Giants Hire Randy Winn As VP Of Player Development
The Giants announced on Thursday that they’ve hired Randy Winn as their vice president of player development. The longtime outfielder played for the Giants between 2005-09 and has been involved with the organization in a few different roles since retiring. Farm director Kyle Haines will remain in his current position, according to Andrew Baggarly of the Athletic.
Winn had a lengthy and successful run as a player. He appeared in 13 seasons between 1998-2010 and suited up for five teams. He made an All-Star team as a member of the Devil Rays in 2002 and spent a few years with the Mariners before landing in San Francisco. A switch-hitting outfielder, he finished his playing days with a .284 average and 110 home runs.
Since retiring, Winn has worked as an analyst with NBC Sports Bay Area. He spent a few seasons coaching outfielders throughout the Giants organization and spent a year in the pro scouting department. He was briefly teammates with president of baseball operations Buster Posey in ’09 and has surely maintained a relationship with the franchise icon over the past decade.
Alex Pavlovic of NBC Sports Bay Area reports that Posey initially suggested that Winn interview for the general manager position that represented the #2 role in the front office. It’s unclear if that wound up happening before the Giants tabbed Zack Minasian, himself a mainstay in San Francisco’s scouting ranks. Conversations were productive enough that Winn comes on board in a fairly significant role. Giants fans will want to check out Pavlovic’s piece, as he speaks with Winn about the job and his vision for player development more broadly.
Randy Winn Retires
Randy Winn has retired after 13 season in the big leagues, according to Janie McCauley of the Associated Press (on Twitter). The Orioles signed Winn to a minor league this past offseason then released the 36-year-old this week.
Postseason baseball eluded Winn throughout his career and last year was no exception. The Yankees, who made it to the ALCS in 2010, signed him before the season, but designated him for assignment after he struggled. The Cardinals picked him up last summer, only to miss the postseason. Winn also played for the Giants (between their recent trips to the World Series), the Mariners (after their most recent playoff appearance) and the Rays (before they sniffed the playoffs).
Winn retires with a .284/.343/.416 line, 1759 hits, 110 homers and 215 stolen bases. He earned over $42MM in his career, according to Baseball-Reference.
Orioles Release Randy Winn
Outfielder Randy Winn asked for and was granted his unconditional release, according to an Orioles press release. Winn was one of eight cuts made today, as Nolan Reimold was optioned to Triple-A while Clay Rapada, Mark Hendrickson, David Riske, Ryan Drese, Pat Egan, and Nick Green were assigned to minor league camp. As previously noted, Hendrickson and Riske can opt out. The Orioles currently have 39 players on their 40-man roster and 28 in camp.
Winn, 36, hit .239/.307/.356 in 233 plate appearances for the Yankees and Cardinals last year, tallying 401 outfield innings. He signed a minor league deal with the Orioles in early February.
Orioles Moves: Hendrickson, Riske, VandenHurk
The Orioles are paring down their roster today; here's the latest:
- Lefty Mark Hendrickson is among the team's cuts, tweets MLB.com's Brittany Ghiroli. Hendrickson can opt out rather than report to the minors. Given his success against lefties, he should be able to find work in the big leagues.
- Reliever David Riske is also one of today's cuts, reports Ghiroli. She says Riske left camp for personal reasons, and the team isn't sure whether he'll join them in Triple-A. He too has the ability to opt out.
- Righty Rick VandenHurk has been cut, reports Ghiroli. Since the Dutchman is out of options, he'll have to clear waivers to remain with the organization. The O's snagged VandenHurk at last year's trade deadline in the Will Ohman deal.
Orioles Sign Randy Winn
The Orioles announced that they have signed Randy Winn to a minor league deal and invited him to Spring Training. The 36-year-old will provide depth behind outfielders Nick Markakis, Adam Jones, Felix Pie and Nolan Reimold.
Winn has not made the playoffs in 13 years at the Major League level, though he came close last year. The Yankees, who made it to the ALCS in 2010, signed him, but designated him for assignment after he struggled. The Cardinals picked him up, only to struggle down the stretch themselves.
In 233 plate appearances for the Yankees and Cardinals last year, Winn batted .239/.307/.356 and played all three outfield positions. He was an everyday player as recently as 2009, but at this point in his career, the switch-hitter is likely a bench player.
Nationals Notes: Winn, Webb, Wang, LaRoche
Washington may or may not be in on Cliff Lee. Here's what we do know about the Nationals:
- The Nationals may show interest in Randy Winn, a source told MLB.com's Bill Ladson.
