On The Farm: De Goti, Ferguson, Ferrell
Leading up to Opening Day, cchooks.com will profile select farmhands in the Astros system. Today, we feature IF Alex De Goti, OF Drew Ferguson, and RHP Riley Ferrell.
Leading up to Opening Day, cchooks.com will profile select farmhands in the Astros system. Today, we feature IF
Infielder
BORN August 19, 1994 in Miami, FL
OPENING DAY AGE 23
HEIGHT 6'0
WEIGHT 192
BATS Right
THROWS Right
HOMETOWN Miami, FL
SCHOOL Barry
ACQUIRED Selected in the 15th round of the June 2016 draft
Career Highlights: 2017 - Hit .236 with 8 home runs, 32 RBIs, 18 doubles, 51 runs scored, and a .341 on-base percentage between Quad Cities, Buies Creek, and Fresno. Versatile infielder started games at 2nd base (49), shortstop (39), and 3rd base (12). Started campaign with Quad Cities by hitting .293 (75 AB) in April with 2 home runs, 4 RBIs, and 15 runs scored. Went 4-for-4 with 2 home runs on April 17 at Burlington. Cooled down in May, batting .205 (44 AB) in 13 games. Placed on disabled list on May 12 and activated on May 26. Promoted to Buies Creek on May 31, going 2-for-3 with an RBI and 3 runs scored vs. Carolina. Struggled to begin Carolina League tenure, batting .147 (68 AB) during June. Belted 1st home run at Buies Creek with a solo shot on June 27 vs. Carolina. Fared better after the All-Star break, batting .238 (193 AB) with 5 home runs and 20 RBIs. Best month with Buies Creek came in August, batting .277 (65 AB) with 4 home runs and 7 RBIs. Hit 2 home runs with 4 RBIs on August 4 vs. Carolina.
2016 - Started 1st pro season with a 4-game hit streak. Made 17 starts at 2nd base and 45 starts at shortstop. Had a pair of consecutive 2-hit games on July 8 and July 9 at West Virginia. 1st pro home run came in dramatic moment on August 5 at Aberdeen, belting a go-ahead 3-run blast in the 9th inning to propel Tri-City to a 5-4 win. Only other home run of season came on August 27 vs. Lowell. Finished campaign on high note, going 6-for-12 in final 3 contests.
College Notes: Played 3 seasons (73 games) at Long Beach State before going to Barry, a Division II program in South Florida. Hit .404 in senior season and earned D-II All-American honors.
Alex De Goti Career Stats
Outfielder
BORN August 3, 1992 in Knoxville, TN
OPENING DAY AGE 25
HEIGHT 5'11
WEIGHT 185
BATS Right
THROWS Right
HOMETOWN Knoxville, TN
SCHOOL Belmont University
ACQUIRED Selected in the 19th round of the June 2015 draft
Career Highlights: 2018 - Earned a non-roster invite to Major League Spring Training. Entered season as Houston's No. 17 prospect, according to MLB.com.
2017 - Hit .275 with 9 home runs, 41 RBIs, 18 stolen bases, 25 doubles, and 66 runs scored between Corpus Christi and Fresno. Named a Texas League Midseason All-Star. Held a .390 on-base percentage with Corpus Christi, which ranked 2nd in circuit at time of promotion to Fresno on August 1. Put together 23-game hit streak from April 29-May 26, the 2nd-longest in Corpus Christi history and longest in Texas League season. Excelled with runners in scoring position with Corpus Christi, batting .328 (67 AB). Went 4-for-6 on April 25 vs. Midland. Belted final home run of 3-straight home run sequence in 8th inning on April 29 vs. Frisco. Hit .379 in May (87 AB) with 3 home runs and 10 RBIs, while also recording a .486 on-base percentage during the month. Named Texas League Player of the Week for May 22-May 28. Hit home runs in consecutive games played on May 22 at Frisco and May 24 vs. Springfield. Batted .253 (83 AB) with 2 home runs and 9 RBIs in June. Batted .245 (53 AB) with 1 home run and 3 RBIs in July. Called up to Fresno and made Pacific Coast League debut on August 1 with a pinch-hit appearance at Omaha. Had a 3-game hit streak from August 3-August 5. Hit .207 (87 AB) in 25 games during August. Finished well in final 4 games of campaign, going 5-for-16 with 1 home run and 5 RBIs.
