Allan Winans never got a chance to visit Citi Field when he was in the Mets organization.
That was OK with him. It was worth the wait.
His first trip to Queens resulted in his first victory in the majors — as a member of the Braves.
The former Mets draft pick beat his old organization, throwing seven shutout innings in the Braves’ 21-3 humiliation of the Mets in the opener of a day-night doubleheader on Saturday at Citi Field.
The Mets also suffered a 6-0 loss in the nightcap.
“I’m happy where I’m at, that’s for sure,” Winans said after his second career start as a big leaguer.
The Mets selected Winans in the 17th round of the 2018 draft out of Campbell University.
He was a starter in college, but they converted him into a reliever.
He excelled in that role in 2021, pitching to a 1.72 ERA with 45 strikeouts and three saves in 47.0 innings of work between Single-A Brooklyn and Double-A Binghamton.
That December, however, the Mets left him unprotected in the minor league phase of the Rule 5 Draft. The Braves picked him up and made him a starter again.
“To be fair, it was a little surprising. I felt like I had a pretty good year, and obviously I have the utmost confidence in myself,” said Winans, who became the seventh Braves rookie to throw seven shutout innings, allow four or fewer hits and strike out nine or more batters in a game. “But they chose to go in a different direction and the Braves chose to go in my direction. So pretty thankful.”
He has pitched well for Triple-A Gwinnett this year, compiling a 2.79 ERA while allowing just 87 hits in 113 innings with 101 strikeouts.
He got his first shot with the Braves on July 22, giving up two earned runs in 4 ¹/₃ innings against the Brewers.
Saturday was obviously more memorable because of how well he pitched and the team he faced.
“It’s cool to throw against guys that you know and compete against those guys,” said Winans, who listed Francisco Alvarez, Mark Vientos, Josh Walker, Brett Baty and Tylor Megill as Mets he played alongside in the minor leagues and remains friends with. “It’s always nice to come out on the winning side. Getting your first ‘W’ in the big leagues is pretty cool, no matter what team it is [against].”