Follow the Prospects: Andry Lara, RHP

[welch]

(For the record) Story in today's Post: https://www.washingtonpost.com/sports/2022/08/08/andry-lara-nationals-pitching-prospect/

[Natsinpwc]

Looks terrible tonight. Lifted in the third. Only thing worse than his pitching was his fielding.  And the tv camera work. Feel seasick watching so will go to the MLB games.

[Section214]

Ups and downs continue. Maybe his best start of his career last night, 6 IP scoreless 1 BB 3 H 7 K. 3 of his 4 starts in August were a combined 17.1 IP with 1 ER and 18 K. The 4th start was a disaster..

1.22 WHIP in August and for the most part not walking guys. Very encouraging season for Lara, I look forward to seeing him start in Wilmington next year.

[imref]

nice debut: 5IP, 1H, 1R, 0ER, 1BB, 3K

[zimm_da_kid]

nice debut: 5IP, 1H, 1R, 0ER, 1BB, 3K

I feel like Lara’s been getting lost in the shuffle a little bit.  Still only 20 years old for this entire season and pitching at high a.  He’s ahead of schedule if anything

[JCA-CrystalCity]

I feel like Lara’s been getting lost in the shuffle a little bit.  Still only 20 years old for this entire season and pitching at high a.  He’s ahead of schedule if anything

needs to be added to the 40 man after this season or be exposed to rule 5.

[zimm_da_kid]

needs to be added to the 40 man after this season or be exposed to rule 5.

If he has a halfway decent season at high a that shouldn’t be a problem

[JCA-CrystalCity]

If he has a halfway decent season at high a that shouldn’t be a problem

what I'd really like to see is him and Rutledge put together good  3-4 months at their levels and, when Rutledge is bumped up, Lara is too.

[imref]

Good start last night after struggling in his previous two: 6IP, 3H, 0R, 1BB, 6K

[imref]

really struggling this season, ERA up to 6.56 after getting shelled tonight.

[imref]

Nice start: 5IP, 4H, 1R, 1ER, 1BB, 3K

[imref]

another nice start: 5IP, 4H, 0R, 0BB, 4K

[JCA-CrystalCity]

some good news. Article discusses each teams' "hottest" pitching prospect.

Lara has allowed one or zero earned runs in five of his last six outings for High-A Wilmington, and after being particularly vulnerable to the long ball earlier in the season, it's a good sign that he's allowed only one dinger in that span, helping result in a 2.92 ERA. If you want to blame Wilmington's pitcher-friendly conditions for those numbers alone, it should be noted that the six starts were split evenly between home and road. Lara has long been about projection more than present stuff with a mid-90s fastball and fringy slider and change, but this run gives more optimism about his starting chances.

https://www.mlb.com/nationals/news/hottest-pitching-prospects-july-2023?t=mlb-pipeline-coverage

[JCA-CrystalCity]

https://www.baseballamerica.com/stories/10-washington-nationals-prospects-to-know-beyond-the-top-30-in-2024/

Insight into the fall from grace:

Lara signed for $1.25 million in 2019 but has struggled to get on track over the last two years. He has shown above-average velocity in the past, hitting 98 mph at peak, but his velo backed up to sit 92-93 mph in 2023. His fastball was hit hard and lacks ideal shape. Lara has a mid-80s slider that flashes plus, but has yet to develop much feel for his changeup, heightening concerns he’s ultimately ticketed for a relief role.

[imref]

21Ks so far.  2.13 / 1.26 WHIP in 12.2 IP. Just 21.

[JCA-CrystalCity]

21Ks so far.  2.13 / 1.26 WHIP in 12.2 IP. Just 21.

finally seeing what everyone raved about.

[imref]

Nats_playerdev:

Andry Lara struck out nine over 5.0 innings on Tuesday night. He is now up to 30 strikeouts this year (in just 17.2 innings), ranking fifth in all of @MiLB

[imref]

6 IP, 2H, 0R, 1BB, 7Ks yesterday. ERA down to 2.28, with a 1.10 WHIP

[JCA-CrystalCity]

6 IP, 2H, 0R, 1BB, 7Ks yesterday. ERA down to 2.28, with a 1.10 WHIP

this is at Wilmington. Assigned to High A.

Are there any velocity reports? That seemed to be the biggest source of concern.

[JCA-CrystalCity]

His K% is 38.9% and his (K%-BB%) is 30.5%. Still walking around 3 batters a game, which is kind of middling, but when your K/9 is over 14, I can take it. He's basically throwing like Josh Hader with fewer walks as a starter. He's quite dominant for his level, and he's 2 years younger than the Sally league average.

[nobleisthyname]

Age: 21
Team rank: Unranked
Current level: A+

April recap

W-L

|

IP

|

GS

|

ERA

|

FIP

|

SO

|

BB

|

K%

|

BB%

|

WHIP

2-3

|

23.2

|

5

|

2.28

|

2.01

|

37

|

8

|

38.9%

|

8.4%

|

1.10