The Athletics are set to begin spring training with a relatively exciting young roster. One of the young talents to keep an eye on is shortstop Jacob Wilson. During an interview, Wilson revealed which All-Star player he looked up to before reaching the Majors.

During a guest appearance on “Foul Territory,” the 23-year-old infielder revealed that he looked up to his father, Jack Wilson, in the early years of his life, and then in high school and college, Wilson looked up to Dansby Swanson. Swanson, who is only 32 years old, is still currently playing in MLB with the Chicago Cubs.

“Growing up, it was a lot of my dad,” said Wilson. “He was just dad when I went to the baseball field pretty much every day. Once he retired and I started getting into, like, high school and college and stuff, a guy that I loved watching back in Vanderbilt was Dansby Swanson. That was a guy that I looked up to, you know, as a high school kid coming up.

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“I wanted to go to Vanderbilt just because of [Swanson],” continued Wilson… “I got to talk for the first time when I called up, and he's great… I actually got to tour the Cubs' place back in college when I was taking the tours before the draft. I got to talk to him, and it was awesome getting to talk to him. He's a guy I really looked up to in high school and college.”

Jacob Wilson is entering his third season in MLB. He flashed major potential in 2025, ending the campaign with a .311 batting average and .355 OBP. Wilson also recorded 151 hits, 13 home runs, and 63 RBIs through 486 at-bats.