The Batboy

Fourteen-year-old Brian Dudley lives in Bloomfield Hills, Michigan with his mother, Liz Dudley. His father, Cole Dudley, used to pitch for the Detroit Tigers but now works as a coach in Japan. Meanwhile, Brian has landed a job as a batboy for the Detroit Tigers.

The Tigers are currently playing the Cleveland Indians in the Tigers’ stadium, Comerica Park. (It is important to note that in November of 2021, the Cleveland franchise formally changed its name to the Guardians.) The score is tied, with the Tigers at bat and Willie Vazquez on third base. The strikeout-prone Curtis Keller is now at bat, and Brian, whose head swirls with baseball statistics, thinks that the Tigers should squeeze (initiate a play in which the batter “bunts,” or hits the ball softly, so that the player on third base can reach home). Keller is an inept bunter, but he bunts it to third, allowing Vazquez to score, so the Tigers win the game. Davey Schofield, the Tigers’ manager, jokes with Brian and acknowledges that Brian anticipated the play.