AJ Block

Athletics

• Voiland College of Engineering and Architecture
• Computer Science
• Bellevue, Washington

Involvement

Left-handed pitcher with starts for four years with the Cougs; four-year varsity letter and scholarship recipient; Pac-12 Conference All-Academic First Team; named eighth-best senior pitcher in the country and the second-best Pac-12 senior; struck out 10 hitters in three consecutive games (a first for WSU pitchers); as a junior, selected in 17th round of Major League Baseball draft by the Detroit Tigers but chose to return for his senior year at WSU; part of a four-student team on ArduPilot mission planner project, working to create 3D flight route mapping for drones (current system only allows 2D mapping); speaker for the alumni groundbreaking event for the new baseball stadium; participant in Lentil Festival and Butch’s Bash for elementary school kids

Favorite WSU experience

During orientation was the first time I realized the whole “Go Cougs” thing, that it’s a family and a small-town feeling. The other time I realized it was traveling. We’d go to California, Arizona, all these random places and hear “Go Cougs!” in the airport when you’re walking around with the t-shirt on. That’s when I realized it was a special place and a special family to be a part of, with a sense of community.

Future plans

I want to play baseball as long as I can. I don’t really know what’s going on with the draft this year. It changes daily but the idea is to play professional baseball. As for computer science, if I do end up going into that career, I’ve always been interested in Microsoft and Boeing in the Seattle area since I grew up near those companies.