Look Who's Playing First Base (5 page)

Checkmates 11, Jetstars 5.

Top of the sixth. Gary seemed to have lost sight of the plate again and walked the lead-off man. The Jetstar runner was like
a bumblebee as he hopped back and forth on the base path.

Gary took his stretch, then suddenly
shifted toward first and drilled the ball to Yuri. Yuri tagged the runner as he slid back to first in a cloud of dust. Safe.

The next instant Mike saw Yuri hopping on his left foot.

“Time!” yelled the base umpire.

Coach Terko sprang out of the dugout. Yuri waved him back. “I’m okay,” he said. But a look of pain was on his face.

“You sure?” asked the coach.

“Yes. I’m sure.”

Yuri hobbled around a bit, then tossed the ball to Gary and returned to cover first base. Time-in was called and the game
resumed.

The Jetstar runner began hopping back and forth again. Gary kept his eyes on him, then shifted his attention to the plate
and fired. He worked up to a two-one count on the batter, then was hit for a single to right field. Mike ran out to shallow right, got the relay from Dave Alberti and pegged to Bunker. The Jetstar on
first had raced around to third and slid under Bunker’s reaching glove. Safe.

A fly to deep center was caught, but the runner scored. Mike was almost relieved that the Checkmates didn’t have to contend
with that guy anymore.

A pop fly and a strikeout finished it for the Jetstars, who wound up trailing 11 to 6.

“Don says he’s quitting,” said Bunker as he, Mike and Yuri headed for home.

Mike paled. “He’s just talking.”

“I don’t think so. I think he means it. I know he’s a sorehead, but do you realize that if he quits we don’t have a guy to
take his place? Nobody else wants that position. I don’t, not even if you paid me.”

S
INCE
their next game was scheduled for Monday, July 6, the Checkmates practiced every afternoon during the rest of the week except
the weekend. And Don was present every day. But he was quiet. If he intended to stick to his threat of quitting he wasn’t
saying any more about it.

Yuri worked hard to improve his playing at first base. Mike could see that he was trying his best.

The coach had the infielders practice trapping a runner caught in a hot box. He
had Bunker play the runner trapped between first and second and gave Yuri the ball. Yuri ran Bunker down to second, while
Gary Roberts backed him up. Then Yuri, not able to catch up with Bunker, threw the ball to Mike, who ran Bunker back toward
first. This time Mike threw to Gary, while Yuri ran to back up Mike.

Pretty soon Bunker was pooped out and Yuri tagged him out.

“Get the idea?” smiled Coach Terko. “Three men are all it takes to trap a runner.”

Yuri’s face broadened with a grin. “What a wonderful idea!” he exclaimed.

The Checkmates played the Crickets on Monday and led by a fat margin, 5 to 0, till the fourth inning, when a grounder ripped
through Yuri’s legs. Three men were on and two of them scored. The
Crickets picked up their third and fourth runs in the sixth.

Mike suffered the nightmare of what the guys — especially Don — would have said if they hadn’t had those five runs to back
them up. As it was, Art Colt and Bunker Ford ignored Yuri completely after the game.

Don didn’t. “Better start looking for another catcher,” he said to Mike. “I’ve got another team lined up.”

“Not the Crickets?”

“No, not the Crickets. It’ll be another week — maybe less — then I’m leaving you bunch of clowns.”

“Where are we going to look? And who else can catch? Nobody. You can’t just drop us like that.”

Don looked belligerent. “Oh, no? Just wait and see if I can’t.”

On Wednesday Mike Hagin himself almost gave the game to the Rascals. The score was 3 to 1, Checkmates’ favor. It was the fifth
inning and there were no outs. The Rascals had a man on first. The batter blasted a grounder to second and Mike flubbed it.
He scooted after the ball, whipped it to Dick covering second, and the ball sailed far over Dick’s head. Bunker chased after
the ball beyond the foul line, pegged to Art Colt covering third, and his throw was wild too. Before all the throwing was
done a man had scored and a runner was on third base.

A single then tied up the score. Two pop flies and a strikeout stopped the Rascals’ wild merry-go-round.

The Checkmates picked up two runs in the sixth, and that was it. Checkmates’ game, 5 to 3.

The Longhorns fell too. The game was better than the five-to-one score looked, though. The Longhorns got their loner in the
first inning, while the Checkmates pushed one across each inning. Once it was on a squeeze play. Another was a long fly Yuri
blasted to center field. He was really hitting the ball. And once on an error by the shortstop. Two runs were batted in by
doubles.

It was the first game in which Yuri had not made an error.

“I guess I am improving,” he said to Mike, smiling proudly. Then he added, “Mike, we have already played five games and lost
only one. Maybe we will be champs.”

“Don’t count your chickens too soon,” said Mike.

Yuri frowned. “Chickens?” Then his
face lit up. “Oh! I know what you mean!”

Lefty Mason was on the mound again for the Maple Leafs when they played the Checkmates. Don was there. Maybe he’s pulling
our leg, thought Mike. He’s just making those threats and has no intention to quit at all. A big blowhard, that’s all he is.
Yuri came to bat in the second inning. There were two outs and Bunker was on first base after hitting a single.

Lefty’s first pitch cut the outside corner of the plate for a strike. His second was inside — so far inside that Yuri had
to jump back.

Lefty’s next pitch was almost in the same place. Yuri jumped back again and stared hard at the Leaf pitcher.

Mike, coaching at third, looked on curiously. Was Lefty having trouble with his
control or did he really mean to dust Yuri off?

