Jackson Ferris, LHP, Los Angeles Dodgers
Adding Michael Busch and Yency Almonte to the big-league roster came at a heavy price for Chicago, costing them toolsy prep draftee Zyhir Hope and Ferris in the deal. Despite being drafted 47th overall, Ferris was paid mid-first-round money and given an aggressive first full-season assignment, skipping the complex and being placed into the Southern League as a teenager. The results were good, but not great, in season one with Ferris posting 77 strikeouts in just 56 innings but also struggling with the overall control. Standing 6-foot-4, he has the classic starter’s frame and the arsenal features a mid-nineties fastball, two distinct breakers, and a change. There are still some minor concerns in the profile, including whether or not he can prove durable enough to log a starter’s workload after being kept on a short leash by the Cubs in year one. Also, the delivery can get a bit out of whack, leading to an inability to find the strike zone. Chicago’s pitching development, once nonexistent, has made great strides in recent years but Los Angeles is still the gold standard and could have Ferris in the conversation as the top lefty pitching prospect this time next year. —Nathan Graham