In search of glory once again
On May 4, even though Wu is nervous, there's still a smile on his face. For the first game of his formal return to the baseball diamond, the catcher will be Chen Chao-ying, his partner from the 1998 Chinese Taipei team. Before the game, Wu Ssu-you thinks about his pitching strategy and adjusts his mood; at the same time, he unconsciously rubs his left hand. After so many years, no one knows whether it will stand up to the test.
When the game starts, the new player wearing no. 46 easily gets the first two batters out on ground balls. "I told Ssu-you, don't worry at first about striking them out," said Chen Chao-ying. "Let them hit, and then use the power of your teammates to handle them." According to Chen, the start of the game went according to plan.
After the first two batters were out though, Cheng Chao-hsing, batting third, reached first on a ground ball that went straight to third and popped out of the third baseman's glove. On the next at-bat, Wu Ssu-you threw four straight balls to Chang Tai-shan, the Chinese Taipei team's premier hitter. Following that, Huang Chung-yi cracked a base hit, and then the Bulls got another base hit.... In a little over three innings, Wu gave up a total of four runs (with two earned runs). It wasn't a great performance, of course, and Wu looked unhappy when the game was over. The road back to the pitcher's mound, it seems, is a tough one.
After a few outings, Wu Ssu-you still has problems lining up his sights and hitting the strike zone and, as a result, has suffered two more losses. The coaching staff, however, continues to give him opportunities, letting him start one game per week. As he gradually puts the shadow of the four years of his hand injury behind him, his pitch speed has returned to the level of 144 km/h.
His former high school teammate Pan Wei-lun has reminded Wu many times that he needs to work a little harder. "He has to start with controlling the ball. Once he gets his feel for the ball back, he will be a really good pitcher," says Pan.
After getting through a low point in his life and gradually putting the problems with his hand injury behind him, the stage has been set. Wu Ssu-you, from now on, the rest depends on you!