SPRINGFIELD, Mo. — For Masyn Blaze Winn, Springfield Cardinals’ newest shortstop, it’s all in the name.
“I have three brothers and they all have colors as our middle names,” Winn said. “I do as well. And Blaze just happens to be red. My mom liked it. I like it and it happens to be a perfect fit for me in pro ball.”
That’s an understatement.
Masyn Winn’s star in the St. Louis organization has been blazing red hot since the Cardinals drafted him in the second round of the 2020 draft.
He’s hitting .352 this year with three homers and 20 RBI.
That’s two months of baseball at two different levels. The Cardinals promoted him from High-A Peoria to AA Springfield on May 23rd.
“It’s definitely a little different then High-A. The pitching for sure has been a little different,” Winn said. “I think I’ve made a pretty good adjustment. talking with a lot of the older guys. They’ve helped me out a lot with my swing. Fine tuning some things.”
In his second game for Springfield, Winn hit an inside the park home run at Tulsa. He followed that up with a conventional homer over the wall at Hammons Field.
It confirmed St. Louis’ belief in his blazing talent.
“Obviously I was ecstatic. I really didn’t know when I was going to get the call,” Winn said. “Just playing everyday and trying to get up here as fast as I could. They just believed I was ready now. So I’m just trying to come up here and play.”
One thing that Winn had to give up was pitching. In high school, the 20-year old was an ace hurler. But he had to make a decision when the Cardinals drafted him.
“It wasn’t too hard to give up,” Winn said. “I think the Cardinals have a plan for me at shortstop. I’m going to just try to follow that. We kind of made a mutual agreement. It’s taxing on the arm. And a lot of unneeded risk. I just wanted to pick up the bat.”
Winn and his color coded brothers grew up around Houston, Texas, big Astro fans. So getting drafted by the St. Louis Cardinals took a little getting used to.
“Rivals for a long time for sure. It was a weird switch over coming here,” Winn said. “I love repping the birds on the bat. And I love wearing the red. It’s a nice look for sure. It’s always back and forth in the house now. My mom still loves the Astros. I’m Cardinals all the way.”
Cardinal fans are happy that he’s wearing blaze red.
And we didn’t even talk about his last name being Winn, perfect for a professional athlete.
