State Showdown by Matt Christopher

Author:Matt Christopher [CHRISTOPHER, MATT]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Juvenile Fiction / Sports & Recreation - Baseball & Softball
ISBN: 9780316248440
Publisher: Little, Brown Books for Young Readers
Published: 2013-10-07T16:00:00+00:00

CHAPTER

FOURTEEN

GTG, Carter texted Sean hurriedly. My game’s on.

Carter and his Forest Park teammates had been cheering for Ravenna’s double play when there was a loud knock on the hotel door. Ash opened it to find Coach Harrison and Coach Filbert on the other side.

“Nice to find you all together,” Mr. Harrison said, looking amused. “Now stash all your electronics in your rooms and get yourselves in gear. The sun’s out, the fields are drying, and we’re due to play Calder in less than two hours.”

There was a mad scramble as the boys hurried off to their own rooms to change. Carter and Ash took turns in the bathroom. Carter had just enough time to send the text to Sean before racing to join his teammates.

The earlier thunderstorm had whisked away the humidity that had hung over the ballpark for much of the tournament. The temperatures were in the high seventies when the game began. But without the oppressive mugginess, the air felt fresh and clean.

On the mound, Carter closed his eyes, took a deep lungful of that air, held it, and then let it out slowly. When he opened his eyes, he felt focused and ready to face Larry Miller, the first Calder batter.

Three pitches later, Larry returned to the dugout with his bat dragging behind him. Jarvis Greenaway took Larry’s place in the batter’s box. Carter mowed him down with three straight pitches, too. Calder’s third batter fared no better.

Three up, three down.

A murmur of excitement rippled through the fans as Carter passed them on his way to the dugout. He suspected they were whispering about him, but he paid no attention. He was too busy thinking about the next batter he’d face: Ricky Muldoon.

Carter had struck Ricky out in the previous Forest Park–Calder game. Later that same game, however, Ricky had homered off Peter Molina. And in Calder’s huge win over Groveland, the slugger had chalked up two more home runs and a stand-up double. Carter knew Ricky would pose a very dangerous threat.

Coach Harrison apparently agreed. He pulled Carter and Ash aside in the dugout and said, “Okay, we all know Muldoon has the power to send a pitch he likes over the fence. So”—he gave a devilish grin—“let’s be sure he doesn’t see something he likes.”

Carter’s eyes lit up. “You mean—the knuckleball?”

The coach nodded.

“Yes!” Carter high-fived Ash.

“I can’t wait to see his face,” Ash said, rubbing his hands together like a cartoon villain.

He didn’t have to wait long, unfortunately, because Forest Park didn’t do much its turn at bat. Of the four batters who went to the plate, only one singled. The others made outs.

Here we go. Carter tingled with anticipation as he watched Ricky assume his stance. He met the boy’s narrow-eyed stare with equal intensity.

Ash flashed the signal for the knuckleball. Carter nodded, took a deep breath, and visualized the pitch in flight. Then he reared back and threw.

The ball traveled to the plate exactly as he had imagined it, bobbling up and down as it sped in.

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