Photo: Steven Latos of the Lloyd Juniors will be looking to make an impact in the NSRBL this summer and prepare to take the next step as he heads back to Thompson Rivers University in the fall, for his second season with the Wolfpack. - Robb Fenton Photo
 

By Robb Fenton

It’s something not a lot of players get to experience, but it’s something Steven Latos is taking full advantage of.
Latos just completed his first season at Thompson Rivers University, playing for the Wolfpack and said the experience was something special.
“It was really good. It was a big change from ball around here, it’s the next level,” Latos said. “The guys are out there, all wanting to play all wanting to get better, so it’s fun to play with those guys.”
The biggest difference between the NSRBL, where Latos plays during the summer and university baseball is the off-field preparation and how serious all the players, coaches and teams take the game.
“Dedication and just the want to play and the want to get better. Everyone is out there trying to be the best they can,” Latos said of what he noticed playing in Kamloops, where TRU is located.
Latos posted solid numbers in his first two stints with the Wolfpack.
In the fall season, he was 1-2 with two starts and struck out 16 in just over 18 innings of work.
In the second part of the year, the spring session, Latos was 0-2 with one start and struck out 11 batters in 14 innings and lowered his earned run average by about three.
He said from where he was when he began at TRU to where he is now is a huge change.
“The fall, we spent a lot of time with the pitching coach working on a few things and I feel like I improved and came a long way. In the spring season, I think I was heads and tails different as a player compared to the fall when I first went down there,” Latos said.
The biggest change he was in his game wasn’t so much out on the field, but it was in the preparation and the commitment to getting better every day.
“In my game, the mental aspect. You get down there and it’s all business and there’s no room for mental errors,” he said. “You have to be mentally strong and shake off anything you mess up and just go after the next guy.”
Back for the summer, Latos is excited to work on the things he learned while he was away and will try to use them to help out the Lloyd Juniors, where he is a key player.
“This league I’ll get lots of innings in so I’ll get a chance to work on things that I’ve been practicing in the fall, so it’s about repetition and getting to play,” Latos said of the NSRBL.
The game plan for the summer is to continue to progress and make sure when he heads back to TRU in the fall, that he is in top form and will have a chance to compete for a more prominent role on the Wolfpack.
“Just getting command of all my pitches, staying mentally strong and just working hard, trying to improve every day,” he said of the summer goal, adding he also has a goal set for next fall.
“I strictly pitch out there and I just worked out of the bullpen my first year. This year, working out here in the summer I am hoping to go back and compete for a starting role in the rotation.”
Curtis Lystang is leading the Juniors this year and knows what Latos can bring to the team and is hoping he can use his knowledge to contribute to a successful season.
“His pitching, he’s in a groove, he’s in mid-season form already and the mentality he brings back from university ball has a lot to do with the mental side of the game,” Lystang said.
The Wolfpack fell short of their goal last season despite a near perfect year.
The goal heading into fall 2010 is simple, according to Latos.
“We won the pennant, we only lost six games all year in the regular season, but we ended up losing the national championship game,” he said. “That will be the goal from Day 1 of training camp, working towards getting back there and coming out on top this time.”