Dodgers Dev Lab Weekly: Ferris Dominates at Triple-A, Sirota Earns a Promotion

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Dodgers Dev Lab Weekly covers the last 7 days of action for the Dodgers farm system.

Ferris Finds Another Gear in September

Jackson Ferris (AAA, LHP, Rank: 12) was about as sharp as he has been all season on Thursday, working 7.2 innings against 25 batters, allowing just one hit and no runs while striking out 13 and generating 22 swinging misses on 102 pitches. The command, historically the drag on his performance, held up: 62 of 102 pitches for strikes, a 60.8% strike rate that does not look like the pitcher who carried a 5.12 ERA into September. His 40 command grade and a season walk rate of 11.2% tell one story; the last 30 days have been telling a different one entirely. Over his past four appearances at Oklahoma City, Ferris has posted a 1.05 ERA across 25.2 innings with 36 strikeouts, a 37.9% strikeout rate, and a 33.7% whiff rate. The WHIP in that stretch sits at 0.78.

The full-season context at Oklahoma City is still a 5.12 ERA in 109 innings, and that number does not vanish because September has gone well. A 24.7% strikeout rate and persistent command volatility have defined most of the year, and the fastball backed up into the 93-95 mph range from where it sat at its peak. But the arsenal is legitimate when the delivery is on time: a four-seamer that plays above its velocity through extension and carry, a 55-grade slider in the mid-80s that generates genuine swing-and-miss, and enough left-handed angle to stress hitters from multiple looks. The changeup and curveball remain unreliable, which is why hitters have been able to sit fastball-slider when Ferris loses timing. What this September has shown is that when the delivery repeats, the fastball-slider pairing is enough to get through a lineup. A back-of-rotation starter or up-down reliever still feels like the likely outcome, but the last month has made the starter ceiling feel less like a reach.

Sirota Steps Up to Oklahoma City

Mike Sirota (AAA, CF, Rank: 3) earned his first Triple-A assignment on September 18, a promotion that has been building since he tore through High-A Great Lakes early in the season and continued producing at Tulsa. In nine Triple-A plate appearances, he has drawn three walks and added a double, which is a small sample but consistent with the patient approach that has defined his year. The full-season combined line across all three levels reads .307/.461/.526 with 17 home runs, 100 walks, and a 20.0% walk rate in 501 plate appearances. That walk rate at age 23, moving through three levels, is not a fluke of matchup or context. His 37.8% swing rate is among the most selective in the system, and the 19.5% walk rate at Double-A specifically confirms the approach translates as the competition sharpens.

The last 30 days at Tulsa were bumpier: a .222 average, a 33.9% strikeout rate, and a 66.3% contact rate that slipped below his already low season baseline. The contact rate is the persistent tension in his game. A 55 hit tool paired with 73.3% contact all season means premium fastballs in the zone can create length in his swing, and Double-A arms were finding that spot more frequently in August. The power grades at 50 project to average game pop rather than a true home-run threat, so he relies on OBP, center-field defense, and plus speed. The good news is that all three of those carry regardless of what the contact rate does week to week. His routes are efficient, his arm plays in center, and a 60 speed grade gives him real baserunning value. The everyday center-field path is right there in front of him; Triple-A will tell us whether the hit tool can sharpen enough to keep pace with the approach.

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