Ballpark Mysteries #9: The Philly Fake Read online

  Kate screamed.

  Mike laughed. “Got you!” he said.

  Kate looked closer. In Mike’s hands was a plastic dummy’s head, wearing Ben Franklin’s glasses, his white curly wig, and his three-cornered hat.

  Kate stamped her foot. “You scared me!” she said.

  Mike dropped the head back in the bag. “It’s Ben Franklin’s whole costume,” he said.

  Kate glanced around the room. “He must have changed in here after leaving the Seaport Museum,” she said. “Remember? The first day we met him, he said he’d be on the Eagle. He put on a fake Phillie Phanatic costume and went out to sign autographs! All that green fur we found was from his costume. It probably snagged on the ship as he left.”

  “Let’s check the rest of the rooms for other clues,” Mike said. For the next few minutes, they ran from room to room. Every one was empty. Kate was about to quit when she heard Mike’s voice.

  “Kate, give me a hand!” he called. He was standing by a heavy wooden door at the very back of the ship. The walls on both sides of the door were made from thick planks of wood. A large iron pin was jammed in the door’s handle. Mike was trying to remove it, but his hands kept slipping.

  “I can’t get this out!” Mike said.

  Kate grabbed the top of the pin with Mike. On the count of three, they gave the pin a strong yank.

  For a moment, nothing happened.

  “Try again!” Mike said. “One, two, three!”

  This time, the pin made a sharp metallic squeak when they pulled. It slid away from the handle.

  Mike pushed on it, and the door popped open.

  Inside was Phil! He was wearing a red Phillies T-shirt and shorts, but beads of sweat stood out on his forehead.

  He rushed to the door. “Thanks for finding me!” he said, breathing a big sigh of relief. “I’ve been trapped in here for hours! When I find out who locked me up, they’re going to be in big trouble!”

  “What happened?” Mike asked.

  “Just before the Phanatic was getting ready to come and sign autographs, I got a phone call,” Phil explained. “The caller told me to meet him here as soon as possible and he’d tell me who was breaking the bats. But when I got here, the door shut, and I couldn’t get out! I tried yelling and pounding, but the walls are too thick. No one could hear me.”

  Phil ran his fingers through his hair. “I’ve got to find out who did this!” he said.

  “You’re in luck,” Kate said. “I think we know where to look.”

  Phil’s eyes opened wide. “You do?” he asked. “Where?”

  “Out on the plaza,” Mike said. “Come on.”

  Mike, Kate, and Phil ran through the ship and down the gangplank. They hurried through the crowd until they came to the tree on the far side of the plaza. The fake Phillie Phanatic was still signing autographs, surrounded by a group of kids.

  “Hey, that’s not the Phillie Phanatic!” Phil said.

  “We know,” Mike said. “It’s Ben Franklin!” Phil looked around until he spotted a police officer.

  “Come on,” Phil said. “Let’s get help. We’ve got to stop him before tonight’s game!”

  That night, before the Phillies game, Thomas Jefferson strode up to the pitching mound. At least, a young Thomas Jefferson did. The winner of that morning’s costume contest went into his windup and hurled the ball toward home plate. It fell short. The ball bounced once in the dirt before the catcher caught it. He ran it back out to Thomas Jefferson, who held it up while the fans cheered.

  Mike and Kate watched from their front-row seats near the Phillies’ dugout with Mrs. Hopkins and Carol. “I guess you wish that you were out there throwing that first pitch,” Mrs. Hopkins said to Mike.

  Mike scuffed at the ground with his sneaker. “Sort of,” he said. “I would have been able to make it over the plate!”

  “But it was worth missing the costume contest to rescue Phil,” Kate said. “Even if we didn’t get to throw out the first pitch!”

  Mike perked up. “Yeah,” he said. “At least we get to see the Phillie Phanatic one more time before we go home.”

  Carol leaned over. “And he told me that he might have something special for you two,” she said. “Just wait until after the game.”

  “Cool!” Mike said.

  “Speaking of the Phanatic, what happened to Ben Franklin?” Mrs. Hopkins asked.

  Carol shook her head. “After Mike and Kate rescued Phil, he found a policewoman,” she said. “The fake Phanatic really was Ben Franklin, just like Kate thought. He had a fake Phanatic costume specially made. Before he was caught, he was planning on being the Phillie Phanatic for tonight’s Fourth of July game!”

  “Then why did he show up at the Seaport Museum?” Kate asked.

  “It’s tricky,” Carol said. “Ben Franklin wanted to come in and save the day. He was hoping the broken bats would force us to fire Phil and hire him instead.”

  “So he was the one breaking the bats?” Mrs. Hopkins asked.

  “Yup. After everyone went home, he drove the Phanatic’s ATV over the bats to crack them. The cracks were too small to see, but over time the bats would break,” Carol said. “Then he’d dress up as the Phanatic and put the cracked but normal-looking bats in the dugout.”

  “He told us that he saw Phil in the dugout,” Mike said. “He was trying to blame Phil.”

  “So Ben must have planted the shattered bat under Phil’s desk,” Kate said. “And then sent those notes to Carol. He really wanted the Phillies to get rid of Phil.”

  “That’s right,” Carol said. “Unfortunately for him, the only person we’ll be getting rid of is Ben Franklin!”

  As the game began, the Phillies jogged out to their positions on the field. After a few warm-up throws from the pitcher, a Mets batter stepped up to the plate. The Phillies were playing the Mets one last time.

  Right from the start, the game was exciting. Both teams scored runs in each of the first three innings. First the Mets were ahead. The Phillies tied it. Then the Mets pulled ahead again, and the Phillies tied it again. Then both teams did the same thing the next inning, which left the score tied.

