SB Nation - Jack Wilson

Atlanta Braves News: Jack Wilson Strains Calf; What Does It Mean For Opening Day Roster?

Scott Coleman — Fri, 24 Feb 2012 19:21:30 -0000

The Atlanta Braves are not off to a stellar start to begin Spring Training in regards to injuries, seeing as both Tommy Hanson and Jack Wilson will miss some time due to a concussion and calf strain, respectively. While Hanson should be able to return to the mound in a few days, Wilson will likely miss 4-to-6 weeks, which means he will probably begin the season on the 15-day disabled list.

So what does this mean for the Braves?

The loss of Wilson for a few games is not a huge deal, assuming Tyler Pastornicky, who projects to be the starting shortstop, stays healthy. The club has enough off-days in the early going and should be able to avoid giving Pastornicky any days off. At the latest, Wilson should be back by the end of April, giving Fredi Gonzalez his best backup option off the bench.

Brandon Hicks has been with the organization for years and is capable of serving as a backup option. It is likely that Hicks will be given every chance to succeed in Spring Training and is the odds-on favorite to land the job for Opening Day. Drew Sutton, a non-roster invitee to camp, could also steal the job away for a few weeks with a very strong showing in Spring Training.

Pirates Aren't Developing Good Shortstops, But Why?

Charlie Wilmoth — Thu, 23 Feb 2012 15:40:42 -0000

Rj.reynolds at Bucs Dugout looks at the Pirates' troubles developing a quality shortstop. This is a problem that goes back years -- the Pirates' best shortstops of the past 20 years, Jay Bell and Jack Wilson, were acquired via trades. But essentially, it's a complex problem that ultimately has a lot to do with the Pirates' failures in Latin America.

If you take a look at the top 14 shortstops in 2011 according to Fangraphs WAR, nine were signed out of Latin America. Of the top 20 shortstops since 2008, according to that metric, half are Latin American signings.

As noted above, we've seen some international shortstop signings since 2008 when the Pirates finally started taking Latin America seriously. But it will take the Pirates a while to make up the ground they have to cover to catch up with teams who've made Latin America a priority for years.

Under Dave Littlefield, the Pirates didn't do much of anything in Latin America, so the Pirates' failure to produce a good shortstop prospect in that time is, in a way, no accident. Under Neal Huntington, the Bucs have made Latin American talent a priority, and there are now a number of relatively interesting young shortstops in the minors. Unfortunately, since Latin American prospects sign at very young ages, they mostly take a very long time to develop.

Jack Wilson, Braves Agree To Terms, As Former Pirates Shortstop Heads South

Charlie Wilmoth — Fri, 13 Jan 2012 23:10:53 -0000

The Braves have agreed to terms with Jack Wilson, who will receive $1 million and a possible $500,000 in incentives. He will likely serve as a backup infielder, as Atlanta will likely go with youngster Tyler Pastornicky as their starting shortstop.

Wilson, of course, was the Pirates' starting shortstop throughout most of the 2001 through 2007 seasons. He vanished in a haze of injuries and decline after being traded to the Seattle Mariners in 2009, but by the end of his Pirates tenure, he was one of the best defensive shortstops in baseball, and he may still be able to help as a utility player and defensive specialist. He shouldn't be mistaken for a starter at this point, however, so the Braves are still showing a great deal of faith in Pastornicky, who hasn't yet played in the majors and wasn't a top hitter in the minors.

For more on the Braves, check out Talking Chop. For more on the Pirates, there's Bucs Dugout.

Matt Kemp, Shane Victorino, And Jair Jurrjens: A Look At 'Non-Trades'

Charlie Wilmoth — Fri, 22 Jul 2011 12:01:17 -0000

Grant Brisbee latest article at Baseball Nation, a look at prominent "non-trades" from 2007, is, as usual, a lot of fun. One set of rumors focuses on Shane Victorino for one of a number of mediocre starters (Joe Kennedy, Kyle Lohse and Steve Trachsel). The Phillies, though, weren't having any of that.

The Pirates figure heavily in one of these five non-trades, which makes sense if you remember that former Bucs GM Dave Littlefield was the guy who turned down Ryan Howard for Kris Benson. This one involves the possibility of dealing Ian Snell for Matt Kemp. I'm not sure whether this deal would have been possible for the Pirates, but I do know that around this time and in 2008, there were clear rumblings coming out of Los Angeles that the Dodgers didn't like Kemp very much, and on my Pirates blog, Bucs Dugout, I was ranting and raving practically on a daily basis about how the Pirates should try to swing a deal for Kemp. Maybe the Dodgers liked him more than they let on, because they never traded him.

