Chapter 94

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Translated by Heavenly Cat

Read it only at Novelbyu.com & Utoon.net

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Professional baseball teams currently operating in South Korea were showing hundreds of billions in losses annually for major corporations.

So there are companies that occasionally cut losses and exit baseball teams.

But even so, there was a reason many major corporations still operate baseball teams.

“They see intangible value that’s not visible to the eye. Since it’s our country’s most popular sport, naturally its promotional effect would be tremendous.”

Last year alone, spectators who visited baseball stadiums numbered a whopping 8.4 million.

Plus through fans watching on TV and various statistics, about 10 million or more people in our country are known to prefer baseball.

In other words, that promotional effect absolutely cannot be ignored.

“You can use baseball teams as means to raise brand image, aim for strengthening internal employee unity, and it counts as social contribution. So that’s also why companies maintain them to the end even seeing hundreds of billions in losses.”

Some say they keep them because of major corporation chairmen’s hobbies, but that’s half right and half wrong.

If they maintain a team then suddenly disband it, they could face image backlash, and rather than spending marketing costs elsewhere, it was better to aim for various promotional effects through team operation.

Of course, team owners who like sports’ personal feelings were mixed in to some degree.

However, I neither have a team I support nor particularly like baseball, but.

“So you’re saying if we buy a baseball team we can aim for marketing effects, but it’ll absolutely never turn profit?”

“Probably no team has ever turned profit. Instead, they say losses decreased compared to before. As baseball popularity keeps rising, attached advertising fees grew accordingly. Though it’s not at a level that can cover all losses..”

“True. From the start, it’s not like they’re trying to make money from the baseball team itself. Vice President, as you said, they’re aiming for marketing effects.”

If you ask whether that’s effective, experts’ opinion was it’s bigger than expected. Especially Kangsung’s case, every time new products come out, they throw in all kinds of ads during baseball games.

That was the same for other companies.

“Then what should we put in?”

“We have many. Nflix, PicPic, KW Exchange, Gwangwoon Securities, etc. Especially the new delivery platform launching with Kangsung Mart this time. For us, it’ll be a very effective marketing means.”

“That’s good too. But Vice President.”

“Yes?”

“You’re particularly passionate today?”

“Am I.. Like that?”

“Yeah. Are you perhaps an NX Rangers fan?”

“!?”

Our hyungnim saw very sharply.

“Was it very obvious?”

“Someone who speaks calmly like a quiet sea no matter what happens, seeing you get excited talking only about this, of course it shows. So this is why they say everyone’s personality changes when becoming baseball fans. Don’t tell me you also scream and spout profanity while watching games?”

“N-not to that extent.”

“Looking at your face, it seems right though?”

“…”

The vice president who seems like he’d never curse in his life spouts profanity.

Hard to imagine.

Baseball must be a scary sport indeed.

They said Hye-rin also likes baseball.

Surely not that angel-like person too..?

“This actually worked out well. I was actually very curious.”

“About what?”

“What team President Jeong Jin-ho supports.”

“I don’t particularly have one though?”

“Th-then you don’t watch baseball much either?”

“I watch occasionally.”

“But why a baseball team..”

“Right. I thought Jin-ho you liked watching baseball and wanted to directly acquire a team. So I also tried to acquire it saying do as you want.”

“As Vice President said, we also need to work hard on marketing, right? From KW Exchange to the new platform coming out to counter Lupang, we need to promote it.”

Though I said that, actually I never once thought about acquiring a baseball team.

“But if we really acquire a baseball team, I think I’ll try picking up the hobby.”

At those words, Vice President’s face bloomed brightly.

Should I say it looked like a veteran gamer meeting a lost newbie?

“Then Chairman should also enjoy the hobby together.”

“Urgh. I also didn’t watch much baseball.”

“I’ll teach you well. It’s easier than expected.”

“What if I get so angry from baseball I want to overturn the whole team?”

“That’s the original appeal of watching it. Don’t they say baseball contains all of life’s emotions?”

They say eating chicken and beer while watching baseball is that delicious.

Going to watch baseball together with employees later seemed like it’d be fun too.

“But Vice President.”

“Ah, yes.”

“Is it really hard to make money with baseball teams?”

“Well.. Even managing to earn revenue through ads, uniforms, merchandise, etc., team operating costs break hundreds of billions annually. Unless the team does extremely well becoming Korea’s most popular team, turning profit will be hard.”

“I see..”

Then did my intuition ultimately tell me to buy a baseball team for marketing use?

