Nearly two years ago Bellevue College Bulldogs ace hurler Zander Clouse made a tough decision with regards to his future in baseball.
Clouse, who graduated from Archbishop Murphy High School in 2013, spurned a slew of Division III universities, instead opting to sign with the Bellevue College baseball program.
It’s been one of the best decisions he’s ever made.
Clouse is in the midst of a sophomore season for the ages. He has an undefeated record of 4-0 and boasts an earned run average of 0.59. The right-hander has allowed just 13 hits in 29 innings of work and has struck out 26 batters. The Bulldogs have compiled an overall record of 15-7 thus far during the 2015 season. Clouse is hoping to go out with a bang in his final season of junior college baseball this May.
“I won a state championship (2012) in high school and I would love nothing more than to win a NWAC Championship,” Clouse said.
This fall Clouse will take his baseball talents to Liberty University. Liberty is a Division-1 baseball program located in Lynchburg, Va. Clouse said he never would had gotten a chance to play at the Division-1 level if it wasn’t for Bellevue College.
“I had pretty good grades going through high school and I could have played at almost every D-3 (Division III) program in the area, but I always wanted to be a D-1 baseball player. That wasn’t going to be an opportunity for me coming out of high school, but coming to a JC (junior college) definitely got me prepared and got me ready,” Clouse said. “I definitely became a better pitcher here. You got to work your ass off to play college baseball. It is definitely a whole different ballgame.”
Clouse said his change-up is his best pitch and his fastball consistently fluctuates between 86 to 88 miles per hour. He said he popped 93 miles per hour during the fall of 2014.
Recently the Bellevue Reporter had an opportunity to ask Clouse a few questions about his life away from the baseball diamond.
Bellevue Reporter: What is your favorite movie of all time?
Zander Clouse: I love the movie “Benchwarmers.” It’s funny and it’s a baseball movie.
BR: How many text messages do you send per day?
ZC: I probably send a little more than 20. I try to stay off the phone as much as I can.
BR: What is your dream vacation spot?
ZC: It is Hawaii. It’s tropical and I like tropical things.
BR: If you could pick one person to go to dinner with, who would it be?
ZC: Felix Hernandez. He is pretty much my inspiration. I would like to talk baseball with him.
BR: Who was your favorite sports team growing up?
ZC: The Seattle Mariners.
BR: What is something unique about you that nobody would know?
ZC: I love the television show “The Office.” I have seen every season multiple times.
BR: Who is your pick to win the National Basketball Association Finals this June?
ZC: I’m a Lebron (James) guy so I’m going with the Cleveland Cavaliers.
BR: What kind of music are you listening to the most in your iPod, right now?
ZC: Anything Country, right now. I’m kind of in that mood. It is starting to get warm outside.
