Winkler takes no-no into seventh for Tulsa
In a rotation featuring three former first-round picks, Daniel Winkler could be the forgotten man. For six innings Thursday night, he was anything but.
Winkler took a no-hitter into the seventh inning, striking out three and walking a pair, but ended up suffering the hard-luck loss as Double-A Tulsa fell to Corpus Christi, 6-0.
The reigning California League Pitcher of the Year, Winkler might be overshadowed in a rotation that includes the Rockies' top two prospects, Jon Gray and Eddie Butler, as well as 2011 first-rounder Tyler Anderson. But in his second Texas League start of the season, Winkler commanded the spotlight.
"I actually didn't feel that good at the beginning," Winkler said. "I wasn't very good in the 'pen which actually probably helped me in the game. I was more focused on pitch to pitch."
Winkler issued a walk to Corpus Christi's Andrew Aplin with two outs in the bottom of the first inning and then proceeded to retire the next 16 consecutive Hooks he faced. The Tulsa right-hander struck out Nolan Fontana in the first and Jiovanni Mier leading off both the third and sixth innings.
"The wind was blowing straight in my face in the 'pen," said Winkler. "Once I got out there, it was more just sticking with my mechanics and taking it pitch by pitch and trusting my catcher [Tom Murphy]. Once I did that, instead of thinking about hitters and things like that, I started to settle down."
Winkler and Murphy are roommates and were promoted to Double-A on the same day last year. This season, Murphy is tasked with handling a talent-laden rotation that has posted a 1.78 ERA through seven games.
"I trust 'Murph,'" Winkler said. "It was basically all him today. There were a couple times I shook off, but the last two times, Murph's just in tune. He's been in tune with what I want to do. We discussed between innings what we think should've went down or what we could've done better, what we did well. Basically whatever Murph put down today, that's what I threw. He's a great game-caller. Having a catcher like that is invaluable."
Despite a rash of hits, the Drillers were unable to get their starter a lead. Brian Humphries was thrown out at the plate to end the second, the closest his team came to scoring despite a 10-6 advantage in the hit column.
Winkler faltered in the seventh. The 24-year-old issued a leadoff walk to Fontana and Andrew Aplin singled to put runners at the corners in a scoreless game and end Winkler's night. Reliever Carlos Hernandez allowed back-to-back RBI singles to Matt Duffy and Preston Tucker and surrendered four total in the seventh. Winkler was charged with two runs on one hit to close the book on his day.
Aplin and Duffy added RBIs against Tulsa's Nate Striz in the eighth to put the game out of reach.
"The takeaway is to not be selfish," Winkler said of the late downturn to his impressive night. "In the seventh inning, the leadoff batter Fontana comes up, and instead of sticking with my plan, I'm thinking about not giving up a hit. That's what frustrated me the most. Then Aplin comes up and puts a pretty good swing on a changeup down, and then my night's over. I left kind of frustrated. I forgot about the other six innings and was frustrated with myself, but it's part of the game and something that's a learning situation."
Corpus Christi starter Ross Seaton blanked Tulsa on five hits while striking out six and walking one over five innings. Hooks reliever Luis Cruz earned the win, scattering four hits over three innings.
Winkler, who tossed 5 1/3 scoreless innings last week in his season debut, will move on to his third start the same way he approached Thursday.
"Forget about it. It's over with," he said. "It's kind of like on a bad outing. The next day, it's over with. It's done with. You've got to prepare for the next start and the next start, I've got to stick with my plan all the way out. Just attack the zone and stick with my plan."
Tyler Maun is a contributor to MiLB.com. Follow him on Twitter @TylerMaun.
Orioles' Honeycutt joins The Show Before the Show
Check out the latest episodes of The Show Before the Show, MiLB.com's official podcast. A segment rundown is listed below, in case you want to skip to a particular section. Like the podcast? Subscribe, rate and review on Apple Podcasts. The podcast is also available via Spotify, Megaphone and other
Red Sox prospect rips double THROUGH Fenway-esque scoreboard
Red Sox No. 4 prospect Franklin Arias, an infielder for High-A Greenville, REALLY didn’t want to let visiting Asheville score any runs in the top of the eighth inning on Friday night. With runners on first and second base in the bottom of the fourth, Arias showed he apparently held
April's hottest hitting prospects -- one for each organization
The Minor League season is a month old and several of the game's best hitting prospects are off to fast starts. Red Sox outfielder Roman Anthony is tearing up Triple-A (just like he did at the end of last year), Padres shortstop Leo De Vries is leading the High-A Midwest
Check out the best -- and wackiest -- Minor League promos happening in May
Benjamin Hill travels the nation collecting stories about what makes Minor League Baseball unique. This excerpt from the Baseball Traveler newsletter, presented by Circle K, is a mere taste of the smorgasbord of delights he offers every week. Read the full newsletter here, and subscribe to his newsletter here.
MiLB podcast coming LIVE to a Somerset this June
Check out the latest episodes of The Show Before the Show, MiLB.com's official podcast. A segment rundown is listed below, in case you want to skip to a particular section. Like the podcast? Subscribe, rate and review on Apple Podcasts. The podcast is also available via Spotify, Megaphone and other
New ballparks highlight 2025 MiLB road trip stops
Benjamin Hill travels the nation collecting stories about what makes Minor League Baseball unique. This excerpt from the Baseball Traveler newsletter, presented by Circle K, is a mere taste of the smorgasbord of delights he offers every week. Read the full newsletter here, and subscribe to his newsletter here.
