The Away Game Page 3

  Rhino toed the dirt with his right foot and let out his breath. Even though he was a lefty, he felt comfortable batting against another left-hander. Bring it on, he thought.

  The first pitch blazed past for a strike.

  Whoa, Rhino thought. This guy definitely has some heat.

  He took a wild swing at the next one and didn’t come close. Settle down, his thinker said. Find the ball and meet it.

  The next pitch was just outside, but waist high and hittable. Yes, Rhino thought as his swing met the ball. He raced toward first base.

  The spectators stood and gasped. The ball was soaring way out of the park. But it was outside the right-field foul pole. Rhino shook his head and trotted back.

  “Straighten it out!” Cooper called. “One more like that.”

  Rhino’s heart was beating fast. He eyed the pitcher. Got set. Swung!

  “Strike three!” called the umpire.

  Rhino walked swiftly back to the dugout.

  The next two Mustangs struck out, too. And all three Mustangs made quick outs in the third.

  “He’s got a no-hitter going,” Bella said as the Mustangs came to the bench in the top of the fourth.

  “Worse than that,” Rhino said. “It’s a perfect game so far. The pitcher hasn’t given up any hits or walks and nobody has made a fielding error.”

  But Dylan was pitching well, too. The Mustangs still trailed by only a run.

  When Cooper led off with a walk, Rhino felt another surge of excitement. Unless there was a double play, he’d bat this inning. He could tie the game or give the Mustangs the lead.

  Bella grounded out. Dylan struck out.

  “Don’t leave him stranded,” came a call from the Mustangs’ dugout.

  Rhino nodded. He’d been studying the Cardinals’ pitcher. His pitches were just as fast as before, but they weren’t moving much. Most of them were straight down the middle. Home-run pitches.

  I’m blasting this one out of the park, Rhino thought. Say bye-bye to that no-hitter and the lead!

  The Cardinals pitcher was wary. He’d seen Rhino’s power in that long foul ball the last time, so he kept his pitches low and inside.

  The count ran full. Three balls and two strikes. Cooper took a big lead off first base.

  Bam! Rhino smashed the ball and it lined toward right field. The second baseman leaped and touched the ball with his glove, but it still rolled into the outfield. Rhino was safe at first, but he hadn’t driven in a run. Cooper was stalled at third.

  An easy pop fly ended the inning. CARDINALS 1, MUSTANGS 0.

  “We’ve got two more at bats,” Cooper said as they took the field. “Hold them scoreless. We can still win this thing.”

  At least Rhino had broken up the no-hitter. That might give the other Mustangs some confidence at the plate.

  But the Mustangs went three up, three down in the fifth. Still, Dylan kept the Cards in check. It remained a one-run game as the Mustangs came up to bat in the sixth.

  The first batter struck out, but that brought up the top of the Mustangs’ order.

  “Let’s go, Coo-per!” chanted the players on the bench. Five quick claps, then “Let’s go Coo-per!” again.

  Rhino sipped from a water bottle. The Cardinals were tough, but Rhino was sure his team could win. Just get on base, Cooper, he thought. I’ll bring you home this time.

  Cooper came through. He smacked a line drive over the shortstop’s head and it fell safely into left field. Bella followed with a single, too.

  “Do it for the puppy,” Rhino said to Dylan.

  Dylan smirked. He popped a perfect bunt in front of the plate, moving Cooper and Bella to second and third. Dylan was out, but he’d done his job. Rhino held out his hand and Dylan slapped it as he trotted to the dugout.

  “Rhino! Rhino! Rhino!”

  A solid single would tie the game or give the Mustangs the lead. A home run would leave no doubt.

  Rhino tapped some dirt from his cleats with the bat. His eyes met the pitcher’s.

  A sudden thought crossed Rhino’s mind. Making an out here might not be so bad. The Mustangs would lose the game, but then they’d be heading home. He’d sleep in his own bed tonight.

  That’s not you, his thinker told him. Be a winner.

  Rhino crushed the first pitch deep into right-center field. The ball smashed off the fence, and Rhino raced into third base with a stand-up triple.

  Cooper scored, then Bella.

  Rhino watched the scoreboard change: CARDINALS 1, MUSTANGS 2.

