Mexican Whiteboy By Matt De La Pena (2)

Ever since the time Uno knocked down Danny he's been going to Las Palmas Park to work on his pitching. One day Uno starts talking to Danny's cousin Sofia when they decide to walk over to Las Palmas Park to see Danny pitch. Sofia tells Uno that Danny comes down to Las Palmas Park everyday to work on his pitching. They watch him for a while and leave. Uno then comes back and tells Danny that he'll be his catcher. Danny is shocked. He's going to pitch to someone who gave him stitches on the back of his head. Danny pitches to Uno and after that they start getting along. After days of practicing on his Uno tells Danny that they should start betting on batters. By betting them that they can't hit the ball before Danny strikes out. There first hustle was at a near by high school. There were facing the best batter on the team named Carmelo. Danny's first pitch and it goes far away from Uno. Danny is thinking to himself is last year's baseball tryouts. Over and over he keeps on missing. And eventually the other leave with 40 bucks(Uno bet 20 bucks). Uno was shocked to see Danny pitch like that. They continue practicing for a few day until they do another hustle. Again Danny pitches far away from Uno. Uno then walks up to Danny and tells him that its not about him, its about his talent. Danny goes into his windup and pitches a fastball right into Uno's mitt. Strike one yelled Uno. Danny pitches another fastball into Uno's Mitt. Strike two yelled Uno. Danny pitches another fastball and right into Uno's mitt without having to move it. After that they keep on hustling others winning lots of money. Then one day they hustle the same person they started hustling with Carmelo. When Danny pitches to Carmelo he's shocked that he got a strike. After Danny strikes out Carmelo he tells Uno that he wants to go again. Danny strikes him out again and Carmelo says he wants to go again. Danny strikes hi out AGAIN and Carmelo says again. This time there playing for 180 bucks. Danny to Carmelo to get a strike. Uno looks back at Carmelo's friend JJ and see's one of them is close to the hat with the money. Danny pitches to Carmelo. Strike two. Uno see's JJ is even closer to the hat. He shoo's him off. Danny Pitches to Carmelo and strikes him out. Uno Looks back and see's JJ is running off with the money! Uno catches up to him and tackles him to the ground. Then Carmelo and his other friend gain up on Uno and Danny tells them to get off him him when two of them tackle him. Uno is fighting JJ to get the money back. Then some Mexican dude comes into the fight and fights Carmelo and his friends. Uno fights JJ to get the money out of his pocket and they leave. Uno is mad because before he strike him out one last time he told him after strike three to run off to the bus stop and that he'll run to the hat and get the money and catch up to him. Danny said that he couldn't let them hurt him. Uno then gives him half of the 180 bucks.

When I read to the part of Uno wanting to work with Danny it was shocking to me. Someone wanting to work with someone after they hurt them? Just surprising to me. At that I think its the climax of the story. Also how Danny stayed with Uno when he was fighting Carmelo and JJ. That just shows to me that they have bounded really well. There both saving money to see their fathers. Uno wants to go live with his father at Oxnard but needs 500 dollars. Danny wants to visit his father in Mexico and find out why he left.