Joshua Winckowski (born June 28, 1998) is an American professional

baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball games, bat-and-ball sport played between two team sport, teams of nine players each, taking turns batting (baseball), batting and Fielding (baseball), fielding. The game occurs over the course of several Pitch ...

pitcher In baseball, the pitcher is the player who throws ("Pitch (baseball), pitches") the Baseball (ball), baseball from the pitcher's mound toward the catcher to begin each play, with the goal of out (baseball), retiring a batter (baseball), batter, ...

for the

Boston Red Sox The Boston Red Sox are an American professional baseball team based in Boston. The Red Sox compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League East, East Division. Founded in as one of the Ameri ...

Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball league composed of 30 teams, divided equally between the National League (baseball), National League (NL) and the American League (AL), with 29 in the United States and 1 in Canada. MLB i ...

(MLB). Listed at and , he throws and bats right-handed.

Career

Toronto Blue Jays

Winckowski is from

Toledo, Ohio Toledo ( ) is a city in Lucas County, Ohio, United States, and its county seat. It is located at the western end of Lake Erie along the Maumee River. Toledo is the List of cities in Ohio, fourth-most populous city in Ohio and List of United Sta ...

. He attended

Toledo Mud Hens The Toledo Mud Hens are a Minor League Baseball team of the International League and the Triple-A affiliate of the Detroit Tigers. They are located in Toledo, Ohio, and play their home games at Fifth Third Field. A baseball team nicknamed the ...

games at Fifth Third Field as a child, but moved to Florida for high school. Winckowski attended

Estero High School Estero High School is a public high school located in Estero, Florida, United States. It is part of the Lee County School District and opened in 1987. The total enrollment is about 1,667 students. Its mascot is the Wildcat. Estero High School ...

Estero, Florida Estero (Spanish for "estuary") is an incorporated village in Lee County, Florida, United States, located directly beside the first aquatic nature preserve established in Florida: The Estero Bay Aquatic Preserve, otherwise referred to as Estero B ...

. The

Toronto Blue Jays The Toronto Blue Jays are a Canadian professional baseball team based in Toronto. The Blue Jays compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League East, East Division. Since 1989, the team has p ...

selected him in the 15th round of the

2016 MLB draft The 2016 Major League Baseball draft began on June 9, 2016, to assign amateur baseball players to MLB teams. The draft order is the reverse order of the 2015 MLB season standings. In addition, compensation picks were distributed for players who ...

. Winckowski played in the Blue Jays'

farm system In sports, a farm team (also referred to as farm system, developmental system, feeder team, or nursery club) is generally a team or club whose role is to provide experience and training for young players, with an agreement that any successful pl ...

from 2016 through 2019, reaching the

High-A High-A, officially Class High-A, formerly known as Class A-Advanced, and sometimes abbreviated "A+" in writing, is the third-highest level of play in Minor League Baseball in the United States and Canada, below Triple-A (baseball), Triple-A and D ...

level with the

Dunedin Blue Jays The Dunedin Blue Jays are a Minor League Baseball team of the Florida State League and are the Single-A affiliate of the Toronto Blue Jays Major League Baseball club. They are located in Dunedin, Florida, and play their home games at TD Ballpark, ...

. In four seasons with the Toronto organization, Winckowski made 54 appearances (50 starts), compiling an 18–17

win–loss record Win–loss may refer to: * Win–loss analytics, analysis of the reasons why a visitor to a website was or wasn't persuaded to engage in a desired action * Win–loss record, also winning percentage * Win–loss record (pitching), the number of ...

with a 3.35

earned run average In baseball statistics, earned run average (ERA) is the average of earned runs allowed by a pitcher per nine innings pitched (i.e. the traditional length of a game). It is determined by dividing the number of earned runs allowed by the number ...

(ERA).

Boston Red Sox

On January 27, 2021, Winckowski was traded to the

New York Mets The New York Mets are an American professional baseball team based in the Boroughs of New York City, New York City borough of Queens. The Mets compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National ...

alongside Yennsy Díaz and Sean Reid-Foley in exchange for

Steven Matz Steven Jakob Matz (born May 29, 1991) is an American professional baseball pitcher for the St. Louis Cardinals of Major League Baseball (MLB). He has previously played in MLB for the New York Mets and Toronto Blue Jays. Matz was born and raised ...

