Free Look Who's Playing First Base by Matt Christopher Page B

Yuri?
    He met Art Colt, Don Waner and Bunker Ford outside. Together they headed for the baseball field. Art was a skinny kid with
     black-rimmed glasses. He was the Checkmates’ starting pitcher. Don was catcher and Bunker played third.
    “Where’s Yuri?” asked Art.
    “I don’t know,” replied Mike. “Nobody answered the door when I knocked.”
    He was glad that no one asked anything more about Yuri. He suspected that Yuri Dotzen might be a touchy subject for a while.
     Those two weeks of practice hadn’tbeen enough to develop him into half the first baseman Bill Moody was.
    Coach Bob Terko was already at the field, removing brand-new baseballs from their boxes. He was short, slightly bald, and
     taught at the Plainview Junior High School.
    “You’re pitching this opening game, Art,” he said, tossing a sparkling white baseball to him. “Here you are. Warm up with
     Don. Take it easy. I don’t want you tired before the game starts.”
    Don walked with Art to the left of the third-base coaching box and began warming up the right-hander.
    Mike played catch with Bunker and Dick Wallace. Dick, short and broad-shouldered, was the team’s shortstop.
    Mike gave little thought to their opponents,the Maple Leafs. There was no sense wondering how tough they were. The Leafs were probably thinking the same thing. They had
     shown up and were using the first-base dugout. Some of them already had started batting practice.
    Later the Leafs got off the field and the Checkmates took over. At Mike’s turn at the plate he belted three pitches to the
     left side of the batting practice pitcher, then bunted down the third-base line.
    He was relaxing in the dugout when Yuri Dotzen appeared, looked at him and waved. “Hi, Mike,” he greeted.
    Mike’s brows shot up. “Yuri! Where were you? I knocked on your door.”
    “I was with my mother,” explained Yuri. A tuft of brown hair stuck out from underneath the brim of his baseball cap.“We were buying groceries. And my watch stopped. Am I very late?”
    “You missed batting practice.”
    “Well, I had plenty of it the last two weeks.”
    Plenty, but not enough
, thought Mike.
    “Okay, men!” shouted the coach. “Out on the field! Hop to it!”
    Mike saw Yuri look questioningly at the coach.
    “First base, Yuri,” said Coach Terko. “What’re you waiting for?”
    Yuri grinned and trotted out to first. Just then Mike heard a comment from someone in the bleachers. “Hey, look who’s playing
     first base. The kid from Russia.”

3
    T HE CHECKMATES had their infield practice, then gave the field up to the Maple Leafs. After the Leaf pitcher threw his warm-up pitches,
     the umpire brushed off the plate and shouted, “Play ball!”
    Standing in front of the Checkmates’ dugout, Coach Terko announced the first three batters. “Wallace! Hagin! Rush! Get some
     hits, boys!”
    Dick Wallace put on a protective helmet, selected a bat from the fanned-outpile on the ground and walked to the plate. He batted right-handed.
    He let the first pitch go by. A strike. The next two were balls. Then he corked the two-one pitch high out to center field.
    The Checkmate fans let out a quick yell. It changed instantly to a groan as the ball dropped easily into the center fielder’s
     glove. One out.
    Mike was up next. He felt jittery. He always did the first time up. He fouled the first pitch into the third-base bleachers,
     then waited out the next three throws. They were all balls.
    “Go the limit, Mike!” shouted Coach Terko.
    The next pitch breezed in and Mike swung. Another foul. In came the three-two pitch. Mike started to swing, then held up.
    “Ball!” cried the ump and pointed to first base.
    Mike breathed a sigh of relief as he dropped the bat and trotted to first.
    Hank Rush, the left fielder, batted next. He wore thick glasses without which he could barely see. With them he could catch
     any ball he was able to get to.
    Smack!
He socked the first pitch a mile into the air.