human
I wonder if I'll have the slightest show to make the baseball team, said Bert.
gpt
I suppose, as a newcomer I'll be a rank outsider.
human
Don't you believe that for a minute, replied Dick warmly.
gpt
Of course there'll be lots of competition and a raft of material to pick from. I suppose when the coach sends out the call for candidates in the Spring, there'll be dozens of would-be players and a bunch too of have-beens that will trot out on the diamond to be put through their paces. One thing is certain, though, and that is that you'll get your chance. There may be a whole lot of snobbery in college life--though there isn't half as much as people think--but, out on the ball field, it's a pure democracy. The only question there is whether you can deliver the goods. If you can, they don't care whether you're a new man or an old-timer. All they want is a winner.
human
Well, chimed in Tom,
gpt
That's all right, said Bert,
human
Some of them certainly can slaughter a pitcher's curves, laughed Dick.
gpt
Old Pendleton, for instance, would have the nerve to start a batting rally against three-fingered Brown, and Harry Lord wouldn't be hypnotized even if Matty glared at him.
human
I understand you did some fence breaking yourself last Spring on the scrubs, said Tom.
gpt
Steve Thomas told me you were the heaviest batter in college.
human
O, I don't know, returned Dick modestly,
gpt
I led them in three-base hits and my batting average was .319, but Pendleton was ahead of me in the matter of home runs. I hope to do better next Spring, though, as Ainslee, the coach, gave me some valuable tips on hitting them out. At first I swung too much and tried to knock the cover off the ball. The result was that when I did hit the ball it certainly traveled some. But many a time I missed them because I took too long a swing. Ainslee showed me how to chop at the ball with a sharp, quick stroke that caught it just before the curve began to break. Then all the power of my arms and shoulders leaned up against the ball at just the right second. Ainslee says that Home-Run Baker uses that method altogether, and you know what kind of a hitter he is. I got it down pretty fine before the season ended, and if I make the team next Spring----
human
If you make it, said Bert incredulously.
gpt
As though it wasn't a dead certainty.
human
Not a bit of it, protested Dick, seriously.
gpt
You never can tell from year to year. You can't live on your reputation at college. There may be a regular Hal Chase among the new recruits, and he may win the first base position over me without half trying. It's a good thing it is so, too, because we have to keep hustling all the time or see somebody else step into our shoes. The result is that when the team is finally licked into shape by the coaches, it represents the very best the college can turn out. It's a fighting machine that never knows when it is whipped and never quits trying until the last man is out in the ninth inning.
human
Yes, broke in Tom,
gpt
Well, said Bert, as the fellows rose to go,