Lattimore looking to impact Things
Mired in sixth place in the Frontier League’s East Division standings and hitting at a meager .244 clip in July, the Wild Things have been searching for an impact hitter to jumpstart their offense before the season becomes a lost cause.
They believe they’ve found one who brings considerable professional experience.
Washington signed former Pittsburgh Pirates minor leaguer Quincy Latimore prior to its game Tuesday night against the Rockford Aviators that was suspended in the first inning because of rain.
Latimore (5-10, 205), an outfielder, was the Pirates’ fourth-round draft pick in 2007 and has played in 335 games at the Class AA level.
Players with that much experience usually aren’t found on the waiver wire in late July.
“Impact bat,” Washington manager Bart Zeller said. “We’re excited to have him. He put up some good numbers and seems to fit in very well with the guys we have.”
Latimore’s journey from the Pirates to the Wild Things started last January and it involves a player who has filled a key role for Pittsburgh this season. Last January, Latimore was traded by the Pirates to the Cleveland Indians in exchange for pitcher Jeanmar Gomez, who has made eight starts for the Pirates.
Latimore, meanwhile, was spending his third season in Class AA. Playing for the Akron Aeros, Latimore was batting .231 with six home runs in 81 games, and recently had fallen out of the Aeros’ starting lineup. He was released July 16.
“I could see it was coming because I wasn’t playing every day,” Latimore said. “In the series before the all-star break, I had a couple of doubles, a home run and a three-RBI game against Richmond. After the all-star break is when teams make roster moves, and I wasn’t playing after the break. I asked the manager why, and he said they wanted to make some evaluations on some players and they wanted to get them playing time. After I was released, I guess I wasn’t surprised.”
It didn’t take long for the Wild Things to learn of Latimore’s availability. They were the first independent team to call him, though he also was contacted by teams in the Frontier League and American Association.
“It took a lot of hard work by (coach) Bob Bozzuto, who made the initial contact,” Zeller explained. “It also didn’t hurt that we had C.J. Beatty on our team.”
Beatty, a second baseman for the Wild Things, is who helped seal the deal for Latimore to come to Washington. Beatty, from Winston-Salem, N.C., and Latimore, who is from Raleigh, N.C., played against one another in AAU baseball at ages 10 and 11. They were teammates for a showcase team called the Dirtbags for three years, when they were ages 15, 16 and 17.
“C.J. called me and said he really enjoyed it here. He said the organization will do anything to help you,” Latimore, now 24 years old, said. “Having played in Altoona for two years, I’m somewhat familiar with the area, it’s only 7½ hours away from home for my family and I need to play and have regular at-bats in hope that something comes up.”
Latimore’s career was on the rise for several years while with the Pirates. In 2009, he had 24 doubles, 10 triples, 11 home runs and 70 RBI for the low-Class A West Virginia Power. The following year, he had 31 doubles, 19 home runs and 100 RBI for Bradenton of the high-Class A Florida State League.
His career stalled in Class AA, though he hit 56 doubles and 30 home runs over two seasons with Altoona before the Pirates dealt him to the Indians.
With three seasons and more than 1,300 plate appearances in Class AA, Latimore is the most experienced hitter the Wild Things have ever signed.
Zeller cautioned that there will be an adjustment period for Latimore.
“The pitchers here might be under his bat speed,” Zeller said. “What I mean is, he’s probably used to seeing fastballs at 92 to 94 mph every night. Here, he’ll usually see 85 to 90. He’ll have to make a little adjustment.”
Latimore doesn’t mind waiting a split second longer before swinging.
“There will be a difference, at first. But at the end of the day, it’s still baseball and still at-bats. It’s going to be good to get a month’s worth of at-bats and help this team win. I want to show that I can hit and I was just in a funk with Akron.”
Latimore’s debut with the Wild Things ended Tuesday after only two batters when the game was suspended in the top of the first inning. After a rain delay of 1 hour and 34 minutes, it was announced that the umpires had decided to suspend the game. It will resumed at 11:05 a.m. today and be followed by the regularly scheduled game. The first game will be nine innings with the second game will be a seven-inning contest.