Weston Wilson, from Wesleyan Christian Academy, joins the Philadelphia Phillies, and now he’s on the MLB circuit

Posted on by Andy Durham

The former Wesleyan Christian Academy Trojan, Weston Wilson, has joined the Philadelphia Phillies in MLB…Weston is the son of Billy Wilson, and the brother of Spencer Wilson, and Weston played high school baseball at Wesleyan for Coach Scott Davis…Great kid back in the day, and he is now a grown up young man, and he has made the move to the top of the baseball food chain…
(They are all very proud of Weston Wilson, his dad Billy, brother Spencer, and former HS coach Scott Davis.)

Weston’s dad is also a Wesleyan Christian Academy graduate, and he played soccer, basketball, and baseball for WES…The Wilson Family, very strong Wesleyan backers and supporters, over the years….And Weston is at The Top…Weston Wilson, now teammates with guys like former Greensboro Grasshoppers, J.T.(Jacob) Realmuto, and Bryce Harper……Also now with pitcher Aaron Nola, the brother of former Greensboro Grasshopper, Austin Nola…

Weston Graham Wilson
Status: Active with Philadelphia Phillies third baseman
Born: 9/11/1994 in High Point, NC
Draft: 2016, Milwaukee Brewers, Round: 17, Overall Pick: 501
College: Clemson

Weston Wilson on his way to the Phillies:
Former Brewers prospect Weston Wilson tearing it up in the Phillies organization
Every year at the conclusion of the Minor League Baseball season, countless amounts of players become minor league free agents for the very first time in their respective careers.

For the 2022 Milwaukee Brewers and their Triple-A affiliate Nashville Sounds, this list included infielder Weston Wilson, who had been in the organization since he was selected in the 17th round of the 2016 MLB Draft.

During his tenure with the team, Wilson essentially did nothing but mash. He hit 11 or more home runs in each season from 2018-2022 (of course the COVID-cancelled 2020 season is not included here) and had only just begun to establish himself as a near-big-league-ready player when his first professional contract expired and he was not brought back.

But the game of baseball is a business, and ultimately the decision from above was that his contract was not to be renewed by the Brewers. At 28-years-old, he was on the older side of a minor league player without his first big league promotion and there wasn’t an immediate spot to slot him in at the big league level.

This certainly does not mean that there was not interest in his services. As a matter of fact, a whole slew of teams were in on him from the get go. Per a source familiar with the situation, Wilson was “pursued early and pursued often” right from the onset of free agency, and he was contacted by the Cardinals, Astros, Royals, Rockies and Reds. But in the end, he wound up latching on with the Philadelphia Phillies, who gave him the best sales pitch out of all of the interested clubs.

From the start, Wilson has felt right at home with the Phillies. Him and I recently caught up and he gave a glowing review for his new club. “I have loved my time here”, he says. “It has been a blessing to get a fresh start here. They truly made me feel welcomed and supported from the second I walked into the complex in spring.”

Former Brewers prospect Weston Wilson right at home in the Phillies’ organization.
Wilson’s contract was of the minor league variety, but for the very first time in his career, he was invited to big league Spring Training; an opportunity he says he felt went really well. In 20 spring games, he hit two home runs with nine RBI and had a .289 average with a .926 OPS.

Unfortunately, the Phillies have a fairly deep position player group on their 26-man active roster, and since Wilson wasn’t already a member of the 40-man roster, he was amongst one of the later rounds of roster cuts. While it’s never fun to receive this news, he says that “the communication was great from top to bottom”, finishing with his admiration for the Phillies’ front office and how they truly view their players as people, too, not just part of the business that keeps the team running.

Prior to the 2023 season, the 28-year-old had a few adjustments he needed to make in order to build off of a decent-but-not-great showing last year. “I messed around with quite a few things this offseason”, he says. “I think the biggest thing came from some video from 2021 when I had a more relaxed, upright position at the plate. That, along with where I’m making my first move has allowed me to feel back to normal. I’m trusting my eyes more and knowing the [strike] zone better has allowed me to walk more this year as well.”

