Mike and Kate smiled. They gave Zach a fist bump. “Let’s do it!” Kate said.
The three ran down the stairs, taking two steps at time. Zach led the race past Lamade Stadium and down to the lower fields, where the teams were practicing.
Zach ran over to his dad. Mike and Kate watched as Zach explained everything to him. When Zach was done, Coach Caleb took off his baseball hat and scratched his head. He looked at the players running drills on the field and then back to Zach. After a moment, Coach Caleb leaned over and gave Zach a hug!
Mike and Kate high-fived. “I think that’s a good sign,” Kate said.
Coach Caleb called the Cooperstown team to huddle. The kids ran over and listened to Coach Caleb, and then Zach got in front of them and talked for a few minutes. When he was done, he looked down at the ground. The team was silent for a moment, and then Coach Caleb asked a question. A moment later, the team erupted in cheers and threw their hats in the air.
“Big Daddy Hacks for everyone!” yelled one player.
Everyone on the team popped up and high-fived Zach! As soon as they finished, Zach led the first group of players to the batting cages and started teaching them his special hitting technique.
“I guess they forgave him,” Mike said.
Kate nodded. “I think so,” she said. “Let’s hope Zach can help them win their game this afternoon!”
* * *
—
When the game between Cooperstown and the team from Chula Vista, California, started that afternoon at three o’clock, it wasn’t hard to tell whether Zach’s help had made a difference.
The Cooperstown team got one hit after another. After three innings, Cooperstown was ahead by six! Three of the Cooperstown players, including Colin, had hit home runs!
And it didn’t stop there. Even though Chula Vista rallied in the fifth inning to get three runs, Cooperstown held them off and knocked in two runs in the second half of the fifth inning.
“Just one more inning!” Kate said. She and Mike were watching the game from a front-row seat they had scored an hour before the game started. “Chula Vista will have to get five runs to send the game into extra innings. And that’s not easy!”
Mike nodded. As Colin’s team took the field for the final inning, Mike jumped up, pumped his fist, and yelled, “Go, Cooperstown!”
“They’re going to do it!” Mike said. “I can just feel it!”
Cooperstown’s Logan Fogg was on the mound for the sixth inning. He was lights out. Nobody could stop him! He struck out the first Chula Vista player on three pitches. He got the second Chula Vista player to ground out to third.
As Fogg stood on the mound facing the third Chula Vista hitter, the Cooperstown fans in the stands went wild, clapping and yelling. Mike and Kate jumped and joined in.
“Go, Cooperstown!” Mike called.
“You got him, Fogg!” Kate screamed.
Logan Fogg threw a fastball.
The Chula Vista batter swung.
TWAP!
The ball sailed high into the air. The Chula Vista batter scrambled for first. The ball sailed over the shortstop’s head. The Cooperstown fans instantly grew quiet. It was as if everyone in Lamade Stadium was holding their breath.
The Chula Vista batter ran for second. The ball flew into the outfield. The centerfielder ran back toward the outfield wall. The Chula Vista runner tagged second base. The ball started to drop. The runner headed for third.
PLOP!
The ball fell into the centerfielder’s glove! It was an out! The inning was over!
Cooperstown had won the game!
Mike, Kate, and all the Cooperstown fans burst into cheers and yells.
“They did it!” Mike said.
“Talk about Big Daddy Hacks!” Kate said. “That was a great game!”
Out on the field, Coach Caleb was mobbed by his team. They bounced up and down and patted his head. Coach Caleb motioned to the dugout. A moment later, Zach ran out onto the field. The players surrounded him and cheered just as the TV cameras arrived. They circled around the Cooperstown team as the players hoisted Zach on their shoulders and cheered, “Hip, hip, hooray!” The cameras took close-ups of Zach and the rest of the team.
The celebration continued for some time. But eventually the umpires shooed Cooperstown from the field. The players grabbed their equipment and headed for the exit.
Kate and Mike had been watching it all from their seats. “Come on,” Kate said. “Let’s go meet up with the team!”
