Loons' Ferris takes no-hit bid to pitch-count limit

When the Dodgers acquired Jackson Ferris in their January deal with the Cubs, they thought the left-handed pitching prospect could reach new levels in their system during his second pro season. They may have been right about that.

The eighth-ranked lefty prospect in all of baseball, Ferris has spent the better part of this summer one-upping himself at High-A Great Lakes. The latest example came Thursday when Ferris completed eight hitless innings in the Loons’ 6-1 win over Cedar Rapids at Rise 2 Greatness Field.

Pulled after eight innings and 98 pitches, Ferris watched Great Lakes’ combined no-hitter attempt fall short in the ninth. But that didn’t diminish the dominance the 20-year-old displayed for most of the night.

“I just feel like at the beginning of the game I was trying to get all four pitches in the zone: fastball, slider, curveball, changeup,” the Dodgers' No. 6 prospect said. “Second inning goes by and I had a better feel for my changeup than I’ve had in a little bit, same thing for my curveball, and right now, my fastball and slider feel really well. I was able to get all four in the zone, and that was really good.”

Though Ferris issued four walks, he also struck out six, retired 13 of his first 14 hitters and finished strong by retiring his final five after escaping a jam -- on just two pitches -- in the seventh. He said he felt good enough to go back out for the ninth, and lobbied for doing that. But the eight innings were already a career high for Ferris, who had a pitch count of 100.

But Ferris said Loons pitching coach David Anderson told him he is the first pitcher he’s coached at the level allowed to operate with a triple-digit pitch count. The Loons have given Ferris that kind of leash for weeks. His 98 pitches were three off the career high set on July 13. Other pitchers on the Great Lakes squad have pitch counts around 90, Ferris said.

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“For the last month, I’ve had a pitch count that I hadn’t really heard of before,” he said. “I want to go as deep in the game as I possibly can.”

Given that freedom, Ferris continues to showcase the upside that earned him a above-slot $3 million bonus as a second-round pick of the Cubs in the 2022 Draft. He’s 4-4 with a 3.39 ERA in 20 starts with 119 strikeouts in 98⅓ innings for Great Lakes in his first season in the organization. The Dodgers acquired Ferris and outfield prospect Zyhir Hope in exchange for Michael Busch and Yency Almonte in that January deal.

“At the beginning of the year, being with the new organization, it was about getting a feel for them and them getting a feel for me," Ferris said. "We went through a couple of things that didn’t necessarily work. Then it was kinda about going back to what I did and we also added a few things, added a new pitch. It’s worked out really, really well for me since those changes have been made.”

The result are outings like Thursday's, which the Loons -- and Dodgers -- are growing to expect from Ferris. He set a career high with 11 strikeouts against West Michigan on July 6, and has completed at least six innings in six of his last seven appearances.

“If I go out there and do what I’m supposed to do, I have a good chance of giving my team a chance to win,” Ferris said. “That’s how it's been the last few months. I just have to pound the zone, don’t need to nitpick.”