The Unwilling Umpire by Ron Roy Page A

O’Leary fielded the ball in foul territory and whipped it back to Mr. Linkletter.
    “Strike two!”
    The spectators jumped to their feet for the third pitch. Everyone was yelling, whistling, or clapping.
    Pete raised his arms for quiet.
    Mr. Linkletter’s third pitch was right in the strike zone. Ellie swung with all her might.
    CRACK!
The ball soared over Mr.Linkletter’s head, dropped, and rolled between Officer Fallon’s legs in center field.
    Ellie took off. By the time Officer Fallon ran down the ball and snapped it to Lucky O’Leary at first, Ellie was rounding second base. Lucky threw to Doc Henry at third.
    But Lucky’s throw was wide.
    When Doc lunged for the ball, Ellie made third base and kept running. With legs pumping and arms swinging, she thundered across home plate.
    “Safe!” shouted Pete, throwing his arms wide.
    Everyone leaped into the air and yelled. Ellie had scored the first run for the women!
    The scoreboard now read: MEN 1, WOMEN 1.

“It’s a tie!” Ruth Rose said. “Mmm, I can taste that ice cream cone, Josh!”
    “Boy, the men are lousy fielders,” Josh grumbled. “My grandmother can catch better!”
    Just then Pete Unkenholz started sneezing. He wiped his eyes, sneezed again, then turned to say something to the catcher. After a few seconds, Pete headed toward the clubhouse.
    As Pete passed Dink, Josh, and Ruth Rose, he stopped for a second. “Darn allergies,” the young man said. His eyes were red, and he was taking deep breaths.

    Pete trudged toward the clubhouse. The kids watched Mr. Pocket walk over to home plate.
    “What’s going on?” they heard him ask the catcher.
    “He went to get his allergy medicine,” Jake told Mr. Pocket.
    Mr. Pocket made an announcement over the public-address system. The crowd relaxed and waited for the game to continue. But when Pete hadn’t returned after five minutes, people began to wonder what was going on.
    “I’m going to use the boys’ room,” Josh said. “Be right back.”
    Josh jogged to the clubhouse while the crowd waited for Pete to return.
    Suddenly Josh came racing back to the bleachers. He slid in next to Dink, out of breath.
    “What’s up?” Ruth Rose asked.
    “You’re not gonna believe this!” Josh whispered to his friends. “Mr. Pocket’sautographed baseballs—they’re gone!”
    Ruth Rose looked toward the clubhouse. “Maybe Mr. Pocket moved them someplace else when the game started,” she said.
    Josh was shaking his head. “No! The glass case is smashed in a million pieces,” he said. “Someone stole those balls!”
    Dink and Ruth Rose stared at Josh openmouthed.
    “Should we tell Mr. Pocket?” Ruth Rose asked after a few seconds.
    “We have to,” Dink said.
    “He’ll go bonkers!” Josh predicted.
    The three kids walked over to Mr. Pocket.
    Dink swallowed, then tugged on the man’s arm.
    “Hi there,” Mr. Pocket said. “Where’s that ump? These people want some baseball action!”
    “Um, did you do anything with those six baseballs?” Dink asked.
    “Why, of course,” Mr. Pocket said. “You saw me lock them in the case.”
    “You didn’t move them anywhere else?” Ruth Rose asked.
    Mr. Pocket’s smile vanished. “What’s going on, kids? Has something happened to my baseballs?”
    “They’re gone!” Josh said. “The case is smashed. There’s glass all over the floor!”
    Mr. Pocket turned and marched toward the clubhouse.
    The three kids watched him go.
    “You didn’t happen to see Pete when you went inside, did you?” Ruth Rose asked Josh.
    “Nope. The first thing I saw when I got inside was all the glass,” Josh said. “I was the only one in the place.”
    “Gosh,” Dink said, “do you think Pete stole Mr. Pocket’s baseballs?”

Officer Fallon left his position on the field and walked over to the kids. “What’s going on?” he said. “Where’s our umpire?”
    “We don’t know,” Josh said. “But Mr. Pocket’s baseball collection is missing!”
    Officer