"Ham" MacPherson is a promising left-handed baseball pitcher at Wilkes Central High School whom the Atlanta Braves have told will be selected with the third pick of the 1976 MLB draft, complete with a generous signing bonus. Within a twenty-four hour period, however, Ham's world goes topsy-turvy. His relationships with his girlfriend, Nora, and best friend, JC, are turned upside down and inside out. A life-changing catastrophe transforms Ham and the way he views the world. Accidents and deaths soon follow. How will Ham deal with all the tumult in his life? The story ends where it began, in a hearse.