8 - The Commute to the Stadium

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SIGN    The Commute to the Stadium
[01:31] bon
    I, Bonda Natsunosuke, live in an apartment
    complex near the ballpark in the city.
[01:38] bon
    It's just a one-bedroom apartment, of course.
[01:43] bon
    But I live alone, so it's more than enough.
SIGN    Spiders to Acquire Closer
    to Replace Segawa
    
    Roster staff visit the US!
[01:48] bon
    Spiders to acquire closer to replace Segawa?
[01:52] bon
    Roster staff visit the US?
[01:56] bon
    I bet Segawa-san's reading
    this article and freaking out...
[02:06] bon
    Two weeks earlier.
[02:09] bon
    Our closer, Segawa-san, blew the save
    and robbed Shibuya Akira of his first win.
[02:16] bon
    That same day, he was dumped to the minors,
    where he is currently regrouping.
SIGN    The right fielder doesn't even move!
    That ball is out of here!
SIGN    Bobby's massive two-run homer, his eighth of the season, turns things around!
[02:27] bon
    Poor Akira...
[02:29] bon
    Another blown save,
    another game without his first win!
SIGN    1st 2nd 3rd 4th 5th 6th 7th 8th 9th
[02:43] seg
    The sun's so bright today...
[02:47] bon
    He earned the closer spot last year.
[02:51] bon
    He was in the middle of his sixth season,
    after getting scouted from an amateur team.
[02:55] bon
    He racked up twenty saves as a closer,
[03:00] bon
    and in the off-season, he doubled
    his 25 million contract to 50 million!
[03:07] bon
    A fairly late bloomer,
[03:08] bon
    he was supposed to break out in force
    this season, at age twenty-nine, but...
[03:18] seg
    Th-This is bad news.
[03:22] hira
    Segawa.
[03:24] seg
    Hirakawa-san.
[03:26] hira
    That there? It's all true.
[03:29] seg
    It's rough. The pro world is so unforgiving.
[03:33] seg
    I mean, I knew that coming in...
[03:36] seg
    Hey, is this the Triple-A pitcher they
    made overtures to in the off-season?
[03:42] seg
    Aguilera, I think?
[03:44] hira
    Yeah, they say it's Aguilera.
[03:47] hira
    But their first try was a bust.
[03:50] sega
    What happens to me if they sign him?
[03:53] hira
    Well, if that happens, you'll have to
    fight him for the closer spot.
[03:58] seki
    Like hell they're not gonna use
    the foreigner after they sign him!
[04:04] seki
    I'm gonna regress back to a middle reliever!
[04:10] hira
    Aguilera has racked up good stats
    in the Triple-As this season,
[04:15] hira
    but he's been feeling discouraged
    that they won't bring him to the show.
[04:19] hira
    They say he plays for much
    less than Segawa, too.
[04:25] hira
    And rumors say the club is prepared
    to offer him 60 million.
[04:30] hira
    It's gotta be a done deal.
[04:32] seg
    I beg you! Don't let it be a done deal!
[04:36] seg
    But it's not manly to
    leave it all up to prayer.
[04:39] seg
    Let's get running!
[04:40] bon
    One year of solid performance
[04:43] bon
    isn't enough to convince the club
    that you're a real closer.
[04:47] bon
    But there's one man who'll be panicking
    even more than Segawa-san.
[04:55] bon
    Coming!
[04:57] bon
    Thomas!
[05:00] tom
    I read the news.
[05:02] bon
    You managed to read it?
[05:04] tom
    I sure did!
[05:05] tom
    On the internet, you can
    translate stuff with one click.
[05:09] tom
    If they sign some new foreigner,
[05:11] tom
    won't I get fired?!
[05:15] tom
    It's gonna be me!
[05:16] tom
    I'll be the one on the chopping block!
SIGN    Thomas Hotpopper Age 25
[05:21] bon
    Thomas Hotpopper, age twenty-five.
SIGN    Born: USA Pitcher
    (Left-hander/Sidearm)
[05:24] bon
    A foreign pitcher, born in the USA,
    with a contract of 20 million.
[05:29] bon
    In two seasons, he's racked
    up a mere three wins.
[05:33] bon
    None of them this year, of course.
[05:38] bon
    He spends most of his time in the minors.
[05:42] bon
    He's very occasionally brought up to
    the majors as a spot starter and such.
