Ferrell Named MWL Pitcher of the Week

On Monday, the league named Ferrell its Pitcher of the Week for the week lasting from July 30-August 5.

Ferrell, a 21-year-old from Wilmington, North Carolina, needed just one start last week to earn the hardware. Taking on the Lake County Captains at Fifth Third Ballpark, the right-hander retired all 21 of the batters that he faced before being removed after seven perfect innings. The flawless start featured 11 groundball outs and six strikeouts.

Just 14 months after undergoing Tommy John surgery, Ferrell was removed after 79 pitches with the perfect game intact.

Jade Todd followed with a perfect eighth inning and Dan Bennett recorded the first out of the ninth, leaving West Michigan just two outs away from the first perfect game and fifth no-hitter in franchise history. After 25 consecutive outs, however, Leonardo Castillo sent a bouncing ball towards third and reached base on an infield single to break up the bid for history.

Ferrell and company settled for a three-hit shutout and a 6-0 win.

Ferrell opened the 2011 season with the Whitecaps before an elbow injury led to surgery, forcing him to miss the rest of the year and start the 2012 campaign on the disabled list before rejoining the Whitecaps in May. A 26th-round pick by Detroit Tigers in 2010, Ferrell is 4-4 with a 4.42 ERA and 60 strikeouts in 59 innings this year, holding opponents to a .209 batting average.

Ferrell is the third Whitecaps' player this season to be honored with a Midwest League weekly award. Right-hander Tommy Collier and shortstop Eugenio Suarez swept the awards for the week of May 28-June 3.

The Whitecaps are in the midst of a seven-game road trip that continues at 7:05 p.m. on Monday night with the third game of a four-game series against the Lansing Lugnuts. RHP Marcelo Carreno (5-8, 3.59) is scheduled to take the hill for West Michigan against LHP Justin Nicolino (7-3, 2.48) of Lansing. The next home game at Fifth Third Ballpark will take place at 7:00 p.m. on Saturday, August 11, featuring a superhero cape giveaway on Superhero Night, an appearance by the incomparable Team Ghost Riders, and post-game fireworks. Group and individual tickets can be reserved by calling the Whitecaps front office at 616-784-4131 or visiting www.whitecapsbaseball.com.

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