Catcher Austin Wynns has elected free agency, according to his transactions tracker at MLB.com. He was outrighted by Atlanta earlier this week. Since he has at least five years of big league service, he has the right to reject outright assignments in favor of free agency without forfeiting any salary.
Wynns, 35, is a veteran depth catcher. He has appeared in 299 big league games scattered across eight seasons, never topping 66 contests in any individual campaign. He doesn’t provide much from the batter’s box, currently sitting on a career line of .228/.273/.342. That translates to a 66 wRC+, indicating he has been 34% below league average at the plate.
He has a stronger reputation in regards to his work behind the plate. Publicly available metrics generally give him solid grades for his blocking and his work with the running game. His framing numbers aren’t as strong but mostly due to some poor results earlier in his career. He’s been closer to league average when looking at the past three to five seasons.
Wynns finished last season with the Athletics. They tendered him an arbitration contract, agreeing to a $1.1MM salary for 2026. He got out to a slow start to the season and was designated for assignment and then released in early May. That led to a minor league deal with the Angels, though that club traded him to Atlanta for cash. He spent a little over a week on the roster with Atlanta until Drake Baldwin came off the injured list, which squeezed Wynns onto the waiver wire. He currently has a .075/.125/.075 line in 57 plate appearances this year.
Now that he’s a free agent again, Wynns will look for his next opportunity. Catching depth is always in demand, so he should get calls, though he may have to settle for a minor league deal. If any club gives him a spot, he can be paid the prorated league minimum for any time spent on the roster. That will be subtracted from what the A’s pay, as they are currently on the hook for the remainder of his salary.
Photo courtesy of Matt Marton, Imagn Images