  And that’s how it looked when the game ended.

  “A great defensive effort by both teams,” said the announcer. “The Mustangs advance to tomorrow’s championship game, right here at noon.”

  Two more teams began warming up on the field for the second game. The Mustangs bought lunch at the refreshment stand, then took seats in the bleachers to watch.

  The team in black and orange had a strong pitcher. He fired a two-hit shutout.

  “Glad we don’t have to face him tomorrow,” Cooper said. “Wonder who else they have?”

  “We’ll find out soon enough,” Rhino said. He gave Cooper a light punch on the arm. Cooper would be pitching tomorrow.

  That evening, a buffet was set up for the Mustangs at the hotel.

  “I’m starving,” Rhino said to Cooper as they waited in the line. He could see salads, roasted chicken, macaroni and cheese, and other items, plus a dessert table with cookies, pies, and cake.

  Rhino loaded up his plate. Winning always gave him a lift, especially when he drove in the winning runs. The pressure was high in this tournament, but he was having fun.

  Grandpa phoned again while they were at the dinner table. Cooper’s dad handed Rhino the phone.

  Rhino told Grandpa all about the close game and his two hits. “He was the fastest pitcher I’ve ever faced,” Rhino said. “But I figured him out.”

  Grandpa said they were on their way to C.J.’s science fair. Rhino loved doing things like that with his family. Why couldn’t he be there?

  “I miss you,” Rhino said. His eyes stung again. Rhino walked away from his teammates. “Wish I was there with you.”

  “Tomorrow night will get here quickly,” Grandpa said. “You keep your mind on the game. Have fun!”

  Rhino waited a few minutes before returning to the table. Cooper was telling a joke about a Martian. Everybody was loose and happy.

  Rhino sat quietly. He pushed some mac and cheese around his plate, but he wasn’t hungry anymore.

  Bella gently grabbed Rhino’s arm. “Let’s check out those cookies,” she said.

  The cookies did look good. When they were away from the others, Bella said, “Everything okay at home?”

  “Sure. Everyone is fine.”

  “That’s good.”

  “Wish I was with my family,” Rhino said.

  “I know what you mean,” Bella replied. “But we’re having lots of fun, aren’t we? We can play some more games again in the room tonight. It’ll be fun. You’ll see.”

  You don’t know what I mean, Rhino thought. Your dad is here with you.

  But then his thinker told him to listen to his friend. She’s just trying to help.

  Rhino took three chocolate-chip cookies. “Thanks,” he said softly to Bella.

  But he didn’t feel much better.

  Cooper’s dad watched a baseball game on TV while Rhino and Cooper played cards. Rhino tried to keep his mind off being homesick, but it wasn’t working very well.

  When Bella knocked on the door, Cooper hopped up.

  “My dad said we can all hang out in our room tonight,” Bella said. “We ordered ice cream from room service! Come on over.”

  “I’m on my way!” Cooper said. “Hurry up, Rhino.”

  Rhino set down the cards. “Go on ahead,” he said. “I’ll be along in a few minutes.”

  “If you’re not, I’ll be back to get you,” Cooper said.

  Rhino sat on the floor and watched
the game.

  “Tired?” Cooper’s dad asked.

  “Not really.” Rhino stood up and looked out the window. He could see the stadium, which had a few lights on in the bleachers. The field was dark. For several minutes he watched cars and trucks go by on the street below.

  He didn’t feel like being with his teammates. They would just try to cheer him up. He wanted to make it through this night, play the game, and get home to Grandpa and C.J. as fast as possible.

  But when Cooper came back for him, Rhino grabbed his Mustangs cap and headed over to Bella’s room.

  “Where have you been?” Carlos said. “The ice cream’s getting soft.”

  Rhino smiled a little. “I like it that way,” he said. “And you’ve got chocolate sauce on your nose, Carlos.”

  “We need some music,” Bella said.

  Rhino pointed out that the radio was already on.

  “Live music,” Bella said. “Carlos, wipe your nose clean and give us a show.”

  Carlos blushed. He’d won the school talent show with a soulful singing performance a few weeks before. Rhino and Cooper backed him up on guitar and drums.

