New Releases by Mike Lupica

Pedro Morales has always been content helping others look great. The epitome of a point guard, he plays the game to set up his teammates—Ned, in particular, the star forward on the receiving end of Pedro’s pinpoint passes. Pedro wants to make his father proud, and so he runs for class president. Yet doing so means going one-on-one against Ned, easily the most popular boy in school. And Pedro learns the hard way that being a good teammate doesn’t mean that others will return the favor. Now Pedro wants to win more than ever—but this time, it’s for himself.

From the #1 New York Times bestselling author of Heat, Travel Team and Million-Dollar Throw. Playing shortstop is a way of life for Hutch—not only is his hero, Derek Jeter, a shortstop, but so was his father, a former local legend turned pro. Which is why having to play second base feels like demotion to second team. Yet that''s where Hutch ends up after Darryl "D-Will" Williams, the best shortstop prospect since A-Rod, joins the team. But Hutch is nothing if not a team player, and he''s cool with playing in D-Will''s shadow—until, that is, the two shortstops in Hutch''s life betray him in a way he never could have imagined. With the league championship on the line, just how far is Hutch willing to bend to be a good teammate?

Playing baseball was the one thing that made twelve-year-old Nick Crandall feel at home until he found acceptance with adoptive parents, but he faces a new struggle to fit in when he becomes the first seventh-grader ever to make the varsity baseball team.

From the #1 New York Times bestselling author of Heat, Travel Team and Million-Dollar Throw. Josh Cameron is MVP of the championship Boston Celtics and a media darling with a spotless reputation. He has it all . . . including a daughter he never knew. When twelve-year-old Molly Parker arrives in his life, claiming to be his daughter, she catches him off guard. Molly says her mom, Jen, revealed his identity before losing her battle with cancer. Josh isn''t so sure about this girl—she must be trying to scam him for his money. Still, there''s something about Molly that reminds him so much of Jen. But as Molly gets to know the real Josh, the one the camera never sees, she starts to understand why her mother never wanted her to know her dad. Josh has room in his heart for only two things: basketball and himself. Does Molly really want this man for a father? Together, these two strangers learn that sometimes, for things to end up the way you want them to, you have to fire up a prayer at the buzzer and hope it goes in.

The #1 Bestseller! Michael Arroyo has a pitching arm that throws serious heat along with aspirations of leading his team all the way to the Little League World Series. But his firepower is nothing compared to the heat Michael faces in his day-to-day life. Newly orphaned after his father led the family’s escape from Cuba, Michael’s only family is his seventeen-yearold brother Carlos. If Social Services hears of their situation, they will be separated in the foster-care system—or worse, sent back to Cuba. Together, the boys carry on alone, dodging bills and anyone who asks too many questions. But then someone wonders how a twelve-year-old boy could possibly throw with as much power as Michael Arroyo throws. With no way to prove his age, no birth certificate, and no parent to fight for his cause, Michael’s secret world is blown wide open, and he discovers that family can come from the most unexpected sources. Perfect for any Little Leaguer with dreams of making it big--as well as for fans of Mike Lupica''s other New York Times bestsellers Travel Team, The Big Field, The Underdogs, Million-Dollar Throw, and The Game Changers series, this cheer-worthy baseball story shows that when the game knocks you down, champions stand tall.

Brainy Scott, a great kicker who otherwise struggles with football, and star quarterback Chris, who has dyslexia, team up to help each other succeed in both football and school.

The #1 Bestseller! Twelve-year-old Danny Walker may be the smallest kid on the basketball court -- but don''t tell him that. Because no one plays with more heart or court sense. But none of that matters when he is cut from his local travel team, the very same team his father led to national prominence as a boy. Danny''s father, still smarting from his own troubles, knows Danny isn''t the only kid who was cut for the wrong reason, and together, this washed-up former player and a bunch of never-say-die kids prove that the heart simply cannot be measured. For fans of The Bad News Bears, Hoosiers, the Mighty Ducks, and Mike Lupica''s other New York Times bestselling novels Heat, The Underdogs, and Million-Dollar Throw, here is a book that proves that when the game knocks you down, champions stand tall.

The owner of the New York Knights, the worst team in the NBA, will try anything to turn his team around. He discovers Dee Gerard, the first woman to play in the NBA.

A funny, moving, unconventional exploration of a glorious baseball season. In 1998, the conversation of the country was about baseball. Lupica recaptures that season, telling how Roger Maris''s boyhood best friend in Fargo, ND, watches McGwire hit 62; Kerry Wood''s high school assistant coach in Texas refuses to believe the reports of Wood''s strikeout record, until the phone starts ringing; Joe DiMaggio talks as he watches the Yankees have the kind of year he always had; Yogi Berra watches highlights of David Wells''s perfect game & remembers the perfect game he caught from Don Larsen -- all the boys of summer come alive in special ways. It is also about fathers & sons -- about the golden thread that stretches through baseball.

The tale of the season of competition between McGwire and Sosa to break the hitting record.