9th inning.
[20:07] maki
    A bench that couldn't choose a closer
[20:10] ---
    second-guessed themselves
    into sending Bonda out,
[20:14] maki
    and as a result,
    victory fell into their laps!
[20:16] maki
    He'd warmed up so much in the bullpen.
[20:20] maki
    That's why he could throw
    that incredible pickoff.
[20:23] maki
    Right, Bonda-san?
SIGN    Out!
SIGN    Yes!
SIGN    Oh no!
[20:31] maki
    Pro baseball is a world where
    a risky right-versus-left bet
[20:35] maki
    is traded off for a safe
    left-versus-left bet.
[20:40] maki
    But I can't criticize that.
[20:43] maki
    The people who live in a world of
    competition are always fighting their fears.
[20:48] maki
    And within that fear, they're trying
    to make the best choice available!
[20:56] bon
    Sensei!
[20:57] bon
    He stayed to the end!
[21:01] maki
    I made the safe choice, too.
[21:05] maki
    But... But...
[21:09] maki
    Someday, I'm going to publish
    a baseball manga in Shonen Magazine!
[21:18] bon**
    Eighty pitches in the bullpen,
    no pitches on the mound.
[21:22] bon
    The game's save goes to me,
    Bonda Natsunosuke!
[23:01] bon
    Natsunosuke here!
[23:02] bon
    There are many pro ballplayers
    who drink a lot!
[23:05] bon
    Sekiya-san, who bats third
    for the Nagoya Wild Ones,
[23:09] ---
    makes exactly ten times my contract,
    180 million, and he's quite a drinker, too!
[23:13] bon
    Even when he's got a hangover,
    he always comes through in the clutch!
[23:19] bon
    I'm going up against Sekiya-san
    with two outs and bases loaded!
[23:23] bon
    Next time: "Multiplier."
[23:25] bon
    Seize tomorrow's success and today's money!
SIGN    Multiplier
[23:27] bon
    Money Pitch!