The Alien Next Door 5: Baseball Blues Read online

  This book is a work of fiction. Any references to historical

  events, real people, or real places are used fictitiously. Other

  names, characters, places, and events are products of the author’s

  imagination, and any resemblance to actual events or places or

  persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.

  An imprint of Bonnier Publishing USA

  251 Park Avenue South, New York, NY 10010

  Copyright © 2018 by Bonnier Publishing USA

  All rights reserved, including the right of reproduction in whole or

  in part in any form.

  Little Bee Books is a trademark of Bonnier Publishing USA, and

  associated colophon is a trademark of Bonnier Publishing USA.

  Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data is available

  upon request.

  ISBN 978-1-4998-0723-3 (hardcover)

  First Edition 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1

  ISBN 978-1-4998-0722-6 (paperback)

  First Edition 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1

  ISBN 978-1-4998-0724-0 (ebook)

  littlebeebooks.com

  bonnierpublishingusa.com

  TABLE OF CONTENTS

  1.

  The First Catch

  2.

  Zeke at the Bat

  3.

  Tryouts

  4.

  Cheater?

  5.

  Play Ball!

  6.

  Superstar!

  7.

  Time to Talk

  8.

  Take Me Out

  9.

  Dylan in Action

  10.

  Zeke, a Winner

  HARRIS WALKER AND HIS BEST FRIEND

  Roxy Martinez burst out the front

  door of Harris’s house. They clutched

  baseball gloves, a bat, and a ball in

  their hands.

  The sun shone brightly. The last

  bits of snow had melted. The first

  flowers had started to sprout, and a

  warm breeze mixed with the last of

  the chilly air.

  “It’s finally nice enough outside for

  the First Catch of the Year!” Harris

  said as he and Roxy ran to opposite

  sides of his front lawn.

  The First Catch of the Year had

  been a tradition for Harris and Roxy

  since they were both old enough to

  throw a baseball.

  Roxy took a few practice swings

  with her bat.

  “I got this new bat for Christmas,”

  she said. “I can’t wait to use it!”

  “And I got this new catcher’s mitt,”

  Harris said, pounding his fist into the

  soft leather. “Time to break it in!”

  Roxy put down her bat and slipped

  on her glove. She picked up the baseball

  and threw it right into Harris’s mitt.

  It landed with a crisp, cracking sound.

  “I can’t wait for tryouts!” Harris

  cried. “I hope I get to play catcher this

  year.”

  Harris skipped a ground ball across

  the lawn. Roxy took two steps to her

  right, then reached over to field the

  ball backhanded.

  “And I hope I get to play shortstop,”

  Roxy said.

  “Keep making plays like that and

  you’ll be on the team for sure!” Harris

  said.

  Harris and Roxy planned to try

  out for the Chargers, the local youth

  baseball team. The Chargers played

  against other teams from nearby

  towns.

  Roxy tossed the ball high into the

  air. “Pop-up!” she yelled.

  Harris looked up, raising his glove

  to shield his eyes from the sun. The

  ball started to come down.

  “Hey, what are you guys doing?”

  asked a voice from near him.

  It was Zeke, Harris’s new friend and

  next-door neighbor, who just happened

  to be an alien from the planet Tragas.

  Harris knew his secret. Roxy did not.

  “Practicing baseball,” Harris replied

  without taking his eyes off the ball.

  The pop-up landed in his glove with

  a soft thud.

  “Base . . . ball?” Zeke asked.

  “You don’t have baseball in Tragas?!”

  Roxy asked.

  Harris and Roxy gave Zeke a quick

  explanation of the sport. They talked

  about pitching, fielding, hitting, and

  running the bases.

  Zeke smiled. “This sounds a lot like

  a game I used to play,” he said. “It’s

  called Bonkas. Only in Bonkas, the bats

  are thinner and ten balls are put into

  play at the same time!”

  “Ten balls!” Roxy exclaimed. “Boy, I

  have got visit Tragas some time.”

  “Well, it is pretty far away,” Zeke

  said, glancing slyly at Harris.

  “Hey, do you want to play catch,

  too?” Harris asked Zeke.

  “I do,” he said. “But I don’t have a

  glove.”

  “No problem,” said Harris. He ran

  into the house and brought out one of

  his old gloves. “You can use this.”

  “Play ball!” shouted Harris.

  “IT’S PRETTY SIMPLE, ZEKE,”

  Harris said. “I’ll hold up my glove.

  You try to throw the ball into it.”

