Josue De Paula and Zyhir Hope played side by side at High-A Great Lakes and went to the Futures Game together. Mike Sirota put up a 1.068 OPS in 59 games at a pair of Class A stops but missed more than half the season with a knee injury.

But the outfielder who shined brightest from start to finish this season was 20-year-old center fielder Eduardo Quintero. He stood out by steadily refining the skills that prompted the Dodgers to sign him out of Venezuela in 2023 and move him from his amateur position of catcher to the outfield.

“Internally we had him very high. I think he exceeded expectations,” Dodgers GM Brandon Gomes said. “They loved the dude (in player development). Every challenge, every tweak they’ve given him he’s taken it and made the adjustment.”

Indeed.

At Low-A Rancho Cucamonga, Quintero slashed .306/.426/.533 and led the California League with 14 home runs, 73 runs scored and a .960 OPS at the time he was promoted to High-A. At Great Lakes, he still maintained an OPS over .800 as one of the youngest players in the league.

In 113 games he totaled 19 homers and 47 stolen bases while drawing 88 walks.

“He’s shown good bat-to-ball, pretty good decision-making, really young for the level,” Gomes said. “Shows power when you need it. Can hit balls to all fields. There’s no one standout 80-grade tool. It’s a bunch of really good components plus good makeup to bet on.”

If those were all things the Dodgers expected from Quintero, he has also filled in some blanks with his ability to handle center field.

“In general, it’s a rare commodity,” Gomes said. “So that is always a question—where is he going to end up defensively? I don’t think he’s a slam dunk center fielder. But I think it’s a high probability that he’s going to play a good center field.”

L.A. Confidential

— High-A Great Lakes outfielder Kendall George stole 100 bases in 111 games, batting .295/.409/.370. The 20-year-old reached the century mark with 15 stolen bases in a five-game burst. He is only the fourth minor leaguer with 100 stolen bases in a season since 2005, joining Billy Hamilton (2011 and 2012), Chandler Simpson (2024) and Delino DeShields Jr. (2012). The Dodgers drafted George in the first round in 2023 out of high school in Texas.

— Double-A Tulsa righthander Jared Karros’ season ended early when he had Tommy John surgery in August. A 16th-round pick out of UCLA in 2022, Karros is the son of former Dodger Eric Karros and brother of Kyle Karros, who made his MLB debut with the Rockies this season. Jared went 7-1 with a 2.79 ERA at the Class A and Double-A levels in 2024 but was 1-5 with a 7.22 ERA in 12 starts for Tulsa this season.