Sherlogic Mystery
A storied logic puzzle. Read closely, every detail may matter.
Case File · Read Carefully
The Home Run That Never Left
A Lesson in Watching
The old-timers exhibition at Willow Bend Ballpark honored baseball's storytellers. The seventh inning was dedicated to legendary player and manager Yogi Berra and his observation, “You can observe a lot by just watching.” Soon afterward, a batter drove a towering ball toward the wooden scoreboard and right-field fence. The crowd watched a baseball clear the wall and celebrated a remarkable home run. Then five witnesses began disagreeing about what they had seen.
Five Honest Witnesses
Reporter Ada Quinn questioned Nora Chase, Gus Bell, Lena Park, Milo Reed, and Walter Finch. They were the right fielder, groundskeeper, photographer, bleacher spectator, and scoreboard operator. Their decisive moments were Before Impact, At Impact, Just After Impact, During the Cheers, and After the Play. Their findings were a Fresh Seam Scuff, Bent Pulley Pin, Two-Ball Photo, Weathered Baseball, and Ivy-Hidden Ball.
Accounts That Should Not Agree
Nora said, “I watched the home-run ball clear the fence, but the ball that was hit never left right field.” Gus insisted, “A ball came down from the scoreboard before the hit came back down.” Milo said, “My one picture has two baseballs, and neither one came second.” Twelve-year-old Lena said, “I caught the home-run ball, but it got to the park before I did.” Walter added, “The missing ball was still here after everybody watched it leave.” All five were telling the truth.
Who Saw What
Lena was the bleacher spectator. Nora carried neither the camera case nor the pruning shears and was not the scoreboard operator. Gus watched from above field level but was not the photographer. Milo worked neither on the field nor inside the scoreboard. The right fielder's decisive moment was Before Impact; the operator's was At Impact; the photographer's was Just After Impact; the spectator's was During the Cheers; and the groundskeeper's was After the Play.
The Physical Evidence
The photographer supplied the Two-Ball Photo, and the spectator kept the Weathered Baseball. The After the Play witness recovered the Ivy-Hidden Ball. The Bent Pulley Pin belonged with At Impact, leaving the Fresh Seam Scuff with the witness who watched the ball rise. Both marks were found on the pennant pulley. The photograph showed a bright, red-seamed ball near the pulley and a dirt-gray ball falling toward the bleachers. The ball in the ivy was clean; the caught ball was weathered, stamped PRACTICE, and tangled with fibers matching a rolled pennant.
Detective’s note: There is no separate clue list. Circle the useful facts in your mind and transfer them to the grid.
Detective’s Deduction Grid
Record the relationships you uncover in the case file.
Eliminate is selected.
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