The Rival Pitchers: A Story of College BaseballChadwick, Lester
General
The Rival Pitchers: A Story of College Baseball
Chadwick, Lester
Baseball stories; College sports -- Juvenile fiction
The first part of the program was carried out all right. By some
phenomenal playing Randall managed to get the lead by one run. They
would have had another but for a miscalculation on the part of Ed Kerr,
who was caught napping between third and home, where he was run down
and put out.
"Now, fellows, we have them on the hip!" exclaimed Captain Woodhouse as
he called his players together for a little talk before the final
struggle was made. "If we can hold them down this inning we have them.
Langridge, it's up to you!"
"I know it. But don't worry, I'll do it."
It sounded well, and there was a determined look in the pitcher's face,
but his eyes were unnaturally bright. His pitching had been ragged
during the last three innings and the sudden decline of the abilities of
the Boxer players had done as much as anything to give Randall her
chance.
"Oh, I hope Fred strikes three out, one right after the other!"
exclaimed Miss Tyler as she shifted nervously in her seat. "He must be
under a dreadful strain."
"Probably he is," said Tom. "But if he takes a brace now he'll be all
right."
"He's been taking too many bracers--that's what's the matter with him,"
said a voice back of Tom, and he knew it was one of the former graduates
speaking. Tom looked at the girl beside him. Either she had not heard or
she took no notice of the remark.
It was a tense moment when Langridge sent in the first ball. It was
called a strike and the batsman looked surprised. The next was a ball,
but two more strikes were called without the player getting a chance to
swing at the horsehide. Langridge smiled at the cheers which greeted
him. Then he did what few other pitchers could have done under the
circumstances. He struck out the next two men, though one did manage to
hit a high foul, which Kerr missed. Langridge had saved the game by
holding the other team hitless.
Such a cheer as went up then when it was seen that Randall had won! The
stamping of feet on the stands sounded like thunder. Back of Tom and
Miss Tyler two old men began yelling like Indians, hugging each other
and whirling about. They were the two "old grads" of '73. They were
waving their hats in the air and yelling "Randall! Randall! Randall!"
until their faces were the color of raw beef.
"Wow!" cried the taller of the two. "This does my heart good! I'm forty
years young again. Wow! Whoop-la!"
Suddenly he drew back his hand and his silk hat went sailing over the
edge of the grandstand to the grass of the outfield. It was caught by
some Randall players and quickly kicked out of shape.
"Why, that was a new hat!" exclaimed the man's companion.
"I know it, but there's more where that came from. I can buy a new hat
every day, but I can't see my old college win such a game as this. Wow!
Whoop!"
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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