Winckowski allowed an unearned run on three hits and struck out two without walking a batter to earn the save in Wednesday's 7-5 extra-inning win over the Astros.
Winckowski struggled a bit in the 10th inning, but he ultimately limited the damage to a Yainer Diaz RBI single. Kenley Jansen (hamstring) exited the game in the ninth inning after retiring one batter, while top setup men Chris Martin and Garrett Whitlock had pitched earlier in the contest. Winckowski has filled a versatile relief role this year, tallying three saves, 15 holds and four blown saves while posting a 3.06 ERA, 1.43 WHIP and 63:20 K:BB over 67.2 innings. The right-hander could see more high-leverage opportunities if Jansen is out for any extended length of time.
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Red Sox's Josh Winckowski: Serving as opener Sunday
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Winckowski will serve as the Red Sox's opening pitcher for Sunday's game against the Yankees, Jen McCaffrey of The Athletic reports.
After making 14 starts for Boston as a rookie in 2022, Winckowski has worked exclusively as a reliever for the Red Sox thus far in his second season in the majors. Though he'll be serving as a starter for the first time in 45 appearances, Winckowski is unlikely to cover more than 1-to-3 innings before turning the game over to Nick Pivetta, whom manager Alex Cora said will work the bulk of the innings in relief. Winckowski enters Sunday's contest with a 3.20 ERA, 1.41 WHIP and 57:18 K:BB in 64.2 innings to go with three wins, two saves and 15 holds.
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Red Sox's Josh Winckowski: Gets important outs
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Winckowski struck out two over a scoreless two-thirds of an inning and earned a hold in Sunday's 6-1 win over the Mets.
Winckowski was summoned with one out in the sixth inning at a high-leverage moment. The Mets had scored to make it a 5-1 ballgame and had two runners on with Pete Alonso up. The right-hander squelched the threat while showing improved velocity, which had dipped during June. Winckowski hit 97 and 98 mph and looked like the pitcher that was so vital to the Red Sox in the early months. He's tied for the league lead with 55.1 relief innings and maintains a 2.93 ERA.
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Red Sox's Josh Winckowski: Cedes three homers
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Winckowski allowed three runs on five hits and one walk over two innings in Saturday's 5-4 loss to the White Sox.
Winckowski wasn't tagged with the loss, but one can argue he was the main reason for it. He allowed three solo home runs during his time on the mound, including a pair of homers in the bottom of the sixth inning after Boston had taken a 3-2 lead in the top half of the frame. It was a shocking result for Winckowski, who has been one of Boston's most trusted bullpen arms and had given up just three home runs over 42.1 innings (0.6 HR/9) prior to Saturday.
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Red Sox's Josh Winckowski: Victimized by defense
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Winckowski (2-1) was tagged with Wednesday's loss to the Reds, allowing three unearned runs on three hits while striking out two over 1.1 innings.
Boston's shoddy infield defense reared itself once again when Rafael Devers' throwing error triggered a three-run inning for the Reds. The previous night, Enrique Hernandez committed a pair of throwing errors, one that led to a run in a 9-8 loss. "We're not a good defensive team," manager Alex Cora bluntly told Chad Jennings of The Athletic. "We have a pitching staff that doesn't have swing-and-miss stuff. When we get to two strikes and induce weak contact, we've got to make the plays. When we're really good, we're making plays. When we're not, we struggle." Winckowski, who's pitched well this season, put an end to an uprising in the sixth inning before the seventh went awry. The right-hander maintains a 2.14 ERA over 33.2 innings with 25 strikeouts and six walks.
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Red Sox's Josh Winckowski: Records three-inning save
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Winckowski picked up the save in Friday's 6-1 win over the Padres. He allowed one walk while striking out two over three scoreless innings.
Winckowski's lone walk in the seventh inning was the only baserunner he allowed in this near-perfect outing. The right-hander has now tossed scoreless appearances in five of his last six games. The second-year hurler is pitching well as a multi-inning reliever this year, and he has a 2.15 ERA and 0.99 WHIP across 29.1 innings.
