Robert Austin Wynns, nicknamed Winnie (born December 10, 1990) is an American

professional baseball Professional baseball is organized baseball in which players are selected for their talents and are paid to play for a specific team or club system. It is played in leagues and associated farm teams throughout the world. Modern professional ...

catcher Catcher is a position in baseball and softball. When a batter takes their turn to hit, the catcher crouches behind home plate, in front of the ( home) umpire, and receives the ball from the pitcher. In addition to this primary duty, the ca ...

in the

San Francisco Giants The San Francisco Giants are an American professional baseball team based in San Francisco, California. The Giants compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) West division. Founded in 1883 as the New Y ...

organization. He played

college baseball College baseball is baseball that is played on the intercollegiate level at institutions of higher education. In comparison to football and basketball, college competition in the United States plays a smaller role in developing professional p ...

Fresno State University California State University, Fresno (Fresno State) is a public university in Fresno, California. It is one of 23 campuses in the California State University system. The university had a fall 2020 enrollment of 25,341 students. It offers bache ...

. He was drafted by the

Baltimore Orioles The Baltimore Orioles are an American professional baseball team based in Baltimore. The Orioles compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East division. As one of the American League's eight charter ...

in the tenth round of the

2013 Major League Baseball draft The 2013 Major League Baseball First-Year Player Draft was held from June 6 through June 8, 2013. The first two rounds were broadcast from Studio 42 of the MLB Network in Secaucus, New Jersey. Each team received one selection per round, going in ...

, and made his MLB debut with them in 2018.

Amateur career

Wynns attended Poway High School in Poway, California. In 2009, as a senior, he hit .390 with five home runs and 37 RBIs. That season he was named first team All-

California Interscholastic Federation The California Interscholastic Federation (CIF) is the governing body for high school sports in the U.S. state of California. CIF membership includes both public and private high schools. Unlike most other state organizations, it does not have a ...

, and Player of the Year in the Palomar League. After graduating and going undrafted in the 2009 MLB draft, Wynns enrolled and played

. In 2012, he played collegiate summer baseball with the

Bourne Braves The Bourne Braves are a collegiate summer baseball team based in Bourne, Massachusetts. The team is a member of the Cape Cod Baseball League (CCBL) and plays in the league's West Division. The Braves play their home games at Doran Park on the ca ...

of the Cape Cod Baseball League. As a senior in 2013, he batted .279/.362/.413 with three home runs and 24 RBIs in 53 games. He was drafted by the

in the tenth round of the

Professional career

Baltimore Orioles

Wynns signed for $10,000, and spent 2013 with the Class A-

Aberdeen IronBirds The Aberdeen IronBirds are a Minor League Baseball team based in the city of Aberdeen in Harford County, Maryland. They are the High-A affiliate of the Baltimore Orioles and compete in the South Atlantic League. They were previously members of the ...

, posting a .235 batting average with 21 RBIs in 54 games. On defense, he caught 37% of attempted base stealers. He was a 2013 NYP Mid-Season All-Star. In 2014, he played for both the Class A

Delmarva Shorebirds The Delmarva Shorebirds are a Minor League Baseball team based in Salisbury, Maryland. They are members of the Carolina League and the Single-A affiliate of the Baltimore Orioles. Their home games are played at Arthur W. Perdue Stadium. The Shor ...

and the Class A+

Frederick Keys The Frederick Keys are a collegiate summer baseball team of the MLB Draft League. The Keys are based in Frederick, Maryland. The franchise is named for "Star-Spangled Banner" writer Francis Scott Key, a native of Frederick County. A new team masc ...

, batting a combined .251 with one home run and 37 RBIs in 90 total games between the two teams. In 2015, Wynns played for Frederick and the Class AA Bowie Baysox, batting .281/.349/.390 with three home runs and 31 RBIs in 78 games. Wynns spent 2016 with Bowie, Frederick, and the Class AAA

Norfolk Tides The Norfolk Tides are a Minor League Baseball team of the International League and the Triple-A affiliate of the Baltimore Orioles. They are located in Norfolk, Virginia, and are named in nautical reference to the city's location on the Chesapea ...

, hitting .287/.336/.416 with six home runs and 34 RBIs in 80 games between the three clubs. On defense, he caught 45.3% of attempted base stealers. After the 2016 season, Wynns played in the

Arizona Fall League The Arizona Fall League (AFL) is an off-season sports league owned and operated by Major League Baseball (MLB) which operates during the autumn in Arizona, United States, at six different baseball complexes. Arizona Fall League rosters are fille ...

for the

Peoria Javelinas The Peoria Javelinas are a baseball team that plays in the West Division of the Arizona Fall League. The Javelinas play their home games in the Peoria Sports Complex in Peoria, Arizona. The ballpark is also the spring training facility for the S ...

