Fayetteville Woodpeckers Alumni Report August 7, 2023

Presenting the first edition of the Fayetteville Woodpeckers Alumni Report! A monthly briefing bringing you updates on former Woodpeckers and their continued journeys to the big leagues! In this month's report we take a look at the seasons of RHP Rhett Kouba, outfielders Zach Cole and Joey Loperfido, plus detail the trade that sent Ryan Clifford and Drew Gilbert to the New York Mets.

Outfielder Zach Cole

Zach Cole (FAY 2022-23) was the offensive centerpiece of the Woodpeckers lineup over the first half of 2023. He earned promotion to High-A Asheville on July 17th and has continued to tally extra-base hits at the next level of the Astros minor league system. Following 70 games with the Woodpeckers, Cole broke onto the scene quickly tripling in his first game with the Tourists and followed it up with a pair of homers in his second contest.

Across a 17-game stretch thus far the former 10th round pick out of Ball State has a .293 AVG with 4 HR, 10 RBI and 15 runs scored. He has now slugged 15 total home runs across his time with Fayetteville and Asheville and has landed himself as the newly ranked 15th overall prospect in the Astros system according to MLB.com.

RHP Rhett Kouba

RHP Rhett Kouba (FAY 2021-22) and spent the full 2023 season as a member of the Corpus Christi Hooks pitching staff and is coming off his best month in double-A earning the title as Texas League Pitcher of the Month.

Over five starts he went 3-1 with a 1.61 ERA. He held opponents to a .156 average as he scattered 15 hits and six walks while striking out 20 over 28.0 innings. He allowed one earned run in three of his starts and shut out Midland for seven innings in another. The former 12th round pick out of Dallas Baptist pitched in eight total games for the Woodpeckers across late 2021 and early 2022 allowing just six earned runs over 28.1 total innings in Single-A.

Ryan Clifford and Drew Gilbert traded to Mets

Two of the top prospects in the Houston Astros organization were on the move at the 2023 MLB trade deadline. Hours before the deadline, Houston made a big splash, sending outfielders Drew Gilbert and Ryan Clifford to the New York Mets to bring Justin Verlander back to the Astros. Verlander won the 2019 and 2022 AL Cy Young Award during his first stint with Houston and won a pair of World Series titles with the club.

Gilbert, the Astros’ 2022 first round pick out of Tennessee, was with the Corpus Christi Hooks in Double-A at the time of the trade. The lefty hit .241 with six home runs and 20 runs batted in with the Hooks over 60 games after a May 9 promotion from High-A Asheville. Gilbert hit .361 with six homers in just 21 games with the Tourists.

Clifford, who went in the 11^th round last year to Houston and played a dozen games in Fayetteville in 2022, started his 2023 season with the Woodpeckers and had an impressive .337 batting average and seven extra base hits in 25 Single-A games. The North Carolina native was promoted to Asheville the same day Gilbert moved up to Corpus Christi and continued his strong season with the Tourists, batting .271 with 16 home runs and 46 runs batted in over his 58 contests there. Clifford wasted no time getting acclimated to the Mets organization as he hit a home run in his first at bat with the High-A Brooklyn Cyclones.

Outfielder Joey Loperfido

Another 2022 Woodpecker that has found success at the higher levels of the Astros organization is infielder Joey Loperfido. The former Duke Blue Devil played just eight games in High-A Asheville to begin 2023 before a swift promotion to the Corpus Christi Hooks.

Loperfido has shined in the Texas League, hitting .301 with a team-leading 19 home runs and 57 runs batted in over 79 games in Double-A. Last week, he homered in three consecutive games against Amarillo. Loperfido’s speed that he showed off with Fayetteville last year has also followed him out to the Lone Star state as he has swiped 20 bases in 23 attempts with the Hooks.