Chapter 4

The excitement was contagious as this year's home team, the even-numbered barracks, took the field. Prisoners, special guests, and off-duty staff lined the compound. Hogan, Klink, Burkhalter, Marya, and Ritter sat in chairs located on the first baseline, right next to the other men playing for the home team. Schultz stood behind them.

"Now, normally," Hogan said, "the players, coaches, and managers would be in what they would call the dugout." He shared a magazine that had photos of Ebbets Field. "That is where the Brooklyn Dodgers play."

"Is that the team you support, Colonel Hogan?" Burkhalter asked.

"No. I'm originally from Connecticut. That's a state in New England. I follow the Boston Red Sox."

"I see," Burkhalter replied.

The crowd booed as the umpires took the field.

Klink stood up and yelled, "Silence! I won't have anyone booing my guard, who is giving up his valuable off-duty time to assist."

Langenscheidt was handling home plate. Two men with no skin in the game, Wilson and the chaplain, John Waverly, volunteered to umpire first and third base. Waverly lived in a hut with other prisoners, but he claimed he was totally impartial. Two guards patrolled the left and right field foul lines.

The crowd became raucous as the first man came up to the plate.

Meanwhile, Newkirk, LeBeau, and two other men snuck out of the tree stump and waited in the woods. Hopefully, they wouldn't be needed, but Hogan decided not to take any chances. A carefully planted mine would handle things quite nicely in case his meeting with Ritter went south.

"Batter up!" Langenscheidt was in his element. He thoroughly enjoyed umpiring last year's tournament. It was infinitely better than acting like a guard, he thought. He recently found a baseball rules book in the prisoner's library and studied it until he could recite the regulations. This would be a good tournament.

The batter stepped into the box and steadied himself, waiting for the pitcher, a man from Barracks 4, to throw the ball. The pitcher began his windup and then fell off the makeshift mound as Marya stood up and yelled, "Wait!"

Langenscheidt sighed and yelled, "Time."

"Oh, for the love of…." Hogan turned to Marya. "What is your problem?"

"What are the team names, Hogan, darling?"

"The team names?"

"Yes, Hogan. The team names! You don't expect me to say odd-numbered barracks. Even-numbered barracks. Do you?"

"She does have a point, Colonel Hogan." Burkhalter narrowed his eyes.

"Yes, she does." Klink's head was nodding so fast, it looked like it would take off for Düsseldorf at any moment.

Why would Marya ask about team names? Showing this amount of interest was definitely out of character. Was there a motive to her madness? Unfortunately, Hogan didn't have the time to psychoanalyze the woman. At any rate, he knew he wouldn't get anywhere. Actually, he decided, why didn't they have team names? "Okay," he said. "The home team will be called the Bears, and the away team will be the Wolves."

At the sound of groans, Hogan stood up. "My decision is final," he said loudly. "Or everyone will be on kitchen duty. Is that satisfactory?" He glared at Klink, as Ritter looked on in amusement.

"Perfectly," Marya said. "It just makes it easier to follow the game," she added with a shrug.

Langenscheidt stepped back behind the plate. "Play ball," he squeaked.

While the attention of the Germans was on the field, Hogan stood up and stretched. He then whispered in Marya's ear. "Names? What else are you playing at?"

"You are overthinking, Hogan," Marya whispered back. "Sometimes the simplest explanation is the right one." She then offered him a sly smile.

"I hope this is quick," Newkirk complained as he settled himself into position at their hiding place.

"You never know," said Morris, one of the prisoners who left camp with Newkirk and LeBeau. "There was a Dodgers game in '39 that lasted 23 innings."

Everyone groaned.

"Yes, but this is not when the ball will be lost, right?" Morris asked.

LeBeau shrugged. "I think they have to go through a few innings before Berg gets up."

"Well, we might as well get comfortable." Newkirk passed around a flask.

Meanwhile, back in camp, the Bears' pitcher was on fire and managed a one-two-three inning against the Wolves.

And so it went...

"Hogan, this is boring," Klink whispered to the colonel.

"No. No, it's not!" Hogan stood up and clapped. "Let's Go Bears. Let's Go Bears!" Soon the other spectators were shouting alongside Hogan.

He turned and explained. "I know it's not much action, but a good old-fashioned pitcher's duel is as exciting as a high-run game with lots of runners on base." It was the 4th inning, and so far only two men had reached base. One on each side.

A round of applause went up as the center fielder for the Wolves made a diving catch.

"Great catch, Levine!" Hogan yelled as the sergeant came off the field.

