Red Sox’s Josh Winckowski Reacts To Earning First Major League Win

Josh Winckowski got another chance in the majors Wednesday night, and in his second outing for the Boston Red Sox, he did not disappoint.

Boston recalled Winckowski on Tuesday from Triple-A Worcester to add more pitching depth. The 23-year-old pitcher tossed five scoreless innings to earn his first win of his major league career after the Red Sox beat the Oakland Athletics,10-1, at Fenway Park on Wednesday night.

“It’s a surreal moment,” Winckowski told reporters of earning his first win, as seen on NESN’s postgame coverage. “It’s obviously something you think about for a really, really long time. Especially to be for this team, it’s a pretty big moment.”

Winckowski’s last start was against the Baltimore Orioles on May 28. Manager Alex Cora gave the young right hander a positive review, but Winckowski didn’t mince words and felt he gave a poor performance. His attitude was different after Wednesday’s win.

“It definitely feels good to help the team,” Winckowski said. “Taking that first game, the runs I gave up were the only ones that helped Baltimore score. I almost felt like I lost us the game, so obviously, it feels good to go the other way tonight — I feel like I helped the team win.”

Through five innings of work, Winckowski struck out struck out three batters, giving him seven through two starts. Winckowski did not give up a run, bringing him down to a 4.50 ERA.