Texas Rangers Pitching Prospect Cole Winn Knows Opportunity Knocks If He Takes Command
SURPRISE, Ariz. — Cole Winn knows what's at stake.
The right-hander has been here before. The hard part is not dwelling on the possibilities and focusing on his natural abilities.
The 24-year-old 2018 first-round pick (No. 15 overall) has yet to make his MLB debut.
He made his first spring training start against the Chicago White Sox at Camelback Ranch in Glendale, Ariz., on Monday. It showcased the Winn quandary.
Winn allowed a run on two singles and a walk in 1.2 innings. He faced nine batters and was lifted when he reached his 40-pitch limit with two outs and a runner on first in the second.
"It's part of the game; you're on the 40-man [roster], and you always have a chance to compete for a spot," said Winn, who has struggled with his command the past two seasons at Triple-A Round Rock. "So there's always a little bit of pressure. But to me, that's not what I'm focused on. I'm focused on going out there and executing my pitches. And being the best version of myself for the team."
In 24 games of Puerto Rico Winter Ball, Winn was stellar. He had a 2.63 ERA and struck out 24 and walked 10 in 24 innings.
Manager Bruce Bochy liked what he saw after the first two batters, who walked and singled and were on second and third after Winn threw a wild pitch. The White Sox scored on a groundout before Winn struck out Mike Moustakas and induced a tapper back to the mound to end the inning. He had two quick outs in the second before Danny Mendick singled, which ended Winn's day.
"He was battling out there. His command wasn't quite as sharp, but for his first time out, he got some work in," Bochy said. "He was good at times and then at times got a little erratic but did a good job to limit damage there early."
Winn was facing White Sox major leaguers at the top of the lineup, including Andrew Benintendi, Yoan Moncada, Luis Robert Jr., and Eloy Jimenez.
"I was really excited, honestly, to come with nervous and anxiousness," he said. "First outing out in spring is always a little bit more amped up than usual. So maybe we'll take that and roll with it, but definitely settled down in the second and felt a lot better with where I was at."
The Rangers want Winn to attack the zone more, to let his stuff play. That's what he's trying to do, especially with his sinker-slider combination, which was riding in against right-handed batters and forcing weak contact. After settling down, Winn controlled the count, he said.
"I just want to put everything I have out there and show what I can do and give the team the best version of myself every outing," he said. "So I think we took a step in the right direction. We're not fully there yet, but it's early in spring, and we've got a lot to work on."
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