“But we don’t have any plans to have the vice president sign my ball!” Mike said to Kate as they left the gift shop.
“I know,” Kate said. “But Andy doesn’t know that. What’s important is that he knows that your baseball will be in Chip’s locker during the game.”
“But we can’t get into the clubhouse during the game,” Mike said. “How will we catch him?”
Kate waved her hand. “Don’t worry,” she said. “I think Agent MacKay can help us with that. Come on, I see my mom by the reflecting pool.”
—
After a quick trip to the hotel to change clothes, the three headed back to Nationals Park.
“I’ll see you two after the game,” Mrs. Hopkins said as they entered the stadium. “Try to stay out of trouble.”
Kate gave a big sigh. “We will, Mom,” she said. She gave her mom a hug. “See you later!”
As soon as Kate’s mom headed off to the pressroom, Kate called Agent MacKay. She asked him to meet her and Mike near the stadium’s gift shop.
“What’s this about?” Agent MacKay asked when he showed up fifteen minutes later. “You said something on the phone about catching a crook. What’s your plan?”
Kate whispered something in his ear. As she did, his expression changed from concern to surprise to excitement.
“That’s an excellent plan,” he said. “I’d be happy to help. Just give me the ball, and I’ll call you when it’s the right time.”
Mike handed over his baseball. Agent MacKay tucked it into his pocket, gave them a wave, and walked away.
“Now what do we do?” Mike asked as they headed for their seats.
Kate smiled and shrugged. “Just wait,” she said. “Let’s watch the game!”
It was a perfect night for baseball. The sun was starting to set when the Nationals came out to throw the first pitch. Chip took his position behind the plate. He caught the warm-up throws but bobbled a practice throw to second base.
“Chip seems uneasy tonight,” Kate said. “He keeps looking over his shoulder like he’s nervous.”
“I know,” Mike said. “Hopefully he won’t have any problems.”
The fans cheered when the Nationals pitcher threw his first pitch. They grew quiet two pitches later when the Arizona Diamondbacks got their first batter on base. But the crowd exploded in cheers when the Nationals made a double play on the next batter for two outs. A slow grounder to the shortstop ended the Diamondbacks’ turn at bat.
Although they got a couple players on base, the Nationals didn’t score in the first inning. As they took the field for the top of the second inning, Kate’s phone buzzed. She pulled it out of her pocket and answered it.
“It’s go time!” she told Mike. “Andy just went into the clubhouse!”
Kate sprang out of her seat and ran up the aisle. Mike followed. When they got to the clubhouse, Agent MacKay was already there. He was leaning against the wall. “Good evening, you two,” he said. “At least I think it will be a good evening for Chip when we catch Andy. I’ll just wait around the corner here.”
Mike and Kate stood against the wall opposite the clubhouse door. Then they waited. A few minutes later, the door opened. Andy walked out. He took a few steps forward and then noticed Mike and Kate.
“Oh, hello there,” he said. He dropped his hands behind his back. Then he looked around like he was searching for something. “Why aren’t you watching the game?”
Kate spoke up. “We were,” she said. “In fact, in the last inning, Chip stole a base! But you wouldn’t know that because you were down here stealing something from Chip’s locker!”
Andy took a step backward. “What?” he asked. “What are you talking about?”
Agent MacKay stepped around the corner. Before Andy could react, Agent MacKay had grabbed Andy’s wrists and pulled something out of his hand.
It was Mike’s signed baseball!
Andy tried to run away, but Agent MacKay held on to his wrists.
“You’re coming with me,” he said. “I have a feeling you might have given your last tour.”
Agent MacKay nodded at Mike and Kate. “Meet me back by the Nationals’ dugout after the Presidents Race.”
By the time Mike and Kate made it back to their seats, the Nationals were ahead 1–0. It was the top of the third inning, and the Diamondbacks were trying to catch up.
Kate bounced in her seat. “I can’t believe that just worked!” she said.
“I can’t believe Andy was stealing from Chip. Some friend he is!” Mike said.
As they watched the rest of the third inning and the top of the fourth, Mike and Kate kept reliving Andy’s capture. Mike told Kate how he should’ve hidden in Chip’s locker and jumped out and tackled Andy when he grabbed the baseball.
All of a sudden, the fans around Mike and Kate cheered. It was time for the Presidents Race!
The big video screen showed the foam-headed presidents stretching and getting ready to run in front of the city’s government buildings.
“This is it!” Mike said. “Give me your phone. I need to take a picture of this. You won’t believe what’s going to happen!”
“Okay, but I got pictures of this yesterday,” she said.
“You didn’t get pictures of this!” Mike said. “This is going to be the best Presidents Race ever!”
On the video screen, the presidents took off running! They ran through the streets of Washington, D.C.
Just like yesterday, the racing presidents emerged from a door in right field and raced for home. Teddy Roosevelt pulled out ahead, while Washington and Jefferson trailed behind. Mike snapped photo after photo.
Then out shot someone else. But this racer wasn’t wearing a big foam head.
“That’s President Diaz!” Kate shouted.
“See? I told you something special was going to happen!” Mike said. He snapped more pictures and then jumped up and cheered for President Diaz.
