CHAPTER XXXIII
THE CHAMPIONSHIP GAME
From grand stands and bleachers came cheers, yells, songs and cries ofmany kinds. There was a record-breaking crowd, every seat seeming tobe filled when the two nines, in their natty uniforms, began theirwarming-up work. In the bleachers were many townspeople, both Randalland Boxer Hall adherents. It seemed as if the unprotected seats,shimmering in the hot sun, were composed of mats of straw hats, withcolored bands for ornaments.
In the grand stands there was a conglomeration of many colors, formedby the hats of girls, and the gay banners they carried, the yellow andmaroon of Randall mingling with the red and green of Boxer Hall, acombination lately adopted.
"Great crowd," commented Phil to Tom.
"Yes. But say, look at Langridge send 'em in!" for the rival pitcher waswarming-up with Stoddard, his catcher.
"Ruth and Madge are here," went on Phil.
"Are they? I wonder if Miss Harrison will come?"
"Guess so. S'pose Sid will be on hand?"
"I doubt it. But come on, let's have a talk with Leighton and Kerr. Theymay want to say something."
The practice went on, the usual conferences took place between captainand captain, manager and manager. Boxer Hall, as the home team, had theprivilege of batting last. Batting orders were submitted for inspection,and the umpire took several new balls from his valise, and stripped fromthem the foil covering. With the exception of Pete Backus in place ofSid, the Randall team was the same that had played the 'varsity gamesall season, though the batting order was different, Holly Cross leadingoff, he having improved greatly in stick work. There was no change inthe Boxer team, from when she had last played Tom's men.
The gong rang sharply. The buzzing talk and laughter on the grand standsceased, as the umpire announced the batteries. There was a moment ofconsultation among the two nines, and then Stoddard, who was Boxer'scaptain that year, motioned to his players to take the field. He donnedhis mask and protector, and adjusted his big glove. Langridge, with acynical smile on his face, walked to the pitcher's box. He threw fourpreliminary balls to Stoddard, who then signified that he was ready.
"Play ball!" called the umpire, and Holly Cross stepped up to the plate.
Langridge "wound up" and sent in a swift one. Holly did not offer tostrike at it.
"Strike wan!" howled the umpire, who was a bit Irish, throwing one armup in the air. There was an indrawing of breath on the part of theRandall players.
"It was a mile outside," complained Tom.
"Hush!" cautioned Mr. Leighton.
Holly struck at the next one, and missed. The following was a foul, andthis gave his friends some encouragement.
"Lambaste the next one!" yelled Bean Perkins from amid his throng ofsingers and shouters. But Holly struck out. Nor did any better luckattend Dan Woodhouse, who fanned. There was a wicked look in the eyesof Bricktop, as he walked to the plate, and perhaps for that reasonLangridge walked him. He seemed to know he would have "easy fruit" inPete Backus, who was taking Sid's place, and he did, for he easilystruck him out, and Bricktop died on second, which he had stolen. Noruns for Randall that inning.
It was not without a nervous tremor that Tom walked to the box, to seewhat he could do against Boxer. He wondered how his hand was going tostand the strain, though it seemed to have healed perfectly.
After exchanging the regulation number of practice balls with DutchHousenlager, Tom was ready for Ralling, who was first up at the bat forBoxer Hall.
Dutch signalled for a puzzling drop, and Tom delivered it, but Rallingtook a quick step forward, and, before the curve "broke" he got his baton it, and sent a pretty single just over Bricktop's head, though theplucky shortstop leaped high to get it. Ralling was safe on first.
McGherity fanned twice, but the third time he, too, found the ball, andrapped out a two bagger, bringing in Ralling, who had managed to stealto second, though Tom tried desperately to throw him out. Roy Conklinwas up next, and struck out, and then came Arthur Flood's turn. How ithappened Tom couldn't tell, but the ball twisted in his hands, andinstead of an out curve it went over the plate straight, and at slowspeed.