  No one scored in the fourth, fifth, or sixth innings. In the seventh, with the game tied and two men on base, Poodles McGuire walked to the plate. Mike jumped to his feet. “This is it!” he yelled. “Nail it! Come on, Phillies!”

  “I sure hope they found all of those bats with tiny cracks,” Kate said. “We could really use a home run now.”

  On the third pitch, Poodles walloped the ball deep to right field. The two men on base started to advance as they watched the ball.

  Mike pumped his fist. “Go! Go! Go!” he shouted. All around them, Phillies fans were hollering like crazy.

  The ball sailed over the outfield wall. It was a home run! Behind center field, the giant neon Liberty Bell swung back and forth as the runners headed for home.

  Mike and Kate high-fived. The runners crossed home plate one after the other. The Phillies were ahead by three runs.

  With two more innings, the Mets couldn’t catch up. The Phillies won the game, 6–3!

  “Can you believe it?” Carol said. “We won! And no broken bats the whole game! Thanks to you two!”

  Kate and Mike blushed.

  Carol glanced at right field. “Now’s the best part,” she said. “Keep your eye on that doorway on the field. I think something special is coming!”

  Mike and Kate jumped up to watch. A minute later, the doors opened and the Phillie Phanatic zoomed out on his ATV.

  But instead of zipping around the field and joking with the players, the Phanatic drove over to where Kate and Mike were sitting. He stopped right in front of their seats. Then he hopped off his ATV and raised his arms up so the fans would cheer.

  The crowd went wild. The Phanatic pulled out a piece of wood with a big red button in the middle from the back of his ATV. All around Mike and Kate, the Phillies fans grew silent. The Phanatic held the button in front of Mike
and Kate as if he was expecting them to do something.

  Kate glanced at Mike. “I think he wants us to push the button,” she said. She put her finger on the button. Mike added his finger.

  “Ready?” Mike asked.

  Kate nodded.

  “On three,” Mike said. “One … two … three!”

  They pushed the button.

  Nothing happened.

  But after a few seconds, they heard FOOMP! FOOMP! FOOMP!

  Then they saw three lines of sparks rise up into the night from behind the stadium’s outfield wall.

  “What’s going on?” Mike asked. “What’d we do?”

  Before Kate could answer, three giant fireworks explosions lit up the sky! Huge circles of red, white, and blue burst overhead.

  “Ooh!” the crowd cried out.

  FOOMP! FOOMP! FOOMP! FOOMP!

  Four more giant rounds of fireworks exploded over the Phillies’ stadium.

  “Aah!” went the crowd.

  As the brightly colored sparks fell to earth, the Phillie Phanatic gave Mike and Kate high fives. Fireworks lit up the sky for fifteen more minutes.

  At the end, Mike and Kate heard dozens of small explosions all at once.

  FOOMP! FOOMP! FOOMP! FOOMP! FOOMP! FOOMP! FOOMP! FOOMP!

  The sky turned almost as bright as day. A final cluster of red, white, and blue fireworks exploded overhead.

  When it was done, the crowd was quiet. Then the stadium burst into applause.

  “That was amazing!” Kate said.

  “I’ll say,” Mike said. “This was the best Fourth of July ever!”

  Phillie Phanatic. According to the Phillie Phanatic’s bio, he’s six feet six inches tall and weighs 300 pounds. He was born on the Galápagos Islands. Two of his favorite foods are cheesesteaks and soft pretzels!

  Liberty Bell replica. To honor the real Liberty Bell just across town, the Phillies have a giant neon version. The Phillies’ Liberty Bell is on a tall tower in right-center field. The light is fifty feet tall and thirty-five feet wide. That’s about as big as a house! After each Phillies home run, the Liberty Bell lights up bright white with blue stars. There’s even a giant neon crack up the front. The bell swings back and forth and rings loudly in celebration.

  Staying put. The Phillies have been around since 1883! While some teams have moved, the Phillies have always been in Philadelphia. And they’ve always been called the Phillies.

  Hot dog launcher. The Phillie Phanatic really does have a hot dog launcher. It can shoot hot dogs a few hundred feet!

  Winning at losing. The Philadelphia Phillies set the record for the team with the most losses. They have over 10,000 losses. But that record isn’t as bad as it sounds. They have had about 9,000 wins during the same time. Since they’re one of the oldest baseball teams, they’ve played a lot more games than most other teams. More games mean more losses, even if they’re a good team.

  Ashburn Alley. On the walkway behind center field is Ashburn Alley. It’s named for famous Phillies player Richie Ashburn. Ashburn was a center fielder for the Phillies in the fifties. The alley is filled with food stands and picnic tables, but it’s also a place to learn Phillies history. The alley’s All-Star Walk shows the Phillies players who have been all-stars. It also has a Wall of Fame for famous Phillies players.

  Bi-level bullpens. The Phillies’ stadium features two bullpens, where pitchers can warm up. But the Phillies’ bullpens are special because one is almost on top of the other. The top one is near Ashburn Alley, so fans can get a close-up view of pitchers. The bottom one is level with the outfield. The visiting team gets the top bullpen, close to the fans. That way, the fans can give the opposing pitchers lots of “advice.”

  Ben Franklin. There wasn’t much that Ben Franklin couldn’t do. He was one of America’s Founding Fathers and played an important role in the American Revolution. But he also was a famous author, inventor, and scientist. He created things like lightning rods, bifocal glasses, and medical devices that are still used today. He also founded America’s first lending library.