Pat Winkel Stats & Scouting Report

AB	276
AVG	.228
OBP	.279
SLG	.362
HR	7

Full name Patrick Winkel
Born 01/27/2000 in New Haven, CT
Profile Ht.: 6'0" / Wt.: 200 / Bats: L / Throws: R
School Connecticut
Drafted in the 9th round (279th overall) by the Minnesota Twins in 2021 (signed for $500,000).

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Winkel hit well as a freshman at UConn in 2019, when he batted .318/.361/.486 in 49 games with a team-high seven home runs. He spent 2020 recovering from Tommy John surgery, but he returned in 2021 and put together another strong season. Winkel starts his swing with a leg lift, keeps his hands fairly quiet and has a sound lefthanded swing. He doesn't have explosive bat speed and didn't face many plus fastballs in the Big East, but Winkel crushed the fastballs he did see. He has good plate coverage, with an ability to adjust his swing and barrel a fastball in any part of the zone and the power to hit 15-20 home runs. Winkel has a solid sense for the strike zone, but he didn't fare as well against offspeed stuff, with nearly all of his damage this year coming against fastballs. Winkel blocks and receives well, with his arm drawing mixed reviews but seeming to improve to flash average as he got further removed from surgery. His accuracy wavers, but he threw out 33% of runners.

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Draft Prospects

Winkel hit well as a freshman at UConn in 2019, when he batted .318/.361/.486 in 49 games with a team-high seven home runs. He spent 2020 recovering from Tommy John surgery, but he returned in 2021 and put together another strong season. Winkel starts his swing with a leg lift, keeps his hands fairly quiet and has a sound lefthanded swing. He doesn't have explosive bat speed and didn't face many plus fastballs in the Big East, but Winkel crushed the fastballs he did see. He has good plate coverage, with an ability to adjust his swing and barrel a fastball in any part of the zone and the power to hit 15-20 home runs. Winkel has a solid sense for the strike zone, but he didn't fare as well against offspeed stuff, with nearly all of his damage this year coming against fastballs. Winkel blocks and receives well, with his arm drawing mixed reviews but seeming to improve to flash average as he got further removed from surgery. His accuracy wavers, but he threw out 33% of runners.
Winkel is an advanced defender for a high school catcher, with impressive catch and throw skills and a history of handling top-tier arms without much of a problem. He has solid-average arm strength, but makes accurate throws consistently, with a solid transfer and good footwork. A lefthanded hitter, Winkel has also shown some feel to hit, but adjusted his swing path this spring and scouts have been a bit disappointed with the results. He transitioned to an uphill bat path with a pull-oriented approach that he hasn't quite figured out. Given his physicality and present strength scouts believe there is power to come in the future, but he'll either need another swing adjustment or more time refining his new approach. A Connecticut commit, Winkel is expected to be a tough sign.