Flood hit it a mighty "poke" and away the horsehide spheroid sailed,well over the head of Holly Cross in center field. But Holly pluckilyraced after it, and, though McGherity came in with a run, Flood found itexpedient to linger on third. By this time all Boxer Hall was in afrenzy of delight, for they were two runs to the good, and only one out.But there were two, a moment later, for Flood, taking chances, wascaught napping on the third bag, and put out by a quick throw. GeorgeStoddard fanned, and that ended the inning, with the score 2 to 0, infavor of Boxer Hall.
Randall could not score in the next inning though Tom knocked a twobagger. He stole third, and then had to stay there and watch the Jacksontwins and Dutch Housenlager ingloriously fan the air. It was bitternessas of gall and wormwood, but Tom tried not to show it, as he took hisplace in the box for the ending of the second inning.
Things looked a little brighter when Pinkey Davenport laid down a littlebingle, almost in front of Tom, who tossed it to Phil, on first, andthere was one down, with scarcely an effort. Then Langridge sent a neatlittle fly to Pete, on second base, and Bert Hutchin fanned, makingthree out in such quick succession that the wild cheering of Boxer Hallwas checked, and Bean Perkins and his cohorts had a chance to let loose.
"Now, Randall, do 'em up! Wallop 'em!" shouted a tall dignified man,accompanied by two pretty girls who sat well down in front on the centergrand stand. "Eat 'em alive! Eat 'em alive!"
"Oh, papa!" cried one pretty girl, clasping his left arm.
"Oh, papa!" exclaimed the other pretty girl, seizing his right arm.
"That's all right, my dears," he answered. "Don't you suppose I want tosee my old college win? And they will, too! Those boys have grit!"
"Yes, but they're short one of their best players," said a man next tothe "old grad," and he told about Sid, for that was common knowledgenow.
A goose egg went up in the Boxer frame that inning, and Tom lookedhappier. But, try as his men did in their share of the third, nothingresulted, though Woodhouse laid out a pretty liner, which was caught,after a run, by Sam Burton. Then came the heart-breaking last of thethird, when three runs were added to Boxer's score.
"Go on back home!" yelled some Boxer enthusiast at the Randall team."You can't play ball! Go back!"
"Not until we have your scalps!" declared Bean Perkins vindictively.
Seated together on the middle grand stand, Madge Tyler, Mabel Harrisonand Ruth Clinton looked at each other.
"Looks pretty bad, doesn't it, Ruth?" asked Madge.
"Don't talk," said Ruth in a low voice, as she saw her brother's teamcoming in. "I'm--I'm just _praying_ for them, Madge."
A ray of light came to Randall in this inning for, though Pete Backusstruck out, Tom laid down a pretty two bagger and came home on what wasintended as a sacrifice hit by Joe Jackson, only it was fumbled andJoe got to first. Then Jerry fanned and Dutch got out on an almostimpossible foul that Stoddard grabbed, banging up against the grandstand to do it.
"One to five," remarked Tom musingly, as he went to his box, for theending of the fourth. "Well, we can't be whitewashed, anyhow, but Iguess it's all up with us."
It seemed so, for in that inning Boxer added two runs to her credit,even if again Tom did strike out Langridge. The score was 7 to 1 againstRandall now. In the fifth inning Tom's side gathered in one run, Philmaking it on a sacrifice by Holly Cross, and Boxer further sweetened herscore by another tally. In the beginning of the sixth Randall had thejoy of seeing another single mark go up in her frame.
"We've got three runs," Tom remarked to Phil, as he went to his box."One more in each inning will look pretty, but it will hardly do thework," and he spoke bitterly.
"Hard luck, old man, but maybe it will turn," came from Phil.
But, alas for hopes! Many things happened in the last half of the sixth,and when they were done occur
ring there were four runs chalked up forBoxer. Tom rather lost control of himself, and had walked two men, whilethere was ragged field work to account for the rest of the disaster. Andnow the score stood 12 to 3 in favor of Boxer Hall. It seemed like afarce, and even Boxer Hall was tired of cheering herself. Tom saw thechampionship slipping away after all his hard work. Even BricktopMolloy, usually cheerful in the face of heavy odds, did not smile, andMr. Leighton looked gloomy.