“Strike two!” The ball grooved the heart of the plate. Mike saw Yuri step back slightly.

That darn Lefty Mason
, he thought.
What’s he trying to do
?

The pitch. Yuri stepped, back again and took a weak swing at the ball. He missed it by a foot.

“Strike three!”

The Checkmates ran out, the Leafs ran in. Mike glared at Lefty but said nothing.
Wait’ll I get up
, he thought.

The Leafs blasted Art Colt’s pitches for two runs. The Checkmates came to bat, Dave Alberti leading off and Don Waner on deck.

Lefty’s control was fine as he pitched to Dave. None of his throws were so close that Dave had to jump out of the way. Dave singled to left.

Don corked a Texas leaguer over short. Art Colt flied out and Dick walked, loading the bases.

Mike came up. He eyed Lefty squarely as he held his bat off his shoulder, moving it just slightly back and forth. Lefty stretched
and delivered. The pitch came in. It was high. Ball one.

The next pitch blazed in close. So close that Mike dropped to the ground.

“Ball two!” shouted the ump.

The next pitch grazed the inside corner for a strike.

Mike stepped out of the box, brushed off his pants and looked sharply at Lefty Mason.
Okay, Lefty. You’ll either walk
me or groove the next pitch. And if you groove it I’ll murder it
.

He stepped back into the box and waited for Lefty’s next pitch.

L
EFTY MASON
stretched high, came down with the ball and held it a second as he glanced at Dave on third base. Dave was leading off a
couple of feet.

Lefty pitched.

The ball blazed in like a comet. Mike could see it was going to be a perfect strike. He lean into it and swung.

Crack!
The sound was like a shot as bat met ball. And like a shot the ball zoomed out to deep left. It seemed to rise higher the
farther it went. Mike dropped his bat and sped to first. Something about the feel
of the bat when it had struck the ball told him the hit was real solid.

Cy Williams, coaching at first, was smiling broadly and windmilling Mike on. Then Mike saw the ball drop far behind the left
field fence. He slowed his pace and trotted around the bases, the roar of the crowd ringing in his ears.

He had done it. He had murdered Lefty’s pitch just as he had promised he would. It was the best feeling he’d had in months.

Hank went down swinging, but Tom Milligan doubled to put the Checkmates into scoring position again. Bunker singled him in.
That was all the Checkmates were able to do that inning. It was plenty. Checkmates 5, Maple Leafs 2.

Two innings later, in the top of the fourth, tragedy almost struck. Mike missed
a pop fly, a spinner. No sooner had it hit the pocket of his glove than it spun out. The next batter drove Art’s first pitch
for a triple, scoring a run. The third batter blasted a hot grounder to deep short and the runner on third made a beeline
for home.

Dick Wallace fired the ball to Don. It was a good throw. But the runner was almost in and Don moved his mitt to tag him before
he had the ball. The ball glanced off the side of his mitt and skittered to the backstop screen. The runner slid safely across
the plate.

The Checkmates picked up a run in the bottom of the fourth and another in the fifth, putting them ahead of the Leafs by three
runs.

In the top of the sixth a Leaf blasted a hard grounder through short for a neat
single. The next Leaf hit a high-bouncing grounder to first.

“Get two, Yuri!” shouted Mike.

Yuri waited for the ball, then reached for the hop. The ball struck the heel of his glove and bounded off his chest to the
ground. He picked it up quickly and raced the hitter to first base. The hitter beat him by two steps.

Mike’s lips tightened. Both he and Yuri were really having a great day in the field, all right.

Well, with men on first and second there was still a chance for a double play.

A solid hit to right center! The ball rolled to the fence. Center fielder Tom Milligan got it and pegged it in. Two runs scored
and the hitter ran to third standing up.

Checkmates 7, Maple Leafs 6.

Art struck out the next batter. The next blasted a line drive over third and another run scored — 7 to 7. Art caught a pop
fly for the second out. Then a grounder tore down the first-base line and Yuri bolted after it. The ball struck the tip of
his glove and bounded out to right field for three bases, putting the Leafs ahead, 8 to 7.

Mike looked at Dick, at Bunker, then at Art. It was plain as day that they were completely disgusted. Yuri should’ve caught
that grounder.
The only thing that keeps Yuri in the game is his bat
, thought Mike.
And, boy, Yuri, you’d better make sure it does something for you the next time you’re up
.

A fly to short ended the half inning.

Yuri was quiet as he walked in from first
base. He dipped himself up a drink from the water pail, then paused beside Mike as Mike looked for his favorite bat.

“I should have caught that one,” he said regretfully. “It looked easy.”

“Get a hit and make up for it,” said Mike quietly. He went up to bat and let a strike and a ball whizz by him. Then he knocked
a dribbling grounder to the pitcher for an easy out.

Hank Rush flied out to center and Tom Milligan popped out to the catcher, for a fast half inning to end the game.

“We can’t win ’em all,” said Mike as he helped Coach Terko load up the equipment bag.

“No. But one error should’ve been an easy out,” grumbled Don Waner. “We should’ve won the game.”

“Okay, let’s drop it,” said the coach.
“There’s another game coming up. Let’s think about that one.”

Yuri and Mike exchanged few words between them as they headed home. The wide sidewalk flanked a park sparsely dotted with
trees and bushes.

“Do you think Don is serious about quitting?” asked Yuri worriedly. “I heard he said that. And it is because of me.”

“I don’t think so,” said Mike. “He’s just a bag of wind. Don’t listen to everything he says.”