Marlins prospect Max Meyer had a vested interest in the 2022 Winter Olympics in Beijing.

His uncle on his mother's side, Joel Johnson, served as the head coach of the U.S. women's ice hockey team that earned the silver medal. Noah Cates, an assistant captain for the men's ice hockey squad that fell to Slovakia in the quarterfinals, squared off against Meyer when they were kids playing hockey for rival high schools. And a handful of players from both the women's and men's teams attended the University of Minnesota, overlapping with Meyer's time as a star on the mound there.

Meyer, ranked as MLB Pipeline's No. 30 overall prospect, grew up in the hockey-rich Gopher State. He played left wing for a couple of seasons on the Woodbury High School varsity team, but he stuck with baseball. The decision has paid off, as the Marlins selected him with the third overall pick in the 2020 MLB Draft.

"I feel like I loved hockey the most," Meyer told MLB.com. "When I got older, I for sure loved it a lot more. But I was naturally a little bit better at baseball, and it was easier for me."

Meyer, who turns 23 on March 12, impressed during his first taste of professional baseball in 2021. He garnered Double-A South Pitcher of the Year honors after recording a 2.41 ERA and 113 strikeouts across 101 innings in 20 starts for Pensacola. He capped his season with a promotion to Triple-A Jacksonville, where he posted an 0.80 WHIP in two starts.

• Meyer: 'I'd love to be on that team next year'

Currently in Jupiter, Fla., for the Marlins' Minor League development camp, Meyer did his best to watch some of the U.S.' hockey games despite the time difference.

"Just being from Minnesota, it's like the state of hockey," Meyer said. "I've always been into that. And when I go home, I think for the rest of my life, too, whenever I get back for the offseason, I'm always going to put the skates on and go back out to the pond, because it's just something that kind of relaxes me and all my buddies are out there. It just feels kind of like I'm a kid again, and I'm just doing stuff because I love to do it. I'm not just all focused on baseball 100 percent."