Weston Wilson becomes first Philadelphia rookie to score in single game

PHILADELPHIA — In case Philadelphia’s Weston Wilson needed a reminder of which strike he needed to complete the cycle — fans chanted “Double strike! Double strike!” as a loud signal for his strike — teammate Bryce Harper offered a helpful tip Thursday night.

“Harper was up there,” Wilson said with a laugh. “Stop and tell me. If you get hit, keep running. Don’t stop until you get to point two.”

With Philadelphia leading off a crushing defeat by the Washington Nationals, Wilson hit a ball to the right side of the field that right fielder Alex Cole almost caught. Cole missed the touchdown attempt, and the ball hit his glove and rolled toward center, giving Wilson the opportunity he needed to take advantage of his advice.

Wilson advanced to second in the 13-3 win, becoming the first rookie to accomplish the feat in Philadelphia Phillies history.

Wilson’s teammates on the field went crazy and slapped the fence – former Philly player John Kruk gave him a standing ovation from his spot in the stands commentating on the game – and the fans who stayed in the stadium were rewarded as witnesses to a piece of history.

“I thought the ball was in the gap,” Wilson said. “I saw him come in and I said, ‘You’ve got to be kidding.’ I saw the ball go outside, and luckily he didn’t catch it.”

With his pregnant wife cheering him on from the stands — they are expecting their baby on Sept. 1 — Wilson hit three home runs and struck out one in the fourth inning, then hit a home run in the seventh to become the ninth Phillies player to score a home run in this cycle.

Wilson hit the 10th home run in Philadelphia history — Chuck Klein has done it twice — and became the first home run player to accomplish the feat at Citizens Bank Park since David Bell in 2004. He was the first Philadelphia player to hit for the cycle since catcher JT Ralmotto in 2023.

After finishing eighth in the starting lineup, Wilson joins a full-rotation club in the major leagues already this season: Texas Rangers center fielder Wyatt Langford, Houston Astros designated hitter Yordan Alvarez and Miami Marlins outfielder Xavier Edwards have all achieved the feat.

The 29-year-old Wilson started in left field against Nationals left-hander Mitchell Parker, a sign that manager Rob Thompson is comfortable giving the center fielder more at-bats against lefties than he does center fielder Brandon Marsh.

With more games like this, Wilson should get plenty of playing time with the National League East leaders.

“He can run the bases, he can steal a base,” Thompson said. “He has a lot of attributes.”

One of them, he made a great performance at the crucial moment, especially against Washington.

Wilson played in 706 games in the minor leagues before being called up last season, and hit his first major league hit against the Nationals. He was outdueled by Michael Lorenzen in his first home run for Philadelphia.

Even in a game where Alec Bohm and Nick Castellanos shined, no one could steal the spotlight from Wilson.

However, MLB will take his shoes, bats and almost all of his equipment with him except Wilson’s gloves.

“I don’t know what they’re doing to him,” he said. “I’ll have to find out.”

Wilson, selected by the Milwaukee Brewers in the 17th round of the 2016 draft, managed to sneak in a few extra bases due to Washington’s defense. Wilson scored his first major league triple when he hit a hard ball off the right field wall, and the ball rolled away from Cole until the second baseman recovered it.

“I stumbled on the way to second base and almost lost the ball a little bit,” Wilson said. “I didn’t see the ball coming back to me because of the video board. I thought he was right on the ball. I was going straight to second base. As I was getting further away, I saw him come out for the ball and that’s where I took off.”

Wilson began the season in the third division and has not played much since being called up in July for the second time this season. He is batting at a .273 average with two home runs and six RBIs in 15 games. He is also batting at a .414 average (12-in-29) in his last eight games since being called up July 12 from Lehigh Valley.

“I just try to perform well every time I get the chance,” he said.

After a tournament, Wilson should expect a few more chances to help Philadelphia in their pursuit of the World Series.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.