[05:47] bon
    But any time he starts,
    regardless of the result,
[05:51] bon
    he's purged from the roster the next day.
[05:56] bon
    Why do they use him this way, you ask?
[06:00] bon
    It's because of this thing called the
    major league roster foreigners' cap.
SIGN    Article 82-2 (Number of Foreign Players)
SIGN    A club may sign any number of foreign players. However, no more than four may appear on the active player roster, and no more than three may serve in either fielding or pitching positions at any one time.
[06:04] bon
    A club's official player cap is 70,
[06:07] bon
    and there's no limit on how
    many of those can be foreigners,
[06:11] bon
    but no more than four can be active
    on the roster at any one time.
[06:16] bon
    No more than three of them can be pitchers,
[06:18] bon
    and no more than three can be fielders.
[06:20] bon
    So you get a total of four,
    split between pitchers and fielders.
SIGN    Desmond Pitcher (right-hander)
[06:24] bon
    Our team has Desmond,
    a pitcher in the starting rotation,
SIGN    Homer Pitcher (right-hander)
[06:29] bon
    middle relief pitcher Homer,
SIGN    Tib Center Field (throws right, bats right)
[06:33] sign
    clean-up hitter and center fielder Tib,
SIGN    Garrett Utility Player (throws right, bats right)
[06:37] sign
    and right-handed pinch hitter
    and utility player, Garrett.
[06:42] bon
    That is to say, two pitchers and two fielders.
[06:45] bon
    These four foreigners on
    our team are all reliable,
[06:49] bon
    so we don't like to pull them
    without a serious reason.
[06:55] bon
    This all means that on days
    when Thomas starts,
[06:58] bon
    we have to drop someone else.
[07:01] bon
    That's why, even though Thomas gets the
    occasional chance to pitch in the majors,
[07:06] bon
    he spends most of his time in the minors.
[07:11] tom
    Right now, there are six foreign
    players signed with the Spiders.
[07:16] tom
    They won't make it seven.
    They won't cut their Japanese players.
[07:20] tom
    But they can cut me! I'm a
    foreign pitcher just like him!
[07:24] bon
    Then why not sign on as a trainee player?
[07:28] bon
    Then you could stay in the club!
[07:30] tom
    T-Trainee?
[07:32] tom
    They only make 2 or 3
    million a year, don't they?
[07:37] bon
    If that's not for you, why not go back
    to America and try for the show?
[07:40] bon
    That's the obvious choice, isn't it?
[07:41] tom
    Oh, there's no way I could
    make it to the show!
[07:45] bon
    There are independent leagues, too.
[07:48] tom
    Independent leagues?
[07:50] tom
    Those are hamburger leagues!
[07:52] tom
    You can't afford anything better
    than hamburgers! You know that!
[07:56] tom
    Japanese pro ball is the best there is.
[07:59] tom
    There's no other country
    where I could make 20 million.
[08:06] tom
    Let's see...
[08:08] tom
    Hey, it's Support Staff Manager Takeoka.
[08:11] tom
    Hello? Thomas speaking.
[08:13] tom
    Yes? Yes?
[08:14] bon
    Manager?
[08:16] bon
    Can it be...?
[08:18] tom
    Tomorrow? In the majors?!
[08:19] tom
    Y-You mean...
[08:21] take
    That's right. You're starting.
[08:24] take
    We're in Yokohama Stadium tomorrow.
[08:27] take
    Can you make it by yourself?
[08:28] tom
    Y-Yokohama...
[08:31] tom
    Um... well...
[08:33] take
    If you can't make it,
    I can come get you at noon.
[08:37] bon
    Thomas, put me on.
[08:39] bon
    Bonda here, Takeoka-san.
[08:41] bon
    I'll get him to Yokohama Stadium,
    safe and sound.
[08:44] take
    Hey, Natsunosuke. Really?
[08:47] take
    Sorry to impose, but please do.
[08:51] bon
    If you're starting,
[08:53] bon
    that means the club still needs you!
[08:58] bon
    If you pitch well tomorrow,
[09:00] bon
    they might decide you're too good to fire!
[09:03] tom
    I-I'll do my best!
[09:06] tom
    Natsunosuke, please take me to Yokohama
    Stadium tomorrow, without any mistakes.
[09:12] bon
    I won't make mistakes!
[09:16] bon
    The fact is, I commute to Jingu by bike.
