On game day, Mr. Darko offers no encouragement as Walt and four Hillcrest mothers arrive. When the Muskrats take the field at Myerson, the crowd boos and calls them cheaters. Franny takes a frightened Benny to the bus. At Walt’s suggestion, Mr. Darko blows his whistle. Walt announces continued booing will result in a forfeit for unsportsmanlike conduct. When the Myerson coach objects, Walt threatens to call the press, and the coach relents.

The Muskrats lose on the scoreboard but achieve individual successes: Benchant steals two bases, Aiden Oxley bunts successfully, Alvin Oxley catches three fly balls, and Sky strikes out three batters in one inning. On the bus home, the players thank Benny.

Mr. Hazard promises the booing will not recur and offers to honor the team in an assembly. In English class, Jeremiah worries about getting sick from coughing classmates because his compromised immune system makes him vulnerable. He writes a poem about germ invasion.

Feeling unwell, Jeremiah goes home early and develops a sinus infection. Walt worries because similar illnesses previously led to bronchitis. While resting, Jeremiah sees Franny and El Grande restoring the rocking horse, which reminds him of Walt replacing Baby the eagle’s damaged eye and of his own post-transplant sense of being better than before.

After two days hospitalized for his sinus infection, Jeremiah returns home with an extensive pill collection. Terrell calls, reporting practice is only adequate because Mr. Darko focuses on running drills rather than baseball fundamentals.

Franny visits while Jeremiah is recovering. She brings a drawing from Benny showing a yellow bird flying. Jeremiah reflects on the difference between flying and soaring, noting eagles soar by riding air currents without flapping. When Franny asks to use the bathroom, she is momentarily confused by a playful sign about robots. Jeremiah’s robot, Jerwal, greets her as she exits.

Jupiter Jetts joins as closer, bringing the roster to 13. However, Casey Bean quits; his father would prefer he ran track because Casey’s brother used to play baseball for the Hornets. Benchant faces similar pressure. Jeremiah asks Mr. Hazard to talk to the parents. Then, the team loses 12-0 to the Brownsville Badgers.

On the bus home, they see “cheaters” spray-painted across the Hornets’ stadium where a TV crew films. Franny wishes the town would support the clean middle school team. Walking home, they encounter Bo carrying a dusty trunk from the garage. Franny gasps. The trunk bears baseball stickers and is locked. Franny tells Jeremiah it belonged to her father. When Bo asks if they should open it, both Franny and her mother refuse. Bo returns it to the garage.

The Hillcrest Herald publishes an editorial addressing the scandal. The editorial acknowledges the town became addicted to winning and calls for courage to rebuild.

On Mother’s Day, Jeremiah gives Walt a modified cheesy card, as is their tradition. While eating on their porch, Walt reveals he is going to dinner with Dr. Dugan and explains that it is not a date. That night, Jeremiah reflects on Coach Perkins’s preliminary hearing and thinks about his birth mother, writing her an imaginary note saying she was right about Walt.

After rain cancels practice, Donald waits at Jeremiah’s home asking for help. He admits getting embarrassed after errors and giving up. Jeremiah offers catching advice and a mental tip to steady himself with a confident phrase. Then, he explains how to break in Donald’s stiff glove, and they play catch. After Donald’s performance improves, he reveals he had cancer two years ago and his wish was to play baseball.

Jeremiah helps Walt choose a shirt for his dinner with Dr. Dugan. After Walt leaves, Jeremiah watches an eagle cam online and sees a crack in one egg before the feed cuts out. He falls asleep. Walt returns late and confirms that the dinner became a date.

The newspaper publishes preliminary hearing transcripts showing players testifying Coach Perkins gave them pills and injections he claimed were vitamins, while Perkins denies providing steroids. Mrs. Ogletree tells Jeremiah she is concerned he only writes about baseball. Meanwhile, their next game is cancelled.

Bo asks Jeremiah to walk to Hargie Cantwell’s house, where Bo places a letter for Hargie’s parents in their mailbox. Bo believes Hargie did not know he was taking steroids. Then, Bo recounts how Coach Perkins influenced him and how he destroyed his pitching arm due to high-pressure training, ending his Hornets dream. Back on their street, El Grande announces Dr. Selligman asked him to coach the middle school team, and he accepted, hoping that Bo will help. Jeremiah is devastated, but forces a smile before going home.

El Grande arrives and clarifies he only accepted the coaching job on condition that Jeremiah would be his full-time assistant. Disclosing his family may only remain through June, Jeremiah accepts. At practice, El Grande asks if they are losers. When Jeremiah reads the definition, the team insists they are not. So, El Grande shares comeback stories and emphasizes fundamentals. Unimpressed with the team name Muskrats, El Grande welcomes Jeremiah’s suggestion to change it to the Eagles.

On the bus to their next game, Franny and Benny board. When Jeremiah announces they are now the Eagles, Franny responds that they always were eagles.

The Eagles lose 3-2, but the loss feels different, almost like a victory. Their fan base is growing. On the bus, El Grande praises performances and introduces personal goals for each game. Then, when El Grande asks about Sky’s warm-up throws, Benny answers 17. He then says Sky threw 63 total pitches. Jeremiah confirms Benny’s total. Benny also accurately recalls a previous game’s count. When asked how, he points to his head and explains he sees it there. He correctly counts 18 people on the bus. El Grande tells Benny he has a gift.

That night, Jeremiah designs promotional cards featuring a soaring eagle to build name recognition. He tells the Eagles to distribute them.

Jeremiah looks up Adler’s name and discovers it means eagle in German. When Franny appears, he tells her Walt’s contract only runs through June seventh. Feeling his time may be limited, he reveals his life story: being found by Walt, the note, the eagle toy, and his heart transplant.

He prompts Franny to share by listing his favorite things until she relents. They walk to a church parking lot and sit on a bench with an inscription about courage. Franny reveals her father abandoned the family four years ago, leaving only a note. She worries she caused it, but Jeremiah reassures her it was about her father. She explains he was a disappointed minor league baseball player. Franny confirms they eventually opened the trunk and found baseball items and a map of Canada. As rain begins, Jeremiah asks Franny to be his best friend. She agrees.