Bobolink gripped the bat compressed his lips and waited for the ball. Ted thought he again would repeat his former performance of teasing the batter. He put over a fast ball, cutting the inside edges of the plate. Bobolink stepped back and swung. The spectators jumped to their feet, watching the ball sail through the air, while they held their breaths. Bobolink was notably a hard hitter. Suddenly a shout rumbled across the field. People cheered; others muttered their disgust. The player in left field knew the batter’s ability to hit and had moved far back. As the ball came sailing out, he was obliged to run further back, suddenly he realized that the ball would come down further on his right; the next second he lunged forward with extended arm, caught the ball barehanded and held on to it as he nearly tripped over himself. The inning was over and the players came in from the field.
Ken walked to the pitcher’s box and Paul took his place behind the home plate. An agitation rolled slowly through the stands. Play for play, Ken and his players far outshone the other team. True enough, Ted was doing some mighty fine pitching, but except for the single catch, his team wandered about idle at their posts. The other team, however, was of unequalled showmanship. Dramatically they pulled the ball out of the air, off the ground, staged a double-play that took people’s wind away. If only Wallace was in the box! Some murmurs began to circulate. “Wallace! Where’s Wallace!” But he was nowhere to be seen. The umpire called, “Batter up!”
Ken was piqued by all the muttering and mumbling around him. The effect upon him was surprising; it steeled him. He relaxed. Absolutely confident, he pitched superbly. Three men up, three men out. Not one of them even so much as swung a bat. They were so bewildered by the pitcher’s fury that they barely saw the ball whizz by them and before they realized it, they heard the plop of the ball in the catcher’s mitt.
Again the young aviators were at bat. The team determined to break the spell and send in a couple of runs. The first batter bunted and landed safely at first. Ted evidently sensed the determination of his opponents, for he became ill at ease. To relax, he summoned the catcher and they met midway; for several seconds they whispered to each other, then returned to their respective positions. The batter waited patiently for the pitcher to get going. Somebody in the stand shouted, “Hit it, boy, sock it!”
“Sock it a mile!” someone else screamed.
Ted poised. He put all his strength into the ball as he hurled it. The batter didn’t move a muscle. “Ball one!” called the umpire.
“Put it over!” someone shouted.
“Play ball!” shouted another.
Again Ted put all his strength into the ball. The batter gritted his teeth. Crack! The hit was a straight and low one, directly between the shortstop and third basemen. Both players went for it, collided as they tried to pick it off the ground. The batter went to first and the man on first went safely to second.