Maryland junior catcher Luke Shliger recently chatted with PressBox about his favorite athlete growing up, his favorite Big Ten road trip and more. The 5-foot-9, 180-pound catcher hit .353/.495/.602 with 36 extra-base hits in 2022 for a Terps team that went 48-14 overall and 18-5 in the Big Ten. Shliger was named a Preseason All-American by D1Baseball heading into the 2023 season.
PressBox: What’s your favorite guilty food?
Luke Shliger: I’m going to say a burrito from Chipotle. Go-to burrito: White rice, steak, corn, cheese, salsa.
PB: What’s a bucket-list place you’ve never been?
LS: I’d say Greece.
PB: If you could trade places with any movie or TV character, who would it be?
LS: Dustin from “Stranger Things”
PB: Who was your favorite sports star growing up?
LS: Derek Jeter
PB: You’re from Danbury, Conn. Are you too young to have gone to any Danbury Trashers games?
LS: I think I’ve been to one. I don’t remember it. But I knew about the Trashers. The Trashers were the youth hockey team, too, and I have that jersey.
PB: If you weren’t a ballplayer, what would you be?
LS: I want to say a snowboarder.
PB: What’s your favorite movie of all time?
LS: Probably “The Benchwarmers”
PB: Do you consider yourself a good cook? What’s the best dish you make?
LS: Yeah, I consider myself [a good cook] — chicken parm.
PB: What’s your favorite Big Ten road trip?
LS: Nebraska — the ballpark and the atmosphere.
PB: What’s the last book you read?
LS: The last book I read was for class — “Guns, Germs and Steel” by Jared Diamond.
Photo Credit: Courtesy of Maryland Athletics