Henry Skrimshander

Henry is a remarkably talented shortstop who becomes a team leader and a star player for the Westish Harpooners. Though mild-mannered in daily life, he is capable of passion, inspiration, and sacrifice when playing baseball. Henry's skills as a ballplayer were honed during his childhood in South Dakota. As a boy, he developed an affection for the St. Louis Cardinals and for the (fictional) shortstop Aparicio Rodriguez, whose book The Art of Fielding has often guided Henry.

However, Henry had not considered playing college baseball before Mike Schwartz entered his life. The young South Dakotan makes his way to Westish with little more than an old Cardinals shirt, a copy of The Art of Fielding, and his glove Zero (named for the fact that Henry normally commits zero errors). Eventually, Henry finds an accepting community among the other members of the Westish baseball team.

In several respects...