Well, the Dodgers announced their minor league player and pictures of the Year on Friday, and we're joined right now by the picture of the year, a man that was traded during the offseason by the Cubs to the Dodgers, and what a steal it was for the Dodgers. I was told by a Mason McGuire and Mark McGuire somewhere in Irvine. Jackson Ferris joins us.
Thanks for having me man, glad to be here.
You got a lot of presents about yourself. You and Dalton Rushing feels like you guys are knocking on the door and ready to go.
Yeah.
I mean, I'm just try and have a good year and just hope to get that I get a call eventually, So it's all that matters.
What can you take away from your season and being in this organization for the first time, I.
Would just say that being a starting pitcher just is like going deep into games and longevity throat a year, like how healthy can you be?
Getting laid into this year?
So like you get into this time like everybody wants to play postseason baseball, and the Dodgers are going to give us a great opportunity to do that, and you just got to be healthy and answer the call whenever you get a shot. So that's one thing, probably the biggest thing I learned throughout this year.
We've heard so much about the Dodgers development of pictures, So what have you learned the most about the way they do things.
I just feel like the Dodgers aren't really scared to kind of screw up almost, so like they trust themselves and they trust what they do. And I have all my trust in all the coaches in the minor leagues and so whatever they tell me, I'm gonna take out with an open hand and then just hopefully it works out.
So in this stage of your career, do you have to have a certain leap of faith to make changes?
I would say a little bit yeah, because like it's your career, but you also have to trust these people who know what they're doing and know what they're saying. And it's like you almost are hesitant, but you just have to open up to all these people and get to know which coaches are really there for you and
all that. And that's kind of the one thing that you just got to learn throughout a year, like which coaches are really going to be there for you through rough times and good times, and then just kind of go to those guys whenever you need them.
I would imagine talking to guys that have come through the minor leagues. Everybody wants to put their fingerprint on your career. You have to know who you are. It seems like you do.
Yeah, for sure.
So it's like out of high school, like I was taken early in the draft, and it's just like they took me early for a reason, and then the Dodgers traded for me for a reason. So it's like, yeah, like they're for sure things that I need to fix. But it's also like what got me here is what I also got to turn back to. So when times are going bad and coaches aren't necessarily doing what I think is best, like you just got to go back to what you were doing originally.
Even at this stage of your career where you're still learning, you're still getting seasoned, do you believe you have to be your own best pitching coach?
Yeah, for sure, because it's only you out there on the mound. It's not the coach can't go out there and hand everything for you when you get out on the mound. So when things are going bad. It's not necessarily the right or the wrong way anymore. It's just what gets you through five plus innings out there on the mound.
Jackson Ferris is our guest. You know that name. He was traded to the Dodgers during the off season, but you are going to get to know him a lot more in the coming years. You actually threw a combined no hitter or almost a no hitter at Great Lakes, eight no hit innings before you were taken out. We hear about this so called zone. Were you in that zone that night?
Yeah? For sure.
That was just one of those nights where everything was clicking. It didn't matter like if I was getting a hard hit ball, because you go deep into a game like that and you don't give up a hit, you're gonna give up hard contact. So defense was always just placed in the right position. Defense helped me out behind me. Coaches told me in between innings how we need to attack the guys coming up.
And just felt like everything was clicking that night.
What clicks for you the most? Is it the slider? Is it the fastball? Is it the curveball? Can you tell us a little bit more in La about Jackson Ferris.
I feel like it's always going to be a fastball, like especially this year, I really ticked up in Vlo compared to the last couple of years, So it's always going to be my fastball. And then outside of that, it was kind of my slider was really my go to whenever I got into a jam, Like what pitch did I use to get a strikeout?
It was fastball slider always.
Do you got that, Uncle Charlie?
Though, Yeah, for sure.
Once I got moved up to double A, they were really really adamant on me throwing my curveball as often as possible because that is what my second best option was out of high school.
So now I throw that a lot. Again.
I was looking at the size of your hands, because the legend ghost that Sandy Kofax had extremely large hands and fingers to be able to wrap his hand around the baseball, which gave him that great curveball. It seems like you were blessed with decent hands to throw that curveball.
Oh yeah, that's my pigeon coach.
Back home, we started throwing like a double tap ball and a softball for a month before I could even throw a curveball with a baseball, and so that my pigion coach back home is really the one who kind of pushed me towards a twelve six curveball that I throw.
Now, well, you know there's a lefty right now on the Dodgers that is known for his fastball, his slider, and his curveball. How much have you heard the comparisons to Kershaw?
So growing up, that was really the guy who I looked up to the most in baseball. It was always him, just not necessarily motion or mechanics, but just stuff wise, like big fastball coming out. Kind of always got told he had control problems, which out of high school that's what I was told I had, So just trying to fine tune those and then always having the twelve six curd ball to throw and then developing a slider later on, which I've got now.
Keep grinding down there and awesome to meet you, effort, great things about Jackson Ferris.
Thank you, great meeting you. Glad to be here.
Yeah, no doubt. Get on that Mount Jackson.
Yeah, I wish that's the goal eventually,