Biography

Born in Baytown, Texas, Wilson attended Channelview High School and Sam Houston State University.

Wilson was selected in the 1st round (18th pick) of the 1980 amateur draft by the Tigers. He made his major league debut on April 15, 1982. He played two seasons for the Tigers, and then was traded on March 24, 1984 along with John Wockenfuss to the Philadelphia Phillies for Willie Hernández and Dave Bergman.

Wilson was best known for his strong throwing arm, and he led all National League outfielders for assists in 1985, 1986, and 1987, throwing out 18 and 20 base-runners from right field, respectively. In 1987, Wilson three times threw out base runners who attempted to reach first base after apparent singles into right field. His most successful season as a batter was in 1985, when he drove in 102 runs, and recorded 167 base hits with 14 home runs in 608 at bats for a .275 batting average. He was selected as a National League All-Star in 1985. On August 5, 1987 he pitched in the bottom on the 8th inning in a game against the New York Mets when the Phillies ran out of relief pitchers and manager Lee Elia put him on the mound. In the only pitching appearance of his career, he struck out Howard Johnson.

On September 15, 1988, Wilson hit two home runs off Randy Johnson, the first two homers ever surrendered by Johnson. At the start of the following season, Wilson again tagged Johnson for a homer.

Wilson owned and operated a gas station in Conroe, Texas. From 2004 to 2006, he was a manager in independent minor league baseball for the Coastal Bend Aviators of the Central Baseball League and the Chillicothe Paints of the Frontier League. He released his autobiography, co-written with Darrell Halk and titled Headed Home: A MLB All-Star's Search for Truth, in 2012.

According to writer-director Richard Linklater, the Glen McReynolds character (played by Tyler Hoechlin) in the 2016 film Everybody Wants Some!! is based on Wilson, who was the filmmaker's teammate at Sam Houston State.

[ Source: Wikipedia ]