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Red Sox's Josh Winckowski: Has first clunker
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Winckowski allowed three runs on four hits over two-thirds of an inning in Friday's 8-6 loss to St. Louis.
It was a blown save for Winckowski, who came on in the sixth inning after Boston took a 4-2 lead. Winckowski has been dominant out of the bullpen; the right-hander entered Friday's game with a 1.50 ERA over 24 innings.
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Red Sox's Josh Winckowski: Collects first save
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Winckowski allowed one hit over a scoreless inning to pick up the save in Tuesday's 7-6 win over Toronto.
The Red Sox were working with a short bullpen Tuesday. Kenley Jansen (back spasms) was unavailable, Kutter Crawford threw four innings Friday, Chris Martin was just off the injured list and wasn't going to be used on back-to-back nights, and Brennan Bernardino had pitched three days in a row. As such, manager Alex Cora turned to Winckowski to close out the game. He recorded the save on seven pitches, which was needed after the right-hander threw 30 pitches to record a win the night before. It was the first save in the majors for Winckowski, who was used mostly as a starter in the minors and majors until assuming a multi-inning relief role for Boston in 2023.
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Red Sox's Josh Winckowski: Picks up win
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Winckowski (2-0) allowed two runs (one earned) on two hits and one walk while striking out one over two innings to record Monday's win over Toronto.
Winckowski was victimized in the eighth inning by shortstop Enrique Hernandez, whose two throwing errors contributed to the Blue Jays knotting the game at 5-5. The right-hander came back out to throw the ninth and was the pitcher of record when Alex Verdugo walked off Toronto. Boston manager Alex Cora would have had the pitcher come back out for a third inning if Verdugo hadn't ended the game, per Christopher Smith of MassLive.com. Winckowski has been valuable out of the bullpen and gets a lot of chances to pitch in support of a starting staff that ranks 27th with a 6.01 ERA. Monday's outing was the eighth multi-inning relief effort for the 24-year-old starter-turned-reliever, who is 2-0 with a 1.69 ERA, 17 strikeouts and five walks over 21.1 innings (11 appearances).
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Red Sox's Josh Winckowski: Proving value in 'pen
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Winckowski allowed one hit and one walk while striking out four over 2.1 scoreless relief innings to earn a hold in Friday's 5-3 win over the Brewers.
Winckowski stranded a runner in the sixth inning and bridged the gap to closer Kenley Jansen. Winckowski has been outstanding out of the bullpen to start the season. The right-hander lowered his ERA to 1.65 and has gobbled up 16.1 innings over eight appearances. The Red Sox currently carry six starters, so his effectiveness in a multi-inning relief role has been valuable.
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Red Sox's Josh Winckowski: Earns win Friday
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Winckowski (1-0) allowed one run on four hits, one walk and a hit batsman over three innings Friday, earning a win over the Angels.
Winckowski has been stellar out of the Boston's heavily used bullpen. The 24-year-old right-hander has allowed two runs in 12 innings over six relief appearances. He came through the system as a starter but is expected to remain in a multi-inning relief role for now. Winckowski's a strike-thrower and not afraid to pitch to contact.
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Red Sox's Josh Winckowski: Records hold
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Winckowski struck out one in a scoreless relief inning and recorded his first hold in Sunday's 4-1 win over Detroit.
Winckowski had his first clean outing in four appearances, although he's limited the damage to one run on four hits and one walk in seven innings. The 24-year-old right-handed starter, who was stretched out in spring training, was needed out of the bullpen and pitched well in that role. The Red Sox are expected to activate Garrett Whitlock (hip) to start Tuesday, which will cost someone on the staff a roster spot. That could mean Winckowski goes back to Triple-A Worcester where he could serve as starting depth.
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Red Sox's Josh Winckowski: Will be part of Opening Day roster
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Manager Alex Cora said Thursday that Winckowski will be part of the Red Sox' Opening Day roster, Chris Cotillo of The Springfield Republican reports.
Winckowski will fill a long-relief role while Kutter Crawford will get a spot in the rotation. Winckowski -- who is starting Thursday in Grapefruit League play -- has allowed just two unearned runs in 10 innings this spring.
