On the first ball pitched, Truly, seeming to forget that second was occupied, shot down the line. Instantly Yapp winged the ball to first, and even as he did so Collins stretched himself for third. Seeing this, the first baseman attempted to cut Collins off by a throw across, and Truly went on to second. By a fine slide, Collins shot under the third baseman, who made a sweeping, ineffectual jab at him, and then threw to second to stop the crafty Truly. Truly was there ahead of the ball, and had the baseman not been alive to the situation, which led him to whip the sphere to the plate without an instant’s delay, Collins would have tried to score. As it was, he got back to third a second ahead of the ball, and the delayed double steal was a complete success. With second and third occupied, a long single in the right quarter would give the visitors a start of two runs. Out of the corner of his mouth, Hank Bristol spoke to Bert Elgin. “Take Putnam,” he said, “and go down into a corner, and keep your arm warm. I may want you any minute.” Jewett saw the new pitcher and the change catcher leave the bench, and knew what it meant. Desperate, he whipped over a jumper to Digg, who attempted to lace it out, and simply hoisted a short fly to second. Leaving the bench, Kennedy took Tom Boyd’s place on the coaching line, Boyd being the batter who followed Hallett. “Got ’em going!” grinned old Jack. “Hit it a mile, Hallett! Give ’em a chance to use their new wizard right away.” While apparently encouraging Hallett to smash the ball, he gave the signal for the squeeze play, which doubtless would be unexpected at this moment, when everything seemed to indicate the immediate downfall of the unsteady pitcher. Jewett handed up another. With the first hint of his movement Collins started like a shot for the plate. Hallett lifted his bat, held it slack, and bunted. Instead of falling to the ground, the ball rebounded in a little fly, which was caught by Jewett without moving from his tracks. Collins, warned by a shout, tried to stop. He saw Jewett with the ball, and realized what had happened. The pitcher, elated, laughed at him; and the sphere was tossed to third for a double play, which put an abrupt end to the fine start the Deers had promised to make. It also let Jewett out of a bad hole through a streak of great luck. Nevertheless it was probable Bristol would use the new man with the coming inning; and far out in a corner of the field Elgin, working easily with the change catcher, awaited the call. CHAPTER XXXI PITCHERS’ WATERLOO