[09:20] bon
    I hear there are some clubs that
    forbid their players from riding bikes,
[09:24] bon
    but it gets me there in ten minutes.
[09:26] bon
    I get to the Dome by bike, too.
[09:30] bon
    For Yokohama Stadium...
[09:34] bon
    I take the train!
[09:36] bon
    A lot of major leaguers drive,
[09:40] bon
    but I'm not famous enough to be
    recognized by fellow commuters.
[09:44] bon
    Most foreign players use public transport
    to get to these three stadiums, too.
[09:50] bon
    To put it bluntly,
[09:52] bon
    the club forbids its foreign
    players from driving to work.
[09:57] bon
    Thomas takes his train in a different
    direction than the other foreigners.
[10:03] bon
    That's because the Spiders' minor league
    field is in Toda, in Saitama Prefecture.
SIGN    Toda Field
SIGN    Tokyo Dome
SIGN    Jingu Stadium
SIGN    Home
SIGN    Shibuya
SIGN    Yokohama Stadium
SIGN    (Tokyo)
SIGN    (Kanagawa)
[10:08] bon
    Young Japanese players
    tend to live in this area,
[10:13] bon
    but the apartments the club
    arrange for the foreign players
[10:16] bon
    tend to be in the heart of the city,
[10:18] bon
    which means Thomas has a rough commute.
SIGN    Rapid Shonan-Shinjuku Line
[10:21] bon
    And when he does occasionally get called
    to pitch in the majors, he gets disoriented.
[10:25] bon
    If it's in another city, we go as a group,
    so there's no need to worry about that.
[10:30] bon
    But Yokohama means changing trains,
    so it's even worse.
[10:34] tom
    I'd probably get lost if I were by myself.
[10:37] bon
    It's my job to escort our
    precious starter to the stadium.
[10:42] bon
    He's two meters tall.
[10:44] bon
    Thomas is so tall,
[10:47] bon
    but he's a left-handed
    sidearm pitcher like me.
[10:49] bon
    Still, he throws a hell of a junk ball,
    and his pitches pack a punch.
[10:56] bon
    Thomas, this is our train.
[10:58] tom
    You got it!
[11:01] ugu
    We will now announce
    the battery for each team.
[11:08] ugu
    For the away team, Jingu Spiders:
    Pitcher, Thomas.
[11:13] ugu
    Pitcher, Thomas.
[11:17] tom
    Let's do this!
[11:19] bon
    But Coach Yoshikawa of the Blue
    Comets had taken countermeasures.
SIGN    Manda Ichimura Kanezawa Murayama BB Rodriguez Takefuji Oharada Misato
[11:24] bon
    He prepared a lineup of all
    right-handers to crush Thomas.
[11:29] bon
    Thomas might be in real trouble tonight.
[11:32] tom
    I love Japan!
[11:34] tom
    I want to stay in Japanese pro baseball!
[11:37] tom
    No, I will stay in Japanese pro baseball!
[11:55] tom
    I love Japan!
[11:56] tom
    I want to stay in Japanese pro baseball!
[11:59] tom
    No, I will stay in Japanese pro baseball!
[12:05] bon
    Thomas is running into trouble
    with the foreign player cap.
[12:09] bon
    If he doesn't pitch well in this game,
[12:11] bon
    he could get dumped mid-season.
[12:15] bon
    I gave him a little advice of my
    own on the way to the stadium.
SIGN    Thomas, you have a tendency to lose your temper on the mound.
SIGN    Listen up, don't forget to breathe.
SIGN    No worries, no worries! I'll be fine!
[12:31] tom
    Stacking the lineup with righties, are we?
[12:36] ugu
    Batting first. Second base, Manda.
[12:40] tom
    That doesn't matter.
[12:42] tom
    That doesn't matter!
[12:44] tan
    If Thomas can make it
    through this batting order once,
[12:46] tan
    that's all we can ask for.
[12:54] tom
    I don't even know much about
    you Japanese batters, anyway!
[13:00] man
    His arms are so long!
[13:04] ump
    Strike!
[13:09] man
    144.
[13:11] man
    While the ball doesn't have much spin,
    it's really sharp.
[13:13] man
    But it's easy to see his release point.
[13:16] man
    I can hit it!
[13:24] bon
    And so, the leadoff hitter pops out to second.
[13:30] bon
    Thomas did well with his first
    time through the order, but...
