The Catch (8 page)
Authors: Richard Reece
Coach decided they were getting after Carson, so he put Shotaro on the mound. Nick came out to talk with him, but he was nervous and let one pitch to the next batter get out over the plate, high and juicy. The batter, a lefty, jumped on it. We thought he'd pulled it foul, but the ump said it was inside the pole. Coach jumped out of the dugout and started yelling, waving his arms toward the seats on the foul side of right. But he knew better than anyone else that the demonstration wasn't going to do any good. The game was tied.
Shotaro walked the next guy, but the batter after him grounded to Trip for an easy double play. Coming up in the bottom of the ninth: Nick, Shotaro, and me.
Nick tripled. Our bench went crazy. There it was, the winning run sitting on third, no one out. Shotaro popped to second, though. It was my turn.
I hadn't batted in a game in almost two months. I took a really awkward cut at the first pitch and missed it ugly. Pitch two was high, and pitch three was inside. With a 2â1 count, I was sitting on a fastball. What I got, and what I missed, was a changeup.
“Calm down, Danny,” I told myself. “The pitcher is just as nervous as you are.” Which probably wasn't true, but he threw the next pitch low.
I tried to think about the situation from the pitcher's point of view. Wash had taught me. Risk/reward. A hit from me ended the game. If I wound up on first without hitting, they were still alive. I didn't expect a strike.
Ball four was outside. I took first base with one out and hoped Gus would do something.
He took a huge cut at the first pitch and missed. Same with the second. He looked totally juiced to save the game with a homer. Not a good thing. The third pitch was a ball, but on the next offering Gus hit a sharp grounder to the third baseman.
The third baseman should have gone to the plate. Nick was on his way. But the infielder instead chose the best over the good. He saw a double-play opportunity. I was headed for second with a good jump. I was out, but my job was to disrupt the double play.
I slid hard into second and into the second baseman, who was trying to turn the play as he got out of my way. I think it was his knee that hit the side of my head, but suddenly I heard the crowd yelling.
Gus was safe at first. The throw from second was wide. We had won.
The Eagles' coach ran out screaming about interference, but the play was cleanâeveryone saw it later thanks to the Ocelot cameras on site. We were the champions.
The first person to reach meâI was still on the ground at secondâwas Coach.
“Darn it, Danny, I said no rough stuff! Are you all right?”
Thankfully I was. I didn't feel any different than I would have before the concussion on that kind of play.
Nellie and Wash were the next people to get there, but I was getting up by then. The team swarmed out on the field, and the next thing I knew they were carrying me off. Just like after The Catch, only better.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Rick Jasper is a former middle school teacher and a long-time magazine editor and writer. A native of Kansas City, Missouri, he currently lives in Raleigh, North Carolina with his daughter.
THE CATCH | |
 | When Danny makes “the catch,” everyone seems interested in him. Girls text him, kids ask for autographs, and his highlight play even makes it on SportsCenter's Top Plays. A sportsgear executive tempts Danny with a big-money offer, and he decides to take advantage of his newfound fame. Danny agrees to wear the company's gear when he plays. But as his bank account gets bigger, so does his ego. Will Danny be able to keep his head in the game?  |
POWER HITTER | |
 | Sammy Perez has to make it to the big leagues. After his teammate's career-ending injury, the Roadrunners decided to play in a wood bat tournament to protect their pitchers. And while Sammy used to be a hotheaded, hard-hitting, homerun machine, he's now stuck in the slump of his life. Sammy thinks the wood bats are causing the problem, but his dad suggests that maybe he's not strong enough. Is Sammy willing to break the law and sacrifice his health to get an edge by taking performance-enhancing drugs? Can Sammy break out of his slump in time to get noticed by major-league scouts?  |
FORCED OUT | |
 | Zack Waddell's baseball IQ makes him one of the Roadrunners' most important players. When a new kid, Dustin, immediately takes their starting catcher's spot, Zack is puzzled. Dustin doesn't have the skills to be a starter. So Zack offers to help him with his swing in Dustin's swanky personal batting cages. Zack accidentally overhears a conversation and figures out why Dustin is startingâand why the team is suddenly able to afford an expensive trip to a New York tournament. Will Zack's baseball instincts transfer off the field? Will the Roadrunners be able to stay focused when their team chemistry faces its greatest challenge yet?  |
THE PROSPECT | |
 | Nick Cosimo eats, breathes, and lives baseball. He's a placehitting catcher, with a cannon for an arm and a calculator for a brain. Thanks to his keen eye, Nick is able to pick apart his opponents, taking advantage of their weaknesses. His teammates and coaches rely on his good instincts between the white lines. But when Nick spots a scout in the stands, everything changes. Will Nick alter his game plan to impress the scout enough to get drafted? Or will Nick put the team before himself?  |
OUT OF CONTROL | |
 | Carlos “Trip” Costas is a fiery shortstop with many talents and passions. His father is Julio Costasâyes, When Trip decides to take a break from baseball to focus on his own music, his father loses his temper. He threatens to stop donating money to the team. Will the Roadrunners survive losing their biggest financial backer and their star shortstop? Will Trip have the courage to follow his dreams and not his father's?  |
HIGH HEAT | |
 | Pitcher Seth Carter had Tommy John surgery on his elbow in hopes of being able to throw harder. Now his fastball cuts through batters like a 90 mph knife through butter. But one day, Seth's pitch gets away from him. The  |
