Big Impression: Small Gesture by Player is Huge for Young Fan

A preacher named Robert South once said, "If there be a truer measure of a man than by what he does, it must by what he gives." For Chris Cates, this is an easy lesson to measure up to.

At 5' 3" and 145 pounds, Cates has always been challenged in the face of measurements placed upon him by other so-called "men." A four-year starter at the University of Louisville, Cates holds a career .302 batting average as well as the distinction of being the shortest player in NCAA Division 1 baseball during his time playing for the Cardinals. One of Chris' teammate recalls Cates during his recruiting visit, thinking he was the coach's nephew rather than a player. Yet, it was his accomplishments on the field, not his size that prompted the Minnesota Twins to take a flyer on Cates and select him in the 38th round of the 2007 MLB draft.

Four years later, my family and I took a trip in May 2011 to see a minor league game in Manchester, New Hampshire, to see the New Hampshire Fisher Cats, the Double-A affiliate for the Toronto Blue Jays, take on the New Britain Rock Cats, their Twins counterpart. We were astonished when Cates ran out to shortstop when the Rock Cats took the field, and my mind in particular immediately ran to thoughts of David Eckstein and Dustin Pedroia, two other players of shorter stature that rose above the limitations that scouts placed on their size. However, the bigger impression was the one Cates made on my 7-year-old son Logan.

Logan is a fraternal twin, and he and his brother couldn't possibly fit the definition for fraternal any closer than they do. Logan is blond with blue eyes, while his brother has brown eyes and hair. His brother is also 5 inches taller and 10 pounds heavier, which has fostered in Logan a self-image that he is smaller than others despite the fact that he is in the normal percentiles for his age.

Logan absolutely loves baseball and when he saw Cates take the field, his eyes lit up. Here was a player that epitomized the same things Logan thought he was struggling with and yet here he was, playing two steps away from the Major Leagues and doing it at a high-profile position. My son immediately made Chris Cates his favorite player, talking about him the whole game and ride home.

This past week, we were reviewing the schedule for the Portland Sea Dogs, the Double-A squad for the Boston Red Sox, and noticed that they were hosting the Rock Cats for an afternoon game. We immediately bought tickets and headed out on the three-hour drive to Portland. We didn't arrive until the bottom of the first inning and when we'd finally gotten into our seats, we noticed that Cates wasn't on the field. Logan was disappointed, but I explained to him that sometimes, other players get to start and he was good with that.

During the seventh inning stretch, Cates appeared to come from the clubhouse with a trainer and headed for the visiting dugout. I noticed him walking across the field and immediately alerted my son. As the bottom of the ninth came around, I took Logan with me and headed for some empty seats next to the visiting dugout. Portland does not allow you to ask for autographs during the game, so we waited for the game to wrap up, which it did moments later when Alex Hassan hit a walk-off home run for the Sea Dogs.

As Hassan was crossing the plate, my wife flagged down Cates and asked him if he'd sign a ball for Logan. Despite having just watched his team lose, Cates set his equipment down and signed the baseball for my son. I explained to him that he was a hero to my son, as Logan has self-image issues due to his size. Cates turned to my son and said to him, "Hey buddy, you may be short, but you're never small. Remember that."

We thanked him for his time, wished him good luck, and let him go on his way with his team. My son beamed about his experience the entire ride home and has not let the ball go in the three days since.

As a fan of the game, it is moments like these that I truly appreciate. The game succeeds when the players and fans can identify with one another, and experiences like these go a long way in paving the way for the future of the game.

For Cates, it was small gesture, but it turned into a huge impression for one fan.

Sources:

• Chris Cates, Wikipedia.com
• Chris Cates, Baseball-Reference.com
• Chris Cates, uoflsports.com
• The "Short" Stop, Youtube.com