Short, 25, finds himself among the veterans on the list, with more than half of the 29 contracted players aged 23 and under.

The batting all-rounder played seven Sheffield Shield matches last summer, scoring 244 runs at 27.11.

IN OTHER NEWS:

It ultimately proved to be a tough campaign for Victoria, winning a lone one-day match and one of eight Sheffield Shield games.

"We are on a journey where our State squad is moving through a planned transition period," Cricket Victoria's general manager of cricket Shaun Graf said.

"The experience our emerging group of players gained this past season will hopefully have them well prepared for the coming season.

"To be able to get more games into this young emerging group of talented players has been a huge benefit out of an extremely challenging season.

"(Chris Rogers) and his coaching group did an excellent job in managing the squad given the many hurdles that confronted cricket and sport in general over the past 12 months."

Originally from Ballarat, Short earned his first contract with Victoria in 2013 and has since aligned with Victorian Premier Cricket outfit Northcote.

Victorian players will begin to return to training from mid-June.

If you are seeing this message you are a loyal digital subscriber to The Courier, as we made this story available only to subscribers. Thank you very much for your support and allowing us to continue telling Ballarat's story. We appreciate your support of journalism in our great city.