Mat Latos not worth starting right now
While Fantasy owners are a long way from treating Mat Latos like a must-start pitcher, he is probably getting a little too much benefit of the doubt. He is currently starting in 66 percent of the leagues on CBSSports.com. Even if a chunk of those owners are dormant due to having been eliminated in their playoffs, Latos is likely starting in leagues where he should be benched.
As I noted in a recent blog post, Latos isn't missing many bats, and he has probably been fortunate to have allowed as few extra base hits as he has. Latos has created the appearance of rounding back into form with a run of recent starts in which he hasn't given up many runs. He has a 2.48 ERA for the Reds in August, but minus a start against an aggressive Rockies lineup, Latos has a 6 percent whiff rate on the month.
Only an 85 percent strand rate (according to FanGraphs.com) has kept Latos' August ERA in check, and his 1.38 WHIP for the month provides a better indication of how he has pitched. Maybe he can increase his velocity along with his whiff and strikeout rates, but until he does, it's best to keep Latos on your bench.
