Jacob Eugene Latz (born April 8, 1996) is an American
professional baseball
Professional baseball is organized baseball in which players are selected for their talents and are paid to play for a specific team or club system. It is played in baseball league, leagues and associated farm teams throughout the world.
Mod ...
pitcher
In baseball, the pitcher is the player who throws ("pitches") the baseball from the pitcher's mound toward the catcher to begin each play, with the goal of retiring a batter, who attempts to either make contact with the pitched ball or draw ...
in the
Texas Rangers organization. He made his
Major League Baseball
Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball organization and the oldest major professional sports league in the world. MLB is composed of 30 total teams, divided equally between the National League (NL) and the American League (AL), ...
(MLB) debut in 2021.
Amateur career
Latz attended
Lemont High School
Lemont High School, or LHS, is a public four-year high school located in Lemont, Illinois, a southwest suburb of Chicago, Illinois, in the United States. It is the only school of Lemont Township High School District 210, which serves the Village of ...
in
Lemont, Illinois. Latz pitched to a 10–0 record with a 0.23 ERA and 114 strikeouts over innings his senior season of high school and was named the 2014 Illinois Player of the Year. He was drafted by the
Toronto Blue Jays
The Toronto Blue Jays are a Canadian professional baseball team based in Toronto. The Blue Jays compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East division. Since 1989, the team has played its home games ...
in the 11th round of the
2014 MLB draft
The 2014 Major League Baseball (MLB) First-Year Player Draft was held from June 5 through June 7, 2014, to assign amateur baseball players to MLB teams. The first two rounds were conducted on June 5, followed by rounds three through ten on June ...
, but turned down a $1 million
signing bonus
A signing bonus or sign-on bonus is a sum of money paid to a new employee (including a professional sports person) by a company as an incentive to join that company. They are often given as a way of making a compensation package more attractive ...
and attended
Louisiana State University
Louisiana State University (officially Louisiana State University and Agricultural and Mechanical College, commonly referred to as LSU) is a public land-grant research university in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. The university was founded in 1860 nea ...
to play
college baseball
College baseball is baseball that is played on the intercollegiate level at institutions of higher education. In comparison to football and basketball, college competition in the United States plays a smaller role in developing professional pl ...
.
[ Latz was given a medical redshirt due to a stress reaction in his left elbow that caused him to miss the 2015 season. He played for the DuPage County Hounds of the Midwest Collegiate League in 2015. In innings for the Tigers in 2016, he went 0–1 with a 7.56 ERA.]Kent State University
Kent State University (KSU) is a public research university in Kent, Ohio. The university also includes seven regional campuses in Northeast Ohio and additional facilities in the region and internationally. Regional campuses are located in As ...
for the 2017 season and was forced to sit out the season due to transfer rules.[ He was drafted the Texas Rangers in the 5th round of the ]2017 MLB draft
The 2017 Major League Baseball (MLB) First-Year Player Draft began on June 12, 2017. The draft assigned amateur baseball players to MLB teams. The first 36 picks, including the first round and compensatory picks, were broadcast on MLB Network on J ...
, and signed with them for a $386,100 signing bonus.
Professional career
Latz made his professional debut in 2017 with the AZL Rangers
The Arizona Complex League Rangers are a Rookie-level affiliate of the Texas Rangers, competing in the Arizona Complex League of Minor League Baseball. The team plays its home games at Surprise Stadium in Surprise, Arizona. The team is composed ...
of the Rookie-level Arizona League, going 0–1 with a 6.75 ERA over just innings.[ He played for the ]Spokane Indians
The Spokane Indians are a Minor League Baseball team located in Spokane Valley, the city immediately east of Spokane, Washington, in the Pacific Northwest. The Indians are members of the High-A Northwest League (NWL) as an affiliate of the Color ...
of the Class A Short Season Northwest League in 2018, going 6–3 with a 3.13 ERA and 67 strikeouts over 71 innings.[ Latz split the 2019 season between the Hickory Crawdads of the Class A ]South Atlantic League
The South Atlantic League, often informally called the Sally League, is a Minor League Baseball league with teams predominantly in states along the Atlantic coast of the United States from New York to Georgia. A Class A league for most of its ...
and the Down East Wood Ducks of the Class A-Advanced Carolina League
The Carolina League is a Minor League Baseball league which has operated along the Atlantic Coast of the United States since 1945. Having been classified at various levels throughout its existence, it operated at Class A-Advanced from 1990 unti ...
, going a combined 7–1 with 1.62 ERA and 74 strikeouts over 61 innings. Due to the cancelation of the 2020 minor league season due to the COVID-19 pandemic
The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identif ...
, Latz joined the Sugar Land Skeeters of the independent Constellation Energy League
The Constellation Energy League was an independent baseball league that operated in Texas during 2020 because of COVID-19 restrictions limiting travel, and as a way to create opportunities for minor league players.
History
The league consisted of ...
.[ He was assigned to the Rangers alternate training site in September 2020.][ He split the 2021 minor league season between the ]Frisco RoughRiders
The Frisco RoughRiders (often shortened to 'Riders) are a Minor League Baseball team of the Texas League and the Double-A (baseball), Double-A affiliate of the Texas Rangers (baseball), Texas Rangers. They are located in Frisco, Texas, and are nam ...
of the Double-A Central and the Round Rock Express
The Round Rock Express are a Minor League Baseball team of the Pacific Coast League (PCL) and the Triple-A affiliate of the Texas Rangers. They are located in Round Rock, Texas, and play their home games at the Dell Diamond. The team is named ...
of the Triple-A West
The Pacific Coast League (PCL) is a Minor League Baseball league that operates in the Western United States. Along with the International League, it is one of two leagues playing at the Triple-A level, which is one grade below Major League Bas ...
, going a combined 2–2 with a 4.30 ERA and 119 strikeouts over innings.
On August 25, Texas selected his contact to the active roster and promoted him to the major leagues to make his MLB debut that night against the Cleveland Indians
The Cleveland Guardians are an American professional baseball team based in Cleveland. The Guardians compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Central division. Since , they have played at Progressive F ...
. Due to 2021 MLB COVID outbreak rules, his addition to the 40-man roster was temporary. In his debut, he threw innings while striking out 4 and suffering the loss. He was returned to Round Rock and removed from the 40-man roster on August 30. Latz spent the 2022 season back with Round Rock, going 5–5 with a 5.77 ERA, and 59 strikeouts over 53 innings.
References
External links
Kent State Golden Flashes bioLSU Tigers bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Latz, Jake
1996 births
Living people
People from Lemont, Illinois
Baseball players from Illinois
Major League Baseball pitchers
Texas Rangers players
LSU Tigers baseball players
Arizona League Rangers players
Spokane Indians players
Hickory Crawdads players
Down East Wood Ducks players
Sugar Land Skeeters players
Frisco RoughRiders players
Round Rock Express players