Zack Littell's Control Issues: Nationals' Rotation in Jeopardy

0:00It's April 23rd. Welcome in. This is MLB News today, where baseball meets AI. Washington Nationals were eyeing a series split against the Atlanta Braze after a strong showing on April 21st, but Zach Latel couldn't. Deliver on Wednesday. The veteran right-hander got hammered again, surrendering four home runs in the loss, pushing his season total to 11 leading all of Major League. Baseball by three, with an ERA of 7.56. Coming into the year, the Nat signed Latel, expecting a reliable arm, but he's fallen short so far, struggling way more than in his prior starts. Earlier this week, they're rough outing highlighted ongoing issues that have plagued him all season long. Little pinpointed control problems as the big culprit, leading to extra walks and hard contact from hitters. Fans and analysts wonder if the teams pushed toward more breaking pitches and fewer fastballs has thrown off his groove, especially since it worked for.

1:00Others, but not him. He's planning to flip the script by reverting to the strategies that fueled his success before, like in his two full seasons as a starter with ERAs. Around 3.63 and 3.81. At 30 years old though, with no overpowering stuff, it's no sure fix since opponents might have his number by now. If Latel can dial it back in soon, it could steady the nationals rotation and turn their season around before things spiral further.