He shook his head disgustedly, then dug in, ready for more of the same. Instead Avery quick-pitched him, catching him flat-footed for strike two! She quick-pitched again on the next pitch, but this time it was a changeup, and Brad swung right through it! He went back to the bench in a rage, yelling at himself.
“One more out, Ave!” Derek called to her. “You got this!”
Dave was up next. His last at bat ever in Kalamazoo, Derek realized with a pang of sadness.
Avery used her funky motion again, and Dave managed only a weak bouncer to first. Ryan was waiting for it behind the bag—and it should have been an easy third out.
But once again, a quirky bounce went against the Yankees. The ball hit the bag and ricocheted into foul territory! By the time Ryan retrieved it, the tying run had scored, and the Tigers had runners on second and third!
Avery looked down at the ground, distraught. She turned in every direction, as if to ask, Why? But Derek knew there was no answer to that question.
Coach K came out and talked with her. Derek could hear him asking her if she was okay. Avery looked away from him, wincing but insisting she was fine. Coach K looked over to the stands, where Avery’s mom was standing and anxiously wringing her hands.
That seemed to decide things for Coach K. He took the ball from Avery, leaving it up to Pete to get the Yankees out of this jam. Avery shuffled slowly back to the bench. All the anger, all the fight had drained out of her. She looked beaten.
Pete hadn’t prepared for this moment. But he was the best hope they had to keep it tied, and snatch victory from the jaws of defeat.
No such luck. The first hitter Pete faced doubled to left, scoring two runs and putting the Tigers ahead 5–3. Derek’s whole body sagged as he watched them mob each other, already celebrating.
Go ahead, celebrate, he thought. You haven’t won yet.
The Tigers weren’t done, though. They put two more runs across before Pete finally got the last out. The inning had been a total disaster, leaving the Yankees four runs down with only three outs left!
Norman, their number nine hitter, led off. He promptly popped back to the pitcher for the first out. Then Mason hit a grounder that he almost beat out for another hit—but a great throw from Dave across the infield just nipped him in time.
Derek was the team’s last hope, and he waited patiently for his pitch. When it came, on a 3–1 count, he laced it to left for a clean single. “Come on, Pete!” he yelled, trying to muster the enthusiasm he’d felt an inning ago.
Pete did manage to hit one hard—but the pitcher stuck out his mitt, and the ball smacked right into the pocket and stayed there!
One last cruel twist of fate, and the game was over!
Derek stood on first base, stunned. He couldn’t believe the season had come to such a sudden, disastrous end!
All the Yankees were somber, hugging each other sadly as they watched the Tigers go wild with joy. Their coach was already dragging a big box of trophies onto the field to give his champions.
The teams shook hands, but Avery remained on the bench alone, her head buried in her hands.
“Great game,” Derek told Dave as they shook.
“It really was, wasn’t it?” Dave said. “Sorry one of us had to lose.”
“Me too. Hey, you played great, though. Seriously.”
“You did too. You robbed me twice! I just wish…”
But there was no time to talk now. Other kids were pushing forward behind them. “See you Monday at school, I guess,” Dave said.
“What about going to the range this weekend?” Derek asked.
“I know we talked about it,” Dave said. “But I’m way behind with my packing, and my folks are getting pretty annoyed about it. So…”
“Okay,” Derek said. “But if you do get free—”
“I’ll call you,” Dave said. “You know I will.”
After the handshakes, Derek went over to Avery and sat next to her. Seeing him there, she reached over and hugged him. Derek could tell she was holding back all the fury and frustration she felt.
“You did everything you could,” he told her. “Just some bad bounces, that’s all. Your brother would have been proud of you. No—he is proud. You know he is. We’ll get him that trophy next year. You’ll see.”
But even as he said it, he knew there might not be any next year for Avery. She’d been through a lot this season, taken a lot of abuse and neglect, and put a world of pressure on herself to honor her brother’s legacy. After today would she come back and try again?
Should she even?
After a moment she got up and silently walked off toward the stands. Her mother was waiting there, along with Avery’s brother’s two friends.
Derek found his own family. They all had kind words for him, but they knew how disappointed he was, and didn’t try to sugarcoat a bitter, bitter defeat. Hugging them all, Derek felt better than he had a minute before.
He knew why, too—everything he’d just told Avery went for him as well. He’d played his heart out and had a really good game. It just hadn’t been enough.
But there would be another game for him, another season, and, thinking optimistically, another championship game. Besides, he’d learned a ton this year, even though they’d come up short in the end.
Most important, it really had been fun—most of the time, at least. He’d made a great new friend in Avery, and he’d become a better ballplayer along the way.
He made the rounds of his teammates, telling them to hold their heads up because they’d had a great season and should be proud of what they’d accomplished. And as he said it, he realized it was true.
“Derek!” he heard his dad
