Griffin O’Ferrall (U. of Virginia) of the Auburn Doubledays has been named the 2021 Perfect Game Collegiate Baseball League Player of the Year. O’Ferrall becomes the first player to take the PGCBL Player of the Year to Auburn, as 2021 marked the Doubledays first season in the PGCBL.
O’Ferrall led the league with a .404 batting average (61-151) to go with a .466 OBP, 29 stolen bases and 12 doubles, all which ranked in the top four in the league. O’Ferrall also drove in 27 RBI which placed him in the top ten in the league and led the Auburn squad.
O’Ferrall is a 2021 high school graduate and now has had not only experience, but also lots of success against pitchers from the next level.
“I’m thankful for all my coaches throughout my life. Every team I’ve ever played on I’ve gained knowledge and tried to use everything that I’ve been taught. I especially want to thank my parents for everything they’ve done,” said O’Ferrall.
O’Ferrall picked up a base hit in 31 of his 44 games, while picking up multiple hits in 21 contests. O’Ferrall set the tone for an amazing summer early on, going 13-18 with three extra base hits and six RBI in five games from June 6th to June 15th.
The 2021 Gatorade Virginia Baseball Player of the Year attributes lots of his success to the work he did in the weight room in his final year of high school.
“During senior year of high school I upped my weightlifting to five days a week. I had a great lifting coach at high school and he helped me understand the more strength I have the better athlete I am,” O’Ferrall said.
O’Ferrall mashed in his first season playing summer ball against collegiate players, but also had an amazing experience both on and off the field.
“The best facilities we had all summer were at our home field. We had a great setup and were very lucky. I had a great host family and made a bunch of new friends from all over. Coach Julian was great and Coach Rizzo was great helping with infield drills,” O’Ferrall said.
This award wraps up the 2021 PGCBL annual awards, as O’Ferrall joins PGCBL Coach of the Year, Rich Dubee, from Saugerties, and PGCBL Pitcher of the Year, Nick Smith, from Amsterdam (U. of Evansville) in the history books.