Western Carolina University

PRONUNCIATION: PASS-kuh-nell furr-RARE-us

Notes: Will enter the 2024 season riding an eight-game reached base safely streak, including a five-game hitting streak ... Was drafted in the 20th round of the 2023 MLB First-Year Player Draft, taken by the Houston Astros with the final pick of the draft -- No. 614.
 
Career: Eclipsed the 200-hit mark in his career in 2023, sitting just outside WCU’s career top 25 with 223 base hits … Ranks seventh in WCU’s career record books with 43 home runs and his 49 career doubles rank him 17th in WCU history … With 169 career RBI, Ferreras ranks 11th in the school career ledgers.
 
20223 (Junior): Started all 54 games at shortstop … Hit a team-leading .325 … Led the squad with 21 multiple-hit games and was third on the squad with 11 multiple-RBI efforts … Had a team-best 24 two-out RBI … Posted an 18-game reached base safely streak … Homered twice in a home win over Radford (March 18) … Hit grand slam home runs in three-consecutive games – two at Mercer (March 31 and April 1) with the third coming against USC Upstate (April 4) … Batted .600 (6-for-10) with the bases loaded as a part of hitting .464 (26-of-56) with runners in scoring position … Posted a season-best five RBI three times … Legged out a single-game career-best three doubles in the home win over Presbyterian (May 9) … Named first-team All-Southern Conference at shortstop … Selected to the 2023 preseason All-Southern Conference first-team at shortstop and was dubbed the 2023 SoCon Preseason Player of the Year ... On the initial watch list for the 2023 Brooks Wallace Award given to the nation's top shortstop ... Named to the 2022-23 Southern Conference Academic Honor Roll.

2022 (Sophomore): Started all 57 games on the season including 55 starts at shortstop and twice at second base … Claimed WCU’s Triple Crown – the first since 2017 – leading the team in batting average (.362), home runs (15), and RBI (60) … Was also tied for the team lead with 22 doubles … Finished the year 85-for-235 with 40 of his hits (47%) going for extra bases … Led the squad with 27 multiple-hit games and 16 multi-RBI efforts … Paced WCU with 29 hits with runners in scoring position including 28 two-out RBI … Matched a team-long 11-game hitting streak from April 27 through May 14 that included nine multi-hit games … Ranked inside the Top 10 in nine major statistical categories in the SoCon including total bases (158, 1st), batting average (.362, 5th), slugging percentage (.672, 3rd), on-base percentage (.443, 7th), hits (85, t-3rd), runs scored (57, 7th), RBI (60, t-3rd), doubles (22, t-2nd), and home runs (15, 7th) … Homered twice in a road win at VMI (May 1) … Doubled a career-best three times in an extra-inning road loss at Gardner-Webb (May 17) … Named first-team All-Southern Conference at shortstop by both the league’s head coaches and the voting members of the SoCon Sports Media Association (SCSMA) … Two-time Southern Conference Player of the Week on May 2 and May 9 ... Hit .500 (9-for-18) with seven extra-base hits including four home runs and three doubles to earn honors on May 2 ... Earned Collegiate Baseball National Player of the Week accolades ... Batted .611 (11-of-18) over four games with five extra-base hits including three doubles and two home runs in earning the honor on May 9 ... Graced the initial watch list and was a semifinalist for the 2022 Brooks Wallace Award given to the nation's top shortstop ... Named the Southern Conference Preseason Player of the Year and a preseason first-team All-SoCon selection by the league's head coaches ... Named a third-team Preseason All-America selection by the NCBWA ... Was also tagged as the SoCon's Preseason Player of the Year by D1Baseball.com and a preseason all-conference honoree by Perfect Game; Summer: Returned to the Yarmouth-Dennis Red Sox in the prestigious Cape Code Baseball League.

2021 (Freshman): Started all 49 seasonal games at shortstop … Finished the year with a .329 batting average, collecting 70 hits including 11 doubles, two triples, and a team-best 16 home runs, the second-most in the SoCon … Led the SoCon with 133 total bases … Added 24 walks and 12 HBPs to bolster his .419 on-base percentage … Was second on the team with 21 multiple hit games and 15 multiple RBI efforts … Reached base safely in 19-straight games during the year … Defensively, had 75 putouts, 129 assists, and was part of turning 38 double-plays, tops in the SoCon … Named both second-team All-Southern Conference at shortstop and to the 2021 SoCon All-Freshman team … Collected Southern Conference All-Tournament team honors after pacing the Catamounts with three home runs and 10 RBI, adding a pair of doubles as five of the freshman's seven hits went for extra bases … Finished the tournament with a .389 average and scored a team-best six runs ... Named a Collegiate Baseball Freshman All-American ... Named second-team ABCA / All-Atlantic Region … Collected second team Freshman All-America honors from D1Baseball.com ... Drew three walks and scored four runs in his debut against Towson (Feb. 19) … Hit his first career home run against Towson (Feb. 20) … Drove in five runs at Charlotte (March 7) … Recorded a career-high five base hits in a 5-for-5 effort against VMI (April 11) … Homered twice three times on the year against Mercer (May 7), at The Citadel (May 21) and Wofford (May 27), driving in a career-high six in the latter in the conference tournament … Dubbed SoCon Preseason Freshman of the Year by Perfect Game and listed as one of the top 10 newcomers in the SoCon by D1Baseball.com ... Listed on the initial watch list for the 2021 Brooks Wallace Award given to the nation's top shortstop ... Named to the 2020-21 Southern Conference Academic Honor Roll; Summer 2021: Played in 22 games for the Yarmouth-Denis (Mass.) Red Sox of the prestigious Cape Cod Baseball League ... Hit .155 (9-for-58) with two doubles and a home run ... Scored seven runs while driving in three.

Prior to Western Carolina: A highly-recruited middle infielder from Parkview High where he led the Panthers offensively as a senior with a .415 batting average ... He also led the team with 17 hits including five doubles, a triple and four home runs, 15 runs scored and 10 RBI ... Transferred from Norcross High where he started his prep career.

Career Game Highs:

• At Bats: 7, THE CITADEL (5/12/23)
• Hits: 5, VMI (4/11/21)
• Runs: 5, at The Citadel (5/21/21)
• Doubles: 3, twice (MR: PRESBYTERIAN, 5/9/23)
• Triples: 1, five times (at Wofford, 5/14/22)
• Home Runs: 2, five times (MR: RADFORD-1, 3/18/23)
• RBI: 6, vs. Wofford (5/27/21)
• Walks: 3, twice (MR: NIAGARA (2/18/22)
• Hitting Streak: 11 games (2022)