Prep Baseball Report

Southport Left-hander Short Named to U18 National Team by USA Baseball


Steve Krah
PBR Indiana Correspondent

Indiana will be represented when the COPABE (Confederación Panamericana de Béisbol or Pan-American Baseball Confederation) U18 Pan-American Championships is staged Nov. 23-Dec. 2 in Panama.

Team USA is looking to win its fifth straight Pan-American Championships gold medal.

Avery Short, a left-handed pitcher and senior at Southport High School in Indianapolis, was named to the 20-man Team USA roster. Athletes selected for the U18 National Team were chosen from the 17U NTDP, the USA Baseball 17U National Team Identification Series (NTIS), the Tournament of Stars, as well as recommendations from professional scouts, USA Baseball task force members and collegiate and high school coaches.

Short, who is making his national team debut, is the lone Indiana player on a team that features five players each with hometowns in Florida and Texas, two each from California and New Jersey and one apiece from Colorado, Georgia, Kentucky, North Carolina and Washington.

18U National Team training has been going on in Florida with games Thursday through Tuesday, Nov. 15-20. Short started and pitched four innings Nov. 20 against the South Florida All-Stars in Fort Lauderdale. He yielded two earned runs and five hits while striking out three and walking three.

Short, a 6-foot-2, 205-pounder, throws with a three-quarter overhand delivery. His pitch selection includes a four-seam fastball, two-seam fastball, curveball, slider and change-up. He has been clocked at 92 mph.

Which pitch does he use most?

“Definitely my four-seam,” says Short. “But other than that, my slider.”

In June, Short mixed four-seamers, two-seamers, sliders and change-ups while five scoreless innings on 56 pitches at the Tournament of Stars in Cary, N.C. After that, he was revealed as the only Indiana product on the roster for the 18U National Team Trials.

The southpaw played in the Under Armour All-America Game at Wrigley Field in Chicago in July. He hurled the last two innings for the American squad, giving up one hit while striking out four and walking one.

Short, who was born in Indianapolis and grew up in the Southport school system, has been affiliated with the Indiana Twins, Elite Baseball Training and the Indiana Bulls travel organizations.

Now, Short gets to work with Indiana High School Baseball Coaches Association Hall of Famer Phil Webster, who has taken over as head coach at Southport.

“Coach Webster is a great coach who knows a lot about the game and can take our team to the next level,” says Short.

His pitching instructor has been Mike Farrell, who played at Indiana State University and in the Milwaukee Brewers organization and is now an area scout for the Kansas City Royals.

Short has first base when he is not pitching and swings the bat from the right side. Webster had him working in the outfield during fall drills at Southport. He says he expects to be a pitcher-only with Team USA and at Louisville.

What makes Short the athlete that he is?

“My best qualities are my drive to win and competitiveness,” says Short.

Short has committed to the University of Louisville after high school.

“It is a great school with a great baseball program and amazing schools to help develop me for the next level,” says Short, who has not yet decided on a college major.

Avery is the son of Todd Short (married to Cathy Short) and Amanda Bryan (married to Scott Bryan). His siblings are Amber, Abbey, Alec, Caroline, Payton and Lexi.