  Cooper tapped out a rhythm on the table with his fingertips. “Come on, Carlos,” he said. “Belt one out!”

  “Only if everybody helps me,” Carlos said. “Listen. I’ll teach you the words. You probably already know them. This one’s easy.”

  Carlos turned his baseball cap around so the brim was behind him. He started to sing.

  “Take me out to the ball game, take me out with the crowd …”

  Bella and Cooper joined in. “Buy me some peanuts and Cracker Jack, I don’t care if I never get back.”

  Soon everyone was singing. Rhino knew all the words, too. He jumped in for the last lines. “For it’s one, two, three strikes you’re out, at the old ball game!”

  Everybody clapped. “Faster now!” Carlos said.

  “Wait, wait!” said Rhino. “That last line? Isn’t it ‘one, two, three stripes you’re out’?”

  Carlos pulled off his hat and whacked Rhino with it.

  “Hey,” Rhino said, “that was your bad joke, Mr. Comedian!”

  They sang the song several more times, getting faster all the time.

  “Go, Mustangs!” Bella called as they finished.

  Rhino looked around at his teammates. They did make him feel better, and they weren’t even trying to. But someone was missing. “Where’s Dylan?” he asked.

  “He stayed back in the room,” Carlos said. “Tired again, I guess.”

  Rhino didn’t buy it. “Which room?” he asked.

  “817.”

  Rhino said he’d be right back.

  Dylan was wearing sunglasses when he answered the door.

  “What’s up?” Rhino asked.

  Dylan touched the glasses but didn’t take them off. “My eyes were … sore. Maybe from the glare of the sun this afternoon.”

  Rhino walked into the room. It was uncomfortable to be here with Dylan, since they’d never gotten along very well. But Rhino knew Dylan was upset. The party had made Rhino feel much better, and he wanted the same for Dylan.

  “Everybody’s having fun in Bella’s room,” Rhino said. “There’s ice cream. Very mushy ice cream, but it’s there.”

  “I’m … I’m fine here,” Dylan said. “I was just about to go to bed.”

  But Dylan was fully dressed. Rhino pulled a chair from the desk and sat down. “You pitched an awesome game today.”

  “That’s what I do,” Dylan said. He stared at the wall. “I’ll be at shortstop tomorrow, so …”

  “Cooper will pitch fine.”

  “Not as good as I did.”

  Rhino rolled his eyes. Dylan was a good athlete, but he wasn’t very humble about it. Rhino tried something else to break the tension. “Do you have a picture of Bruiser?”

  “Yeah. On my phone.” Dylan showed him the chubby puppy.

  “Beautiful!” Rhino said. “He’s all brown—even his eyes and his nose.”

  Dylan laughed. “He has a pink tongue.”

  “Wonder how he slept last night.”

  Dylan frowned. “Not so well, I hear. My parents won’t let him up on the bed. They stuck him in a bathroom and let him cry. That’s probably best so he won’t get spoiled, but …”

  “It’s hard.”

  Dylan sniffed. He wiped his eye quickly under the sunglasses.

  “He’ll be okay,” Rhino said. “It’s tough being away. First from his mother, now from you.”

  “Yeah.” Dylan sighed. He sat on the bed and looked at the picture on his phone.

  “One more night,” Rhino said. That’s all we have to get through.

  “I’ll be right back,” Dylan mumbled. He went into the bathroom. Rhino heard the water running for a couple of minutes.

  “Okay,” Dylan said. “What flavor ice cream?”

  “Vanilla. But there’s chocolate sauce, too.”

  “Sounds like my kind of party,” Dylan said. “Let’s go.” He put his sunglasses back on, but Rhino could tell he was happier.

  It doesn’t take much, Rhino’s thinker told him. Just a few kind words sometimes.

  Rhino was feeling much better when he crept beneath the covers of the cot that evening. One more night, he thought. When I wake up tomorrow, it will be just like any other day. Soon I’ll be back with C.J. and Grandpa James!

  “Hey, Rhino,” Cooper whispered from his bed.

  “Yeah?”

  “Think we’ll win tomorrow?”

  “Of course I do!” Rhino laughed. “I always expect to win.”

