Читать книгу Rage. The Legend of "Baseball Bill" Denehy онлайн

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“My job,” Bill replied, “is to get every ounce of potential out of you, and that’s what I intend to do. It’s nothing personal, Bill. You seem to react better when someone’s on your ass than when someone is more lenient. Unless things change, this is the way I’m going to treat you.”

After four months in the Army Reserve, I reported to Williamsport in the best shape of my life. My weight was down to 185, and I was in top shape. I had my stuff, and I had the pleasure of throwing to catcher Lloyd Flodin, who was great at handling pitchers.

Lloyd had great hands; he caught everything, and we had great communication.

During one game Lloyd wanted me to throw a sidearm curveball. We didn’t have a signal for it, so Lloyd dropped his fingers down to the dirt, and in the dirt he made a half circle that started at the side of the plate and curved back toward the middle of the plate. He nodded at me, and I instinctively knew what he wanted. I threw a sidearm curve for strike three. Lloyd laughed for most of the rest of the inning when the two of us returned to the dugout.