SIGN    1st 2nd 3rd 4th
[13:37] ann
    In the fourth, the Blue Comets have scored
    twice and still have the bases loaded.
[13:41] ann
    Thomas has been getting pummeled
    his second time through the order.
[13:44] ann
    Well, he has gotten two outs here.
[13:47] col
    He's really struggling with
    all those right-handers.
[13:51] col
    They're still ahead by three, but...
[13:54] col
    Thomas is just...
    Yeah, he's losing his temper.
[13:58] col
    They'll probably bring in a reliever here.
[14:01] col
    When Thomas gets mad,
[14:03] col
    he tends to throw everything
    right down the plate.
[14:07] col
    Even with a three-run lead,
    they'll be scared.
[14:09] col
    They won't let him throw to another batter.
[14:12] ann
    Coach Tanabe is leaving the dugout.
[14:16] col
    They might bring in one of Nitta
    or Fukuyama, both right-handers.
[14:20] ann
    Look at Thomas! He's laying
    into the pitching coach!
[14:24] gu
    Pitching for Thomas,
[14:29] gu
    Bonda. Bonda.
[14:32] ann
    Bonda?!
[14:34] ann
    They've chosen Bonda,
    a southpaw just like Thomas!
[14:37] cc
    Not a righty?
[14:40] cc
    It's still early innings. Maybe they
    want to save the righties for later.
[14:44] ann
    But while Bonda's throwing practice pitches,
[14:47] ann
    Thomas is still offering a piece
    of his mind on the mound!
[14:51] ann
    Thomas is finally leaving the mound!
[14:59] tom
    Shit! Goddamn!
[15:03] ann
    Thomas is on the bench, still fuming!
[15:06] ann
    He's usually such a nice guy,
[15:09] ann
    but when he gets mad,
    he's like a different person!
[15:11] ko
    Thomas. Look carefully
    at Natsunosuke's pitching.
[15:15] tsu
    "Thomas, watch Natsunosuke's pitching."
[15:24] ump
    B-Ball!
[15:25] ump
    Ball four!
[15:27] ann
    He walks in the run!
[15:29] ann
    Now it's five to three!
[15:30] ann
    The lead's down to two!
SIGN    1st 2nd 3rd 4th
[15:35] tom
    He walked him in!
[15:37] tom
    I could have gotten him out!
[15:40] bon
    But I led the next guy into
    a grounder to shortstop,
[15:44] bon
    and the inning ended.
[15:48] ko
    Natsunosuke only walked him because
    he was aiming for the corners.
[15:54] ko
    He was right on the black, and they
    just happened to get called as balls.
[15:59] ko
    To put it another way,
[16:01] ko
    Natsunosuke has the courage to throw balls.
[16:05] ko
    Even though he walked in a run,
[16:08] ko
    we're still leading by two.
[16:11] ko
    Natsunosuke pitched carefully
    to minimize the damage,
[16:16] ko
    got the next batter to ground out,
    and ended the inning.
[16:20] ko
    Thomas, when you get in trouble,
    you throw all your pitches down the plate.
[16:25] ko
    It's because you lose your temper
    and try to rush things to a conclusion.
[16:28] ko
    And it's not just that.
[16:30] ko
    It's because you don't have
    the courage to throw balls.
[16:42] ko
    Okay, Natsunosuke.
[16:45] ko
    Nice pitching.
[16:46] bon
    Thanks.
[16:49] ko
    Natsunosuke, take us as far as you can today.
[16:52] bon
    Sure thing.
[17:03] bon
    That day, I stayed on the mound
    for the next inning and on.
SIGN    1st 2nd 3rd 4th 5th 6th 7th 8th
[17:07] bon
    And then...
[17:13] bon
    In the end,
[17:15] bon
    the game ended five to three,
[17:18] bon
    and the winning pitcher
    was me, Bonda Natsunosuke!
[17:23] bon
    My second win of the season!
[17:26] tera
    Thomas.
[17:28] tera
    They're gonna take this out of your pay.
[17:32] tom
    How much does it cost?
[17:35] tera
    About 80,000 yen, I bet.
[17:39] tom
    No way a plastic bucket costs 80,000 yen!
[17:42] tera
    Why, you...
[17:43] tera
    You must think you're pretty hot,
    blowing your top all the time!
[17:46] sak
    Yeah! Think you're hot stuff, huh?
[17:48] tera
    Like you're some great player!