  Zeke stood across the yard from

  Harris. He threw the ball. It sailed

  over Harris’s head and landed in a

  neighbor’s yard.

  “Good try!” Roxy said, trotting over

  to the ball. “Now try catching.”

  She tossed the ball softly over to

  Zeke. He stuck his glove out too late

  and the ball bounced past him. He ran

  after it and picked it up.

  “Now throw it to me,” said Roxy

  holding up her glove.

  Zeke unleashed another throw. This

  one landed across the street. “I don’t

  know if I can do this,” he said sadly.

  “All it takes is practice,” Harris said.

  “Let’s keep trying.”

  Zeke’s next few throws went onto

  the roof of a house, bounced off a

  tree, and splashed into a neighbor’s

  swimming pool.

  “Practice, huh?” Zeke said, fishing

  the wet ball out of the pool.

  “Practice,” Harris replied, smiling.

  They walked back over to the yard.

  Zeke took a deep breath, reared back,

  and fired the ball right into Harris’s

  mitt.

  “That’s it!” Roxy cried. “Now you’re

  getting it!”

  Zeke’s next throw flew perfectly

  into Roxy’s glove.

  “You see?” she said. “You’re picking

  this up really fast!”

  But Harris wasn’t so sure. Zeke may

  be an alien, but no one could improve

  that fast. Zeke might be using his powers

  to control the movement of the ball, he

  thought. In a game, something like that

  would be cheating.

&nbs
p; “Let’s try batting next,” Harris said,

  hoping he was wrong about Zeke using

  his powers. He crouched down into a

  catcher’s position.

  Zeke picked up Roxy’s new bat and

  took a couple of practice swings. Then

  Roxy threw a pitch. Zeke swung early

  and didn’t come close to hitting the

  ball. It landed in Harris’s mitt.

  “Follow the ball in, Zeke,” Roxy said.

  “Then time your swing.”

  Roxy threw another pitch. This time

  Zeke swung too late.

  Harris could see the frustration on

  Zeke’s face.

  Zeke swung at Roxy’s next pitch and

  smacked it high into the air. It flew

  over the roof and into the next yard.

  “Wow!” Roxy cried. “Nice one. I

  want to see where that landed!” She

  ran off in search of the ball.

  “Hey, I know what you’re doing,

  Zeke,” Harris said when the two boys

  were alone. “You’re using your powers,

  aren’t you?”

  “What’s wrong with that?” Zeke

  asked.

  “It’s a shortcut and it’s cheating,”

  Harris said. “It’s not fair to the other

  players. You need to improve your

  skills through practice.”

  “I don’t understand,” Zeke said.

  “But I’ll try.”

  Roxy returned with the ball. “You

  must have hit that 200 feet!” she said.

  “Let’s keep practicing,” said Harris,

  glancing over at Zeke.

  “Yes, practice,” said Zeke.

  ON THE DAY OF THE TRYOUTS,

  Harris, Roxy, and Zeke arrived at the

  field, gloves in hand.

  “Harris wants to play catcher and

  I want to play shortstop,” Roxy said.

  “Have you decided on a position,

  Zeke?”

  “Since we first played, I’ve been

  watching a lot of baseball on TV,” Zeke

  said. “I would like to be a pitcher.”

  “Great!” said Harris. “I hope we all

  make the team.”

  Roxy trotted out to short. Zeke

  stood out on the pitcher’s mound. And

  Harris crouched behind home plate,

  ready to catch Zeke’s pitches.

  The first batter stepped into the

  batter’s box. She raised the bat above

  her shoulders and stared out at Zeke.

  Behind the plate, Harris held up his

  glove.

  Zeke threw his first pitch. It sailed

  over the batter’s head and crashed

  into the wooden backstop.

  “Just focus on my glove, Zeke,”

  Harris shouted.

  Zeke’s next pitch bounced in the

  dirt in front of home plate. Harris slid

  to his right and made a great play to

  grab the ball before it went past him.

  Harris looked out and saw the

  frustration on Zeke’s face. “It’s okay,

  you’ll get the next one over, Zeke,”

  he shouted, pounding his mitt a few

  times with his fist.

  Zeke stared at Harris, then threw

  his next pitch—a big curveball that

  started way outside, then swept in a

  huge arc back over the plate. Everyone

  gasped. It was a perfect pitch!

  Zeke’s pitch after that did the same

  thing, but curved in the opposite

  direction this time. Then he threw a

  speeding bullet of a fastball that was

  also a perfect strike.

  Harris sighed beneath his catcher’s

  mask. He’s using his powers again, he

  thought. He has to be.

