Luke Landrus to play baseball at University of Illinois
By FRED KRONER
Like many young, talented and impressionable athletes, Luke Landrus looked to follow in the footsteps of his older brother.
Cade Landrus was a baseball player who was a pitcher of promise as he entered Charleston High School.
Luke Landrus was following his brother’s path. For years, he played – and successfully competed – against athletes one year older than his chronological age on travel teams.
“I think that helped me become a better player because it challenged me,” Luke Landrus said.
Until the summer of his 12-and-under season, he considered himself first and foremost as a pitcher who could also hit.
As he was entering high school in Charleston, Luke Landrus split his time between shortstop and pitcher.
His days on the mound, however, were numbered.
“He (Cade) had to get surgery (as a high school freshman in 2017-18 for a torn UCL),” Luke Landrus said. “Ever since he got the surgery, he never fully recovered.”
His brother’s junior season coincided with COVID-19 and there was no high school baseball season.
The following spring – when Luke Landrus was a freshman and Cade was a senior – his brother logged a few innings on the mound, but was unable to continue playing beyond high school.
“He mainly contributed to the team hitting and playing second base,” Luke Landrus recalled.
The injury to his brother had more than a psychological effect on Luke Landrus, who was still committed to playing ball in college – a goal he set for himself as a 9-year-old travel-team player – but his focus was not going to be on pitching.
“After that (injury to Cade), my parents wanted me to shy away from pitching and move towards hitting,” Luke Landrus said.
He was already a veteran at the game.
“My parents put me in T-ball as soon as I could start,” Luke Landrus said.
A middle infielder – who is also comfortable at third base – Luke Landrus made a massive position change his freshman year. Instead of throwing the pitches, he began catching them.
“It wasn’t until my freshman year where I really started catching and could call it my main position,” Luke Landrus said.
After his ninth-grade year, the Landrus family relocated to the St. Joseph-Ogden school district.
A star in the making began to flourish after his arrival in Champaign County.
As Luke Landrus prepares for his senior year, scheduled to start in March, the 6-foot-2, 170-pounder is in position to be among the Spartans’ career top 10 in runs, walks, hits and runs batted in by the time he graduates if he matches his junior year performances in 2024.
His efforts haven’t gone unnoticed.
Luke Landrus will get a chance that eluded his brother. He recently signed a letter of intent to play baseball at the University of Illinois.
SJ-O baseball coach Josh Haley could see Landrus fitting in with the Illini at multiple positions.
“Luke is a tremendous all-around baseball player,” Haley said. “He was an immediate impact player his sophomore year at SJ-O, and he has continued to improve each year.
“He has the skill set that will allow him to develop into an impact player at the next level. Luke has all the tools to catch at the next level, but he also has tremendous athleticism, speed, arm strength and quickness that will allow him to compete in multiple positions besides catcher.”
Landrus plays for the Chicago Elite travel team and, following a stellar junior high school season with the Spartans, made a quick transition to the summer-ball scene.
“The summer going into my senior year was my last chance to be seen by college coaches,” Luke Landrus said. “Thankfully, I had an amazing summer and my recruiting really started to pick up.”
He had overtures from 10 universities, with the most interest coming from the Illini, Eastern Illinois University (where his dad, Derrick, played basketball for four years in the mid-1990s), Western Illinois and Western Kentucky.
He visited all four of those schools and received scholarship offers from each one.
Contacting him by phone were coaches from Cincinnati, Creighton, Lindenwood, Northern Illinois, Southeast Missouri State and Southern Illinois-Edwardsville.
The recruiting process for Luke Landrus ran the range of emotions.
He first heard from Eastern Illinois in the fall of 2022. Shortly later, WIU made contact and put a scholarship offer on the table.
The first scholarship offer was a turning point for the teen-ager.
“I realized then that my longtime dream might be possible and that I could get an amazing opportunity that not many people can,” he said.
The offer from WIU didn’t immediately open the floodgates.
“After that, it was quiet until the summer going into my senior year,” Luke Landrus said. “Coaches would mainly contact me through phone calls.
