“It wasn’t the right kind of a ball to strike at,” replied Hal.
“Do they use different kinds of balls?” asked Parker.
“No, they use the same ball all the time.” Hal saw that he would have to explain about balls and strikes.
“You see, a batter can get four balls or three strikes. If he gets four balls he runs to the base. If he gets three strikes he’s out.”
“Why don’t he always take the four balls?”
“Well, you see the pitcher fools him.”
“How?”
“The pitcher tries to make the batter think balls are strikes and strikes are balls.”
“Doesn’t the batter know the difference?”
“Not until the umpire tells what it is. Sometimes even the pitcher doesn’t know if it is a ball or strike until the umpire says what it is,” explained Hal. He was thinking of the many times umpires have called balls when the pitchers thought they were over the plate.