Roto Rush: Mat Latos Adjusting to Bigs

Poppin' out the box scores and right into your cubicle, the Roto Rush is your double espresso shot of fantasy baseball advice every weekday.

A few weeks ago we discussed the possibility of the Padres promoting 21-year-old phenom Mat Latos. Well, he now has four major league starts under his belt, and, needless to say, he's doing just fine. After a solid outing Monday night, Latos is 3-1 with a 2.66 ERA and a sparkling 0.89 WHIP. He's struck out 16 while only walking 6 in 23 2/3 innings. He's also pitching in one of the best pitcher's parks in baseball.

So, he should be owned in all fantasy leagues, right?

Um, not so fast. His total workload on the season is up to 96 innings, and he only threw 56 last season. The Padres previously stated they didn't want to push him to more than double last season's total. If they are really going to stick to that, he's only going to be allowed to throw 16 more innings. Now, I doubt they go hard-and-fast with it, but there's no way they push him to three times last year's workload.

The Padres are planning for the future, so Latos only has a few more starts left in 2009. Enjoy them while you can in larger leagues, but don't expect to ride him to a championship in seasonal leagues. Not yet, at least.

In keeper leagues? Snatch him up now and hold onto him for dear life. You've got a potential 6-foot-6 version of Tim Lincecum here.

Bits From the Box Scores:
- Another start, another stellar outing for Randy Wells. He's now 8-4 with a 2.73 ERA and 1.14 WHIP in 102 1/3 innings. What won't show up in the box score is the number of times he's given the Cubs a much needed quality start (his 12th out of 16 outings) and alleviated pressure on the bullpen. He did so again Monday night against the Reds. The bullpen was coming off three horrific games in Florida, and Wells worked into the eighth inning. Not related to fantasy: Andrew McCutchen, Casey McGehee and Colby Rasmus are having good seasons, but no one deserves Rookie of the Year more than Wells at this point. Pitchers rarely win the award, though, so it will be interesting to see how things shake out if things continue at this pace.

- Aaron Harang has been a shell of his former self since the beginning of 2008. Considering he's only 31, though, he shouldn't be done. Monday night, his line could be a little deceiving. He made one mistake following a hit-by-pitch and a single. He ended up running out of gas in the eighth inning, but, in between, he was dealing against the Cubs. He even struck out a season-high 10. Keep an eye on him, as it was a step in the right direction.

- Ryan Doumit has struggled -- outside of two games where he hit 3 homers and drove home 5 -- since returning from injury. He was 3-5 Monday night, though, and he's a very good hitter. Things will turn around and any night with three hits is a sign said turnover is on the horizon. Be ready.

- Tyler Clippard is an intriguing option in huge leagues. He's got a 2.52 ERA in 25 innings, and he's struck out 29 hitters. His WHIP is a minuscule 0.96. The Nationals have been using him only out of the bullpen this season, but he's throwing the ball very well and he's only 24-years-old. Coming into the season, his only eight appearances in the bigs were starts. There's a good chance he works his way into the rotation down the stretch, as the Nats look to the future. He'd be a very cheap buy in any league -- though you shouldn't count on wins from Washington, obviously.

- Gerardo Parra is 6 for his last 13 with 2 doubles, 4 RBI, 1 steal and 2 runs in that stretch. The 22-year-old has gone through some ups and downs during his rookie season, but he's got a solid overall stat-line and he's going to continue to play. Take note in really deep NL-Only leagues.

- Angel Pagan is making good use of his playing time in center while Carlos Beltran takes his sweet old time coming back from injury. He's hitting .297 with a .809 OPS and has stolen 8 bases (has only been caught one time). He's a solid, short-term source of speed in NL-Only leagues until Beltran returns.

- Mike Hampton had a good outing, but the Giants aren't exactly an offensive juggernaut. He had a 10.42 ERA in his previous four starts, and he's an injury-prone 36-year-old. I'll pass.

- Ryan Garko went two-for-two Monday night, but he's still only batting .222 for the Giants. He should enjoy an uptick in production soon, as he's hitting in an easier division and in a better hitter's park.

- Good thing all the short-sighted baseball fans whined about the Nate McLouth trade and how bad it was for the Pirates. Since the deal, McLouth is hitting .259/.341/.428 (AVG/OBP/SLG). Andrew McCutchen replaced him in Pittsburgh. McCutchen's line? .296/.352/.498. McCutchen's also five years younger and plays much better defense. What do you wanna bet most of their deals this season turn out that way? I'll never understand why people want them to cling to every player in hopes of winning 75-80 games instead of trying to build a contender.

- Zack Grienke is now 2-6 with a 3.84 ERA since the beginning of June. His strikeouts and control are still present, though, so it's likely his downturn is just a result of his playing for a team with such a horrible offense. I mean, 3.84 is a pretty damn respectable ERA these days. Stick with him. As a matter of fact, think about trading for him if you don't own him.

- Yes, it was only against the hapless Royals offense, but Scott Kazmir had a somewhat encouraging outing. It was his second straight quality start and win. You'd still like to see the strikeouts rise, but he's taking baby-steps back to being the pitcher we know he can be. He's worth watching in all leagues due to his strikeout and win potential.

- Ugly outing for Justin Verlander with him allowing 5 earned runs to the Orioles, but he still managed to strike out 8 hitters. Even when he's not on, he helps. That's the sign of a fantasy ace.

- Nick Markakis is now in his fourth full season. He's a great player in real life, but it's becoming more and more apparent he's having problems developing the type of power that can make him an elite fantasy outfielder. His isolated power is down this season, and he's hit only 71 career home runs in 2,144 at-bats. That's roughly a home run every 28 at-bats. Team that with a .297 average and only 3 steals this year, and it's pretty apparent he's grown overrated in fantasy.

- Neftali Feliz is only a middle reliever at this point, but keep your eyes on him. He made his major league debut Monday night and did not disappoint. He threw 2 innings, facing the minimum and striking out 4. Later in the game, C.J. Wilson blew a save. Frank Francisco has had trouble staying healthy. Thus, look for Feliz as the future closer in large dynasty leagues. He's only 21 and he throws 102 miles per hour.

- Scott Hairston isn't adjusting well to the AL. He's hitting only .237 with a .676 OPS. Of course, he was performing far above his career numbers in San Diego anyway. He's just not a good fantasy option in any format.

The Afflicted: Nelson Cruz left the game with an apparent leg injury. Details are sketchy now, so pay attention to the newswire.

Signed: Daniel Cabrera has inked a deal with the Diamondbacks. Fool me once ... yada yada yada ... fool me a billion times ... complete idiocy. Just please ignore him in all formats. He sucks.

Lineup Lock Time: Sit back ... we don't have a first pitch until 7:05 PM ET tonight.