TicketsMarch 23, 2011
By Shawn Sell
GoBEARCATS.com
All Chris Peters really needed was a chance to prove himself. As a lightly-recruited prep player, Peters seemed destined to go the junior college route. But then one day, Brian Cleary and the Cincinnati Bearcats came calling and the junior college plans quickly changed.
As a high school player at Tippecanoe High School in Tipp City, Ohio, Peters was small in stature and didn't get much attention on the recruiting trails. As a 16-year old, Peters stood just 5'4" inches tall and tipped the scales at only 125 pounds. By his senior year, he had added 30 pounds and drew the attention of Cleary and then associate head coach Brad Meador.
"We got on Chris late," Cleary recalls. "Brad had tried to see him a couple of times that spring and for one reason or another, never really got to see him play. He finally went and saw him play left field and Brad said to me `why don't you run up there and see if you think he is good enough.' I remember seeing him and thinking `that guy is plenty good enough for a spot on our team.' We had a spot and he really had nothing going on and I think it was July when we finally had a chance to see him play enough and offered him a spot."
"Cincinnati actually picked me," Peters adds with a laugh. "I was going to a junior college and had no DI offers. They told me late they had a spot on the team and I knew I couldn't pass it up. It was either JUCO or here and so I came here and have worked my butt off."
Once Peters arrived on campus in the fall of 2007, he was in for another wake-up call. His first encounter when he showed at Marge Schott Stadium was with pitcher Brian Garman, a well-built 5'11" pitcher. Peters realized right then it was going to be an interesting ride.
"I remember the first day I got on campus and Brian Garman was running poles," he says. "He had a cutoff shirt on and I was like `I am about to play with this guy?' Walking in was a big adjustment but the leadership of the guys, they were all out to have fun. Plus, we had a lot of talent which made it fun to play. About halfway through that season, we started getting the confidence that when we walked on the field, we were going to win. That really helped me as a freshman trying to play a big role, especially on defense."
When the 2008 season kicked off, Peters found himself on the bench as eventual MLB draft pick Josh Harrison manned the shortstop position. But Harrison struggled at the position in the early stages and Cleary felt a change was necessary. Despite being the slight, less than big-time college prospect, Peters found himself as the starter at one of the game's most challenging positions, with quite an array of talent surrounding him.
"He was a guy that coming in, I remember thinking if he got a little stronger, he might be able to play in the infield for us as a sophomore or junior," Cleary recounts. "His freshman year was Josh Harrison's junior year and Josh had gotten off to a slow start in the field. So we moved him to second and put Chris at short because he was more impressive in his freshman fall than we thought he would be. He wound up playing shortstop, with Harrison on his left and Mike Spina on his right. Here was a freshman that wasn't even on the radar until July who all of the sudden was playing on a pretty good team in a pretty good infield. He played earlier than any of us, including himself I think, thought he would. And now he has been our starting shortstop for four years."
The rest as they say is history. After earning his 43rd start of the season against West Virginia on May 18th, 2008, Peters is the only UC player to start a game at shortstop since. And if you are scoring at home, that makes 138 consecutive starts through March 23rd. The fact that he has enjoyed so much playing time in his career isn't lost on Peters.
"Definitely knowing that Coach Cleary has had the confidence in me every day has been huge," he says. "There have been points where I have had really down moments and he is right there to tell me that you're the guy, you have to keep going."
Along with the confidence of his coach, Peters has also grown confidence in himself. That confidence has helped him improve offensively each year of his career. In his first two years in Bearcat red and black, Peters hit .241 and .252 respectively. His average jumped to .294 last season and he has flirted with the .300 mark for the past couple of weeks this season. He has also settled into an important spot in the UC batting order, No. 2, in-between budding stars Jake Proctor and Justin Glass.
"The two spot is a great spot (for me)," Peters says. "Proctor is a great lead-off guy. If he isn't hitting it over the fence; he is hitting it hard somewhere. Coach Mamula told me that my job is to get on base and let Glass and (Justin) Riddell hit me in. I don't have to hit doubles all the time, I just have to get on base."
"I think he could have a really good year this year because we just need him to give us good at-bats," Cleary adds. "We don't need him to drive in runs; he just needs to get on base and steal some bases and he should be able to play without a lot of pressure on him."
During his career, Peters has matured and evolved as a hitter and he has also taken on a bigger leadership role on the team. A self-described "not very vocal guy," Peters' coach has a word that describes his senior leader.
"He is steady," Cleary says. "He is a low maintenance guy to coach which typically equates to a good leader. He takes great responsibility for his performance both at practice and at games. He does what he is supposed to do off the field and you never have to worry that he is going to do the right thing. I think he is a great example and is a steady guy that always acts like he is supposed to act. I think for the other guys on the team, they take a look at him and know that he leads by the way he attacks his responsibilities."
In his three-plus years at Cincinnati, Chris Peters has already carved out a pretty solid career for himself. His success provides a nice ending to a story that started with a guy that just needed a chance.