Jacob Wilson (wilsoja05)
Jacob Tyler Wilson
- Bats Right, Throws Right
- Height 6' 2", Weight 190 lb.
- School Grand Canyon University
- High School Thousand Oaks High School
- Debut July 19, 2024
- Born March 30, 2002 in Los Angeles, CA USA
Biographical Information[edit]
Infielder Jacob Wilson was drafted sixth overall by the Oakland Athletics in the 2023 amateur draft, out of Grand Canyon University. He was coming off a season during which he had hit .412 with an OPS of 1.096 in 49 games. He also played for a star-studded USA College National Team at the 2022 Haarlem Baseball Week, though all their talent only got them to third place; he hit .364/.462/.455.
He made his professional debut in 2023 playing for the ACL Athletics and the Lansing Lugnuts of the Midwest League, hitting .333/.391/.475 in 26 games. But that was nothing compared to what he would do in the first half of the 2024 season. In spite of his limited pro experience, the A's sent him straight to the the Midland RockHounds of the AA Texas League to start the year, and he tore up that circuit, hitting .455 in 22 games. By early May, he had been promoted to AAA and the Las Vegas Aviators, where the only thing that could stop him was a one-month stint on the injured list from May 18 to June 17th. He then hit .571 in 5 games back in the Arizona Complex League on a rehabilitation assignment, and resumed his ball-crushing ways in Vegas, where he was hitting .398 after 19 games. That's when word came out that the major league Athletics had decided to promote him and to see how he could handle the shortstop job in the big leagues as the second half of the MLB season was about to start. His combined slash line in three minor league teams was .438/.475/.687 in 46 games and he had risen to the rank of top prospect in the organization.
He made his debut in the A's first game after the All-Star break on July 19, 2024, starting at shortstop and batting 8th against the Los Angeles Angels. He singled in his first at-bat in the 3rd, advanced to second on a disengagement violation by pitcher Griffin Canning, and then scored on a triple by Lawrence Butler. However, he was then removed from the game with a hamstring injury. He ended up at .250 in 28 games with the A's with an OPS+ of 85.
He was the starting shortstop for the Athletics on Opening Day in 2025. He recorded the first base hit in the Athletics' post-Oakland history when he singled off Logan Gilbert in the 3rd inning. He also recorded the first home team long ball at their new temporary home, Sutter Health Park in West Sacramento, CA on March 31st when he went deep off Ben Brown of the Chicago Cubs in the 3rd inning of the A's first home game of the season. Unfortunately, it was a rare positive in a dreadful 18-3 beatdown at the hands of the Cubbies. Through his first 9 games, he was hitting .364 and slugging .606, but had yet to either strike out or walk, a very unusual hitting profile in the era of the Three True Outcomes. He had a hit in his first 15 games before finally having an ofer on April 13th. He had the first multi-homer game of his career on May 13th, going deep twice in an 11-1 win over the Los Angeles Dodgers at Dodger Stadium. While the Athletics struggled as a team in May, he tallied 39 hits and batted .368 to be named the American League Rookie of the Month. He was voted the starting shortstop for the AL in the 2025 All-Star Game, beating out Bobby Witt Jr. for the honor. He finished the season at .311 in 125 games, with 13 homers, 62 runs and 63 RBIs, for an OPS+ of 121. He was third in the AL in batting average, finished second in the voting for the 2025 American League Rookie of the Year Award behind teammate Nick Kurtz and was selected as the shortstop on the 2025 MLB All-Rookie Team.
On January 30, 2026, he signed a seven-year contract extension with The Athletics worth $70 million, with an option to extend the deal to the 2033 season. He was the fourth member of the team to be signed to a long-term extension in recent months, following Lawrence Butler, Brent Rooker and Tyler Soderstrom as the A's were securing the core of the team in anticipation of their move to Las Vegas, NV.
He is the son of long-time major league shortstop Jack Wilson.
Notable Achievements[edit]
- 2025 MLB All-Rookie Team
- AL All-Star (2025)
Further Reading[edit]
- Martín Gallegos: "A's to call up No. 1 prospect Jacob Wilson", mlb.com, July 18, 2024. [1]
- Martín Gallegos: "Wilson's debut 'high moment of my life' despite injury: A's No. 1 prospect singles in first career at-bat, flashes glove before hamstring strain", mlb.com, July 20, 2024. [2]
- Martín Gallegos and Theo De Rosa: "A's extend star shortstop Jacob Wilson to 7-year deal", mlb.com, January 30, 2026. [3]
- Adrian Garro: "Mic'd up Jacob Wilson, dad Jack soak in A's rookie's All-Star debut -- with a Smoltz assist", mlb.com, July 16, 2025. [4]
- Jacob Gurvis: "'What a night': Wilson at home in Dodger Stadium with 1st multi-homer game", mlb.com May 14, 2025. [5]
- Brent Maguire: "Rookie’s all-swing, all-contact approach a throwback", mlb.com, April 12, 2025. [6]
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