  “I guess the pressure’s on me this time,” Cooper said.

  “The Mustangs win together or we lose together,” Rhino said. “That’s the truth.”

  “Still … a few bad pitches and we’re in trouble.”

  “Relax,” Rhino said. “You’ve got the whole team behind you.”

  Rhino was half asleep when Cooper whispered again. “Rhino!”

  “Yeah?”

  “Are you homesick?”

  Rhino rolled over and waited a moment. “A little,” he finally replied.

  “You aren’t the only one.”

  “I know,” Rhino said. “But the one who surprised me most was Carlos. If anybody was going to be homesick, I thought it would be him. He’s so shy and he gets nervous. But he’s been the most relaxed one of all—joking around, leading the songs.”

  “You never know,” Cooper said.

  Rhino nodded off. The sun was shining through the window by the time he woke up in the morning. Cooper and his dad were watching the news on TV.

  “I’m hungry!” Rhino said. “We need fuel for the big game.”

  “Then get dressed and let’s go,” Cooper said. “I’ve been up for an hour!”

  “You could have gotten me up.”

  “I figured you needed the sleep.”

  Carlos and Bella were finishing their breakfast when Rhino and Cooper entered the hotel restaurant.

  “We’ll stay and keep you company,” Carlos said, eating his last bite of pancake.

  Rhino ordered a waffle with bacon and a side of melon. Cooper started to order, then his mouth dropped open and he stared past Rhino.

  “What?” Rhino asked.

  Cooper pointed. Rhino turned and couldn’t believe what he saw. He jumped out of his chair.

  “Grandpa!” Rhino called, hugging his grandfather and C.J. “I can’t believe you’re here.”

  “We got up super early and drove nonstop,” C.J. said. “Didn’t want to miss a championship game!”

  “Any room for us at the table?” Grandpa asked. “We didn’t even eat breakfast.”

  “We’ll make room,” Rhino said. “This is the best surprise ever!”

  Grandpa whispered in Rhino’s ear. “I’m very proud of you. And it has nothing to do with baseball.”

  Rhino’s eyes stung again, but he wasn’t sad this time. “I’m proud, too,” he said.

 
Rhino and Cooper told C.J. all about the stadium, with its fancy scoreboard and flags everywhere. Then C.J. went on about the science fair.

  “Third prize,” he said. “Not bad, huh?”

  “Excellent,” Rhino said. He’d suggested that C.J. do a project about Jupiter’s moons, since outer space was Rhino’s favorite topic after dinosaurs. Outer space seemed better for a seventh-grade project.

  “First prize was a robot made out of drinking straws and soda cans,” C.J. said. “Really advanced. It had a claw to pick things up with.”

  “Wish I could have seen that,” Rhino said.

  “It was pretty cool,” C.J. said. “I was happy with third place after I saw that one.”

  “First place is our target today,” Rhino said. “That team we’re up against looked really strong yesterday.”

  “No problem,” Bella said. “We have the best power hitter in the tournament.”

  Rhino took a sip of water. He smiled at Bella, but he didn’t want to brag about that game-winning triple.

  * * *

  When they reached the field, Rhino put the infielders through some quick drills, rolling fast grounders to them. “Accurate throws!” he called. And square up, his thinker reminded him.

  The bleachers filled with spectators. Grandpa and C.J. had seats directly behind first base. Pop music played from the announcer’s booth. Rhino inhaled the smell of hot dogs cooking in the refreshment stand. The breeze was very light, so the pennants along the fences barely moved.

  Rhino scuffed up the dirt near first base with his cleats. The orange-and-black-clad opponents were warming up in the outfield. The Chargers. They’d bat first today.

  “It’s funny that we’re the home team,” Rhino said to Carlos. “Since we’re so far from home.”

  “Somebody had to be,” Carlos replied. “I think the Chargers came even farther than we did.”

  Rhino noticed the pitcher from yesterday’s game fielding pop flies. A different pitcher was throwing to the catcher on the other side of third base. He was tall and thin, with a strong overhand motion.

  This would be a tough game. So many people watching; so far from home. But Rhino didn’t feel nervous at all. My kind of day, he thought. He turned and gave a thumbs-up to C.J. and Grandpa.