Original subtitles

Strike out!

All right!

Eight straight wins!

Nice pitching!

Now we're five wins ahead of the second placed Rockets!

Victory in the Eastern Division is ours!

Thank you! Thank you!

Thank you! Thank you!

"The new catcher, Keane, plays a major part in offense and defense."

"The leading player in the Bats' advancement," huh?

What are you doing!?

Put more effort into it! More effort!

Geez, the old man sure has energy.

I'm tired from all this continuous exercise.

Hey, Sanders!

The thing is, Keane's swelling hasn't gone down from

the batting accident yesterday, so I want him to rest.

Can you wear the starting catcher's mask today?

Y-Yes.

Hey, Sarge,

it's been a long time since you've worn the starting catcher's mask.

It's not going to be funny if you break our winning streak.

Hey... No. It's a joke. A joke!

Idiot.

You're not funny.

Ball four!

All right!

Nice one, Garret!

All right! We now have the bases loaded with only one out!

Now hitting, number 8: Sanders!

We're counting on you, Sanders!

H-Hey, is Sarge okay?

He's obviously tense today.

He finally got in as a starter, and so far,

he hasn't gotten a hit and has two errors.

He hasn't made any good plays yet.

It's okay if you go for a sac fly, old man!

Don't try for a homerun, or I won't be able to get the save!

This time for sure...

Out!

Out!

Attention please, pitching, number 56:

Goro Shigeno!

Well, one run is enough.

Now hitting, number 6: Pedroia!

Just leave the rest... to me!

Don't let it get to your head that you got a couple of hits through!

Ball!

Ball!

Ball!

It may be because it's been a while, but it looks

like Shigeno and Sanders aren't used to each other.

We were all uncertain of Keane's strong and

daring lead at first, but as they got used to it,

a catcher like Keane made it easier for the pitchers.

They didn't have to think as long as they threw according to the signs.

It's a contrast to Sanders' lead, which is conservative and random.

I'll go for the middle!

Safe!

Shigeno!

Safe!

Don't worry about it, Sanders.

It's not your fault.

It was my fault for getting hit.

For a second, my body flinched and I tried to tag him with just my glove.

I got a nice throw to home,

but I chickened out, and not only did I let

the first runner score, but also the second.

Sanders.

When you stay out of the game for a while your instincts weaken,

and you can't help making mistakes or hitting easy pop-ups.

But it's the end for a player in the Minors if he loses his fighting spirit.

It may be time now...

Hey, did you hear?

Hear what?

Apparently Sanders is going to retire after we come back from this road trip.

A-Are you sure?

The coach was talking about it, so I'm certain.

Well, thanks to Keane, he's been deprived

of a job and he made those errors yesterday.

He's also at that age, so he would lose his motivation, I guess.

Hey, Shigeno.

What?

Is it true that you're going to quit baseball?

Oh,

so it's already out.

Why...

Why aren't you going to stick around to see the Bats win!?

Even if you're a backup now, Keane may get injured or even get promoted!

No!

Even if you're a backup, you're still a member of the Bats!

Why are you quitting after you said you wanted

to see the Bats win and motivated us all!?

I have a family.

I have a wife and a five-year-old son.

Even now, we're living apart, and they're in Boston.

My son has never seen me play.

I never wanted him to come and see me until I became a

Major Leaguer and I could support them with baseball.

I can't let him see his old man as an

embarrassment, living as a player in the Minors.

But, in the end, I couldn't rise to the Majors and spent my years in the Minors.

I had talked of taking over my wife's family business as a used

car dealer, but I was selfish and came here chasing a dream.

And because of that, who knows how lonely my son felt.

I was never even there for any of his birthdays, and whenever I had time off,

I trained to strengthen myself. I never even took him on a trip.

But...

that's over now.

The time has come for me to return to being a father.

It's time to live with my family in a regular and real family life.

Good luck, Shigeno.

I'm wishing for the Bats to win from the bottom of my heart.

Miss Alice.

Huh?

You have a phone call from Mr. Shigeno, who's in the middle of a road trip.

From Shigeno-kun?

About what?

Apparently it's urgent.

Yes?

Oh, it's you.

It's me.

What? What's the matter?

Did you hear that Sanders is going to make tomorrow's game his last and retire?

Well, yeah.

I am the owner, so I did receive the news.

It can't be helped.

This sort of thing happens all the time in this world.

It's a shame, but Sarge must have thought long and hard about it and decided.

It's not something we could talk him out of.

I know.

I know that.

But there's something I'm not convinced about.

What? "Convinced about"?

It doesn't matter if it doesn't work out.

Could you help me out?

This is a free fansub.

Not for sale or rent.

Hit it, Keane!

Show them a big one!

This is his retirement game, it's the seventh

inning, and Sanders hasn't had a turn yet.