"Thank you, sir!"

"But that's not your team," Ritter mentioned.

"Well, sir. I sort of have to be nonpartisan. I'm the C.O. of all the barracks," Hogan explained.

Marya looked at him quizzically. "That's not what I heard," she whispered.

The first batter for the Wolves at the top of the next inning drew a walk on a 3-2 count. "Find your control," was the shout from a spectator. "Good eye," was the shout from another. The next batter hit a squibbler to the third baseman. The batter reached 1st base just as the ball hit the mitt. Wilson thought for a moment, then spread his arms and yelled, "Safe!"

Hogan sank down into his seat and pulled his crush cap over his eyes. Burkhalter, seeing this, began to chuckle. "I thought you were nonpartisan, Hogan."

The colonel grunted. He sighed and sat up, hoping for the best. Because while this game had turned into an operation, he still wanted to win fair and square.

The next batter hit a pop fly. This triggered the infield fly rule—unleashing a torrent of sideline commentary so dense and impassioned that it made the non-fans want to drown their sorrows in Klink's best schnapps. Both the Kommandant and General stared at Hogan as the colonel tried his best to minimize the confusion.

Burkhalter eventually let out a laugh. "That's the most ridiculous thing I have heard since this game started, Hogan. Personally, it should be oh, well…you hit a short fly. Too bad you made a double play."

"It's the rules," Hogan muttered as the inning continued. In short order, the Wolves retired the side and took the field.

Berg came up the next inning. He let two balls go by, and then fouled off one pitch. Then, as planned, the pitcher lost his rhythm and the ball appeared to float towards home plate. He swung and smacked the ball. It remained fair and sailed over both fences surrounding the compound.

Hogan sprung up and gave a yell: "Home run! Great work, Berg." He turned to Klink. "We're short of balls and that one landed outside the fences. Kommandant, can I have your permission to look for the ball while they continue playing? I think I have a general idea of where it landed. Schultz can come with me." Before Klink could say no, Hogan turned to Ritter. "Hauptmann, do you want to come? You can take a look at the woods before we start more work."

"That is a good idea, Colonel Hogan," said Ritter. "My… this game is going very fast. But, I'm sure it will still be here when we return."

"Yes, it could go into extra innings," Hogan said. "We're tied." As the confusion on the faces set in, he added. "I'll explain later."

"All right. Go," Klink said. "Schultz?"

"Yes, Herr Kommandant?"

"Go with Hogan and Hauptmann Ritter and help them find the ball. And then he and Hogan will examine the woods and the plans."

"Um, sir. I need the plans."

"Oh, yes, Hogan." Klink admitted to himself he was getting bored, and he quickly headed towards his office to retrieve them. While there, he downed a schnapps and then returned.

"We shouldn't be too long, sir."

"Take your time, Hogan." Klink waved them off, only realizing he would be left alone with that woman and General Burkhalter.

Newkirk and his crew were hiding behind some thick shrubbery. They could see the front gates from their vantage point and they kept an eye out for Hogan, Schultz and Ritter.

"Here he comes," LeBeau said.

Morris let out a sigh of relief. "I was a bit worried that Ritter wouldn't come," he said to Newkirk.

"The guv'nor has a golden tongue, Morris. If Ritter had balked, he would have thought of something. Colonel Hogan always does."

After passing through the front gates, Hogan, Ritter and Schultz entered the woods. Hogan felt for the extra ball in his pocket. "It probably landed somewhere over there." He pointed and began walking toward a small grassy area in front of a group of trees. "Schultz, we can do this quicker if you help," he said.

"I can't leave you alone," Schultz whined. "With …"

"Schultz, what do you take me for?" Hogan, placed his hand on his hip and stared at the sergeant. "Where would I go and what would I do?" He swooped his right hand in the air. "I'd really like to get back to the game. A tie game. The only thing I have been looking forward to for months. I'll look over there." He pointed. "Perhaps, Ritter, you'll assist."

"It's okay, Sergeant. I'll help Colonel Hogan look over here."

Score one for manipulation. Hogan smiled. He put two fingers to his lips and a whistling sound pierced the air. "Use this signal, Schultz."

Schultz shook his head. He's up to something, but I don't know what, he decided. But maybe. Maybe, just this once, he isn't? How could he know that the ball would go over the fences? Schultz plodded into the woods and began looking, wondering if he should have brought a guard dog with him. No, they could be mean. Better look on his own.

"You look right, and I'll look left," Hogan said to Ritter. "Fair enough?"

"Yes," Ritter replied.

