Tuesday, April 24, 2012

Mat Latos...A Buy Low Candidate

Cincinnati’s prize off season acquisition Mat Latos, has been struggling so far this season. To date Latos is winless with an ERA well over a touchdown and his WHIP is just a shade under 2.00.  His BAA is a staggering .328 and nearly all the inherited runners he left for his teammates have scored. He has also given up a 2 R triple to an opposing SP and has failed to even garner a single QS this season.
With all that bleakness hovering  over Latos he has come to the conclusion that he must just trust his stuff and not try and pinpoint every pitch and be too fine. He is a power pitcher and needs to throw heat.
If you thought that maybe his velocity is down think again. He has actually increased his average velocity in all 3 starts this year. Then you might think his velocity is down from the last couple of years. That would be wrong also. Average velocity in 2012 starts: Game 1 (91.5), Game 2 (92.8), Game 3 (93.8). Latos actually pitches better as the season progresses.
He pitches tonight against the Giants where he was 0-1 with a 3.15 ERA last year in 3 starts. If he comes off average at best tonight I would start seeking out his owners and try trading for him on the cheap. At 24 years old with Cincy’s lineup behind him he is a sure bounce back candidate for the rest of the year. Just remember in April 2011 he was 0-4 with a 4.98 ERA.

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