‘Unforgettable’

SAN FRANCISCO, Cali. — Days before the San Francisco Giants made their trip to St. Louis for a three-game series at Busch Stadium, 2016 Pekin graduate Keaton Winn was getting prepared for his next start for AAA Sacramento. By the time Winn stepped on the mound, the former Panther standout would instead be wearing a major league uniform.

Winn’s everyday schedule took quite the turn on June 12, when he was officially called up to pitch in the big leagues.

  Buy Photo

“I got called into my manger’s office, where he kind of pulled a prank on me and told me that I was being moved to the bullpen for the AAA series,” said Winn. “But at the end of the conversation, he said, ‘Oh wait. The big league team said they needed you, so you’re actually going to St. Louis.’”

Winn repeated the prank when he told his family, who days later would be in St. Louis watching him on a big league mound.

Winn, who spent his college years at Iowa Western Community College in Council Bluffs, was drafted twice by the Giants, once in 2017 and again in 2018. He had his share of setbacks, having to take time off for Tommy John surgery and during the COVID-19 pandemic.

“I had forgotten what adrenaline felt like,” said Winn. “Getting used to having that big boost of energy and playing in a stadium in front of people took me a while to get used to again.”

But despite the setbacks, the now 25-year-old continued to shoot through the Giants’ minor league system once he got back to the game in 2022. He returned to baseball to pitch for the Single-A San Jose Giants, the High-A Eugene Emeralds and the Double-A Richmond Flying Squirrels.

Winn started the season in AAA, pitching for the River Cats. Winn sported a 4.35 ERA, and had a high strikeout rate at 11.1 strikeouts per 9 innings.

Winn arrived in St. Louis for the beginning of a three-game series, which began on Monday, June 12. His visit to Busch Stadium was the first time he had ever been in a major league park.

“The experience of my first major league game was unforgettable,” Winn said. “The noise and size of the crowd was something that I had never experienced.”

And it didn’t take long for Winn to find himself on the mound. With the Giants holding a 9-2 lead in the sixth inning, Winn got the call to throw on a major league mound for the first time in his life.

“My nerves were all over the place,” said Winn, the son of Chris and Lynn Winn. “I just had to remind myself that this was the same game I’d been playing my whole life.”

Winn pitched through the nerves and held the Cardinals to just one run in four innings of work. He gave up just one hit, walked three and struck out two in a relief appearance that ended with him earning a save in an 11-3 victory. He also made team history, becoming the first Giant to record a save in his Major League debut since the stat became official in 1969.

Winn was recalled to AAA Sacramento shortly after his appearance, but that didn’t last long. After an injury to Alex Cobb, who had started the game for the Giants before Winn’s first appearance, the Giants called Winn back up to the bigs.

Winn rejoined a red-hot Giants team just ahead of a seven-game home stand. San Francisco took a seven-game winning streak into its first game in a four-game series against the San Diego Padres on Monday night. As of press time, that game has not finished.

Winn’s next appearance on the mound could very well be his first home action for the Giants, who follow up the Padres series with three games against the Arizona Diamondbacks.

And despite all the success, the former Panther hasn’t forgotten his roots.

“There is nothing sweeter than accomplishing something that you have worked your entire life for,” Winn said. “So a big thank you to everyone back home that has prayed, supported and rooted for me for the past few years. I wouldn’t be where I am today without any of you.”

Winn says his word of advice to the parents back in Southeast Iowa is to let your children follow their dreams.

“If your child comes to you and says, ‘I have a dream,’ encourage them to stay committed to that dream,” Winn said. “I know that without my parents, there is no way any of this would have been possible.”