Deeper!” Barry looked up and saw T.V. Adams motioning Tootsie Malone to back up toward the fence. T.V. did that a lot. He seemed to have a real knack for predicting where the opposing batters were going to hit the ball. As usual, he was right on the button. Arnie Nobles, the Junk Shop’s leadoff batter, had blasted a home run his first time up, and it looked as if he was ready to do it again. He was a tall kid and had a lot of power in his swing. Crack! He connected a two-two pitch for a long drive toward deep left field, just as T.V. had figured he might. If Tootsie hadn’t played deep, the ball would have gone over his head for at least a triple. But Tootsie only had to take two steps back, raise his gloved hand, and catch it. Neither team scored again. The game went to Belk’s Junk Shoppers, 6 to 5. “Well, it made no difference anyway,” Susan said as she and Tommy walked home with Barry.
