Baseball in Fort Wayne

Posts Tagged ‘Mat Latos’

HotProspects.net has features some former Wizards recently. Here’s a brief recap:

Cedric Hunter (full post here):

There was some conjecture in the past about a dip in Hunter’s work ethic prior to his 2007 season.  Some within the organization felt that his fine ’06 pro debut may have went to his head a little bit, contributing to his performance dip at Low-A Fort Wayne.  It seems that he has moved beyond these concerns, though, and his future as a #2 or #6 hitter in San Diego seems to be quite bright.

Eric Soggard (full post here):

The former 2nd round pick out of Arizona State did all that he could to evoke comparisons to fellow Sun Devil alum Dustin Pedroia.  In his first full professional season, Sogard batted .308 with 10 HR 87 RBI 16 SB and 97 runs scored. 

Mat Latos (full post here):

Health is the biggest thing keeping Mat from having a major breakout season.  The Padres will likely start him back at Low-A Fort Wayne and, if all looks well, he should move to High-A Lake Elsinore at some point.  Latos has the stuff to be a frontline starter who can punch out 200+ hitters per season, but the big question mark with him will be his health. 

Matt Antonelli (full post here):

Antonelli is a joy to watch as he plays each game with maximum effort and a compelling desire to win.  He is a highly intelligent hitter who has earned 159 walks in the last two seasons.  Antonelli has good pull power but tends to slap balls to the opposite field, which should limit his HR totals. 

Kellen Kulbacki (full post here):

and powerfully builty, Kulbacki has a quick left-handed swing that mashes the ball with 20-25 HR power to all fields.  After early season struggles at Low-A, Kulbacki was promoted to High-A Lake Elsinore where he terrorized California League pitching to the tune of a .332 BA with 20 HR 66 RBI and 68 runs scored in just 84 games. 

Kyle Blanks (full post here):

Unlike many young power-hitting prospects, he doesn’t strike out too often and consistently makes hard contact.  As a 1st baseman, Blanks has demonstrated soft hands and surprising agility which should play well in the future. 

Former Wizards Cedric Hunter and Mat Latos will join the big league club during Spring Training which begins next month. That’s right – next month (it’s coming!). Even though neither prospect has played above single-A, but both are highly touted and rank highly on the organization’s top prospects list.

Paul DePodesta talks about non-roster signings, including Pete Ciofrone:

Pete has played the last four and a half seasons in the Padres organization, but was due to become a minor league free agent after the 2008 season. After a .314/.389/.519 season in Portland, we wanted to keep the versatile left-handed hitter. Pete has always done a good job of putting the ball in play, and his power has emerged over the past two seasons. His ability to play all four corner positions also provides options for any manager.

Former Wizards skipper, Randy Ready, dishes on San Diego prospects via MadFriars (Subscription required). The list includes many former Wizards, like Luke Carlin, Matt Antonelli, Chase Headley, Nick Hundley and Brett Dowdy.

Last year’s hitting coach at San Antonio, Terry Kennedy, takes on the San Diego prospects who played at Double-A. Former Wizards include Josh Alley, Mike Baxter, Kyle Blanks, Craig Cooper and Chad Huffman. Pitching Coach, Bill Masse talks about the Double-A pitchers, such as Manny Ayala, Greg Burke, Mike Ekstrom, Jon Ellis, and Stephen Faris.

Former Wizards pitching coach, Wally Whitehurst (who is now in the Pittsburgh Pirates system) talks about the pitchers from Lake Elsinore last season. Among the former Wizards are Nathan Culp, Ernesto Freiri, Corey Kluber, Cory Luebke, Brandon Gomes and John Madden.

The Rays Party Chairman of the Rays Party of America blog wants the Rays to consider former Wizards infielder, Bobby Scales, as a potential minor league free agent signing:

Scales primary position is second base but has played in the outfield in as many games as second. Scales is a switch hitter and hits about the same on both sides, slightly better as a right handed hitter. He has started to hit for more power recently but has increased his strikeout rate in addition. Not too good but adequate filler at Durham.

Local native, Jarrod Parker, tops the list of Diamondbacks prospects over at FutureBacks.com.

San Diego Padres beat writer, Corey Brock recently posted some mailbag questions and answers. His first discusses one of my all time favorite Wizards, Kyle Blanks, and his future for next season and as a potential trading chip down the line given that Gonzalez has the market on first base in SD:

Blanks had a big season with Double-A San Antonio, hitting .325 with 20 home runs and 107 RBIs to go with a .404 on-base percentage that certainly has many in the organization excited about the 22-year-old. This season came on the heels of a .301-24-100 season with Class A Lake Elsinore in 2007.

I would expect Blanks to begin the season with Triple-A Portland, where he will be tested in a veteran league much like Triple-A newcomers Matt Antonelli, Chase Headley and Nick Hundley were to start the 2008 season. Blanks could also be an attractive trade chip given that Gonzalez is 26 and doesn’t appear to be going anywhere.

Brock suggests that Mat Latos could see a return to Fort Wayne to begin next season (which I think is unlikely given he’s a California Florida kid and April in Fort Wayne is spine-tingling cold).

Among other former Wizards tidbits, he points out that the Padres are pretty happy with Nick Hundley as catcher but may still try to add a veteran presence (such as Brad Ausmus), and Jake Peavy being traded is still a possible scenario if the offer is right.

If the Padres have begun to make “wholesale changes” in the big league lineup, it will undoubtedly have impact on the farm clubs as well. We saw the first of those changes earlier in the week, and now they have made some moves to the Wizards roster as well.

Right handed pitcher, Steve Delabar was released from Padres organization and infielder, Lance Zawadzki was placed on disabled list. These moves made room for infielder Ray Stokes, who was promoted from extended spring training and right handed pitcher, Bryan Oland, who was also promoted from extended spring training

Delabar was 2-1 witha 5.27 ERA for the Wizards this season. He had given up 8 runs over 13.2 inning pitcher and appeared in 11 games.

Before joining Fort Wayne, Stokes was hitting 255 in 18 games. in 55 at-bats, he has 14 hits with 17 runs and 9 stolen bases. (Just what the Wizards need . . . more speed!!!). In his first game with the Wizards last night, he went 1-3 with a run, a hit and a strikeout. He was a 16th Round (483rd overall) pick by the Padres in the 2006 amateur entry draft. He appeared in one game with Fort Wayne in the 2007 season.

Bryan Oland has a 6+ ERA over 16 games and 20 innings pitcher this season. He joined the Wizards last night and pitched one shutout inning with one strikeout. He was a 24th Round (747th overall) pick by the Padres in the 2007 amateur entry draft.

Lamond Pope also updates the status of Mat Latos:

Mat Latos was placed on the disabled list Thursday with a left intercostal strain. Wizards manager Doug Dascenzo didn’t have a timetable for his return.

“He’s probably going to be a little bit longer (than seven days),” Wizards manager Doug Dascenzo said. “We just want to make sure he’s 100 percent before he gets back.”

Latos is the No. 3 rated prospect in the San Diego organization, according to Baseball America.

Update: Infielder, Brian Joynt also joined the Wizards today. Ooutfielder, Brad Chalk was placed on the disabled list, retroactive to Wednesday, May 21. Joynt was selected by the Padres in the 29th round of the 2007 Major League Baseball Draft. He has split time between the Eugene Emeralds of the Northwest League and the Arizona League Padres. Joynt hit a combined .195 in 41 games, with seven doubles, 15 runs batted in and three stolen bases. [source: OurSports Central]