Strope Signs with Freed-Hardeman
Almost ten years ago, as two teams prepared for one final inning in a mostly meaningless game, a nine-year old baseball player ran up to his coach with a request.
Normally, these requests were somewhat selfish and involved whether they would get to pitch, catch, or maybe play shortstop in the next inning.
But this one was different. This kid wanted to win.
“We need to beat these guys,” he said, no doubt annoyed at the (his perceived and fairly real as his coach remembers) arrogance of his entitled opponents. “Can Clay pitch next inning?”
“Yes,” was the answer. And, yes, we did beat those guys. It wasn’t the first time and it wasn’t the last time he was called upon for that.
So as Bolivar Central Senior Clay Strope signed to play baseball with Freed-Hardeman next year, another coach, Bolivar Central Coach Clint Barnes, echoed what everyone has said about him since he was three years old.
“I love this kid. If I had nothing but Clay Stropes playing for me, we’d be hard to beat,” he said.
For Clay, it was his goal all along.
“It has been a dream of mine,” he said, thanking the man who got him started and a few others on the way.
“My dad (Eric Strope) had been there every step of my baseball journey and helped me so much. All of my travel coaches and Coach Barnes have helped me also. Coach Barnes played at the college level and understood how important it was for me to achieve my goal and encouraged me to work harder every day to achieve playing at the next level.”
Strope, who plans to major in business with an eye on real estate appraisal, said Freed was an easy choice.
“After I visited FHU and met all of the coaches, I knew it was the place for me. They have a very nice campus and a beautiful turf field.”
Freed-Hardeman, ranked #25 in NAIA in the pre-season poll, will begin their season at home February 2 against Viterbo. Last season the Lions went 40-21 with a 17-10 mark in the Mid South Conference. They made it to the conference championship game, losing to Cumberland, but earning a spot in the NAIA National Tournament opening round. The Lions fell in the championship game of the Lawrenceville Bracket, one step away from the NAIA World Series.
Strope is looking forward to getting to Freed, but has other business to take care of first as BCHS starts their season in March. But now, he has one less thing to worry about.
“It is definitely a relief knowing where I am going to play next season before this season starts,” he added.