"Well, let the slaughter go on," remarked Tom, as he came in with hismen, to see what the seventh inning held in store for them.
"I guess you'd better let Evert pitch the rest of the game, Mr.Leighton," said Tom, as he sat down on the bench beside the coach. "Hecan't do any worse than I've done."
"Nonsense! Things may take a turn even yet, though I admit they lookrather bad for us. I hope----"
But Mr. Leighton did not finish. There seemed to be some dispute withthe man on guard at the players' gate.
"No, you can't go in," said the official. "How do I know you are amember of the Randall team?"
"Why, of course I am!" cried a voice, and, at the sound of it, Tomlooked up quickly.
"Sid Henderson!" exclaimed the captain.
"Oh, Tom! Tom!" cried Sid. "Am I in time?" and he pushed past the gatetender.
"In time? Yes, to see us walloped," answered the captain bitterly.
"In time? What do you mean?" and Mr. Leighton caught at a strange notein Sid's voice.
"To play the game!"
"Play the game?" Tom had leaped to his feet.
"Yes. It's all right. Here's a note from Dr. Churchill. The ban isremoved. I can play--I can play!"
Tom ran over, and threw his arms around Sid. The game came to a suddenstop. The note was examined. Mr. Leighton told the umpire to make theannouncement that Sid Henderson would bat for Pete Backus that inning,and take his place in the game after that.
"I protest!" cried Langridge, coming up with an ugly look on his face.
There was a conference of the officials, but in the end they had toadmit that Sid was eligible, and the game started again. But with whata different feeling among the Randall players! It was as if new lifehad been infused into them. Bean Perkins started the song, "We're Goingto Wallop 'em Now!" and it was roared out from several hundred lustythroats.
Nor was it unjustified; for with a grim viciousness, after Holly Crosshad struck out, Dan Woodhouse rapped out a three bagger the moment hecame up to the bat, and Bricktop followed with a two-sack ball, bringingin Kindlings, while Sid, with a happy look on his face, looked grimly atLangridge, as if telling him to do his worst. The stands were stilltrembling under the stamping that had followed Dan's arrival home witha run, and when Sid swung at the ball, and duplicated Dan's trick,bringing in Bricktop, there was a wild riot of yells. They were kept upeven when Tom sacrificed to bring Sid home, and then Joe Jackson got tofirst on a fly that McGherity muffed. Jerry, by hitting out a prettyliner, enabled his brother to get to third, while Jerry was held onfirst. Up came Dutch and he clouted the ball to such good purpose thathe got to third, and the Jersey twins scored. Then poor Dutch died onthird for Phil fanned out. But nothing could dampen the enthusiasm ofthe Randallites then, for they had secured five runs, and the scorestood only 12 to 8 against them now.
"Oh, we can catch up!" yelled Bean Perkins. "Now for the 'Conquer orDie' song, fellows," and the strangely beautiful and solemn strains ofthe Latin melody floated over the field.
Tom's men began to play like fiends. They seemed to be all over thefield, and, though Tom was hit for a single, not another man got tofirst.
"Oh, if we can only hold 'em down, and bring in a few more runs we'vegot 'em!" panted Tom, as he came to the bench in the beginning of theeighth, and sat down beside Sid. "But say, old man, how did it happenthat the doctor let you play at the last minute?" he asked, while theothers waited for Sid's answer.
"I'll tell you later," the second baseman promised. "Gee, but I had atime getting here! Trolley wasn't running, and I had to come by train.Thought I'd have a long walk, but I met a fellow in an auto and he gaveme a lift. Then, just as I got here I heard that the trolleys startedrunning about five minutes after I left the stalled car. But, Tom, arewe going to win?"
"We sure are," declared the captain, clapping Sid on the back.