Jackson Ferris, acquired by the Dodgers from the Cubs in the Michael Busch trade in January, has struggled at the start of the season with High-A Great Lakes with a 5.68 ERA and 14 walks in 19 innings to go with his 23 strikeouts.

Part of the reason for the growing pains for the 20-year-old right-hander is that he’s working (during games) on adding a slider to his fastball-curveball mix. From Bill Plunkett, in a piece for Baseball America:

“We really feel he has some feel to pitch and execute that is ultimately going to separate him as he continues to evolve,” [vice president of player development Will] Rhymes said.

“He has a really legitimate starting arsenal and execution. It’s just exciting to have a young starter with this much upside.”

Ferris is slated to start next for the Loons on Sunday in Wisconsin.

Player of the day

Kendall George was a menace for Rancho Cucamonga with three hits three stolen bases, and two runs scored on Friday night in Modesto.

George bunted for a hit to lead off the game, then stole second and third base, and scored on a wild pitch. He reached on a fielder’s choice and stole second base in the second inning.

In the fourth, George reached on another bunt single but stayed put on the bases that inning. Another single came in the fifth, but that loaded the bases and he had nowhere to run. He walked and scored in the seventh.

George has eight stolen bases in only 13 games this season, and since the Dodgers drafted him in the first round last year he has 25 steals in 41 games as a pro.

Triple-A Oklahoma City

Oklahoma City was the latest Dodgers affiliate to run up against a great pitching performance, with Davis Daniel and the Salt Lake Bees (Angels) shutting out the home team.

Daniel struck out six and walked none in his 8⅓ innings, allowing only four singles. Drew Avans had two of them.

Tanner Dodson did pitch 2⅔ scoreless innings in relief with three strikeouts in the loss.

Injury update

River Ryan was sidelined during spring training with shoulder soreness, and started the season on the 60-day minor league injured list. His earliest return to Oklahoma City would be May 28, and Will Rhymes told Plunkett in that Baseball America piece noted above that Ryan is on track to be back by then:

“We see this next month or so as his spring training,” Rhymes said. “I think this will be a really great year for him. At the end of the day, it’ll cost him a couple months, but he’ll still get four-plus months in and have a pretty full season.”

Double-A Tulsa

The Drillers had some highlight performances, but still got swept in a doubleheader by the Springfield Cardinals.

Austin Gauthier reached base six times in eight trips to the plate in the two games, with a home run, two singles, and three walks. He scored three of Tulsa’s eight runs in the twinbill, including on Dalton Rushing’s three-run home run in the opener.

B2 | The G in Gauthier actually stands for GOING, GOING, GONEEE!!! WE'RE ALL TIED UP

Cardinals 4, #Drillers 4 pic.twitter.com/H9kZWhezkV

— Tulsa Drillers (@TulsaDrillers) May 4, 2024

B7 | That ball was RUSHING outta here!!
Rushing starts a late game Drillers rally with his 4th homer of the season!

Cardinals 9, #Drillers 4 pic.twitter.com/v7pfKOGV8X

— Tulsa Drillers (@TulsaDrillers) May 4, 2024

Cardinals veteran Matt Carpenter, on the injured list for four weeks with an oblique strain, is on a rehab assignment with Springfield through the end of this series. He played first baseman in the first game Friday, and doubled, walked, scored one, and drove in another.

High-A Great Lakes

Behind Maddux Bruns’ strong start and a trio of two-run innings on offense, the Loons dispatched the Wisconsin Timber Rattlers (Brewers).

Bruns faced 11 batters for Great Lakes on Friday, and struck out six of them, pitching three scoreless innings in the second start of the season for the Dodgers’ first-round draft pick in 2021.

First baseman Kyle Nevin hit a two-run home run and doubled. Third baseman Sam Mongelli doubled in a run, singled, stole a base, and scored twice.

Right-hander Christian Romero pitched four innings in relief, allowing only one run to earn the win.

Low-A Rancho Cucamonga

An 11-2 lead in the seventh inning was not enough for the Quakes, as the Modesto Nuts (Mariners) scored the final 10 runs to win a game that was truly nuts.

Jose Rodriguez didn’t allow a run until after he recorded 11 outs in relief, but he gave up three runs in the seventh. David Tiburcio allowed two more runs in that inning, then four more of his own in the eighth. The cause wasn’t helped by two errors in those two fateful innings, plus two balks, and the winning run scored on a catcher’s interference with the bases loaded.

Transaction

Triple-A: Left-hander Matt Gage was activated off the injured list by Oklahoma City for his season debut, eventually (he did not pitch Friday night). Gage, who was acquired from the Yankees in the Caleb Ferguson trade on February 5, was released on April 2 then re-signed on a minor league deal with the Dodgers on April 7.