Chapter XVI
"TED"S TERRORS" FULL OF FIGHT
The umpire"s quiet voice called the captains of the nines apart.
"Who"ll call the toss?" asked Ben.
"Let Teall do it," d.i.c.k answered.
"You do it, Prescott," urged Captain Ted.
"Well, which one of you is going to call?" inquired Tozier.
"Teall," d.i.c.k again answered.
"Oh, all right, then," nodded Ted. "I suppose, Prescott, you feel that, whichever way I call, I"d wish I"d taken the other way."
The coin spun upward in the air, for Ben Tozier was a master of the art of flipping.
"Tails," announced Teall.
"It"s heads this time," announced Umpire Tozier. "Captain Prescott?"
"We"ll go to bat, then," decided Prescott. "We might as well begin to pile up the score that we"re going to make."
"We"ll show you how you"re not going to make it," Ted grinned.
"Remember, Prescott, that I and Wells are the battery to-day."
"What you need," laughed d.i.c.k, "is a good right fielder and a star third baseman."
"Huh!" grunted Teall.
"Get to your places," ordered Tozier briskly. "We want to end this game some time to-day."
The umpire inspected a new ball, then sent it grounding to Teall.
Back and forth between the members of the South Grammar battery the ball pa.s.sed three times.
"Play ball!" called the umpire sharply.
Tom Reade already stood by the plate. He swung his stick idly, watching Teall. Along came the ball. Tom judged it and hit at it.
"Strike one!" called Tozier, shifting a pebble to his left hand.
Ted grinned derisively as he twisted the leather for the next throw.
"Ball one!" and a bean followed the pebble into the umpire"s left hand.
"Strike two! Ball two! Ball three!"
Ted Teall began to feel angry over the growing pile of called b.a.l.l.s. He delivered one with great care.
Whack! Tom never waited to see whether the ball was headed inside or outside of foul lines. He simply dropped his willow, then gave his best exhibition of the sprinting that he had learned in the spring.
It was a fair ball that struck inside of left field. South"s left fielder had to run in for the leather, which struck the ground, then rolled to one side. Thump! The ball landed neatly in the first baseman"s hands, but Tom had kicked the bag a second before.
"Runner safe," drawled Tozier.
Spoff Henderson came next to bat. Ted, with great care, struck him out. Toby Ross met with similar disaster, nor did Reade have any chance to steal up to second. Then Greg advanced to the plate.
He had his own favorite stick, which he swung with great confidence.
"Now, just see what I"ll do to you!" was what Ted Teall"s impudent smile meant.
Crack! Holmes. .h.i.t the first ball, reaching first and pushing Tom to second.
"Danny Grin, don"t fail us," begged Prescott, as Dan started for the plate. "Two men out, remember!"
As Dalzell faced the pitcher his grin was broader than Teall"s.
Two strikes and two b.a.l.l.s were quickly called. Some of Dalzell"s a.s.surance was gone now, but he steadied himself down. It would never do to strike out at such a time.
Then Danny Grin made his third strike, but he drove the ball ahead of him, forcing the right fielder of the Souths to run backward for it, but he missed the catch and by the time the ball was in circulation again the bases were full of Central Grammar runners.
"I"m glad you"re going forward," whispered Dave, just as d.i.c.k started towards the plate, his favorite bat in hand.
"I"ll make a monkey of you," muttered Teall, just loudly enough for the words to reach Prescott.
"If you can, you"re welcome," grunted d.i.c.k under his breath.
Swat! It was the first ball driven in. Had there been a fence around the field that fair drive would have gone over it. How it soared and then flew! The right fielder who followed that ball was nervous from the start. He panted as he fell upon the ball.
"Throw it to third!" yelled Teall.
"Just at that instant Dan Dalzell was nearing the home plate, which Tom and Greg had already pa.s.sed. Prescott"s ankle turned slightly or he would have got in ahead of the ball.
"Runner out at third," called Tozier in a singsong voice. "Side out!"
"Yet who cared?" d.i.c.k"s wonderful blow on the leather had brought three men in safe.
The Souths followed at bat. One, two, three, Prescott struck them out. Ted Teall"s face looked solemn, indeed.
"Wells, we"ve simply got to hold these fellows down," grunted Teall to his catcher in the brief conference for which there was time. "We don"t want to be walloped by a score of ninety-four to two."
"I haven"t let anything get by me, have I?" grunted the catcher.