Switch Hitter

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<infobox> <title source="name"><default>Switch Hitter</default></title>

<image source="Image"></image> <image source="image"></image> <group><header>Basic Information</header> <label>Civilian Name</label> <label>Aliases</label> <label>Gender</label><default>Unknown</default> <label>Death</label> <label>Age</label><default>Unknown</default> <label>Post-timeskip</label> <label>Ward start</label> <label>Relations</label> <label>Family</label></group> <group><header>Professional Status</header> <label>Occupation</label> <label>Classification</label> <label>Unique Features</label> <label>Alignment</label>

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<label>Location</label> <label>Teams</label> <label>Previous Team(s)</label> <label>Base of Operations</label></group> <group><header>First Appearance</header> <label>Worm Debut</label> <label>Ward Debut</label></group> </infobox> Switch Hitter is the heroic leader of the Girls at Bat.

Personality

Switch Hitter is quite upfront, rapidly opening up to Victoria upon first meeting her.<ref>“You’re a sight for sore eyes,” Switch told me. She swung the gold bat, the other one still resting against her shoulder. A slash of gold flew out and hit the wall of hard gas, parting it.

“Trapped?”

“Nah,” she said. I thought for a moment she might be a Rachel type, not prone to explanation or sharing, but then she added, “Lonely. Freaked out. And my eyes are actually sore. These goggles, they do nothing.” - Excerpt from Radiation 18.6</ref> Even while physically and emotionally exhausted, Hitter was reluctant to leave the front-lines, afraid of disappointing her teammates and other fellow heroes.<ref>She shook her head, swallowing hard, still holding the bat out. “My team’s- they’re out there. With the…”

She shook her head, hard. She made a small noise as she swung the bat, hard. The golden lash that seemed to peel off of the bat smacked Skadi in the shoulder, carving out a furrow. She didn’t straighten up right away, breathing hard.

“In the, um, the ranged fire group. The bullpen. They’d lose heart- if I called out. I can’t- can’t. They said… Wardens said. I’m one of the people who can really hurt these bastards.” - Excerpt from Radiation 18.6</ref>

She is implied to be bisexual.<ref name="18.6 c3" />

Appearance

Hitter dresses casually even as a cape, with simple domino mask and some baseball uniform pieces. She has brown hair that she wears in a ponytail, a baseball cap, and black leggings. In colder weather, she is seen to also wear a heavier coat and a scarf. The most eye-catching parts of her costume are the two power-enhanced bats she carries. One is an elaborate ornate bat which appears to be encased in glass or ice, with a localized galaxy in the center. The other bat is made of wood that glows at its core, and is wreathed in golden horns that rotate around it.<ref name="18.6 c1">The cape I’d come to help was Switch Hitter, leader of the Girls at Bat and not a cape that had sought out the big time by any means. She wore a wool baseball cap with a brown ponytail sticking out the back, a winter baseball coat, scarf, and domino mask, and her legs were skinny in black leggings beneath the heavier top layers. She held a baseball bat in each hand, but each one was power-touched. One was elaborate, ornate, with the appearance of…
[...]
The bat looked like it had been encased in craggy glass or ice, the interior replaced with a localized galaxy or black hole. Glittery motes of light swirled around a dark central nexus. It rested against her shoulder. The other bat was wreathed in gold horns, trim, and other decoration that didn’t seem to touch the bat it lazily rotated around. The wood at the core glowed. The bats didn’t match her costume at all. - Excerpt from Radiation 18.6</ref>

Abilities and Powers

Hitter can enhance her bats with different blaster-effects that are activated by swinging them. The power can be applied to several objects. Swinging her golden bat produces a large golden slash that is powerful enough to carve up even part of a Titan.<ref>She threw the galaxy bat to one side, and it was wood as it clunked against the rooftop. She took a two handed grip on the golden bat, and it grew to double size. She began swinging again.
[...]
The golden lash that seemed to peel off of the bat smacked Skadi in the shoulder, carving out a furrow. She didn’t straighten up right away, breathing hard. - Excerpt from Radiation 18.6</ref> She was seen to use her power to double this bat in size.<ref>“Will we?” she asked. She threw the galaxy bat to one side, and it was wood as it clunked against the rooftop. She took a two handed grip on the golden bat, and it grew to double size. She began swinging again. - Excerpt from Radiation 18.6</ref>

Her galaxy bat is stronger, but Hitter described its effect as "messier" than her golden one's.<ref>“You were using the galaxy bat earlier. It seemed to do more.”

“I was. But it’s messy and things are messy, and I can’t-” - Excerpt from Radiation 18.6</ref>

Switch Hitter can deliver strong, repeated swings even one-handed and while exhausted, possibly due to her power making her bats lighter.<ref>She attacked again, a trio of one-armed swings made with enough force and intensity that I had to imagine the bat was made lighter by her power, or she had some good muscle on that arm. The slashes cut through the wall and hit Titan Eve. - Excerpt from Radiation 18.6</ref>

History

Background

Hitter became a hero in 2010.<ref name="4years">“How long ago did you become a hero?”

“Four years- five years. I took a year off.” - Excerpt from Radiation 18.6</ref> As a cape, she never particularly strove for any renown.<ref name="18.6 c1" /> She initially was a part of Sacred Heart, where she themed herself as a warrior angel, but left it after two years because of harassment from teammates.<ref name="18.6 c3">“I was with Sacred Heart at first,” Hitter said. “I used to be a warrior angel. It was cool and then it wasn’t. Legend might have opened doors, but people can still be shitty in private. The team management said I could do whatever I liked, but the guys who were being shitty could do whatever they liked too.” - Excerpt from Radiation 18.6</ref>

Gold Morning

After leaving her team, Switch Hitter retired from cape life until Gold Morning, which she participated in without any teammates.<ref name="18.6 c2">“I’m sorry,” I told her. “That’s why you had the gap year?”
[...]
“…Quit for a year. Perfect timing, no teammates when the end of the world came.” - Excerpt from Radiation 18.6</ref>

She joined Girls at Bat shortly after the end of the world, and stayed with them for another two years.<ref name="4years"/> At some point, she became the leader.

The Ice Breaks

The Girls at Bat were one of the hero teams working with the Wardens at the time of Eve's appearance.<ref>Other hero teams got blue. He noted each, wishing there was one that would provide an easy answer. Foresight, the Shepherds, Breakthrough, Advance Guard, Solace, Rooftop Champs, Dream Parade, The Wayfarers, Auzure, Wizard Stars, Trueblue, Erring Right, Rowdyhawks, Sward, Virtuous Industries, Huntsmen, Girls at Bat, Shelter Skelter, Good Vandals, Twee, and then a half-dozen more who were too small for him to remember, or who were offscreen, trusted to handle things like helping out in Gimel’s Europe. - [Excerpt] from Interlude 17.z II</ref> She was sent with her team to interfere in the battle between Titans Eve and Oberon, where she was a front-line heavy-hitter, as one of the few 'annihilators' present. After Skadi's arrival, she had a panic attack and refused to stand down, until Antares persuaded her to retreat. She was evacuated by Foil.<ref name="II18.6">Radiation 18.6</ref>

Trivia

• The term switch-hitter refers to a baseball player who can bat both right- and left-handed. It is also slang for a bisexual person.

References

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