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| Dan Wilson | |||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
.jpg) Wilson with theCotuit Kettleers in 1988 | |||||||||||||||
| Seattle Mariners – No. 6 | |||||||||||||||
| Catcher/Manager | |||||||||||||||
| Born: (1969-03-25)March 25, 1969 (age 56) Barrington, Illinois, U.S. | |||||||||||||||
Batted: Right Threw: Right | |||||||||||||||
| MLB debut | |||||||||||||||
| September 7, 1992, for the Cincinnati Reds | |||||||||||||||
| Last MLB appearance | |||||||||||||||
| September 30, 2005, for the Seattle Mariners | |||||||||||||||
| MLB statistics | |||||||||||||||
| Batting average | .262 | ||||||||||||||
| Home runs | 88 | ||||||||||||||
| Runs batted in | 519 | ||||||||||||||
| Managerial record | 111–85 | ||||||||||||||
| Winning % | .566 | ||||||||||||||
Stats atBaseball Reference  | |||||||||||||||
| Teams | |||||||||||||||
| As player As manager
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| Career highlights and awards | |||||||||||||||
Medals
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Daniel Allen Wilson (born March 25, 1969) is an American former professionalbaseball player and current manager of theSeattle Mariners ofMajor League Baseball (MLB). He played in MLB as acatcher from1992 through2005, playing for the Mariners for 12 of his 14 seasons. Wilson began his career with theCincinnati Reds before being traded in late 1993 to the Mariners, where he was regarded as a good defensive catcher. At the time he retired in 2005, Wilson held theAmerican League record for careerfielding percentage by a catcher. In 2012, Wilson was inducted into theSeattle Mariners Hall of Fame alongside hisbattery-mate,Randy Johnson.
Wilson became the Mariners' manager after the team firedScott Servais on August 22, 2024. Wilson led the team to a division title in his first full season as manager.
Wilson led hisBarrington, Illinois Little League team to a third-place finish in the1981 Little League World Series. AtBarrington High School, he starred as a pitcher, with a 27–1 win–loss record his final two seasons, and catcher. He was selected in the 26th round of the1987 MLB draft by theNew York Mets. Wilson did not sign, electing to playcollege baseball.[1][2]
At theUniversity of Minnesota, Wilson pitched in anNCAA Tournament Regional game his first year in 1988, also batting .347 for the season.[3] That summer, he playedsummer baseball with theCotuit Kettleers of theCape Cod Baseball League.[4] After that summer, he gave up pitching, since he preferred playing catcher and playing every day.[5] In 1989, he was named to the second-team All-Big Ten Conference team with Minnesota, then played for theU.S. Collegiate National Team in the summer, batting .325 in 30 games.[3][6] In his junior season, Wilson batted .370 and was a first-teamAll-American. Following his playing career, Wilson was inducted into theGolden Gophers' Hall of Fame in 2008.[3]
Wilson was selected in the first round of the1990 MLB draft, seventh overall, by theCincinnati Reds.[7] He signed in time to play 32 games with theCharleston Wheelers of theSouth Atlantic League.[8] He returned to Charleston to open the 1991 season,batting .315 in 52 games before earning a promotion toDouble-AChattanooga.[8] He started the 1992 season withNashville in theTriple-AAmerican Association, batting .251 in 106 games there before earning a promotion to the major leagues at age 23 on September 7.[8] Two days later, he hit a single offTom Glavine for his first MLB hit.[9]
Wilson made the Reds'Opening Day roster in 1993, backing upJoe Oliver. He returned to Triple-A with the new Reds A affiliate, theIndianapolis Indians in July.[9][10] In parts of two seasons with Cincinnati, he batted .257 with 11 RBI in 48 games.[11]
Following the1993 season, the Reds traded Wilson and pitcherBobby Ayala to theSeattle Mariners for second basemanBret Boone and pitcherErik Hanson. The Mariners made the trade to dump Hanson's salary and add two prospects.[12] Wilson made the Mariners' roster out ofspring training in1994 and became an established major-league player, replacingDave Valle as the M's primary catcher.[13] In his first game, he picked off a stumblingManny Ramirez at second base.[14] In his rookie season, Wilson struggled at the plate, batting .216, but he showed signs of his defensive ability with a .986 fielding percentage. That was the lowest fielding percentage he would have as the Mariners' primary catcher. The1995 season went better for him; he played 119 games, batting .278 and raising his fielding percentage to .995, as the Mariners won theAmerican League (AL) West division for the first time in franchise history.[11][15] In his first postseason, Wilson batted 2-for-33, going hitless in sixAL Championship Series games.[16]
Wilson hit threehome runs on April 11, 1996 in Detroit.[17] That July, he made his onlyAll-Star Game. In the1996 season, Wilson set career highs with 146 games played, 18 home runs, 83runs batted in, and a .774on-base plus slugging.[11][9] He was also featured in the team's television commercials.[18]
Wilson signed a two-year, $6.55 million contract extension in April 1997, lasting through the 1999 season.[19] He was thebattery-mate for Mariners pitcherRandy Johnson on June 24, when Johnson struck out 19 batters in a game against theOakland Athletics, just onestrikeout less than themajor league single-game record of 20 strikeouts in a 9 inning game.[20] Several weeks later on August 8, Johnson, again throwing to Wilson, struck out 19Chicago White Sox batters.[21] In 1997, he excelled against left-handed pitching, with a .657slugging percentage, one of the best in the majors.[22][9] In Wilson and his team's second playoff appearance, he extended his postseason hitless streak to 10 games as the Mariners lost in theAL Division Series.[16]
