Windmill Windup by Matt Christopher Read Free Book Online Page B

Dorien Day, a skinny little sixth-grader who could run really fast, was leading off. Kyla Sutton was second, with Rena
     Downey fifth. The bottom of the order was composed of three sixth-graders and poor, hopeless Marie del Toro, batting ninth.
    “We’re the visiting team, so we’re up first,” the coach said. “Let’s jump out to a lead, okay? That’ll give Marie a cushion
     to work with.”
    “She’s gonna need it,” Kelly muttered softly.
    “What’s that?” Dorien asked her.
    “Um, nothing,” Kelly said.
    “Okay. Here goes…” Dorien picked up a bat that was much too heavy for her, in Kelly’s opinion, and headed for home plate.
    “Play ball!” the umpire shouted, and put on his mask.
    Laurie Solomon was on the mound for the Devil Rays. Kelly watched her warm up. Wow! Where had she learned to windmill pitch
     like that?
    Kelly had never known Laurie to have such a great arm. Obviously, she’d been getting good coaching somewhere. The ball zipped
     in toward the plate like a blur, making a sharp, buzzing sound. Kelly felt her muscles tightening and her nerves jangling.
     She’d never had to hit fast pitching like that before. Would she be able to now?
    “Okay, here we go, Diamondbacks!” Coach Beigelman said in his typical enthusiastic tone. “Put your hands in here!” The sixth-graders
     really got into the spirit, but Kelly and some of the other older girls laid back when he tried to get them excited. It seemed
     so …well,
dumb
.
    Kelly took a seat on the bench as the ump called, “Play ball!” and the Diamondbacks came up to bat.
    Dorien went down on strikes, swinging wildly at pitches she couldn’t even see, half of which wereover her head. Kelly snorted to herself and shook her head. This new team of hers was hopeless. How she wished she was back
     on her old team, where she belonged!
    Kyla Sutton was next. She had two strikes on her before a wild pitch from Laurie nailed her right in the helmet. Kyla screamed,
     more in fright than in pain, as Coach Beigelman and the ump checked to see if she was all right. She got up, wiped the tears
     from her eyes, and was escorted to first base.
    Kelly blew out a long breath. That was a close one, she realized. Kyla had been lucky not to get hurt. Laurie was pitching
     fireballs, and she was just a little bit wild, too. A scary combination.
    Now, as Kelly grabbed a helmet and a bat and stood in the on-deck circle, Allie Warheit stepped up to the plate. Allie watched
     the first three pitches go by without swinging, letting the count go to two balls and a strike. A hitter’s count. Then she
     swung at the fourth pitch and sent the ball rocketing over the center fielder’s head.
    Allie took off like a shot, and by the time she rounded third base, she had caught up to Kyla, who was still recovering from
     being hit in the head by the pitch.
    “Go! Go!” Allie shouted, pushing Kyla along in front of her. The two girls crossed the plate ahead of the relay throw, and
     the Diamondbacks mobbed them, yelling happily as they took a 2–0 lead.
    Kelly walked slowly to the plate, a mix of emotions surging inside her. She’d hoped to be the one to knock the runner in,
     but Allie Warheit had stolen her thunder. Now there was no way Kelly could top her feat. Not in this at bat, anyway.
    Laurie Solomon wound up and fired a pitch. Kelly tried to get the bat moving through the zone, but the ball was in the catcher’s
     mitt before she even swung. “Strike one!” the umpire called. Kelly tensed, gripping the bat handle tighter. She knew she’d
     have to hurry her swing to catch up with the ball.
    Laurie fired another one, and Kelly swung fast — but the pitch was outside and high, and she wound up lunging at it, hitting
     only air. “Strike two!” the umpire called.
    Kelly could hear the murmuring from both benches. Everyone knew her reputation from last season — the big home-run hitter,
     best in the league. But that had been against regular, slow