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Name: Nick Meyer
Born: Mission Viejo, California
Age: 21 (2/18/1997)
Height/Weight: 6’/195 lbs.
Position: C
Bats/Throws: R/R
School: California Polytechnic State University
Nick Meyer was born with a condition called pre-axial polydactyly, meaning he was born with two thumbs on his left hand. He underwent surgery to remove the extra digit when he was two years old, but the procedure was not without side effects. To this day, Nick Meyer cannot bend his left thumb all the way. Despite the fact, he would go on to live a normal baseball-filled childhood in Southern California and would blossom into an exceptional defensive player.
A graduate of Santa Margarita Catholic High School in Rancho Santa Margarita, California, Nick Meyer attended Cal Poly and made the opening day line-up, finishing the year with 50 starts, 48 of them behind home plate. He hit .301/.374/.370 and won the Scott Kidd Rookie of the Year Award, the John Orton Gold Glove Award, and the Big West Conference Freshman Field Player of the Year Award. His bat took a step back in his sophomore year, hitting .255/.316/.330 in 55 games, but he remained an excellent defender, winning his second John Orton Gold Glove Award. In 55 games this season, Meyer hit .344/.408/.428, winning the Defensive Player of the Year Award and his third-consecutive John Orton Gold Glove Award.
Meyer stands compact in the batter’s box, using a small leg kick as a timing mechanism. His bat path is level and designed for making contact. The catcher has below-average power potential. Meyer is extremely difficult to strike out, the 49th most difficult player in all of the NCAA to be exact. In three seasons with the Mustang, he has has struck out just 49 times in 600 at-bats, while walking 53 times.
Over his three-year career with the Mustangs, Meyer has thrown out 49 of 129 total runners attempting to steal on him, giving him a caught stealing percentage of 38%. He has a strong arm, and is a solid receiver. In addition to being capable behind the plate with the glove, Meyer has a head for baseball strategy. According to Cal Poly head coach Larry Lee, Meyer is the only catcher that he ever allowed to call pitches by himself. “He’s the smartest player I’ve had in 35 years,” Lee said. “It was like having another coach on the field. He made the pitchers better.”