Behind the Plate by Jake Maddox

Author:Jake Maddox
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Juvenile Fiction/Sports & Recreation/Baseball & Softball
ISBN: 9781434242051
Publisher: Capstone
Published: 2013-09-15T00:00:00+00:00

CHAPTER 6

GAME ON

Alex was already at the baseball field when Danny arrived the next morning. “Did you talk to your dad?” Alex asked. “How did it go?”

Danny got off his bike and slung his bat bag onto the ground. He pulled a glove and ball from his bag. He started walking toward the backstop. “It went well,” he said, smiling.

“Yeah?” said Alex.

“Really well,” said Danny. His smile got even bigger.

“That’s great,” said Alex. “How did your dad handle it when you told him how you felt?”

“It was tough,” said Danny. “There was a lot of blubbering and hugging and all that. But it was good. My dad and I got a lot of things figured out. He’s coming to the game later.”

“Awesome,” said Alex, running past Danny onto the field. “So let’s go play some ball.”

“It’s about time!” shouted Danny.

* * *

By the top of the third inning, they led the Rays 2 to 0. Alex was pitching a great game. He struck out the first eight batters.

Danny had driven in two runs with a double in the bottom of the first. And to make things even better, he had not thrown one bad ball all game.

It probably helped that his dad had been there to cheer him on. Danny knew things would never be the same as they were before the divorce, but he was glad that he and his dad were starting to talk again. It was a big first step.

With two outs in the inning, Danny sat behind the plate and waited for Alex to go into his windup. The Rays batter stood tall in the batter’s box.

Alex kicked and threw. The batter shifted his weight from his back leg to his front leg and gracefully swung the bat. Danny closed his glove, but the ball never got there. The batter hit a solid line drive into the outfield.

The Rays players hooted and hollered as the Dodgers’ left fielder threw the ball to second base. The Rays batter jogged into first base with a single.

Danny stood behind the plate as the ball was thrown back to Alex. Danny pulled his mask back from his face. He couldn’t help staring at the runner on first. It was the first time a Rays player had gotten a hit all game.

Danny took a deep breath. Throwing with the bases empty was easy. The true test was whether he could keep making good throws with a runner on base.

He turned to Alex, who was holding his throwing hand palm down. Danny knew that Alex was telling him to relax. Danny nodded and stepped back behind home plate.

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