2016 - Hit .315 with 84 runs, 29 doubles, 3 triples, 17 home runs and 76 RBIs in 105 games for Lancaster and Corpus Christi. Stole 30 bases in 39 attempts. Reached base safely in 45 of final 47 games. His .408 composite on-base average was 9th-best among full-season minor leaguers. Tied for 2nd in the Astros system in RBIs, and ranked 3rd in batting average. Spent the bulk of the season in the California League where he paced the circuit with a .410 on-base percentage. Also, slotted 3rd in the league in slugging (.531) and batting average. Reached base safely in final 33 Lancaster assignments. During the run, which began on July 4, batted .409 with 9 home runs, 43 RBIs and 34 runs scored. It was the longest on-base stint in the Cal League. This includes an 18-game hit string, which stretched from July 26 to his promotion to Corpus Christi. The JetHawks' August Player of the Month posted a .466-7-29 line during the streak. Plated 5 runs on a pair of doubles May 16 opposite Lake Elsinore. Was 4-for-4 with 2 runs, 2 doubles, 1 homer and 2 RBIs July 28 at Bakersfield. Authored a career-best 6 RBIs via 2 home runs August 5 against Modesto. Went 9-for-15 (.600) with 6 runs, 1 double, 3 home runs and 10 RBIs in final 4 games with Lancaster. Made Texas League debut August 20 and proceeded to record a hit in 11 of 14 Hooks games in which he had an at-bat. Enjoyed a 3-hit game and clubbed a 2-run home run August 26 vs. Midland. Scored 4 times on 3 walks and a solo homer September 3 at Wolff Stadium in San Antonio. Notched 5 hits, including 2 doubles and a triple, while plating a pair in 4 postseason games.
2015 - Batted .297 with 36 runs, 16 doubles, 4 homers, 27 RBIs and 11 steals in 61 games between Tri-City and Quad Cities. Made pro debut with the Valley Cats on June 20. After a slow start, batted .432 with 12 runs, 5 doubles, 3 home runs, 5 RBIs and a 1.322 OPS in final 11 games for Tri-City. Was honored as New York-Penn League Player of the Week for June 30-July 5. In mid-July, was promoted to the Midwest League where he hit safely in 12 of his first 13 assignments. Drove in 4 runs July 20 vs. Cedar Rapids. Went 2-for-6 with a walk during the playoffs.
Career Notes: Features a .383 on-base percentage. Has manned all 3 outfield positions: 96 games in left field, 70 games in right field, and 63 games in centerfield. Has a 75% stolen base rate (59 stolen bases in 79 attempts).
College Notes: As a senior in 2015, ranked among NCAA leaders in runs (72, 4th), doubles (26, 5th), total bases (159, 5th), hits (92, 7th), slugging percentage (.685, 7th) and batting average (.397, 10th). Graduated with honors in May 2015, earning the Belmont University Presidential Scholar-Athlete of the Year Award. The 2-time All-Ohio Valley Conference selection departed Nashville as the Bruins' career leader in runs (165), doubles (57), homers (24), total bases (363) and walks (93).
Drew Ferguson Career Stats
Pitcher
BORN October 18, 1993 in College Station, TX
OPENING DAY AGE 24
HEIGHT 6'2
WEIGHT 233
BATS Right
THROWS Right
HOMETOWN College Station, TX
SCHOOL Texas Christian
ACQUIRED Selected in the 3rd round of the June 2015 draft
Career Highlights: 2018 - Earned a non-roster invite to big league camp. Tabbed the No. 20 prospect in the Houston system, according to MLB.com.
