There hasn’t been much to cheer about for Oakland Athletics' fans in 2024. The team is 24 games under .500 and 15 games behind the Seattle Mariners in the American League’s weakest division. The A’s entered the All-Star break with the fourth-worst record in baseball and are 17.5 games back in the Wild Card race.
Despite the team being mired in a third straight losing season, the Oakland faithful have something to get excited about – a potential glimpse into the future. The A’s will call up their top prospect, shortstop Jacob Wilson, per MLB.com’s Martin Gallegos.
Oakland selected Wilson sixth overall in the 2023 MLB draft. He’s currently ranked as the 50th best prospect in baseball by MLB.com and he’s the only A’s player in the top 100.
Regardless of the ranking, Wilson has been tearing up the minors since his pro ball debut following the draft in 2023. This season he’s slashing .438/.475/.686 with 25 doubles, seven home runs, 34 RBI and 44 runs scored in 46 games across three minor league levels.
In just 19 games with Oakland’s Triple-A affiliate, the Las Vegas Aviators, Wilson has eight doubles, four homers, 12 RBI and 22 runs scored to go along with a blistering .398/.444/.639. and a 1.083 OPS.
Wilson has been the consummate contact hitter during his brief time in the minors. He had an absurd 3.33 strikeout percentage in 90 Triple-A plate appearances. For his minor league career, across three levels, Wilson had an excellent 7.72 strikeout percentage in 311 plate appearances.
Clearly, the minors cannot contain Jacob Wilson and the A’s believe he’s ready for the next challenge. The 22-year-old shortstop will make his major league debut after just 72 games in Oakland’s farm system.
The A’s call up top prospect Jacob Wilson
Wilson could be an exceedingly rare glimmer of hope for a fanbase that desperately needs something to celebrate. Although, no matter what Wilson does on the field, he won’t be able to change the reality of the Oakland Athletics.
In a couple weeks the team will likely be stripped for parts as contending teams pick off Oakland’s most productive players at the trade deadline. And at the end of the year, the A’s will have played their final game in Oakland.
The team will temporarily move to Sacramento for the 2025 season before permanently relocating to Las Vegas before the end of the decade. When the A’s eventually settle in Vegas, it will be the fourth different city the franchise has called home.
The Athletics started in Philadelphia then moved to Kansas City in 1955. That was followed by the move to Oakland in 1968 where they remained for 57 seasons.
The A’s have the lowest attendance in all of baseball with an average of 7,899 paying customers per home game. And Oakland is also dead last in payroll, spending around $20 million less than the closest team, the Pittsburgh Pirates, and nearly $250 million less than the league’s top spender, the New York Mets.
A’s fans deserve to have some joy in their lives. Hopefully young Jacob Wilson can provide it. Baseball is in his blood after all. His father Jack was also a major league shortstop. Jack Wilson played for three teams over his 12-year career from 2001-2012. He made the All-Star team and won a Silver Slugger award as a member of the Pittsburgh Pirates in 2004.
Twenty years later, his son will make his MLB debut. For the sake of the Oakland A’s franchise and its fans, let’s hope it’s a memorable one. If his stint in the minors is any indication, Wilson should have a long, storied career.
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