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Cory Wade's Story: In HS Wade Weighed Less than 100 LBS; But Went on to Become a Big Leaguer

June 12, 2013

By Pete Cava
PBR Indiana Correspondent

INDIANAPOLIS – When he tried out for his high school’s baseball team, Cory Wade stood less than five feet tall.   

By the time he tossed his last pitch for Indianapolis Broad Ripple, he was the school’s all-time strikeout leader.  

Wade’s high school catcher was Paul Richardson, whose older brother Jon coached the Rockets.  Cory and Paul went on to play for Kentucky Wesleyan College, a Division II school in Owensboro, Ky. – a solid baseball program, but not one that sends a steady flow of players to the professional ranks.  

Few scouts saw Wade pitch during his first two college seasons.  One of them was Cory’s old high school coach, Jon Richardson, by now part of the Milwaukee Brewers organization.  At Jon’s urging, scouts began noticing Wade.  In June 2004, the Los Angeles Dodgers selected him in the first-year player draft.   

Wade alternated as a starter and reliever for most of his first three seasons.  He opened the 2007 campaign with Inland Empire (High-A California), where pitching coach Charlie Hough – the winner of 216 big league contests – helped Wade refine his curve.  Pitching primarily in relief, Cory went 7-0 with a 2.45 ERA and moved up to Jacksonville (Double-A Southern).  

Wade began the 2008 season with Jacksonville and joined the Dodgers in late April.  He became an effective setup man (2-1, 2.27 in 55 games) as Los Angeles finished first in the NL West. 

A free agent after the 2010 season, Wade resurfaced with the Yankees in 2011 and went 6-1, 2.04 in a setup role.  He split the 2012 season between New York and Scranton/Wilkes-Barre (AAA International). 

Cory began the 2013 season with Iowa (Pacific Coast/AAA), the top farm club of the Chicago Cubs.  On May 13 he signed with Durham (International/AAA), Tampa Bay’s top affiliate.  Through his first nine appearances with the Bulls, he was 1-0 with a 2.84 ERA in 12.2 innings.  

Wade returned to Indianapolis when Durham came to town June 4-7 for a four-game series with the Indians.   

Full Name:  Cory Nathaniel Wade.  Resides:  Elmwood Park, Ill.  Height/Weight:  6-2/185.  Bats/Throws:  R/R.  Born:  May 28, 1983, Indianapolis.  High School:  Indianapolis Broad Ripple, 2001.  College:  Kentucky Wesleyan, 2004.  Drafted:  10th round, 2004, by the Dodgers.  

Did you play other sports growing up?

Yeah, I was a big basketball fan.  That was my No. 1 sport all through high school, but I wasn't exactly big enough for it.  Eventually I started growing, but by that time I had already switched to baseball.

How tall were you back then?

My first year of high school, I was 4-11, 90 pounds.  By the time I left, I was about 5-9 or 5-10.  I grew a few more inches in college.

What do remember from your playing days at Broad Ripple?

It was fun playing for the love of the game back then.  It really was.  We had a good team.  Some guys I played with were All-State in all kinds of sports – football, basketball and baseball.  Those guys were phenomenal athletes.  I wound up at Wesleyan with one of my best friends [Paul Richardson], and it was fun playing with him.

Did you play summer ball while you were in high school?

Yeah, I did.  I played with the Bulldogs.  I don't know if that team's still around anymore.  But I played with the Bulldogs for  ...  I think three or four years, maybe.  That was a lot of fun, getting to travel all around, playing in West Virginia, Cleveland, all over.  It was a good time.

Were there any scouts looking at you at that point?

No, not really.  I didn't get recruited all that heavily in college, let alone the professionals.  At that point, I still wasn't physically as big as the other guys.  I could play the game, but I just wasn't as big as them.  I think I got overlooked just because of that.  It was good having the skills, and then when I grew into my size, I was able to compete at a higher level.

At what point did you know you were a prospect?

Not until my junior year of college.  Scouts came out to see other guys.  My name started getting out there after my sophomore year.  I really didn't know the avenues I was going to have to take to have a chance.

Jon [Richardson], being part of the Brewers organization, got some guys out to see me.  He helped get me exposed at that smaller school.  I was able to get a little better my junior year, and that's when the scouts started coming out.  That was the point it became a little more serious. That was a fun process in itself.

What was it like when you found out you'd been drafted by the Dodgers?

Listening to Tommy Lasorda call your name [on draft day], knowing who he was and what it was about, that was a lot of fun.  Being an African American player and knowing the history of the team – Jackie [Robinson], [Don] Newcombe and all those guys that were around the Dodgers – it was a lot of fun getting a chance to play in that organization.

You played for two of baseball's storied organizations – the Dodgers and Yankees. What was that like?

I've been lucky to get a chance to put on those two uniforms.  There's not a lot of guys who've had the pleasure of putting on a Dodger uniform or a Yankee uniform, let alone both.  It's been a lot of fun to walk the same halls as all those Hall of Famers.  With those two teams, I was teammates with – jeez – maybe ten [future] Hall of Famers.  I've been lucky to get to witness the things I have in my career. 

What's it like coming back to Indianapolis?

It's nice.  I don't get a chance to come back here in the summer very often.  When I switched clubs from the Cubs to come here [Durham], it was the first time I've been here in the summer since 2011.  And before that, it was the first time I'd been here in the summer since college.  It had been a long time.  But it's nice to get chance to play in front of your friends and family, 'cause they don't get a chance to see me very often. 

With you in Triple-A, the only black Hoosier in the major leagues is Mets reliever LaTroy Hawkins. What can baseball do to get more African Americans involved in the game?

I don't know if there's one right answer.  I think there's a lot of different things that could happen.  It’s tough to get ‘em, ‘cause it’s a harder path to get there [to the major leagues].  You get quicker gratification in other sports, where they’re gonna go right to it. 

So I wonder if there's a way to support the minor leagues in a different way – maybe help pay for housing and things like that.  It makes it a lot tougher to play the game.  I was lucky.  My parents had just switched jobs and had money to give me through the minors.  If I didn’t, I might have had to quit.  

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