It can't be helped.

The way this game is going we can't take Keane

out for sentimental reasons. We need him,

but I would like if he got out there as a pinch hitter at least.

All right!

That was great, Keane!

Nice batting!

All right!

Now we're tied!

It doesn't look like the batting accident is giving him any problems.

Yeah.

That's some rookie.

Now hitting, number 3: Morgan!

Go, Morgan!

Follow Keane!

Boss.

My leg hasn't recovered fully yet, so could I sit?

Does it still hurt, Keane?

Yes, it does.

Then it can't be helped.

Sanders.

You're up at the bottom of this inning!

Get ready!

Y-Yes!

Hey, are you going in, Sarge?

We're counting on you, Sarge.

Leave it to me!

Trainer!

Take a look at Keane's leg!

Hey, Keane.

How much does it hurt?

Was it when you hit, or was it when you ran?

No, thank you.

It's all right.

That was a lie.

A lie?

To be honest, I didn't really want to go along with this sort of thing,

but Shigeno asked me if I could help out before the game, you see.

So this is the last time I'll be putting on this protector like this...

Out!

Damn it!

That was close. He was so close.

Let's go, Sarge!

Damn it!

I made this decision!

I just need to finish this last game with a win and play without any regrets!

Play!

All right! Come!

First!

Out!

Out!

Nice, Sanders!

Now hitting, number 4: Roy!

All right, go for it!

Roy! Get on the base!

Let's finish this!

Play!

Leave it to me. It's the Sarge's last game.

We can't lose here!

All right!

Out!

Damn it!

Ball four!

All right!

Now hitting, number 8: Sanders!

We're counting on you, Sarge!

Hit it, old man.

Hit them one!

Umpire!

They're changing pitchers.

Attention please, pitching, number 25:

Gonzalez!

He sure is popular.

Of course he is.

He was the King of Saves for the Northern League last year after all.

The King of Saves?

You don't know Gonzalez?

He has a sharp fastball that goes almost 100mph,

and he strikes out the batter 40% of the time.

He's been playing in Triple A because of a chronic hip injury,

but they say that he may be returning to the Majors soon.

Play!

We're counting on you, Sanders!

Strike!

It's fast...

So this is a Major League pitch.

So what about it!?

Strike two!

I-It's no good... I can't hit it.

Besides, if I could hit this, I wouldn't have

ended my baseball career playing in the Minors.

Papa!

Jessica! Matthew!

W-Why are they here!?

Why is my family here at this stadium!?

Batter!

Papa!

Do your best, Papa!

Strike out!

This is pathetic.

I let them see such a shameful thing.

Whose work is this?

Who told my family that I was going to retire today!?

Attention please, pitching, number 56:

Goro Shigeno!

Thank you.

Finish this, Sarge!

So it was you?

Was it you that gave it away to my family?

Yeah...

But it was Alice that arranged everything.

That was uncalled for!

Who asked you to call my family for my retirement game!?

Did you think you were doing me a favor or something!?

I thought I told you I didn't want my son to see me in disgrace!

As long as I wasn't a Major Leaguer, I wasn't going

to let him see his old man's shame till the very end!

And you...

And you just...!

Is being a Minor Leaguer that embarrassing?

You're wrong.

My dad was also a baseball player a long time ago.

He was a player in the Minors for a long time and couldn't rise

up to the professionals because of injuries and other things.

Of course Dad wanted me to see him at his best.

And of course he wanted me to see him

gloriously playing an active part in the games.

But to me,

wherever he was, my dad was a hero simply because

he was wearing a uniform and playing his best.

My family is different.

My son doesn't think that way.

Then why would they come all the way from Boston!?

Besides, if this really is the last time you'll be wearing a uniform,

don't you think your son has the right to see his old man playing his best?

Play!

He's right.

You're right, Shigeno!

Why was I trying to act cool?

Strike!

My ten years...

Was my life in the Minors...

so shameful that I couldn't show it to my son proudly!?

Safe!

At least I was serious!

I was seriously taking it on!

Knock him down, Wilson!

He's a weak catcher.

He'll drop the ball again!

Out!

All right!

I'm glad you won.

Yeah.

It's all thanks to them.

They all played their best to brighten my path.

And what are you going to do after you retire?

What am I going to do?

I thought we decided way back that I'd work at your father's used car lot.

Do you think that position is still open ten years later after you turned it down?

Papa!

Don't quit, Papa!

I want to see more of your games!

I want to see your team, the Bats, win!

Is that okay?

Are you both all right with that?

What are you talking about after all these years?

You can always work at the business at any time.

Papa!

Matthew!

With their new captain, the Seishuu High School

baseball club finally enters the summer tournament.

But the team isn't coming together!

What are you doing, Taiga!?

Next time, on Major:

Annoying!

Run to the stage of your dreams!