And walk more he has. Trusting his eye at the plate has worked wonders, as Wilson already has 36 walks after he drew just 39 of them all last year. He’s being much more selective at the plate and is primarily swinging at hittable pitches, which has helped his average climb nearly 30 points and his OPS is up from .655 to a whopping .873.

In fact, he’s doing pretty much everything at a higher rate than he had at any point in the past, especially last season. In just 57 games, he already has more home runs (14) than he did last year (11) in over twice as many games. After driving in 54 and stealing 17 bases last year, he’s already up to 42 RBI and 13 stolen bases this year. In every facet of his game, things are trending in the right direction.

During his tenure on the Sounds in 2022, Wilson provided the club with above-average defense all over the diamond. He made at least one appearance at all four infield positions and spent plenty of time in the outfield corners as well. For the Lehigh Valley IronPigs in the Phillies organization, he has still bounced around a bit, but is focusing primarily on shortstop for the first time in his professional career. So far, the results have been encouraging, as he has just four errors and a .970 fielding percentage in over 324 innings at the position.

Key notes and stats on Weston Wilson, while with the Clemson Tigers:
Career Stats
Infielder who was the predominant starter at third base in 2014 and 2015, but became the everyday starter at second base in 2016 … a career .260 hitter with a .330 on-base percentage in 175 games (164 starts) over three seasons … had 26 doubles, four triples, 14 homers, 94 RBIs, 95 runs, 62 walks, five hit-by-pitches and 18 steals.

2016: Drafted in the 17th round (No. 501 overall pick) by the Milwaukee Brewers and signed in June … hit .279 with 50 runs, 12 doubles, three triples, seven homers, 45 RBIs, a .343 on-base percentage, 26 walks, two hit-by-pitches and eight steals in 63 starts at second base … tied for 19th in the nation in sacrifice flies (7) … led the team in triples, sacrifice flies and sacrifice bunts (5) … had a .966 fielding percentage … had 19 multiple-hit games and 11 multiple-RBI games … Clemson had a 7-0 record in the seven games he hit a homer … went 3-for-4 with a double, RBI, two runs and a hit-by-pitch against Maine on Feb. 21; was 6-for-11 (.545) with four runs in the series … went 4-for-4 with a homer, three RBIs, three runs and a walk at Wake Forest on March 13 … went 2-for-4 with four RBIs, a run and steal at The Citadel on March 15 … went 2-for-5 with a double and three RBIs at The Citadel on March 16; hit a two-run single in the ninth inning to break a 3-3 tie; was 4-for-9 with two doubles and seven RBIs in the series … hit a two-run homer against No. 22 Boston College on March 18 … went 2-for-4 with a three-run homer against Presbyterian College on March 22 … went 2-for-4 with a double, two RBIs, two runs and a walk against Pittsburgh on April 1 … hit a walkoff single in the 10th inning against Western Carolina on April 12 … hit a homer with four RBIs and a walk against No. 3 Florida State on April 30 … hit a walkoff single against No. 9 NC State on May 8 … went 1-for-4 with a homer, two RBIs, three runs and a walk at Georgia Southern on May 15 … went 1-for-3 with a homer and walk against No. 3 Louisville in the ACC Tournament on May 27 … went 1-for-3 with two RBIs, two runs and three walks against Western Carolina in the Clemson Regional on June 3 … went 4-for-5 with a homer, four RBIs and a steal against Western Carolina in the Clemson Regional on June 5 … No. 234 college prospect for the 2016 draft by D1Baseball in the preseason … No. 38 ACC prospect for the 2016 draft in the preseason by D1Baseball.