On May 3, 1998, Wilson hit aninside-the-parkgrand slam, an unusual feat for any ballplayer, especially for a catcher.[23][24] That July, he tore ligaments in his left ankle while chasing after apassed ball, sending him to thedisabled list for the first time in his career.[25]
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Wilson remained a dependable receiver for Mariners pitchers over the next several seasons. In 2000, Wilson's numbers declined to a .235 batting average and .990 fielding percentage; he was also limited to 90 games as a result of injuries.[11][26] That postseason, he batted 1-for-14, snapping his 0-for-42 postseason slump in the final loss to theNew York Yankees in theAL Championship Series.[16][27] However, he regained his form in 2001, playing 123 games (122 at catcher) and posting a .265 batting average and a .999 fielding percentage, making 1 error all season.[11] In his final playoffs, he batted .179 with a double, his only career postseason extra base hit.[16] He hit career-best .295 in 115 games for the Mariners in 2002. After that season, he signed a two-year, $7 million extension with Seattle.[28] He had a .998 fielding percentage over 96 games in 2003, batting .241 after beginning season on the injured list. In his last full, healthy season, he batted .251 with 33 RBI in 2004.[11][9]
Before the2005 season,Miguel Olivo replaced Wilson as Seattle's starting catcher.[29] On May 4, Wilson suffered atorn ACL in his right knee during a game against theLos Angeles Angels of Anaheim. He had considered retiring after the 2005 season,[30] and he announced his retirement, effective at the end of the season, on September 12.[31][32] Although a torn ACL commonly keeps athletes sidelined for most of a season, Wilson spent most of the rest of the season rehabilitating his knee and was activated from thedisabled list on September 30. He came back for one final inning that night against theOakland Athletics; he had not recovered enough to swing a bat, but he was able to crouch and throw. The Mariners' starting pitcher that night wasJamie Moyer, whom Wilson had caught for 190 previous starts dating back to 1996. Moyer pitched to five batters in the inning, which ended whenBobby Kielty flied out to center field, and held Oakland scoreless. Wilson was pulled after catching Moyer's warmup pitches in the top of the second inning. Moyer pitched seven more innings, and the Mariners won, 4–1.[33][34][35]
In a 14-year major league career, Wilson played in 1,299games, with a .262 batting average, 88home runs and 519runs batted in.[11] He had a .995fielding percentage, which at the time was the highest for a catcher inAmerican League (AL) history and the sixth highest in major league history.[31][36] Wilson led AL catchers twice each in fielding percentage,putouts, baserunnerscaught stealing, andrange factor.[11]
Wilson set an AL record for catchers with 1,051putouts in 1997, the third highest season total for a catcher in major league history at the time.[37] His 1,128total chances in 1997 were an AL record and second-most in major league history at the time.[38] In 2001, Wilson committed only oneerror in 122 games, for a .9987 fielding percentage.[39] He holds many Mariners record for catchers, including games played, hits, and RBI.[40][41]
On January 17, 2012, Wilson was named to theMariners Hall of Fame and formally inducted that July.[40][42][43]
Beginning in 2012, Wilson was a color commentator for Mariners games onRoot Sports. Notably, along withDave Sims, Wilson called the game on August 15, 2012 whenFélix Hernández pitched thefirst perfect game in Mariners' history. He was also broadcasting on Root Sports on June 8, 2012 when six Mariners' pitchers combined for a no-hitter.[44]
On November 3, 2013, the Mariners announced that Wilson would become the team's minor league catching coordinator.[45]
On August 22, 2024, Wilson was hired as the Mariners manager after the team firedScott Servais the same day.[46][44] On September 26, the Mariners were eliminated from postseason contention.[47]
In 2025, Wilson led the Mariners to theAmerican League West division title.[48] This was the first first-place finish for Seattle since 2001, when Wilson was the Mariners' primary catcher.[49] The Mariners defeated the Detroit Tigers 3–2 in the ALDS.[50] The2025 Mariners lost in seven games in theAmerican League Championship Series, the same postseason result as the2001 team.[51]
| Team | Year | Regular season | Postseason | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Games | Won | Lost | Win % | Finish | Won | Lost | Win % | Result | ||
| SEA | 2024 | 34 | 21 | 13 | .618 | 2nd in AL West | – | – | – | |
| SEA | 2025 | 162 | 90 | 72 | .556 | 1st in AL West | 6 | 6 | .500 | LostALCS (TOR) |
| Total | 196 | 111 | 85 | .566 | 6 | 6 | .500 | |||
Wilson is married and has four children. His son Elijah is also a professional catcher, playing in Triple-A in several seasons in thePittsburgh Pirates minor league system after also playing for the Golden Gophers.[1][52]
Growing up, Wilson's favorite player wasJohnny Bench, who predated Wilson as a catcher for the Reds.[1] In high school, Wilson was an all-statehockey goaltender and the quarterback of the football team.[9]
· Baseball Almanac
