Wilson presses luck in Vegas, tees off twice
In a city full of pressing your luck, Jacob Wilson wasn't satisfied with hitting just his first Triple-A home run -- so he hit his second too, giving him his first multihomer game as a pro in one fell swoop. The top Athletics prospect lifted the Aviators to a 12-4
In a city full of pressing your luck, Jacob Wilson wasn't satisfied with hitting just his first Triple-A home run -- so he hit his second too, giving him his first multihomer game as a pro in one fell swoop. The top Athletics prospect lifted the Aviators to a 12-4 victory over the Sacramento RiverCats at Las Vegas Ballpark on Saturday night.
It was a breakout performance for the 22-year-old shortstop, who returned from the injured list earlier this week. He finished the game 4-for-5 with a walk, raising his Triple-A average to .429 and his on-base percentage to .478. While these numbers are eye-popping, they're merely keeping in line with what he has accomplished as a pro thus far.
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Drafted in the first round in 2023 (sixth overall), Wilson spent only three games in Rookie ball before being promoted to High-A Lansing, bypassing Single-A altogether. MLB’s No. 51 prospect started this season with Double-A Midland, batting .455 in 22 games.
It almost looks like a misprint: through 63 pro games across four levels, Wilson, the son of former big league All-Star, Jack, is slashing .407/.451/.605 with 99 hits and 42 RBIs.
While the hits have piled up, the home runs have not. Known primarily for his outstanding ability to make contact (he had an incredible 2.3 strikeout rate during his final collegiate season at Grand Canyon), Wilson had hit just four home runs in his pro career prior to Saturday night. Needless to say, the multihomer performance was his first in pro ball and his first since at least before his college days.
The first round of the 2023 Draft has already made an impact at the big league level with No. 1 overall pick Paul Skenes dazzling to open his career in Pittsburgh. Angels first baseman Nolan Schanuel (11th overall) was the first to The Show last summer, and he was joined by Wyatt Langford (4th overall, Rangers) and Hurston Waldrep (24th overall, Braves) earlier this season. But next up? That very well could be Wilson, who is making his presence felt at the Minors' highest levels -- now with increasing sound.
Allison Mast is a contributor for MiLB.com.