“Then we’ve got to do some hard practice,” decided Tommy, as he proudly read to his players the first challenge acceptance they had received.
“We sure will!” exclaimed Teddy.
“Say, we’re like a regular nine!” declared Billie in delight.
“If we only had uniforms!” sighed Tommy. That was his one big ambition, and he hoped the Freeport Ramblers would not have suits. But they did, and very trim they looked in them when they reached the grounds on Saturday afternoon.
In the meanwhile Tommy and his chums had been doing some hard practice, and they felt that they could win unless the other team had better players. And when Tommy looked over the visiting nine, he felt a little doubtful of the ability of his own.
“But we’ll do our best!” he exclaimed.
A few seats had been put up from wood left over from the back-stop, and on these the players could sit. There were no seats for the audience, and, as a matter of fact, there was not much of a crowd. There were lots of the town boys—the smaller ones—and a few men and youths, who had nothing in particular to do. But Tommy and his friends did not care for the audience so much as they did care to play ball.
Tommy had a talk with Joe Forker, the other captain, and little time was wasted. They picked out an umpire. Tommy, who was to do the pitching, had some “warm-up” practice with Teddy, who would catch, and then, as the visitors had lost the toss, and had to take first inning, Tommy went to the pitching box.
“Make him give you a good ball now!” called Henry Hicks to Will Warnton, who was first up at the bat.
“I’m going to make a home run!” retorted Will, boastingly.