She and Mike raced through Lamade Stadium and out into the bright sunshine. They waited near the gate to the field as Cooperstown exited. Mike and Kate gave high fives as one player after another went by. “Good game!” they called out.
Mike and Kate cheered loudly as Colin passed by. He stopped for a moment in front of them and took off his baseball cap. “You know,” he said, “being at the Little League World Series isn’t about winning. I’m really happy just to be playing here. But I have to say, winning does feel pretty good!”
“Woo-hoo!” Mike yelled. He gave Colin a fist bump, then Colin ran to catch up with his teammates.
Mike and Kate were just about to leave when they spotted Zach at the end of the line.
“Hey!” Zach said. “Hang on!” He jogged over to them. “I wanted to thank you,” he said. “The last few hours have been amazing. You helped me realize that the best legacy I can leave is to help others. Thank you!”
Mike and Kate looked at each other and smiled.
“You’re welcome,” Kate said. “Now you’re talking like a real hero!”
A league for kids. Little League Baseball and Softball is run by Little League International. They’re based in South Williamsport, Pennsylvania, near where the organization was founded. Millions of boys and girls play Little League Baseball and Softball each year around the world.
A big little series. The Little League Baseball World Series is played each August in South Williamsport. Local baseball leagues pick their best players for an all-star team. The best team in each state goes to a regional tournament, made up of multiple states. There are eight regions in the United States and eight international ones. The winners in each region head to the Little League World Series. Starting from the local playoffs, more than 16,000 baseball games are played over 45 days to determine the best team in the world!
A founder. Carl Stotz was the founder of Little League. In 1938, while playing with his nephews, he had the idea for a baseball league designed for kids. That summer, he organized local boys and tried out different equipment and field designs. It was Stotz who came up with the sixty-foot distance between bases. The first Little League game was played on June 6, 1939. The first three teams were Lycoming Dairy, Lundy Lumber, and Jumbo Pretzel!
World Series stadiums. The Little League Baseball World Series games are played at Lamade or Volunteer Stadiums in South Williamsport. Lamade Stadium and the outfield berm can hold up to 40,000 fans. That’s as many as some major-league stadiums! The second stadium at the Little League Baseball World Series complex is Volunteer Stadium. It can hold 5,000 fans.
We’re on TV! The Little League Baseball World Series has been nationally televised since 1963. More recently, the eight regional tournaments have been covered, too.
Everyone can play. Little League has a division for players with physical or intellectual challenges. Each year, the Challenger Division has an exhibition game at Volunteer Stadium during the Little League Baseball World Series.
Colorful pins. Pin collecting and trading is a big activity for the players and fans at the Little League Baseball World Series. The first official pin was issued in 1983. Both players and fans collect and trade pins. There are official Little League pins, but businesses, teams, and even individuals can create and trade their own pins. Some fans have thousands of pins!
Girls mak
ing the play. Unfortunately, girls were banned from Little League and the Little League Baseball World Series until 1974. Now girls can play in both! In 2014, Mo’ne Davis became the first girl to pitch a winning game and to pitch a shutout in the Little League Baseball World Series. It was such an accomplishment that she was the first Little League Baseball player to be featured on the cover of Sports Illustrated magazine.
A ticket to the majors. Some Little League Baseball World Series players have made it to the major leagues, including Gary Sheffield and Cody Bellinger. So far, only three major-league players (Ed Vosberg, Jason Varitek, and Michael Conforto) have played in the Little League Baseball World Series final, the College World Series final, and the Major League Baseball World Series.
Real international champions. The first team from another country to win the Little League Baseball World Series was a team from Monterrey, Mexico, in 1957. The team worked incredibly hard and made sacrifices to travel to the World Series. Nobody expected them to win, but they beat the United States team from La Mesa, California. Their pitcher, Angel Macias, threw a perfect game (that means he pitched the whole game and didn’t allow any player to reach first base)! Hundreds of thousands of fans cheered for them when the team returned to Mexico.
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The World Series Kids Page 5