Minor League Baseball partners with TruGreen
FRANKLIN, Tenn. -- TruGreen, the nation's leading lawn care treatment provider, is proud to announce a groundbreaking partnership with Minor League Baseball that includes activations across all 120 clubs, a makeover of the home dugout in each market, sponsorship of select MiLB team grounds crews, and a new initiative called
Podcast explains why the Syracuse Mets are looking for Jim Morrison
Check out the latest episodes of The Show Before the Show, MiLB.com's official podcast. A segment rundown is listed below, in case you want to skip to a particular section. Like the podcast? Subscribe, rate and review on Apple Podcasts. The podcast is also available via Spotify, Megaphone and other
Dash im-prom-tu promo and Mets' Suero joins the podcast
Check out the latest episodes of The Show Before the Show, MiLB.com's official podcast. A segment rundown is listed below, in case you want to skip to a particular section. Like the podcast? Subscribe, rate and review on Apple Podcasts. The podcast is also available via Spotify, Megaphone and other
Minor League Baseball partners with Circle K
Minor League Baseball announced a new national partnership with Circle K, which will see the convenience store giant become the “Official Convenience Store of Minor League Baseball.” During the 2025 season, the Circle K brand will be integrated into the MiLB in-stadium experience through in-game video board assets at most
These 15 moments led to season No. 15 of Minor League road trips
Benjamin Hill travels the nation collecting stories about what makes Minor League Baseball unique. This excerpt from his newsletter is a mere taste of the smorgasbord of delights he offers every week. Read the full newsletter here, and subscribe to his newsletter here.
MiLB podcast crew makes Opening Day predictions
Check out the latest episodes of The Show Before the Show, MiLB.com's official podcast. A segment rundown is listed below, in case you want to skip to a particular section. Like the podcast? Subscribe, rate and review on Apple Podcasts. The podcast is also available via Spotify, Megaphone and other
Everything you need to know for Triple-A Opening Day
First, there was big league Opening Day. Now it's Triple-A's turn to take the spotlight. The Minor League season opens Friday when the Triple-A International League and Pacific Coast League seasons get underway for the first of MiLB’s two Opening Days. And right out of the gates, several of baseball's
Top prospects to watch at Triple-A -- one for each organization
It’s Triple-A’s turn up to bat on Friday. The regular season begins for the Minor Leagues’ highest level one day after the action starts on the Major League side. Fun fact: it’ll be the earliest start to a Minor League season since 1951 (March 27). Double-A, High-A and Single-A will
Here's where every Top 100 prospect is expected to start the season
The 2025 Opening Day prospect roster announcements began last week when the Cubs informed Matt Shaw (MLB No. 19) he was making the trip overseas to compete in the Tokyo Series. Roki Sasaki (No. 1) also received the good news, but his assignment was much less of a surprise. Now
Nationals prospect King joins MiLB podcast
Check out the latest episodes of The Show Before the Show, MiLB.com's official podcast. A segment rundown is listed below, in case you want to skip to a particular section. Like the podcast? Subscribe, rate and review on Apple Podcasts. The podcast is also available via Spotify, Megaphone and other
Here are the 2025 All-Spring Breakout Teams
Fifteen games, several jersey swaps and countless highlights later, the second edition of Spring Breakout has officially concluded – and it lived up to its billing. Of the 16 contests sprinkled across four days, only one game (Dodgers vs. Cubs) was rained out. Coincidentally, the Cubs were one of two
Rox young sluggers aim to bring pop back to Coors Field
SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. -- Coors Field may provide the best run-scoring environment in Major League Baseball, but the Rockies haven’t taken advantage of it in recent years. Even without adjusting for Coors, they have fielded offenses worse than the league average the past three seasons, and they scored the fewest runs
Astros brass sees potential in consistently 'underranked' farm system
WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. -- The last time the Astros landed in the top 10 of MLB Pipeline’s farm system rankings was before the 2019 season. Since those rankings expanded to all 30 teams ahead of the 2020 season -- 11 lists in total -- they’ve never ranked higher than
Complete results and highlights from Spring Breakout
The second edition of MLB Spring Breakout is complete, and there was no shortage of highlights from the future stars of Major League Baseball over the four-day showcase. Here's a complete breakdown of the 16-game exhibition:
Southpaw Spring Breakout: White Sox future on display with Schultz, Smith
GLENDALE, Ariz. -- If all goes as planned for the White Sox, left-handers Hagen Smith and Noah Schultz won’t spend much time following each other to the mound in a single game. Schultz, the No. 1 White Sox prospect and No. 16 overall, per MLB Pipeline, and Smith, who is
In first pro game, Rainer offers pop, promise to Tigers fans
NORTH PORT, Fla. -- Bryce Rainer’s pro career consisted of workouts and batting practice until Sunday.
'Me and Brady on the dirt again': House, King reunite at Spring Breakout
WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. -- The 2025 Spring Breakout was a flashback for Brady House and Seaver King. Over 10 years ago, the infielders were travel ball teammates in Georgia who shared the dream of making it to the Major Leagues. Now, they are top prospects in the same organization,
Lambert -- 'an adrenaline guy' -- hoping to be next Mets bullpen gem
WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. -- Ryan Lambert loves throwing hard. He relishes the idea of getting to two strikes and blowing hitters away. “Get me in a game,” Lambert said, “cool things will happen.”
Stewart embraces Spring Breakout: 'What's not to love?'
PHOENIX -- Sal Stewart was one fired-up Reds prospect. On Sunday in the first inning during the organization's 9-7 Spring Breakout win over Brewers prospects, Stewart lifted a 2-2 pitch that sailed over the center fielder's head to the wall. Already not known as a speedster, he stumbled running between