. He played the 2017 season with Bowie, batting .281/.377/.419 with 10 home runs and 46 RBIs in 105 games. On defense, he caught 38% of attempted base stealers. The Orioles added him to their

40-man roster A Major League Baseball roster is a list of players who are allowed, by league agreement, to play for a Major League Baseball (MLB) team. Each MLB team maintains two rosters: an active roster of players eligible to participate in an MLB game, an ...

after the 2017 season. Wynns made his MLB debut on June 5, 2018. In 2018 with Baltimore he batted .255/.287/.382 in 118 plate appearances, while with Norfolk he batted .230/.288/.345 in 163 plate appearances. He spent the majority of the 2019 season at Norfolk and Bowie, where he batted .266/.355/.342 with three home runs and 29 RBIs in 250 plate appearances, appearing in only 28 games with 74 plate appearances for the Orioles. Wynns did not appear in any games for the Orioles during the 2020 season, spending the entirety at the Orioles’ alternate training site. On December 7, 2020, Wynns was outrighted off of the 40-man roster. On May 31, 2021, Wynns was selected to Baltimore's active roster. On June 12, Wynns hit his first career

grand slam Grand Slam most often refers to: * Grand Slam (tennis), one player or pair winning all four major annual tournaments, or the tournaments themselves Grand Slam or Grand slam may also refer to: Games and sports * Grand slam, winning category te ...

, off of Rich Hill of the

Tampa Bay Rays The Tampa Bay Rays are an American professional baseball team based in St. Petersburg, Florida. The Rays compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East division. Since its inception, the team's home v ...

. In 45 games and 139 plate appearances with Baltimore in 2021, Wynns batted .185/.232/.308 with four home runs and 14 RBIs. In 59 plate appearances with the AAA Norfolk Tides, he hit .333/.448/.563 with three home runs and 9 RBIs. Following the season, he elected free agency on October 25, 2021.

Philadelphia Phillies

On October 26, 2021, Wynns signed with the

Toros de Tijuana The Toros de Tijuana (or Tijuana Bulls) are a Mexican Baseball team based in Tijuana, Baja California, Mexico. They are members of the Mexican Baseball League and play their home games at Estadio Chevron. Team history Original Attempt The fran ...

of the

Mexican League The Mexican League (, ) is a professional baseball league based in Mexico and the oldest running professional league in the country. The league has 18 teams organized in two divisions, North and South. Teams play 114 games each season. Five te ...

. However, on March 19, 2022, he signed a minor league contract with the Philadelphia Phillies. In 2022 with the AAA

Lehigh Valley IronPigs The Lehigh Valley IronPigs are a Minor League Baseball team of the International League (IL) and the Triple-A affiliate of the Philadelphia Phillies. They are located in Allentown, Pennsylvania, and are named in reference to pig iron, used in the ...

he batted .365/.504/.500 with 3 home runs and 20 RBIs in 134 plate appearances.

San Francisco Giants

The Phillies traded Wynns to the

for Michael Plassmeyer on June 8, 2022. Wynns replaced rookie catcher

Joey Bart Joseph Andrew Bart (born December 15, 1996) is an American professional baseball catcher for the San Francisco Giants of Major League Baseball (MLB). Bart played college baseball for the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets. The Giants chose him with the ...

, who was sent down to the Giants' Triple-A club. In 2022 with the Giants he batted .259/.313/.358 in 162 at bats, with three home runs and 21 RBIs while appearing in a career-high 65 games. He played 57 games at catcher, five at DH, and two as a relief pitcher. On January 6, 2023, Wynns was designated for assignment by San Francisco after the signing of

Michael Conforto Michael Thomas Conforto (born March 1, 1993), nicknamed "Scooter", is an American professional baseball outfielder who is a free agent. He has played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the New York Mets. After he played college baseball for the ...

was made official. On January 12, Wynns was sent outright to the Triple-A

Sacramento River Cats The Sacramento River Cats are a Minor League Baseball team of the Pacific Coast League (PCL) and are the Triple-A affiliate of the San Francisco Giants. Prior to 2015, the River Cats were the Triple-A affiliate of the Oakland Athletics for 15 ...

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Wynns, Austin 1990 births Living people Baseball players from San Diego Major League Baseball catchers Baltimore Orioles players San Francisco Giants players Fresno State Bulldogs baseball players Bourne Braves players Aberdeen IronBirds players Delmarva Shorebirds players Frederick Keys players Bowie Baysox players Norfolk Tides players Peoria Javelinas players Toros del Este players Leones del Escogido players American expatriate baseball players in the Dominican Republic