2017 - Went 2-2 with a 3.67 ERA in 38 appearances between Buies Creek and Corpus Christi. Set career-highs in innings pitched (54), saves (6), and strikeouts (60). Averaged 4.29 strikeouts-per-walk and 10 strikeouts per 9 innings. Began season with back-to-back saves on April 6 vs. Winston-Salem and April 10 vs. Myrtle Beach, recording 5 strikeouts in 6 batters faced. Quickly promoted to Double-A, making Corpus Christi debut on April 14 vs. Arkansas (1 IP, 0 R, 1 H). Allowed just 1 ER in first 4 appearances with Corpus Christi (7 IP, 4 H). Roughed up for 3 ER in 1 inning on April 28 vs. Frisco and again on May 7 vs. San Antonio. Tossed 2 1/3 scoreless frames on May 15 at San Antonio, striking out 3. Put together solid stretch over 13 appearances (18 IP) from June 6-July 25, posting a 2.50 ERA with 17 strikeouts and just 3 walks. Then allowed 5 runs (4 earned) in 1 2/3 innings on July 30 vs. Midland. Finished campaign with sensational stretch, not allowing a run in August and September while going 4-4 in save chances. In span of 9 appearances, tossed 12 1/3 innings and struck out 19 while allowing no walks. Saw ERA dwindle from 4.99 to 3.81 during stretch.
2016 - Did not allow a run in first 7 assignments. Final appearance was an April 30 loss at Lake Elsinore, yielding 2 runs on 3 hits in 1 1/3 innings. Missed remainder of the season after undergoing surgery to repair an aneurysm in throwing shoulder. Entered the year as Houston's No. 12 prospect per MLB.com. His slider was rated the best in the system in Baseball America's annual tools survey.
2015 - Made pro debut June 29 vs. Beloit and allowed 1 run on 2 hits in an inning. Allowed just 1 earned run the rest of the season, on July 19 against Cedar Rapids. Picked up lone save on July 29 at Beloit, tossing 2 scoreless frames with 1 walk and 2 strikeouts. Finished the campaign by going his last 6 appearances without giving up an earned run. Did not allow an earned run in 5 road outings. Right-handed batters hit .103 against him (3-for-29).
College Notes: Left TCU as its career leader in saves (32) and third in appearances (86). Horned Frogs went 64-22 in games he pitched in his career and went to the College World Series in '14 and '15. As a junior in 2015, pitched in 32 games and went 1-3 with a 2.56 ERA and 14 saves. He fanned 53 and walked 20 in 31 2/3 innings pitched, while holding opponents to a .099 batting average. Named a First Team All-American by the NCBWA, Second Team by Louisville Slugger and Perfect Game, and Third Team by ACBA. Also earned First-Team All-Big 12 honors after he led the conference and ranked 11th nationally in saves. Was on the watch list for the Golden Spikes Award and National Pitcher of the Year. Finished the regular season with a 0.68 ERA. Struggled in the postseason, posting a 9.64 ERA in 5 appearances. Took loss against Baylor May 20 in the Big 12 Tournament, walking 3 and throwing 2 wild pitches. Also lost against NC State in the NCAA Regional May 30 when he allowed 2 earned runs in the ninth inning. Made two hitless appearances at the College World Series, against LSU and Vanderbilt, tossing a combined 3 innings with 1 walk and 8 strikeouts. As a sophomore in 2014, set the school single-season record with 15 saves and went 3-1 with a 0.79 ERA in 31 appearances. He walked 14 and struck out 70 in 45 1/3 innings, averaging 13.9 K-per-9 IP. Second Team All-American by Perfect Game and Third Team by NCBWA, as well as First Team All-Big 12. Allowed a run in just 4 of 31 outings. Pitched in 23 games as a freshman in 2013 and went 0-2 with a 2.20 ERA and 3 saves. Named All-Big 12 Freshman Team.
Riley Ferrell Career Stats