The sky’s the limit for Center Grove’s Drake McClurg
GREENWOOD, Ind. (WISH) — Center Grove’s Drake McClurg has certainly made a name for himself on the football field after a successful sophomore season with the Trojans, but his future is on the baseball diamond.
I spoke with McClurg just days after being ranked as the top baseball player in the state by Prep Baseball Report for the class of 2027.
“To me, rankings don’t really matter,” McClurg said. “I still have to go out there and do what I have to do. It is an honor though to be ranked number one in the state, especially with all the talent we’ve got in the state.”
Unlike the other players in his class, McClurg already knows where he will be playing college baseball, having committed to Indiana University in the 8th grade.
“IU is my dream school,” McClurg said. “It’s where I always wanted to go. The process started early. I had a couple of schools calling, but I’ve always wanted to go to IU to play baseball.”
Indiana University is in his blood. His dad played football, his grandpa played baseball, and his aunt played basketball. All at Indiana University. Aside from the family ties, McClurg points to head baseball coach Jeff Mercer as a reason for committing to stay in state.
“What coach Mercer is doing, the way he’s building IU is awesome,” McClurg said. “He’s had five or six freshman All-Americans in the last 5 years, and all the draft picks he’s had makes me know I’m in a good place”
McClurg is a rare talent who can do it all on the baseball field. He’s also a switch-hitter, something he’s been doing since his dad put a bat in his hands.
“I was outside when I was like 4 or 5 years old, and I was throwing cherry bombs to myself, swinging right-handed, but my hands were left-handed,” McClurg said. “So, my dad came out and switched them, and I’ve been hitting from both sides ever since.”
Now that football season is over, McClurg, who plays travel baseball for the Indiana Bulls, turns his attention to the spring, where he will try to help his Center Grove Trojans win their first state baseball title.
“We’re young, but we have a lot of talent, and we’re definitely capable of doing it,” McClurg said.
McClurg is also one of about a dozen players from the Midwest who was asked to take part in Max Clark’s inaugural Holiday Slugfest at Powerhouse Athletics in Franklin, Indiana. The sky is the limit for McClurg, both on the baseball and football fields.