[17:51] ---
    H-Hey! Stop that!
[17:52] take
    Hey, Thomas! Where are you?
[17:56] tom
    Y-Yes? I'm here! Right here!
[18:00] tom
    Takeoka-san, help me!
[18:02] take
    What's all this?
[18:03] take
    Are you getting sanctioned
    for losing your head today?
[18:06] tom
    S-Sanctioned? What's that mean?
[18:10] bon
    That's right. Thomas is the type
    who gets ragged on a lot.
[18:13] take
    We're playing in Tokyo Dome tomorrow.
    You can make it there yourself, right?
[18:18] tom
    D-Dome?
[18:19] tom
    You're not sending me back down tomorrow?
[18:21] take
    We're not going to send you
    back down right away every time.
[18:27] bon
    Thomas, want to commute
    with me again tomorrow?
[18:31] tom
    Natsunosuke?
[18:33] tom
    Yeah! Show me the way, please!
[18:36] bon
    You've got your own bike, right?
[18:47] bon
    Thomas! This is the Yasukuni Shrine!
[18:50] tom
    Hey, I've heard of that!
[18:53] tom
    May Japan and America never go to war again!
[19:03] tom
    The Skytree!
[19:05] tom
    On top of the hill in Kudan,
[19:07] tom
    you can see it so clearly
    between the skyscrapers!
[19:11] bon
    Yep! It's a great viewing spot, in its way.
[19:14] tom
    I love Tokyo! I love Japan!
[19:18] bon
    By the way, a little bird told me that
    talks with Aguilera aren't going well.
[19:24] bon
    Apparently, he doesn't want to leave America.
[19:28] tom
    Really?!
[19:30] bon
    I guess we'll be keeping Segawa-san
    as our closer for a while.
[19:34] bon
    And, Thomas, looks like
    you get to keep your job.
[19:37] tom
    Yeah!
[19:40] bon
    After everything I told you, you still
    lost your stupid temper on the mound!
[19:44] tom
    Sorry! Sorry!
[19:48] bon
    But it's true of all baseball players.
[19:51] bon
    When we get out there on the pitch,
    it's hard to think about our jobs.
[19:56] tom
    All that aside, Natsunosuke.
[19:59] tom
    I learned something from watching you pitch.
[20:02] tom
    The courage to throw balls.
[20:04] tom
    That's not a mindset we
    see in America very often.
[20:08] tom
    That's a Japanese...
    and a pro baseball mindset.
[20:11] bon
    I don't have the speed that you do,
    so I have to think about that stuff!
[20:16] bon
    Thomas, we're free to go!
[20:18] bon
    Time to go!
[20:19] bon
    When we turn left on this street,
    Tokyo Dome will be within our sights.
[20:23] tom
    Japanese baseball has so much depth!
SIGN    Several Days Later
[20:31] bon
    In the end, the club's attempts
    to secure a new closer fell through.
SIGN    Spiders
    Plans for Foreign Closer Fall Through!
SIGN    Closer Segawa Returns to the Majors!
[20:36] bon
    Our closer, Segawa, returned to the majors.
[20:41] seg
    The club's so stingy.
[20:44] seg
    If they'd brought in a new foreigner,
    I would've been stuck down there.
[20:47] bon
    But getting dropped down
    to the minors instead was...
[20:49] tom
    Yeah, it figures.
[20:52] bon
    Thomas.
[20:54] bon
    Take care!
[21:01] seg
    Hey!
[21:02] bon
    Hey there!
[21:05] bon
    Keep at it, Thomas.
[21:12] bon
    And Thomas is still...
[21:16] tom
    You teeny-tiny Japanese
    batters can't hit off me!
[21:19] bon
    ...pitching away in the minors.
[21:25] bon
    And losing his temper all the while.
[23:01] bon
    Natsunosuke here.
[23:03] bon
    Boy, what to do about Kuriki-senpai?
[23:06] bon
    He's a batting pitcher and a scorer,
[23:09] bon
    but he's always giving me pitching
    form advice about how to speed up.
[23:14] bon
    He helped me a lot back in the minors,
[23:16] bon
    so I can't just blow him off.
[23:19] bon
    What'll I do?
[23:22] bon
    Next time: "Teacher or Cautionary Tale?"
[23:24] bon
    Seize tomorrow's success and today's money!
SIGN    Teacher or Cautionary Tale?
[23:27] bon
    Money Pitch!