As they separated, Hogan stopped. Well, I'll be…There was the ball Berg hit. Ritter wasn't looking, and Hogan quickly tossed it further into the woods. "Any luck?" he yelled.

"Nein."

"Okay. Let's try another grid," Hogan suggested. "Now where? How about that way?"

Ritter agreed, and Hogan followed him into a copse of trees. "This is beautiful," Hogan said. "It's a shame that we have to tear most of these down."

"Well, we will see. Maybe some can be saved," Ritter said. "Maybe not."

"I think they will," Hogan replied.

Ritter turned and saw Hogan aiming a gun at his head.

"What in the world?"

Hogan pointed. "Go further into the woods. I don't want Schultz getting caught up in this." As Ritter paused, Hogan repeated, "Now."

Ritter pulled himself together for a moment. Outraged, he stared at the colonel for a moment and then laughed. "What do you plan to do, Colonel Hogan? Shoot me right here? You are in a, what is the word, precarious position. The only reason why I'm not screaming is because I can't imagine why you would do something so stupid as to hold a gun on a German officer." He began to laugh. "You won't do anything. You're already in deep trouble for having a gun. So… why?"

A roar coming from the compound made the men pause.

"I hope that was for my side," Hogan muttered and then grinned. "No, Ritter, you are the one in a precarious position. I have all the bases covered."

"The bases?"

"Bases. First, second, third... never mind... it means I have answers to multiple scenarios."

"Uh, uh."

Ritter, now confused and quite nonplussed by being held at gunpoint by a POW, gazed around the woods, hoping to find the guard who was supposed to be keeping an eye on Hogan. Seeing no sign of him, he decided to yell. "Guard!"

Hogan shot into the ground near Ritter's feet, making him jump.

Meanwhile, Schultz, vaguely hearing the commotion, stopped dead in his tracks and then turned. He began walking back towards Hogan and Ritter and ran right into Newkirk.

"Have a light, Schultzie? I forgot my matches."

"New…New…What are you doing here?"

"Got bored with the match. Can't understand the rules. Never saw the appeal. Thought I'd take a stroll." The rest of the men still remained hidden and waited for a signal in case they had to intervene. Back in the compound, the bases were now loaded with the odd-numbered barracks' best hitter up at bat.

Hearing what sounded like a gunshot, Klink jumped out of his seat." Did you hear that?" he asked. The guards in the towers also took note and began checking the woods while waiting for orders. "Did Schultz's rifle go off accidentally?" Leave it to that dummkopf, Klink thought.

"It sounded like a car backfiring," Marya noted calmly as she examined her nails. Glancing up, she noticed Carter sidling up next to the group, probably on purpose, in order to create a distraction.

"Ma'am." Carter tipped his hat. He then addressed Klink and Burkhalter. "This next batter, sirs. Well, he is scary. He could knock the cover off the ball if he gets it right. You see, it's all physics..."

Burkhalter raised his eyebrows at Carter's quip. "You must be joking."

"It's just a saying," Carter explained. "I don't think he really could knock the cover off the ball." He chuckled. "Although, I suppose…in the right conditions…"

Meanwhile, hearing what sounded like a gunshot, the pitcher thought fast and lobbed the ball to the plate. The batter's eyes went wide, and he swung; the ball connected with the bat and sailed over the infielders, dropping to the ground and rolling towards the maintenance building, finally resting against its outside wall. The outfielders scrambled, and the men circled the bases. The spectators began cheering, and the attention of everyone watching, as well as the tower guards, was now on the field and not the noise coming from the woods.

Ritter was shocked at finding himself in a confrontation with Hogan. But he did have some training. He held up his hands and backed away. As he did so, he feigned a stumble and went for his sidearm. He pulled it out and to his horror, he discovered it held no ammo.

"Missing something?" Hogan asked coolly.

Ritter gulped and turned pale. "Where is my gun?

"That's not your concern," Hogan replied. As planned, Newkirk had lifted Ritter's weapon and replaced it with an empty one. Ritter had no clue. Not for the first time, Hogan gave thanks for Newkirk's skills. "So, Ritter. You can see I'm very serious. Schultz is otherwise occupied. You have two choices. You cancel this project and all the other ones, and there's a trip somewhere in your future where you'll be treated humanely and questioned, or I'll shoot you and take the consequences."

"You'll be executed," Ritter said. "Why are these woods so important to you? For all of you, the war is over. This isn't the Hotel Adlon, but you could be in someplace much, much worse."