  The next batter hit a ground ball to

  shortstop. Roxy scooped up the ball

  and made a perfect throw to first base

  to get the runner out.

  Now at bat, Harris smacked a solid

  hit to left field. Roxy hit a screamer to

  right field.

  Then Zeke’s turn at bat came. He

  stepped in to bat left-handed. Zeke

  swung wildly and missed the first

  two pitches. “Isn’t he a righty?” a kid

  asked. That’s strange, Harris thought.

  The pitcher laughed, and Zeke looked

  embarrassed.

  “Remember, Zeke, keep your eye on

  the ball all the way in!” Harris shouted.

  Zeke stared out at the pitcher and

  gripped the bat tightly. On the next

  pitch, he used his powers to bring the

  ball right to the bat.

  CRACK!

  Zeke’s swing sent the ball flying

  high and deep. It sailed over the

  outfield fence for the only home run

  of the day.

  “Wow! Way to hit, Zeke!” Roxy

  shouted.

  Everyone on the field cheered as

  Zeke rounded the bases and crossed

  home plate.

  Everyone except Harris.

  The tryout ended and the coach

  read out the names of the players who

  had made the team. Harris, Roxy, and

  Zeke all made it.

  “All right! We’re going to be on the

  team together!” Roxy shouted, patting

  Harris and Zeke on the back.

  As the three walked off the field,

  Harris whispered to Zeke, “We have

  to talk!”

  “I KNOW WHAT YOU DID BACK THERE,”

  Harris said softly when he and Zeke

  were away from Roxy and the other

  players.

  “It’s not a big deal, Harris,” Zeke

  replied. “I’m just using my natural

  abilities like everyone else.”

  “But you’re not like everyone

  else,” Harris said. “That’s the point.

  Using your powers means that you’re

  not learning how to play the game

  correctly or improve your skills like

  everyone else.”

  Zeke looked away.

  Harris continued. “Besides, don’t

  you think that using your powers

  in front of so many people is risky?

  Aren’t you worried that someone

  might discover your secret? And you

  took a spot away from someone who

  deserved it. Promise me you won’t use

  them anymore for baseball.”

  Harris could tell from the expression

  on Zeke’s face that he hadn’t really

  considered this. “Okay, I promise,”

  Zeke said quietly and walked away.

  Over the next few days, Zeke hardly

  said a word to Harris. For the first time

  since they became friends, Harris felt

  a strain in their friendship.

  One afternoon after school, Harris

  decided to talk to Roxy.

  “I’m worried about Zeke,” he said as

  they tossed ground balls to each other.

  “What do you mean?” she asked,

  snagging the ball with her glove. “He’s

  been playing well at practice, and

  everyone on the team seems to really

  like him.”

  “I think he may be cheating,” Harris

  said, realizing that he was walking a

  fine line between helping his friend

  and guarding Zeke’s secret.

  “Cheating?!” Roxy said, throwing

  the ball back to Harris. “W
hy do you

  think he’s cheating?”

  “Um, I’m not sure,” Harris said.

  “But how can someone who never

  played baseball before suddenly be so

  good?”

  Roxy shook her head. “That doesn’t

  mean he’s cheating, Harris. He did say

  he played a similar game in Tragas,

  Bonkers or something, so it’s probably

  just that. I think you’re a little jealous,”

  she said. “But, now that you mention

  it, it’s pretty amazing that Zeke seems

  to only throw strikes when he’s

  pitching and hit the ball farther than

  everyone else—batting both left- and

  right-handed!”

  “That’s what I mean,” Harris said,

  tossing the ball high into the air.

  “Yeah, it is kind of hard to explain,”

  Roxy said catching the pop-up.

  It sure is! Harris thought. That is,

  without telling you that Zeke is an alien!

  THE DAY OF THE FIRST GAME

  for the Chargers arrived. Harris, Roxy,

  and Zeke took the field with their

  teammates.

  The Chargers were playing the

  Scrappers. Their first batter stepped

  up to the plate.

  “All right, Zeke, here we go!” Harris

  shouted.

  Zeke threw his first pitch. It was

  way outside. Harris reached out and

  made a nice catch. The next three

  pitches also missed by a lot. The batter

  trotted down to first base with a walk.

  “Remember, just focus on my glove!”

  Harris yelled out to Zeke. “That’s your

  target. Let’s go!”

  But Zeke had no better luck with

  the next two batters. He walked each

  of them on four pitches. The bases

  were now loaded with nobody out.

  Harris called time-out and ran over