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Brock Wilken
Milwaukee Brewers – No. 90
Third baseman
Born: (2002-06-17) June 17, 2002 (age 21)
Albuquerque, New Mexico, U.S.
Bats: Right
Throws: Right

Brock Caleb Wilken (born June 17, 2002) is an American professional baseball third baseman in the Milwaukee Brewers organization.

Amateur career

Wilken attended Bloomingdale High School located in Valrico, Florida. [1] As a junior in 2019, he batted .468 with 12 home runs and 26 RBIs over 25 games. [2] [3] His senior season in 2020 was cut short due to the COVID-19 pandemic, but he still hit four home runs over eight games. [4]

After not being selected in the 2020 Major League Baseball draft, Wilken enrolled at Wake Forest University and instantly became their starting third baseman as a freshman in 2021. [5] Over 47 starts, he slashed .279/.365/.617 with 17 home runs, a team-high 44 RBIs, and 41 runs scored. [6] His 17 home runs were most by a Wake Forest freshman ever. [7] After the season, he played collegiate summer baseball with the Harwich Mariners of the Cape Cod Baseball League, [8] [9] and was named the league's Most Valuable Player after batting .302 with six home runs and 26 RBIs over 38 games. [10] As a sophomore in 2022, Wilken appeared in sixty games and batted .272 with 23 home runs and 77 RBIs. [11] He returned to play for Harwich that summer, and was named a league all-star. [12] [13] [14] He was chosen to try out for the USA Baseball National Collegiate Team, but was not selected. [15] He entered the 2023 season as a top prospect for the upcoming MLB draft.

Professional career

Wilken was selected by the Milwaukee Brewers in the first round with the 18th overall pick in the 2023 Major League Baseball draft. He signed with the Brewers on July 17, 2023 for $3,150,000. [16] Wilken played for the rookie–level Arizona Complex League Brewers, High–A Wisconsin Timber Rattlers, and Double–A Biloxi Shuckers, accumulating a .285/.414/.473 batting line with five home runs, 29 RBI, and four stolen bases across 47 total games. [17]

Wilken began the 2024 season back with Biloxi. On April 11, 2024, Wilken suffered multiple facial fractures after he was hit in the face by a pitch from Mississippi Braves reliever Domingo Gonzalez. [18]

References

  1. ^ Page, Rodney (May 3, 2019). "What's with all the power hitters in Tampa Bay this season?". Tampa Bay Times.
  2. ^ Nahas, Nick (July 17, 2019). "Bloomingdale Baseball Catcher Brock Wilken Has Historic Season". Osprey Observer.
  3. ^ Page, Rodney (February 21, 2020). "High school baseball players to keep an eye on in Tampa Bay". Tampa Bay Times.
  4. ^ Guthrie, Jarrett (20 May 2020). "Wilken, Minacci, Centala, Lee, DeVito head area FACA 2020 honorees". 813 Preps.
  5. ^ Healy, Joe (February 19, 2021). "Freshman Brock Wilken Delivers Win For Wake Forest". Baseball America.
  6. ^ Smart, Bradley (February 1, 2022). "2022 Atlantic Coast Conference College Baseball Preview". Baseball America.
  7. ^ Cavadi, Wayne (July 20, 2021). "9 of the hottest hitters in the Cape Cod Baseball League, right now". NCAA.com.
  8. ^ "#25 Brock Wilken". pointstreak.com. Retrieved June 25, 2023.
  9. ^ Cole, Adam (July 19, 2021). "Cape League: Wilken's night highlights impressive season at the plate". Cape Cod Times.
  10. ^ Joyal, Brad (August 11, 2021). "Mariners Third Baseman Wilken Crowned Cape League MVP". Cape Cod Chronicle.
  11. ^ "Five Players to Watch This Summer". www.capecodbaseball.org.
  12. ^ "#25 Brock Wilken". pointstreak.com. Retrieved June 25, 2023.
  13. ^ "Wake Forest Baseball Summer Assignments". DemonDeaconDigest.com.
  14. ^ "Reigning Cape League MVP Wilken Back In Harwich For Limited Time". Cape Cod Chronicle.
  15. ^ "Wilken, Santucci Bolster Mariners After Team USA Tryout". Cape Cod Chronicle.
  16. ^ "Brewers ink top 2 Draft picks, Wilken and Knoth". MLB.com. July 17, 2023. Retrieved July 17, 2023.
  17. ^ "Brock Wilken - Stats - Batting". fangraphs.com. Retrieved April 26, 2024.
  18. ^ "Brewers' Brock Wilken, 2023 first-round pick, suffers facial fractures after being hit by pitch". cbssports.com. Retrieved April 26, 2024.

External links