"Yeah. I know. What's in your future? A posting to somewhere much colder? The tide is turning, and eventually, we will defeat you, no matter how long it takes."

"I have faith in our fighting forces and our leader," Ritter sneered.

"He and his minions will see you all dead the first chance he gets. You and the rest of the German people will suffer. He doesn't care. He'll see the country completely destroyed. Is that what you want? And you want that for your family?" Hogan aimed.

"How do you know about my family?"

"Wife, two children. Fortunately, they are young enough that they can be re-educated. And also, fortunately, your wife doesn't know about your lovely companion…."

"You harm one hair on their heads, and I'll…."

"Schultz, did you find the missing ball? It may have gone over there." Newkirk asked.

The snatch of conversation filtered in from the path through the woods, and Hogan flicked an irritated glance in that direction, but he didn't break stride.

"We're not monsters." Hogan sighed. "Not like the lot of you." He pointed the gun at a tree stump. "Sit down," he ordered. Ritter complied. "Look. Never mind how I got the gun and the ammunition and why I don't want these woods destroyed. I don't want this project going forward anywhere. Not every Kommandant is like Klink. He's at least somewhat humane. We get most of our Red Cross packages. He hasn't executed anyone for trying to escape. Not that anyone has been successful. Once we're liberated, I'll attest to all of that. I can do the same for you. And your family, if you're willing."

"And if I don't comply?" Ritter couldn't help but wonder what would happen next. If he accused Hogan, he was sure he would be believed. Hogan would be dead within the hour or wind up at Gestapo HQ. If he went along with Hogan for now (and he was interested in seeing how that would work out), could he be a hero and expose everything? Because Hogan must have contacts outside of camp. Or was it Marya? No, that could not be possible. Marya was well known in the area. She liked to be wined and dined. And treated like royalty. But there was the one time... a body count? No, it couldn't be possible. Could it? No. Marya was a White Russian. She wanted things back the way they were.

At that thought, Ritter decided to play along.

"You said you can get me out and also my wife and children?"

Hogan nodded.

"How?"

"You'll inform Burkhalter that the construction isn't possible here now that you have seen the woods, and you'll check elsewhere. The entire project will be called off or disappear. Arrangements will be made to get you and your family out of Germany. You'll be contacted. You will know."

And you'll be arrested, Ritter thought. "You have a deal," he said.

Again, the voices from the path intruded.

"Schultz?"

The sergeant turned. "What now?"

"Time to go, Schultzie," Newkirk clapped the sergeant on the shoulder. "See you inside." Schultz had no time to reply as Newkirk disappeared further into the woods to the hiding place, where he met up with the rest of the team.

"It worked," Newkirk told the men. "Let's disarm the mine."

Moments later, the German sergeant appeared in front of Hogan and Ritter. Ritter accompanied Hogan, Schultz, and the found baseball back into the camp.

"Well, will you look at that!" Hogan exclaimed as he checked the homemade scoreboard underneath one of the guard towers. "We're winning!"

He tossed the errant baseball up and down a few times and then took his seat. After winking at Marya, he leaned back, crossed one leg over the other, and nodded to Carter.

Marya slapped Ritter's knee. "Did you enjoy your little walk in the woods, my darling? I see you found the ball. And your project?"

"About that," Ritter stated. He turned to Klink. "These woods are not suitable, Kommandant, General. I'll put my reasons in my report. I'll move on to another camp after we are done here."

Both Klink and Burkhalter were surprised at this turn of events, but they did not argue. Klink was relieved at knowing his camp would not be disbanded, while Burkhalter suspected Hogan had something to do with Ritter's decision. But the general was willing to let things go and see how Ritter's plans played out elsewhere.

A/N: Berthold Konrad Hermann Albert Speer was a German architect who served as the Minister of Armaments and War Production in Nazi Germany during most of World War II. A close ally of Adolf Hitler, he was convicted at the Nuremberg trials and sentenced to 20 years in prison

The Hotel Adlon was a luxury hotel located in Berlin. It has an interesting history which you can find here: en / hotel – adlon /overview /hotel-information / the – adlon - history

The infield fly rule: This should make your eyes glaze over! "The infield fly rule is a rule of baseball and softball that treats certain fly balls as though caught, before the ball is caught, even if the infielder fails to catch it or drops it on purpose. The umpire's declaration of an infield fly means that the batter is out (and all force plays are removed) regardless of whether the ball is caught. The rule exists solely to prevent the defense from executing a double play or triple play by deliberately failing to catch a ball that an infielder could catch with ordinary effort." (Wikipedia)