“Ah! But this is possible. We bring in players released at the draft or as FA at cheap prices, raise them well, then resell at expensive prices. Combining various additional revenue and player trade costs, though reaching profit is difficult, we can defend losses maximally.”

“But would that be easy?”

“It’s not easy. If we could really raise one player well and send them to Japan or America, that’d be icing on the cake, but that’s quite difficult. Producing star players too.”

“Above all, we must first acquire a baseball team for all this to be possible, right? Are negotiations happening?”

Hyungnim’s right.

All this can be done after acquiring the baseball team first without being late.

“We’re making contact. Other shareholders have intention to sell, but the problem is Yang Chang-seok, the former president who’s the largest shareholder. Though he’s caught by prosecutors for embezzlement issues, he doesn’t seem to have intention to hand over stakes.”

“Is he bargaining, or does he really have no intention to give?”

“He seems to want to bargain.”

Both I and hyungnim frowned deeply.

“Hmm. I heard that Rangers team is famous for almost no support.”

“Yes. Other teams provide drinks and snacks well, but this team has none of that. Plus as soon as players’ values increase even slightly, they immediately sell them. They’re famous for never bringing star players.”

“What, don’t they discover and raise talented rookies?”

“No. They just minimize costs as much as possible.”

“Then why do you support such a team?”

“Right. But this is.. Once you get attached, it’s hard to detach. Haha. And our team has the smallest fan base. Bitterly so.”

Perhaps that’s why the acquisition opportunity arose.

The problem is the president holding maximum stakes is holding out to the end.

It seemed like he’s trying to squeeze out more somehow.

“For now, I’ll try negotiating that matter as best as I can.”

“Yeah. Don’t give much to that thief.”

“Yes.”

After finishing that conversation and coming out.

Vice President’s words suddenly came to mind.

Buying players cheap and reselling them expensive..

Isn’t this exactly stock investment?

***

“Who’s acquiring what?”

“Gwangwoon participated in acquiring Rangers team this time.”

“What? Suddenly?”

Chairman Kang Seong-ho tilted his head.

“Did that side’s chairman also like baseball?”

“According to what’s heard, it’s work President Jeong Jin-ho is pushing forward.”

“President Jeong? Interesting. I never heard he likes baseball.”

“Probably aiming for marketing promotional effects?”

“Well, that exists too, but there’s no need to necessarily buy a baseball team, right? It must be his hobby. He has much money, so having one expensive hobby like that’s fine, isn’t it?”

Come to think of it, I didn’t know what hobbies Jeong Jin-ho usually likes.

Because we always only talked business whenever meeting.

I thought I now knew somewhat about Jeong Jin-ho, but actually I didn’t.

So he had such hobby activities.

“Hmm. Should I also go to a baseball stadium after a long time?”

“Chairman, don’t you dislike baseball?”

“Right. I told you several times before. I honestly don’t like pouring money into sports.”

However, his late father was a sports fanatic unlike Kang Seong-ho.

So he made teams in various sports and continuously invested.

If he cuts that off, it feels like being unfilial so he’s leaving it, but.

“Still, baseball’s case has marketing promotion far greater than other sports. Even if you eliminate everything else, you must keep baseball to the end.”

“Is our team doing well now?”

“…No. Seems like they won’t even make post-season.”

“Urgh. This is why I hate baseball. If only they did well. Plus strangely whenever I go watch directly, they always lose.”

He didn’t particularly like baseball and had no affection for pro teams, but if Jeong Jin-ho’s hobby is baseball, Kang Seong-ho was also willing to pick up interest in baseball.

“So, is acquisition going well?”

“It’s not. The president who went in for embezzlement is holding out to the end, so there seem to be many difficulties in acquisition. Going like this, acquisition will fail and like NX they’ll just receive another sponsor and take only the name.”

“That bastard who got caught, very full of greed.”

“Already caught for embezzlement issues, but since someone’s buying stakes, it seems he’s trying to eat as expensive as possible.”

Kang Seong-ho frowned.

A displeasing bastard.

Plus Jeong Jin-ho wants to set aside work briefly and try hobby activities, yet he’s obstructing like that.

“Find out who’s handling the investigation there. Such a bastard won’t have just one or two crimes. Dig more and try maximizing the sentence. So that bastard forcibly coughs up stakes too.”

Though Kangsung denies it every time.

Legal lines connected to Kangsung overflow.

Especially with many places connected family to family, the term Kangsung Republic didn’t come out for nothing.