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Red Sox's Josh Winckowski: Now starting Thursday
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Winckowski is starting Thursday's Grapefruit League game against the Pirates after Kutter Crawford (undisclosed) was scratched, Mac Cerullo of The North Andover Eagle-Tribune reports.
Winckowski was scheduled to pitch Thursday in a relief role, but with Crawford unavailable, the right-hander will instead pitch in a tradional starting role. A strong outing for the 24-year-old might make him the favorite to win a spot in the rotation for the Red Sox, but he also may have locked up that role if there's any sort of injury plaguing Crawford.
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Red Sox's Josh Winckowski: Will pitch in relief Thursday
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Winckowski will pitch in relief during Thursday's spring game against the Pirates, Mac Cerullo of The North Andover Eagle-Tribune reports.
Winckowski will pitch after Kutter Crawford during Thursday's Grapefruit League game against Pittsburgh. The right-hander is competing with Crawford for the final spot in the Boston rotation, and he has yet to allow a run this spring with a 10:4 K:BB in his 10 innings of work in Florida. Winckowski or Crawford could also be options out of the bullpen, and the odd man out also is a candidate to head to Triple-A Worcester to remain stretched out for a possible promotion back to the big leagues over the summer.
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Red Sox's Josh Winckowski: Throws multiple relief innings
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Winckowski allowed two hits and two walks while striking out four over three scoreless relief innings in Saturday's spring game against Houston.
As the injuries to projected rotation members mount, Winckowski's chances of being part of the rotation early in the season improve. Brayan Bello (forearm), James Paxton (hamstring) and Garrett Whitlock (hip) are in various stages of recovery and could miss Opening Day. If all or any of the projected starters aren't ready for the early April turns of the rotation, Winckowski, Tanner Houck or Kutter Crawford could be part of the starting staff initially. The Red Sox have a couple of off days within the first nine days of the season and could get by with four starters until April 13.
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Red Sox's Josh Winckowski: Makes first spring start
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Winckowski allowed one hit and one walk while striking out three over two scoreless innings in Sunday's spring game against the Rays.
Winckowski made 15 starts for Boston in 2022 but is on the outside of the seven candidates being considered for this season's rotation. The right-hander had a 5.89 ERA, 5.6 K/9, 3.5 BB/9 and 1.3 HR/9 over 70.1 innings. His FIP (4.94) was nearly a run better, which indicates the defense behind him was lacking, but there was nothing else to excite fantasy managers. The 22-year-old Winckowski should serve as a starting depth option in the organization, likely destined for the rotation at Triple-A Worcester, where his numbers were better than in MLB.
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Red Sox's Josh Winckowski: Sent back down
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Winckowski was optioned to Triple-A Worcester on Monday.
Winckowski was called up by the Red Sox on Saturday and allowed three runs on six hits and a walk while striking out three in three innings Saturday against the Blue Jays. He'll head back to the minors after Darwinzon Hernandez was recalled Monday.
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Red Sox's Josh Winckowski: Recalled by Red Sox
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Winckowski was recalled from Triple-A Worcester on Saturday.
Winckowski was sent to the minors in early September, and he posted a 3.77 ERA and 1.81 WHIP in 14.1 innings over three appearances following his demotion. He should serve as a multi-inning option out of Boston's bullpen over the final few games of the regular season.
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Red Sox's Josh Winckowski: Sent back to Triple-A
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The Red Sox optioned Winckowski to Triple-A Worcester on Monday, Chris Cotillo of The Springfield Republican reports.
Reliever Zack Kelly (personal) was reinstated from the paternity list and will assume Winckowski's spot on the active roster after the rookie right-hander was summoned from Triple-A to make a spot start Sunday. Winckowski took a no-decision in Boston's 5-2 win over Texas, covering four innings and striking out three while allowing two earned runs on three hits and three walks. The Red Sox currently have a vacancy in their rotation with Kutter Crawford (shoulder) recently joining Nathan Eovaldi (shoulder) on the injured list, but a favorable schedule will allow Boston to get by with only four starters until at least Sept. 24.