. On February 10, Winckowski was traded to the

with Franchy Cordero and three players to be named later in a three-team trade, where the

Kansas City Royals The Kansas City Royals are an American professional baseball team based in Kansas City, Missouri. The Royals compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League Central, Central Division. The team ...

acquired Andrew Benintendi and the Mets received Khalil Lee. Winckowski began the year in Double-A with the

Portland Sea Dogs The Portland Sea Dogs are a Minor League Baseball team based in Portland, Maine, playing in the Eastern League (1938–present), Eastern League. Established in 1994, the Sea Dogs are the Double-A (baseball), Double-A affiliate of the Boston Red ...

and was promoted late in the season to the Triple-A

Worcester Red Sox The Worcester Red Sox (nicknamed the WooSox) are a professional minor league baseball team based in Worcester, Massachusetts. Beginning play in 2021, the team is the Triple-A affiliate of the Boston Red Sox, succeeding the Pawtucket Red Sox. Th ...

. Overall with both teams, he appeared in 23 games (22 starts), compiling a 3.94 ERA and 9–4 record while striking out 101 batters in 112 innings. After the regular season, Winckowski was selected to play for the

Scottsdale Scorpions The Scottsdale Scorpions are a baseball team that plays in the East Division of the Arizona Fall League. They play their home games in Scottsdale, Arizona, at Scottsdale Stadium, which is also the spring training facility of the San Francisco G ...

of the

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

. On November 19, in advance of the

Rule 5 draft The Rule 5 draft is a Major League Baseball (MLB) player draft that occurs each year in December, at the annual Winter Meeting of general managers. The Rule 5 draft aims to prevent teams from stockpiling too many young players on their minor lea ...

, the Red Sox added Winckowski to their 40-man roster. Winckowski began the 2022 season with Worcester. The Red Sox activated him on May 28 to start the second game of a doubleheader against the

Baltimore Orioles The Baltimore Orioles (also known as the O's) 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 America ...

Fenway Park Fenway Park is a ballpark located in Boston, Massachusetts, less than one mile from Kenmore Square. Since 1912, it has been the home field of Major League Baseball's (MLB) Boston Red Sox. While the stadium was built in 1912, it was substantia ...

. Winckowski allowed four runs on six hits in three innings, taking the loss. He was returned to Worcester the following day. Winckowski was next recalled for a start on June 15, and registered his first MLB win after pitching five scoreless innings in a 10–1 victory over the

Oakland Athletics The Oakland Athletics (frequently referred to as the Oakland A's) were an American Major League Baseball (MLB) team based in Oakland, California from 1968 to 2024. The Athletics were a member club of the American League (AL) American League We ...

at Fenway. Winckowski remained in the starting rotation until being placed on the COVID-related list on July 14; he rejoined the team on July 26. Through the remainder of the season, he split time between Worcester and Boston. In 15 games (14 starts) with Boston, Winckowski posted a 5–7 record with 5.89 ERA while striking out 44 batters in innings. For the 2023 season, Winckowski appeared in 60 Red Sox games (one start) and posted a 4–4 record with three saves and a 2.88 ERA while striking out 82 batters in innings. Winckowski opened the 2024 season as a member of Boston's bullpen, until being optioned to Worcester on May 12; at the time, he had a 3.33 ERA in innings. Winckowski was optioned to Triple-A Worcester to begin the 2025 season. He was with Boston for nine days during April. On June 7, he was placed on the 60-day injured list with an elbow issue.

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Winckowski, Josh 1998 births Living people Baseball players from Toledo, Ohio American expatriate baseball people in Canada Major League Baseball pitchers Boston Red Sox players Gulf Coast Blue Jays players Bluefield Blue Jays players Vancouver Canadians players Lansing Lugnuts players Dunedin Blue Jays players Portland Sea Dogs players Worcester Red Sox players Scottsdale Scorpions players