- GM Mike Rizzo told Adam Kilgore of the Washington Post that he met with Brandon Webb's agent this week (Twitter link). The Nationals believe the right-hander is healthy. The Cubs and Rangers have interest in Webb, but the Brewers aren't currently interested.
- Washington also likes Chien-Ming Wang, another pitcher coming back from injury, according to Ben Goessling of MASNSports.com (Twitter link). Rizzo told Goessling that he's hopeful of signing Wang, who could re-join the Nats even if they sign Webb.
- As the Nats' official Twitter feed reminds us, Rizzo still intends to add a first baseman who isn't currently in the organization. No deal with Adam LaRoche is imminent, but the Nationals are interested, at the very least. The Nationals had interest in Carlos Pena before he signed with the Cubs.
Randy Winn Wants To Play In 2011
After 13 years and 1,717 regular season games, Randy Winn still hasn’t appeared in the playoffs, but the outfielder tells B.J. Rains of FOXSportsMidwest.com that he’s not worried about signing with a contender this offseason. At this stage in his career, the 36-year-old is simply looking for a job.
“I would like to find a team that would like me to play for them, that’s going to be my first thing,” Winn said. “I don’t know what my options are going to be. I hope some organization thinks I can come in and help. That’s what I’m hoping for.”
The Yankees were hoping Winn could be a useful fourth outfielder when they signed him last winter, but he struggled and they designated him for assignment. The Cardinals picked him up, but the team struggled down the stretch so Winn missed the playoffs yet again.
Winn batted .239/.307/.356 in 233 plate appearances between the Yankees and Cardinals and played all three outfield positions. He signed for $1.1MM last winter, but he’s likely looking at a minor league deal this time. Winn doesn’t expect to sign soon, but he says he’s happy to wait for offers and play with his kids.
Odds & Ends: Fielder, Lincoln, Gorzelanny, Lee, Haren
Links for Sunday..
- The Phillies demoted Phillippe Aumont from Double-A back to High-A after a disastrous start to the season, tweets Dave Cameron of U.S.S. Mariner. Aumont was part of the Roy Halladay–Cliff Lee blockbuster.
- Peter Barzilai of USA Today explains why the Brewers should hold on to Prince Fielder.
- This week's Pirates/Nationals matchup may end up being the most interesting series between sub-.500 teams this season. Not only will Stephen Strasburg make his major league debut on Tuesday, but Pirates GM Neal Huntington says former first-round pick Brad Lincoln could make his first big league start on Wednesday, tweets Dejan Kovacevic of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.
- Gordon Wittenmyer of the Chicago Sun-Times says the Cubs received some calls about Tom Gorzelanny's availability a few weeks ago, but that they have no immediate plans to move him.
- The newest Cardinal, Randy Winn, was a player Tony La Russa wanted the team to pursue this past winter, according to Joe Strauss of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch.
- Larry Brooks of the New York Post would like to see the Mets aggressively attempt to trade for Cliff Lee.
- The Denver Post's Troy Renck hopes the Rockies will inquire on Lee, as well as Dan Haren, if only to see what would it cost to acquire another ace.
- If you play fantasy baseball, be sure to stay on top of the saves category by following our @closernews account on Twitter and tracking the latest news on late-inning relievers around the league.
Cardinals Sign Randy Winn
11:56am: John Shea of The San Francisco Chronicle tweets that the deal is official, and Winn will be available for today's game.
10:19am: The Cardinals are close to signing outfielder Randy Winn, according to the team's official Twitter feed. He was designated for assignment by the Yankees about a week ago.
Winn, 36 next week, hit just .213/.300/.295 in 71 plate appearances for the Yanks, and his merely average defensive performance wasn't even getting him playing time as a late-inning defense replacement by the end of his tenure. The Yanks are still on the hook for his $1.1MM salary, less the pro-rated portion of the league minimum that St. Louis will pay him.
Yankees Designate Randy Winn For Assignment
The Yankees designated Randy Winn for assignment to make room for Curtis Granderson, according to Ben Shpigel of the New York Times (via Twitter). Manager Joe Girardi told Mark Feinsand of the New York Daily News that the Yankees went with versatility and kept Kevin Russo and Ramiro Pena on the roster instead (Twitter link).
As Ben Kabak of River Ave. Blues explained today, Russo has turned himself into a household name and the Yankees like that Pena can back up at short. That means Winn is available to the 29 other teams (along with his .213/.300/.295 line). The Yankees expected Winn to be a strong defensive presence when they signed him last winter, but he has been average, according to UZR. Winn, who turns 36 next month, makes $1.1MM this year.