Black MiLB Players #6: SS Masyn Winn, St. Louis Cardinals
One of baseball's premier shortstop prospects, Masyn Winn possesses a crowded toolbox that allows him to excel at all facets of the game.
Background + Path to Professional Baseball
Masyn Winn is a 20-year-old shortstop in the St. Louis Cardinals farm system from the Greater Houston, Texas area. He was drafted in the second round of the 2020 MLB Draft by the Cardinals out of high school with the 54th overall pick, foregoing a commitment to Arkansas’ Division I baseball program.
He was a legitimate two-way prospect as an amateur, excelling as a starting pitcher and shortstop. In an interview with FanGraphs’ David Laurila, Winn elaborated on the interest teams had in his talents before the 2020 MLB Draft.
Winn’s MiLB career started during the 2021 season, playing 61 games with St. Louis’s Low-A affiliate before being promoted to High-A Peoria for 37 games. He posted a 112 wRC+ in his 61 games in Low-A, going .262/.370/.388 with a 21% strikeout rate and a 12% walk rate. He struggled during his late-season promotion to High-A, posting a 48 wRC+ and hitting .209/.240/.304.
For the entire 2021 season, the former two-way player went .242/.324/.356 in 438 plate appearances with 19 doubles, five triples, and five home runs. He stole 32 bases while only being caught five times.
Winn began the 2022 MiLB season with 33 games in High-A, going .349/.404/.566 with a 19% strikeout rate and 8% walk rate. He hit seven triples and 11 doubles, posting a 163 wRC+ before a promotion to Double-A for the rest of the 2022 season. In 403 plate appearances with the Cardinals Double-A affiliate during his age 20 season, the shortstop went .258/.349/.432 with 25 doubles, 11 home runs, and 28 stolen bases.
His totals across the entire 2022 season: .283/.364/.468, 36 doubles, 8 triples, 12 home runs, 43 stolen bases, caught stealing 5 times, 63 walks, 115 strikeouts
Player Profile
Masyn Winn is a shortstop that stands 5’11’’, and weighs around 180 pounds. He has the prototypical build of a major-league shortstop and is one of the best pure athletes in all of Minor League Baseball. He bats and throws right-handed.
Hitting
Winn stands in the box with a slightly open setup and still hands with the bat resting on his shoulder. He uses a leg kick to begin his swing before rotating his midsection and quietly bringing his hands through the zone. He has above-average bat speed due to his core and lower body strength and ability to rotate.
His ability to make contact is average to slightly above average based on his K % which has hovered in the very low 20s for his professional career so far. Winn has displayed a sound plate approach throughout his time in the minors. The 12.3% walk rate and .351 wOBA he posed in 403 Double-A plate appearances at age 20 is nothing to gloss over.
Winn’s approach is centered around pulling the ball for extra-base hits and hitting singles to the opposite field. He frequently puts flyballs in play to his pull side, showing an ability to accrue doubles and home runs consistently on pitches where he can get to the outside of the ball.
Defense
Winn has played shortstop for his entire professional career, and will most likely log the majority of his defensive appearances at the position. He has the requisite hands, range, and internal clock to play the position at a high level to go with the best throwing arm of any shortstop in the minors or the majors.
Baserunning
Winn is one of the best baserunners in MiLB, stealing 75 bases so far in his two-year career while only being caught 10 times. One of the best individual athletes in all of professional baseball, the shortstop uses his speed on the basepaths in an extremely effective manner.
Conclusion
Masyn Winn is one of baseball’s most interesting top prospects, combining loud tools with positional value and underlying skills in a package that does not come around often. While the potential ceiling is immense, the floor that this shortstop has is very high.