Heat

The day after Michael’s great game in the park, he attends church with Mrs. Cora and returns to read about his hero, El Grande, shutting out the Red Sox. He thinks of El Grande’s own family, who had been the start of a winning streak since they arrived from Cuba a month before. Although Carlos tells Michael that the story of a “high speed chase” from the police was actually “a police escort” (27) because they must have known El Grande’s family was aboard their boat. When Michael’s family traveled across the ocean to the United States, there was no such protection.

Over lunch at McDonalds, Carlos and Michael talk over Michael’s next game, that afternoon. Carlos insists that he will attend, even though it’s his “one day off” (28). Michael notices that Carlos works to show that he is “organized” and “on top of everything,” as if he “was Papi Jr.” (29).

Carlos also has a serious agenda at their lunch. He reminds Michael that, as his team gains more attention, he needs to be “careful” (29) with his words. Carlos “[makes] the spotlight sound like one more thing for them to be afraid of” (29) and then drops Michael off at the field.