“It wasn’t until the summer before my senior year that EIU officially offered me. “
Scholarships from the Illini and Western Kentucky followed soon thereafter.
“The recruiting process was very confusing to me,” Luke Landrus said. “Due to the transfer portal, college coaches don’t really talk to high school players much unless they are really interested.
“I was surprised at how fast things got moving during my 17u summer (of 2023). I felt like as soon as I got done playing a weekend tournament, there would be a new pair of coaches wanting to talk to me.”
Checking out the campuses helped Landrus in narrowing down his final choice.
“What made me decide on Illinois was them having good facilities, a great coaching staff that I know is going to make me be the best player I can be,” he said, “and also being close to home is a plus.”
He visited the Illinois campus on Friday (Aug. 4), took the weekend to contemplate his options and committed to the Illini on Monday (Aug. 7).
The proximity of the school was also a factor in his decision.
“I think being only 20 minutes from my home will ease my transition into college,” Luke Landrus said. “Also, knowing the campus will help me in my everyday life.
“I will be able to attend a lot of games in the spring, which will help me see how prepared I need to be for the next level of baseball.”
Landrus has been a fixture in the SJ-O lineup for two years.
As a sophomore, he batted .381 (43 for 113), scored 47 runs, drove in 35 runs, stole 11 bases and drew 28 walks.
As a junior, Landrus hit .352 (45 for 128), scored 41 runs, drove in 35 runs, stole 20 bases and drew 12 walks. Seventeen of his hits last spring went for extra bases, including three home runs.
SJ-O has a cumulative record of 63-11 during Landrus’ two years in the varsity lineup.
He has no preconceived notions about how he will fit in with Dan Hartleb’s Illini team in 2025.
“I look to help the team win in any way possible,” Luke Landrus said. “Whether that’s catching, playing third base, outfield, or even bullpen catching, whatever the coaches think will benefit the team most is what I’ll do.
“The coaches at Illinois really want to sharpen up my catching. They want to help with everything that will make me a better catcher to get me on the field and help the team.
“Once I get to college, I feel like I can mature physically the most. I will finally be under a strict lifting program and diet, that will hopefully help me gain weight and muscle. I love the fact that I will have to prove myself to everyone once again because it gives me that extra drive to try my best no matter what.”
With his commitment out of the way, Landrus is returning to his second love. He rejoined the SJ-O basketball team this month after bypassing the sport as a junior in order to focus on baseball.
At one time, Luke Landrus considered basketball as a sport he could pursue after high school.
“I would say from the ages 7-11, I wanted to do either baseball or basketball in college,” he said. “I started to realize baseball was my best option because I could compete with older kids.
“Since I was 11, I knew baseball was going to be my thing.”
At Illinois, he plans to major in sports management with an eye to joining the family business (D-BAT), a hitting facility in Champaign owned by his father and his aunt, Heather Landrus.
“In the next 10 years, hopefully I will be running the business or have something to do with it,” Luke Landrus said.
Baseball is a sport that Landrus plays for enjoyment.
“One thing that I love while playing baseball is just having fun playing the game with my friends,” he said. “Nothing is better than summer/spring ball with your friends and just having a great time.
“I believe my biggest strength is my athleticism. That allows me to be able to play multiple positions and run the bases well. I would like to think of my catch and throw ability as a catcher, a strength.”
As he has developed into an impact player, Luke Landrus said there is not a shortage of people who have impacted his career, starting with the two people with whom he lives.
“The people who have helped me develop the most are my parents,” Luke Landrus said, “starting with my mom (Vanesa). She is the one who cooks meals for me every day, books hotels, drives me to tournaments, and does every little thing that makes me better as a person and as a player.
“My father (Derrick) is the one who taught me the game. He coached me since I started in travel ball ‘til my freshman year in high school. He still throws me batting practice and gives me pointers on everything that has to do with baseball.
“Also, Coach Haley at St. Joe has been a great mentor to me. He has given me advice for baseball and helped me become a better athlete and person.”
Weather permitting, SJ-O will open its baseball season from March 13-15 in southern Illinois against Columbia, Breese Central and Oswego. The games will rotate between Edwardsville, O’Fallon and Sauget.
