BASEBALL LUCK
The words were uttered in such a sincere manner that they came near
dispelling Kennedy’s last doubt. “He’d be a fool to try to keep up a
bluff like that,” thought the manager, “and Lefty Locke never was no
fool.”
Aloud he said: “That’s the cub I was tellin’ you ’bout who put up a job
on my southpaw pitcher when he was gettin’ a try-out with the Hornets.
He can pitch, but he’s got a yaller streak, and he’s about as mean as
dirt.”
“Will he pitch to-day?” asked Lefty.
“Dunno. Perhaps so. Bristol won’t use him ’less he has to. I see he’s
goin’ to warm up with the others. Keep your eye on him.
“Somethin’s gone wrong with the man,” he muttered, as he turned away.
“It’s no bluff. His noddle is twisted.”
From the bench, Locke watched the two teams take turns at practice,
but for the most part his interest seemed to center in the opposing
pitchers, who were warming up. Having been told all about the crippled
condition of the Deers’ staff, he realized the probable advantage of
the home team with a new man ready to jump on to the slab if needed――a
man considered by Bristol a star of the first magnitude.
The critical nature of this game turned out a crowd which filled the
bleachers and packed the stands――a crowd bubbling with enthusiasm for
the locals, who could obtain an added grip on first position by taking
this contest.
And more than nine-tenths of the assemblage seemed to believe such a
result a foregone conclusion.
In warming up, Elgin attracted the most attention, for nearly everyone
had heard of Bristol’s new man. Knowing the eyes of the crowd were upon
him, he posed vainly, and finished limbering his flinger by whipping
three or four speedy ones to the catcher which caused many witnesses to
gasp.
The time for the game to start came at last, and the clang of a bell
called the visitors to their bench, while the locals took the field.
Then one of the umpires, with a megaphone, announced:
“Battrees to-day: For Deering, Curley and Coffin. For Hatfield, Jewett
and Yapp.”
At this there was a murmur from those who had wished to see the new
man pitch. Elgin, hearing this murmur and understanding, laughed to
himself.
Chick Collins, the Deers’ right fielder, was the first man to face
Jewett, and, as Collins had the reputation of being a man who “waited
it out” and made a pitcher put them over, Jewett started in by cutting
the pan with the first ball delivered.
To his surprise, Chick did not take one; instead, he met that straight
ball on the trade-mark, and cracked it safely into right, which caused
the little bunch of Deering fans to give a howl of joy.
“That’s the stuff!” sounded the voice of Peter McLaughlin. “He won’t
last an inning at that rate. Go to him, Truly!”
Hen Truly, familiarly known as “Yours Truly,” followed Collins to the
plate, fully instructed by Kennedy. Jewett, a bit nervous, threw three
times to first to hold the runner close. Then he wasted two while
Truly waited and grinned. Having put the twirler in a hole the batter
signaled to Collins that he would bunt the next ball pitched, and the
runner was off for second with the swing of Jewett’s arm.
Truly dropped a bunt in front of the plate, and stretched himself
for first. Jewett fell over himself trying to field the ball, and
the attempted sacrifice was turned into a scratch hit when his throw
reached first a second too late.
“Where’s your new pitcher?” cried Landlord McLaughlin. “You better put
him in right away.”
Bristol remained apparently unmoved upon the bench; but Jewett,
glancing toward his manager, knew that he was on the verge of getting
the hook.
Joe Digg was the next hitter――Digg, the formidable, who still had the
highest batting average among the visitors. Jewett feared Digg; yet to
pass him now would fill the corners, with no one down, and Hallett, a
man almost as dangerous, followed. In this dilemma, wabbling in the
effort to get his pins under him, the Buccaneer flinger sought to coax
Digg into reaching.
On the first ball pitched, Truly, seeming to forget that second was
occupied, shot down the line. Instantly Yapp winged the ball to first,
and even as he did so Collins stretched himself for third. Seeing this,
the first baseman attempted to cut Collins off by a throw across, and
Truly went on to second. By a fine slide, Collins shot under the third
baseman, who made a sweeping, ineffectual jab at him, and then threw to
second to stop the crafty Truly. Truly was there ahead of the ball, and
had the baseman not been alive to the situation, which led him to whip
the sphere to the plate without an instant’s delay, Collins would have
tried to score. As it was, he got back to third a second ahead of the
ball, and the delayed double steal was a complete success. With second
and third occupied, a long single in the right quarter would give the
visitors a start of two runs.
Out of the corner of his mouth, Hank Bristol spoke to Bert Elgin.
“Take Putnam,” he said, “and go down into a corner, and keep your arm
warm. I may want you any minute.”
Jewett saw the new pitcher and the change catcher leave the bench, and
knew what it meant. Desperate, he whipped over a jumper to Digg, who
attempted to lace it out, and simply hoisted a short fly to second.
Leaving the bench, Kennedy took Tom Boyd’s place on the coaching line,
Boyd being the batter who followed Hallett.
“Got ’em going!” grinned old Jack. “Hit it a mile, Hallett! Give
’em a chance to use their new wizard right away.” While apparently
encouraging Hallett to smash the ball, he gave the signal for the
squeeze play, which doubtless would be unexpected at this moment, when
everything seemed to indicate the immediate downfall of the unsteady
pitcher.
Jewett handed up another. With the first hint of his movement Collins
started like a shot for the plate. Hallett lifted his bat, held it
slack, and bunted. Instead of falling to the ground, the ball rebounded
in a little fly, which was caught by Jewett without moving from his
tracks.
Collins, warned by a shout, tried to stop. He saw Jewett with the ball,
and realized what had happened. The pitcher, elated, laughed at him;
and the sphere was tossed to third for a double play, which put an
abrupt end to the fine start the Deers had promised to make. It also
let Jewett out of a bad hole through a streak of great luck.
Nevertheless it was probable Bristol would use the new man with the
coming inning; and far out in a corner of the field Elgin, working
easily with the change catcher, awaited the call.