Former Dodgers catcher Austin Wynns has found a new home. Wynns, who was designated for assignment by the Dodgers this week, has landed in Colorado, as he was claimed by the Rockies off of waivers.
Wynns was signed by the Dodgers after starting catcher Will Smith went on the seven-day concussion injured list. He ended up being with the team for a little over two weeks, and appeared in five games.
Wynns had two hits in 11 at-bats and drove in two runs in his first at-bat with the team. He ended up filling in very nicely for Smith, but of course, the Dodgers had no use for him with their star catcher back.
Wynns was DFA’d by the Dodgers, but didn’t take long to land with a new team. He’s now with another National League West team, the Rockies, who had a few open spots on their 40-man roster.
Wynns, who began the year with the San Francisco Giants minor league squad, is making his rounds in the NL West. He’ll only have to check the San Diego Padres and Arizona Diamondbacks off his list, and then he’ll have completed the full quintet of NL West teams this season.
Wynns wasn’t going to be in the Dodgers’ long-term plans unless another injury occurred to Smith or Austin Barnes. But they’re obviously not planning on that happening, so they’ll hope to have their guys healthy for the rest of the season.
I’m sure the Dodgers would have loved for Wynns to clear waivers, because if he did, they could have kept him in Triple-A as minor league depth. Then, if an injury did occur, they would have Wynns come right back up and fill in.
But instead, he was snagged off of waivers fairly quickly, as he proved with the Dodgers that he could still contribute at the major league level.
The Dodgers owe a huge thank you to Wynns for coming over to Los Angeles on such short notice to help the team out. He gave them more than enough, and will now continue his career in Colorado.
Best of luck with the Rockies, Austin!
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