Even if that power isn’t as much as before.

He could sufficiently screw over about one bastard trying to obstruct Jeong Jin-ho’s hobby activities.

***

KBO was suffering headaches from this Rangers situation.

Team embezzlement!

Is this even plausible?

From before, Rangers was famous for poor player support and training facility equipment, so fans had joke talk that someone’s eating all the money from behind.

But that wasn’t a joke but real.

So suspicions about team transparency were pouring down.

What’s fortunate is other major corporation teams anyway knew it’s business done at a loss, and there’s also no money to embezzle.

“But from Gwangwoon?”

“Yes. Gwangwoon ultimately succeeded in obtaining stakes.”

“What? How? That sly snake tried not to spit it out to the end?”

KBO Commissioner Jin Gu-hyeon hoped Rangers would preferably sell to another team.

But the bastard who got caught held out to the end, so he thought it’d ultimately fall through, but ultimately Gwangwoon seems to have done it.

“Hearing about it.. Seems prosecutors put pressure heavily.”

“From prosecutors? Is Gwangwoon connected to prosecutors too?”

“Can’t know that far, but prosecutors newly established an investigation team and caught him like catching mice on charges beyond embezzlement. As sentences kept rising, he ultimately raised the white flag.”

Someone who rolled in baseball all his life, but reaching this level position, occasionally he hears talk.

That this administration is pushing Gwangwoon as much as possible.

He never thought even prosecutors would come forward helping like that.

Indeed, is this major corporations’ power?

“Wait. Then could Rangers’ president getting caught for embezzlement also..”

“I think Gwangwoon laid groundwork in advance trying to acquire Rangers. Honestly, acquiring other teams besides Rangers now is difficult.”

“Perhaps Gwangwoon side’s chairman was a Rangers fan?”

“That possibility also seems high.”

Because they did baseball so badly, anger rose to the top of his head and he pushed the team over entirely.

If you have much money and many connections, such things are possible.

But whatever the process, it was good for KBO.

Because if companies invest much in teams and raise quality, viewers watching baseball will also find it more fun.

“Now what remains is approval from our KBO side..”

“What’s there to ponder about? We’re welcoming with open arms. Plus it’s a place that trampled one company to get one baseball team. Do you want to become like that too?”

“N-no.”

“Then approve as politely as possible. Say we hope for much investment going forward.”

“Yes.”

Baseball.

Truly a scary sport.

Because the team can’t do well and is frustrating, isn’t that major corporation sweeping away the team saying they’ll raise it themselves?

Seems like only that president bastard got caught with the wrong opponent while being greedy.

***

The acquisition problem expected to be difficult ended easier than expected.

Don’t know why, but from prosecutors’ sudden all-out pressure, ultimately the president handed over all stakes to us and washed his hands.

At a cheaper price than expected too.

“Team ranking is last place, and facilities and players’ values, all of that’s quite low too. Still, if we support them a bit, we can polish them well again.”

The team situation was more serious than expected.

Many places need repair here and there, and team morale overall was low.

Plus since it’s last-place team, players don’t prefer coming here.

“But Manager Lee looks happy?”

“Huh? Ah. There’s something with strange feelings for me too, right? It’s fascinating that our company acquired the team I support, and I really want them to do well. Our Rangers.. No. Now it’s Gwangwoon Prime. I really want our Gwangwoon to do well.”

The existing name Rangers was removed and the name became Gwangwoon Prime.

“Please pass baseball team matters to Vice President. Probably Vice President knows better than me.”

“Vice President?”

“Ah. You didn’t know. Vice President was also a Rangers fan.”

“Huh. I thought he absolutely never watches baseball.”

“Right.”

Smiling like that while about to send Hye-rin to Vice President.

“..?”

Suddenly it felt like tingling current flowed through my body.

“Wait a moment.”

“Yes?”

“The documents you’re holding, show me briefly.”

“Ah, yes!”

I examined the documents Hye-rin gave.

Various materials related to the team.

Me feeling such a sensation just now meant there’s something I should examine here.

Sure enough.

“Draft list?”

“Ah. To recruit players, you must unconditionally go through the draft. We designate and bring them here. Or you can separately bring FA-released players or foreign mercenaries. According to regulations.”

In other words, to me who knows nothing about baseball, even looking at these profiles I can’t know who’s a good player.

But my intuition was reacting crazily to exactly this list.

With half-doubting heart, I unfolded the list.

“..!”

Then each player name written on the list started emitting light in different colors.