Don't Overlook These Undersized Prospects
September 24, 2014
By Jacob Gill
Philadelphia Region Director of Scouting
Scrappy. Gamer. Plays bigger than you'd expect. Whole is greater than the sum of his parts.
There are a myriad of code words and euphemisms that coaches and evaluators will use to avoid bluntly calling a good player "short." The reality is, however, that being undersized (you can add that one to the list) is not a death knell in this sport. Listed at 5-foot-6, 175-pounds on the Houston Astros website, second baseman Jose Altuve is already a two-time All-Star in his first three full seasons in the major leagues. 5-foot-3, 145-pound shortstop Chris Cates helped lead Louisville to the 2007 College World Series (while posting a career .304 average with 53 extra base hits and 34 stolen bases), set the UL career record for games played, and finished sixth in NCAA history in assists.
With that in mind, here is a sampling of Pennsylvania seniors who are short in stature, but long on ability: ....