One 2007 "non-trade" I'm pretty sure the Pirates could have done and didn't was Jair Jurrjens for Jack Wilson. Jurrjens was a prospect in the Detroit Tigers system, and there were reports at the time that the Tigers had offered him and another prospect for Wilson, and Littlefield said no, perhaps because he also needed to have the immortal Craig Monroe. Instead, they dealt Jurrjens and Gorkys Hernandez (yes, the current Pirates prospect) to the Atlanta Braves for Edgar Renteria. Whoops. Jurrjens currently has a 2.26 ERA for the Braves.

Larry Bernandez Shirts Invade Seattle Mariners Clubhouse, Thanks To Jack Wilson

Brian Floyd — Thu, 02 Jun 2011 23:18:30 -0000

The Seattle Mariners have embraced their inner Larry Bernandez with a little help from Jack Wilson. According to Ryan Divish, reporter extraordinaire for the Tacoma News Tribune, Wilson bought Bernandez shirts for each and every Mariner.

Here is the picture Divish tweeted, which shows brand new Nike-made Bernandez shirts.

Where, oh where, have I seen these before. Oh, that's right! Seth Kolloen made Larry Bernandez shirts a few months ago. Personally, I like the design he came up with better -- there's a bit more detail and the old-school Mariners hat is featured.

We can probably expect to see quite a few players strolling around with Bernandez on their chest from now on, and I'd expect these shirts to be on the backs of fans on the double. Between Larry Bernandez bobblehead night -- yes, it is happening, thanks to the voice of the fans on Twitter -- and these shirts, the Mariners seem to have adopted Felix Hernandez's lovable alter-ego as a mascot this year.

Jack Wilson ... Catcher?

Brian Floyd — Tue, 31 May 2011 22:21:05 -0000

I thought nothing of what seemed to be an innocuous tweet from Christian Caple of the Seattle PI ahead of Tuesday night's Seattle Mariners game. Jack Wilson took the field early and was wearing catcher's gear, which made me wonder if he was just goofing around or wanted to wrap himself in as much protective gear as possible to prevent injury. Turns out Wilson may actually be practicing to catch for real, though only in an emergency role.

MLB writer Greg Johns fills in the blanks and wonders if Wilson may have himself a new job.

New twist in #Mariners early work. Jack Wilson wearing catcher's gear, warming up with Chris Gimenez. New emergency catcher?less than a minute ago via TweetDeck Favorite Retweet ReplyGreg Johns
GregJohnsMLB

In case of emergency, break Jack Wilson. I'm sure he could operate behind the dish in a limited role if both Miguel Olivo and Chris Gimenez go down, but boy would it be hilarious to watch. Wilson is a heck of an athlete, but imagining his in catcher's gear and handling the pitching staff makes me giggle.

Jack Wilson Committed A Cardinal Sin On Wednesday

Brian Floyd — Fri, 08 Apr 2011 22:58:29 -0000

Jack Wilson was mysteriously benched on Wednesday and the explanations that followed left much to be desired. Eric Wedge said Wilson's head was cloudy while Wilson himself said he wasn't injured, but his performance was unacceptable. So what was it? Well, Jack Wilson committed a cardinal sin and it has him on Wedge's bad side (via Ryan Divish).

Wedge said Jack Wilson asked to come out of Sunday's game. Called that attitude unacceptable.

Players will have bad days in the field or bad days at the plate. It happens. This is major league baseball, where players fail at times, but keep on pushing. Kevin Kouzmanoff couldn't field a ground ball to save his life in Oakland to start the year, yet wasn't begging to be pulled.

If there's one thing we know, Wedge is trying to change the attitude in the clubhouse. It's easy to see why Wilson's request has him, apparently, livid.

This may, in fact, be the end of Wilson's time in Seattle.

Jack Wilson Was Benched

Brian Floyd — Thu, 07 Apr 2011 00:47:53 -0000

Jack Wilson was benched, either because he was terrible at his job on Wednesday or because he was injured. Or, perhaps, Wilson was benched because he was injured, which caused him to be terrible at his job. Either way, it wasn't a good day to be Jack Wilson.