"Guess you're right," replied Bronson.
And to the relief of Baxter, the boy struck out the batter.
The man on first, however, had gone to second on the first ball pitched, but with the man on third Gregory had not attempted to throw him out.
Consequently, Bronson was still in a hole when Mitchell stepped to the plate, a look of confidence on his face.
In his endeavor to rattle the battery, the man on second was taking a long lead, hoping to draw a throw from Gregory, thus allowing his mate on third to score.
But in this crisis, Fred and Bronson showed the result of their secret practice.
As the latter made ready to pitch, Fred coughed.
Already Bronson's arm was taking its swing, but instead of sending the ball to the plate, he turned completely around and shot the ball to Fred.