PLUNKING REGGIE JACKSON

Coley Burke is a star pitcher, but his senior year is anything but stellar. His father's pressure on him to perform for the scouts worries him, as it may compromise the team's chance at the playoffs, and Coley may compromise himself and the team by failing in English. When mysterious sophomore Bree Madison seduces him, he finds an excuse from facing those he thinks he's failing. But then Bree announces that she's pregnant, and they find themselves in a pickle before Coley realizes they've been using each other to escape their families. Bennett (Blue Star Rapture, 1998, etc.) spins an interesting tale, though his side characters remain one-dimensional, and his plot groans with complications (there's a thread about a dead brother and a possible side romance, among others). Coley seems to come out on top at the end, with the courage to put decency over success, but with so many strings hanging out, it's a tenuous achievement. Still, he's a sympathetic character, and readers will want to find out what happens. The baseball and sex scenes are well done and will also appeal. A sports novel with some depth, this may fit the bill for older readers. (Fiction. YA)