When Weston Wilson was signed to a minor league contract by the Philadelphia Phillies earlier this year, it's not likely that very many people had him pegged as a huge home run threat. Sure, he had hit double digits in homers multiple times while he was a part of the Brewers organization, but did anybody see this coming?
In this past Friday's contest against the Buffalo Bisons, Wilson hit his 30th home run of the season. In doing so, he officially passed current Phillies first baseman Rhys Hoskins's franchise record of 29 that he set back in 2017. Just for good measure, Wilson followed that up with a second bomb, giving him 31 on the year and further extending his new record.
A historic homer off the bat of Weston Wilson!
— Minor League Baseball (@MiLB) September 9, 2023
The @Phillies slugger wallops his 30th @IronPigs jack, claiming the single-season home run record previously held by Rhys Hoskins: pic.twitter.com/lELTQSZTSd
This performance from the 29-year-old is just another example of how excellent he's been for this organization. Not only has he dominated the minor leagues, but he also earned the first big league promotion of his career and promptly homered in his first at-bat. The guy has done nothing but produce, regardless of what level it's been at. Is it worth considering a bit of a longer leash for him at the big league level? You bet it is.
The utilityman has made it into 115 games for Lehigh Valley this year and has easily been their best hitter. Along the way, he has 19 doubles and 31 home runs with 85 RBI, 28 stolen bases and an OPS of .910. On defense, he can play every single infield position and is a decent defender in the outfield corners. While he's technically still stuck at the bottom of the organizational totem pole, Wilson has done more than enough to warrant some additional time in the big leagues.
As things currently stand, Wilson has put himself at the top of the list for "injury call-ups", but with the way he's been performing on a daily basis, he deserves a shot at more.