Minor League Baseball

New York Yankees' Triple-A Pitcher Does Something Rarely Accomplished on the Mound

Allan Winans of the Scranton/Wilkes-Barre RailRiders had a game to remember on Wednesday.
Jami Leabow|
New York Yankees pitcher Allan Winans (62) throws a pitch against the Philadelphia Phillies in the fifth inning during spring training at George M. Steinbrenner Field in Tampa, Fla., on March 14, 2025.
New York Yankees pitcher Allan Winans (62) throws a pitch against the Philadelphia Phillies in the fifth inning during spring training at George M. Steinbrenner Field in Tampa, Fla., on March 14, 2025. | Nathan Ray Seebeck-Imagn Images

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New York Yankees

Right-hander Allan Winans is no stranger to the strikeout, punching out an average of at least 8.5 batters a game over nine innings in college, the minor leagues and the majors.

Pitching for Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre on Wednesday night, Winans crushed those numbers and accomplished something apparently not done in years at the same time.

Against Triple-A Charlotte (Chicago White Sox), Winans threw just 3.2 innings and faced 14 batters, giving up a bunt single and walking two. What happened to those other 11 batters? Ten of them struck out.

Winans struck out the side in the first three innings, and the two outs he recorded in the fourth came by strikeout and force out.

Here is some perspective on that feat from MLB.com, which called it “a feat that hasn’t been done in MLB since at least 1961," citing the Elias Sports Bureau.

The RailRiders went on to defeat Charlotte 5-0 as Winans’ strikeouts per nine innings rate jumped to an astronomical 19.3.

Winans, who turns 30 in August, was drafted by the New York Mets in the 17th round in the 2018 MLB Draft out of Campbell University in North Carolina. He was traded to Atlanta on Dec. 8, 2021, and made his MLB debut with the Braves on July 22, 2023.

He appeared in eight games (all starts) with the Braves, posting a 1-4 record with a 7.20 ERA and 38 strikeouts in 40 innings.

Over the winter, the Yankees selected him off waivers from the Braves.

In the minor leagues, the 6-foot-2 Winans has a 20-21 record and 2.89 ERA in 131 appearances (47 starts) with 13 saves. In 423.2 innings, he has struck out 398 batters for an average of 8.5 strikeouts per nine innings.

With the RailRiders this season, Winans has no decisions, but he’s got a 0.00 ERA. In 9.1 innings, he has given up one unearned run on six hits and five walks with 20 strikeouts. Batters are hitting .176 against him.

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Jami Leabow
JAMI LEABOW

Jami Leabow is the managing editor of Minor League Baseball on SI. Her love for the game began when her parents bought season tickets to the then-California Angels.