Catcher with a Glass Arm Read Online Free

happened to Jody.
    The first time up, he had swung at the first pitch and popped out. Nobody knew how he really felt then. He was glad he didn’t
     have to spend a longer time at the plate.
    Now he was up again. Johnny Bartho wason third, and Joe Bell on second. The Tigers were leading, 3-2.
    Jim Gregg, the Tigers’ tall, wiry right-hander, hurled in the first pitch. It came in belt-high. Jody watched it, and all
     at once he thought it was streaking at him. He got scared and jumped back from the plate.
    “Strike!” yelled the umpire.
    The next pitch was slightly higher and just as close. Again Jody jumped back.
    “Strike two!” yelled the umpire.
    The Tigers’ players started to laugh and make fun of him. His teammates shouted at him to swing. “Come on, Jody! You can hit
     him!” yelled Coach Fisher from his third-base coaching box.
    Jody stepped out of the batter’s box a moment, rubbed dust on his hands, then stepped back in again. Sweat stood out on his
     forehead and rolled in tiny rivers down his face.
    “Stick in there, Jody, boy!” a voice said from the grandstand. “Don’t be afraid of them!”
    Jody remembered that voice. It belonged to the man who had been so friendly toward him during those first few games.
    In came the pitch. It was knee-high. It was going to groove the middle of the plate. Jody could see that—
yet his right foot stepped back away from the plate as he swung. He missed the ball by a foot!
    That made the third out. Jody saw Johnny Bartho kick the third-base sack as he turned and headed for left field.
    Jody tossed his bat aside and began putting on his shin guards. His hands shook. He had trouble fastening the buckles. Coach
     Fisher came over and helped him.
    “What happened, Jody?” he asked quietly. “You looked scared up there.”
    “I know,” said Jody.
    “No sense being scared. Just stay in there. Forget what happened the other day. Make up your mind you’re going to hit that
     ball. You’ve hit it before—you’ll hit it again.”
    In the. sixth Jody was up again. The score was 4-2 in the Tigers’ favor. Birdie Davis was on first.
    Jody waited out the pitcher. He got three balls on him, then a strike.
I wish he walks me, I wish he walks me,
Jody was telling himself.
    “Strike two!” yelled the umpire.
    Three and two. This would be it. He had to watch this next pitch closely.
    The ball came in. It looked good, almost even with the letters on his jersey. Then all at once it seemed to come at his head.
     He ducked back, almost losing his balance.
    “Yeaaa!” yelled the umpire. “You’re out!”
    Jody clamped his lips lightly for a moment, then walked away.
    When the game was over, the score was the same, 4-2. As the teams walked off the field, Jody kept his eyes lowered so that
     he wouldn’t have to look at anyone.
    Suddenly he heard someone say, “Jody! Wait! I’d like to see you a minute!”

7
    J ody turned and saw the tall, thin man who had become one of his best fans.
    “Hi, Jody,” the man greeted. “See that you have more troubles now, haven’t you?”
    “Guess so,” said Jody, and began rubbing the toe of his right shoe into the grass.
    “Two problems,” said the man. “That’s pretty rough going. Not throwing well and being afraid of a pitched ball are two of
     the worst things a ballplayer could wish for himself.”
    “I know,” said Jody. “Guess I’ll never be any different.”
    The man chuckled. “That’s where you’re wrong. You see, you do have a strong arm. You’re just afraid to throw hard—you think
     you’ll throw the ball
too
far. That’s wrong thinking.
    “Your new problem is worse. You can’t be afraid of a pitched ball, because then you’ll
never
hit. But you have hit, before—and very well, too. That bang you got on the head the other day scared you. You must forget
     that. That’s why ballplayers wear helmets nowadays. When I played ball, we didn’t even think of helmets. So—don’t be afraid
     anymore.