Ferguson’s rehab assignment with ValleyCats kicks off with bang
TROY » Sitting 3-1 Tuesday night, Drew Ferguson, one of the most latest additions to the Tri- City ValleyCats roster, looked fastball hoping to drive a deep ball and score Andy Pineda from second to build a cushion for the ValleyCats against the Brooklyn Cyclones.
“I was able to get into a good count in that at-bat and take an aggressive swing,” said Ferguson. “I was just pretty much playing my game, trying to work the count into my favor and luckily got a fastball right down the middle and that’s the one you want to hit.”
Ferguson’s 3-1 swing caught the ball on the fattest part of the barrel and he was able to groove it out to left center field over the wall. The ball was struck well enough for everybody in the park to realize that it was heading out instantly.
“It was definitely nice because it was a no doubt home run,” said ValleyCats Manager Jason Bell.
Ferguson joins the ValleyCats on rehab assignment after fracturing his ulnar styloid in his right wrist, causing him to sit out for an extended amount of time.
“With an injured wrist you obviously want to make a good swing and not an awkward one to avoid any pain,” said Ferguson. “That’s the first ball that I have hit good in nine weeks so it’s nice to hit one on the barrel that’s not an awkward tied up swing that’s going to be painful. It’s encouraging for sure and hopefully I can keep on line with it the rest of the time I’m here.”
Ferguson’s approach to games
has had to change as of late. He has needed to become much more focused on his body, and specifically, the temperature he keeps himself at while he is active in the game.
“With my wrist injury and everything I was just trying to stay warm throughout the innings, so that was priority number one. I was just keeping my heart rate up. Luckily, it felt a little bit better tonight,” said Ferguson. “For the most part I was just trying to stay loose. Joints love heat. I was trying to keep my heart rate up. Trying to keep a little bit of a sweat going. It’s a little cool out
at night, it’s not a hundred degrees out here so I had to stay active, doing some jumping jacks and stuff to keep everything well oiled.”
It’s a tough situation. Staying so focused on your body and your wrist specifically would make most people tentative at the plate, afraid of causing pain or worsening the injury. Ferguson, though, is able to clear his mind of the distraction and focus on his job.
“It’s on my mind a little bit, it’s hard to completely ignore. You just try to ignore it when you’re hitting because you have other things to focus on,” said Ferguson.
Bell thinks that home run may have been exactly what Ferguson needed to keep himself in the right
frame of mind.
“Anytime you can get that feeling back it gives you a little bit more confidence and you’re probably going to feel a little bit better at where your health is,” said Bell. “It was nice to see him let loose and not feel like he needed to let up so he wasn’t in so much pain.”
Ferguson was pulled after seven innings on Tuesday night against the Cyclones. A scripted decision, Ferguson’s rehab assignment is what is most important to him at the moment.
“It’s tough with our restrictions and wonder how many meaningful atbats he can actually have,” said Bell, whose team is currently in a battle with the Lowell Spinners for first place of the NY-Penn
League’s Stedler division.
The ValleyCats are two and a half games up, with just 13 remaining on the regular season. Having the assistance of Ferguson, who was hitting .290 in Triple-Awith 23 RBI and two home runs, could help the ValleyCats.
Ferguson’s health is progressing, and soon he will move to his next stop on his rehab assignment. The ValleyCats cannot grow comfortable having the big bat in its lineup.
“It’s progressing. It’s a little bit of a slow, grueling process, with it being my dominant, throwing arm, the ulnar was fractured, so there’s a little bit discomfort, especially in the pregame,” said Ferguson on how he feels about his progression.