22-05-2025
Indiana recruit Trey Meyers is a tall order for opponents. But the 6-6 New Trier star ‘has all the makings.'
Less than an hour after New Trier's Trey Meyers heard his knee pop, he made up his mind.
Meyers had played his last football game.
'I was in the car, going to the hospital,' he said. 'That's when I knew I was quitting. I was like, 'Yeah, I'm all in on baseball.''
It was August 2023, the beginning of Meyers' junior year. Still a multisport athlete at the time, he was a wide receiver on the football team and a first baseman on the baseball team.
But on the opening night of football season, after an opponent's helmet hit Meyers' left knee and caused a sprained MCL, he knew it was time to give up football.
'Honestly, I missed it a little bit,' he said. 'I was watching all my buddies play, going to the games. But I also got to lift a lot more, so I felt way stronger and better going into the baseball season. Baseball takes a lot of strength, so those extra lifts helped me tremendously.'
Meyers proceeded to deliver a sensational baseball season as the Trevians went 33-4. The Indiana recruit entered the summer as a top-15 prospect in the state, lauded for his 6-foot-6, 223-pound frame, elite power-speed combo and sharp baseball mind.
'His baseball IQ is really good, and I think people just take it for granted,' New Trier coach Dusty Napoleon said. 'He's definitely stronger and faster than everybody, but he understands baseball. He understands what pitchers are trying to do to him.'
There aren't many players of Meyers' size who bat first in the lineup, but Napoleon craves as many at-bats as possible for his best hitter. So the leadoff spot it is.
'We need to maximize his plate appearances,' Napoleon said. 'He's also our fastest guy and our best base runner.'
Meyers has backed that up with gaudy numbers for Central Suburban South champion New Trier (23-7-1, 10-5) this season. He reaches base more often than he records outs, posting a .538 on-base percentage through May 19.
Meyers was batting .418 with nine doubles, five home runs, 29 RBIs and 40 runs scored. He had more extra-base hits (16) than strikeouts (9) and was 14-for-15 in base-stealing attempts.
A fan of both the Chicago Cubs and the Cincinnati Reds, Meyers models his game after Reds star Elly De La Cruz. At 23, De La Cruz is MLB's first player since 1900 to post 115 extra-base hits and 115 stolen bases through his first 300 games, and he's on the cover of 'MLB The Show 25.'
'He's another big, really fast guy that I kind of relate to,' Meyers said. 'He's one of the more similar guys to me.'
Professional baseball could begin sooner than later for Meyers, who has been ranked among the top 400 prospects for the 2025 draft.
'Well, if the opportunity is right, I'll do it, for sure,' he said. 'It's definitely something I'm interested in. But we're just going to see how everything shakes out and make a decision from there. I don't really want to think too far ahead. I guess we'll just see where we are in a couple months.'
Meyers wants to focus on the Trevians and their quest for a state title, not the draft.
'There's definitely a lot going on, but I try not to think about that kind of stuff too much right now to keep myself more levelheaded and just focus on playing the game,' he said.
Meyers is looking forward to Indiana too.
'I'm excited to compete at such a high level with some of the best players,' he said. 'I love competing, and there's a lot of really good power in the Big Ten.'
Meyers committed to Indiana in December 2023 after visiting campus a few times. First, the well-connected Napoleon, who coached in the Big Ten for eight years at Northwestern, briefed Indiana's staff on what makes Meyers remarkable.
'They really just wanted to know things like, 'Hey, what kind of worker is he? What type of kid is he? How's his family?'' Napoleon said. 'The behind-the-scenes stuff is the hardest part when it comes to evaluating kids. Trey checked all those boxes easily. So it made it an easy decision for Indiana to move forward.
'He's respectful, he helps out in the community, he comes from a good family and then there's the way he works. He always wants to hit. He gets up three times a week to lift. He has all the makings of a Division I scholarship athlete.'
Those qualities have endeared Meyers to his New Trier teammates too. Senior outfielder Ben Toft has played with Meyers since they were 13 years old. Toft will play for Iowa, so he'll be a Big Ten rival. He's grateful to be on Meyers' side for now.
'Trey is a really good teammate,' Toft said. 'He does a really good job at setting the tone for how people should be acting in the dugout, getting us locked in, being positive and being a good influence. People enjoy his company.
'He's definitely matured mentally, as well. He knows how to deal with failure a lot better.'
Meyers was challenged after suffering the knee injury. He said doctors told him that he could be ready in four months, in time for baseball season, but he would have to grind through physical therapy to get there.
'It was so difficult, especially at the beginning, when my knee really hurt,' Meyers said. 'It was something I was dreading. I didn't even want to get up and move around, drag myself to PT and do these exercises that sucked so bad.'
Meyers remembers one exercise in particular involving blood-flow restriction.
'You have to do the leg press with no circulation,' he said. 'It's probably the hardest thing I've ever done. It was so bad.'
Meyers did 15 reps at a time, alternating between circulation and no circulation. It tested his resolve. But over time, the painful, tedious work paid off. By October 2023, he felt fresh and was itching to hit again.
'He was like, 'OK, coach, I'm all-in on baseball,'' Napoleon said. 'I was like, 'OK, let's get healthy first.' The last thing I wanted was him pushing himself to hit too early.'
Once Meyers' knee was drained, he did begin to hit again. By December 2023, four months after the injury, Meyers was fully back.
'It was tough for him, but he never stopped working,' Napoleon said. 'He's always been a hard worker.'
