Over the coming weeks, we will catch up with and spend five minutes with a number of Cougar student-athletes. Next up is Washington State sophomore pitcher Zane Mills.

What have you been up to? What does a day in the life of Zane Mills look like?
It's been different but I've been trying to find a routine, I wake up and do zoom classes until noon or so. I usually order out for lunch so I can get a little more food, I've been doing some serious damage a Red Bento!

Later in the afternoon I usually play catch with Brandon White after he gets done with his class and then I will do a workout in the garage with some free weights and bands. I usually close the day watching MLB Network replays of old games that have been pretty cool. We usually watch the MLB Players play in The Show videogame tournament and also play the game ourselves.
 
How much fun was this season? What were a couple highlights?
Even though it was cut short, this year was one of the most fun I had playing baseball in a long time at any level. We had so many guys contribute in big moments so that was fun to see. The highlight was probably the first game, we scored three runs in the ninth, we got big hits from (Garrett) Gouldsmith, RJ (Lan) and Jake (Meyer) and Owen closed it out in the ninth to start the season with a win.
 
What are a couple of the best road trip moments from this season?
We opened the season with a long trip and hanging on the beach in Hawaii after all those months in Pullman so that felt pretty good! Another fun trip was last season when we went to Las Vegas. I had never been to Las Vegas so it was pretty cool to walk around that city with a bunch of my teammates. We did an Instagram takeover that day and we all had a good time doing that so it was a fun time together.
 
What are your thoughts on Project: BTO?
We can't wait to move into that clubhouse! I've been so pumped to see all the updates on social media, it seems like it's going up pretty quick. It's a huge step for Cougar Baseball and we are so fired up to move into that facility. I can't wait to see the locker room because that's a place where we will all hang out and I am also pumped to see the weight room. That weight room will be huge for us as pitchers who will be able to work out after starts and also be close to the rest of the team.
 
What has been the best advice given to you on a mound visit?
Last year, our pitching coach came out and saw me out of whack. I was all stressed out about a situation and I wasn't doing a good job of slowing things down. He told me a joke to get my attention but he followed with a message about not being stressed because we get to play baseball. It's a simple thing but it was something that has stuck with me.
I should also mention Kyle Manzardo likes to come over from first base and tries to be funny once or twice during the game while I'm on the mound. He's one of my roommates so he knows me a little better than others and he likes to come over and say something like, "hey come on big guy" because he knows I can't stand that nickname.
 
Any other fun times during a game?
I have a good bond with Jack Smith, Manzardo and Brandon White so I'm usually around those guys on days I'm pitching. I can speak freely with those guys, they keep me relaxed because Jack and Manzo keep things light and make me laugh but Brandon helps me focus and talks pitching to balance it all out.
 
What do you remember about going to your first MLB game?
The first major league game I can remember going to was also the last one I've been too. I've been to a couple spring training games but the last big league game was in Seattle when the Boston Red Sox came to town. I was around 10 or 12 years old and we as a family had diamond club seats behind home plate. I remember it being so cool with how big the stadium was and how loud the fans were because the Red Sox in town. I remember trying and failing to get Jacoby Ellsbury's autograph and also Big Papi (David Ortiz) doubled off the wall. Oh yeah, I remember my dad got really mad at me because I was drinking too many sodas! Hey man, they were free!
 
Who are some of the big league pitchers you like to watch?
Right now I like watching Corey Kluber who won a Cy Young Award with Cleveland Indians and just got traded to the Texas Rangers. I like watching him because he throws similar stuff to what I have, a hard sinker and slider so I like watching him work. I also like watching video of Greg Maddux pitch but I really like watching closer videos like Eric Gagne and those guys that came to the mound with a lot of energy, threw really hard and were the guys who closed out the game.