2015: ACC Academic Honor Roll member … hit .251 with 27 runs, nine doubles, one triple, five homers, 26 RBIs, a .326 on-base percentage, 21 walks, one hit-by-pitch and seven steals in 57 games (50 starts at third base) … had 11 multiple-hit games … was 23-for-69 (.333) with six doubles, one homer, 11 RBIs and 12 runs in the last 18 games … hit .303 in 28 games (23 starts) at home … named ACC Player-of-the-Week on March 2 for his performance in three games from Feb. 25-28; was 4-for-12 with three homers and seven RBIs … went 2-for-4 with a homer and three RBIs against Wofford on Feb. 25 … hit a three-run homer and solo homer against No. 10 South Carolina on Feb. 27 … went 3-for-4 against Notre Dame on March 15 … went 3-for-5 with a double, two RBIs and two runs at Virginia Tech on March 21 … went 2-for-4 with a homer, double and two RBIs at Georgia Tech on April 26 … went 3-for-4 with three RBIs against No. 3 Louisville on May 2 … went 4-for-5 with a double and two runs against Georgia Southern on May 8 … went 3-for-5 with an RBI, three runs and two walks at Furman on May 12 … hit a two-run double against No. 3 Louisville in the ACC Tournament on May 21 … went 2-for-4 with a double and two runs against No. 18 Arizona State in the Fullerton Regional on May 29 … No. 79 sophomore in the nation in the preseason by Perfect Game … No. 16 ACC prospect for the 2016 draft in the preseason by Perfect Game … played for Wareham in the Cape Cod League in the summer, where he hit .185 with one run, one double and one RBI in 11 games.

2014: Hit .240 with 18 runs, five doubles, two homers, 23 RBIs, a .316 on-base percentage, 15 walks, two hit-by-pitches and three steals in 55 games (51 starts, including 49 at third base and two at second base) … only committed nine errors in 127 chances (.929 fielding percentage) … hit .289 with two outs … hit .280 in ACC regular-season games … was 2-for-4 with a grand slam, double, seven RBIs and a walk with the bases loaded … hit a single for his first career hit and scored a run against Eastern Michigan on Feb. 15 … hit a three-run homer off the bench against Maine on Feb. 22; was his first career home run … hit a two-run double against Maine on Feb. 23 … went 3-for-5 with a grand slam, a team-season-high five RBIs, two runs and a walk against Virginia Tech on March 8 … went 2-for-3 with an RBI in the second game of a doubleheader against No. 1 Florida State on March 22 … went 3-for-3 with a double, three RBIs and a run against Furman on April 1 … went 2-for-4 with a double and two RBIs against NC State on April 6 … went 2-for-4 with two RBIs, a run and walk against Western Carolina on April 23 … went 2-for-3 against No. 11 Miami (Fla.) on April 27 … No. 84 freshman in the nation in the preseason by Perfect Game … played for High Point-Thomasville in the Coastal Plain League in the summer, where he hit .286 with four runs, one double, one triple, one homer, seven RBIs and one steal in 15 games.

**********Before Clemson: Rated as the No. 258 player in the nation and No. 9 player in North Carolina by Baseball America (includes college and high school players) … No. 228 player in the nation and No. 5 player in North Carolina by Perfect Game … East Coast Pro Showcase participant in Syracuse, N.Y. … all-state selection as a junior and senior … all-conference selection as a junior and senior … lettered four times in baseball and one time in cross country at Wesleyan Christian Academy, where he was coached by Scott Davis.***********

Personal: His brother, Spencer, has overcome a rare tissue cancer twice; his story was featured on an ESPN E:60 segment in December 2014 called “Dedication Game;” Spencer dedicated a January 2014 basketball game while at Bishop McGuinness High School to a friend (Josh Rominger) who passed away from cancer, then made a 50-foot shot at the final buzzer to give his team a two-point victory; Spencer was a freshman guard on Belmont Abbey’s basketball team in 2015-16 … majoring in parks, recreation & tourism management … born Weston Graham Wilson on Sept. 11, 1994 in High Point, N.C.