President Diaz ran past the foam-head presidents and turned the corner toward home plate. He was ahead of the racing presidents, but Teddy was catching up.
Just after Teddy rounded home plate, he tumbled sideways onto the ground. Then all the other racing presidents, except for President Diaz, tripped over Teddy and went sprawling, too!
President Diaz zoomed across the finish line. He burst through the red ribbon and waved his arms over his head.
The crowd went wild! Mike and Kate cheered.
After the race, Kate and Mike hurried off to meet Agent MacKay at the Nationals’ dugout. They found him chatting with Chip.
“These two have something to share with you,” Agent MacKay said.
“We caught the person who was stealing your stuff!” Kate announced.
“Yeah,” Mike said. “We found your travel bag, your batting gloves, and more at a collectibles shop near the Lincoln Memorial!”
Chip took his hat off. “Really?” he said. “That’s great! I’ll play a whole lot easier knowing I’m not losing my mind.”
“We can tell you all about it after the game,” Agent MacKay said. “But at least you can stop worrying and just focus on baseball.”
Chip gave them a big smile. Then he reached out to fist-bump Mike and Kate. “Now I can go out there and win the game!”
“Come on,” Agent MacKay said. “We’ve got another stop to make.”
Mike and Kate followed him through the stadium to a large suite that overlooked the field. As Mike and Kate looked out onto the field, someone entered the suite.
It was President Diaz!
“Mike!” he said in a big voice. “It’s great to see you again. This must be Kate!” He reached out and shook Kate’s hand.
“Congratulations on winning the Presidents Race,” Mike said. “That was great!”
President Diaz smiled. “Thanks, but I think I had some help from Teddy,” he said. “You never can tell what Teddy will do. There’s a reason he’s one of my favorite presidents!”
“You made it
look easy,” Kate said.
“If only winning an election was that easy,” President Diaz said with a laugh.
Agent MacKay stepped forward. “Ahem, don’t you two want to share some information with President Diaz?”
Mike and Kate looked at each other. “With Agent MacKay’s help, we caught the person stealing equipment from your brother!” Kate said.
“Good work!” the president said. “That’s better than winning any race!”
Mike and Kate told him how they had discovered Andy was the thief and found the stolen goods. Agent MacKay said he would send an investigator to retrieve Chip’s stuff tomorrow. He also told the president that after they caught Andy with the stolen ball, he confessed. Agent MacKay called the police and had him arrested.
The president gave Mike and Kate high fives.
“That was a capital catch!” he said. “Now I can sit back and enjoy watching my brother play baseball! How’d you like to join me?”
Mike thought for a moment and pretended to stroke his chin like Abraham Lincoln. “I think that’s a capital idea!” he said.
Lots of home teams. Over the years, Washington, D.C., has had many different professional baseball teams. The Washington Nationals team played from 1901 to 1960. They were also known as the Washington Senators. They moved to Minneapolis in 1961 to become the Twins. Then the new Washington Senators team played from 1961 to 1971, but moved to Texas in 1972 to become the Texas Rangers. Washington, D.C., also hosted the Homestead Grays from 1912 to 1950. The Grays were an African American team from Pennsylvania that played many of their home games in Washington, D.C.
The presidential pitches. On opening day in 1910, President William Howard Taft started a tradition that still continues. He threw a ceremonial baseball to start the game. It happened at the Washington Senators’ Griffith Stadium. Every president since has thrown at least one pitch (although not always in Washington, D.C.). Presidents have done it for opening day, the All-Star Game, and the World Series.
Racing presidents. During the fourth inning of every Washington Nationals home game, there’s a Presidents Race. The race features mascots of famous presidents. The mascots have giant foam heads. The presidents who race can change. The current ones are George Washington, Abraham Lincoln, Thomas Jefferson, Theodore Roosevelt, and William Howard Taft. Before Teddy won his first race in 2012, he had a 525-game losing streak!
Stadium with a view. The Washington Nationals’ stadium opened in 2008. It was the first environmentally friendly (or green) major-league stadium. The playing field is twenty-four feet below street level, so lots of fans don’t have to climb any stairs to get to their seats. The right center field fence also has a small jog, or angle, in it to mimic one that was in the Washington Senators’ Griffith Stadium.
Monuments and memorials. Washington, D.C., is full of famous monuments and memorials. Most people know about the Lincoln Memorial, the Washington Monument, and the Jefferson Memorial. But there are others, such as the World War II Memorial, the Vietnam Veterans Memorial, the Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial, and many more. There are also some less-famous ones, like the Maine Lobsterman Memorial, which is a replica of a statue of a lobsterman from the 1939 World’s Fair.
The District of Columbia. The Washington Nationals is the only major-league team in the United States that isn’t in a state! The stadium is in the District of Columbia. The District of Columbia is a special area where Washington, D.C. (D.C. stands for District of Columbia), is located. It was created so the federal government wouldn’t be located in a state.
Take me out to the ball game. The first president to attend a major-league game while in office was Benjamin Harrison. President Warren Harding was the first president to own a minor-league baseball team, and George W. Bush was the first president to own a major-league team.
On the air. Before he was president, Ronald Reagan loved baseball so much that he worked as a radio announcer for the Chicago Cubs.
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The Capital Catch Page 4