Weston Wilson had a memorable moment when he became the first rookie in Philadelphia Phillies history to hit for the cycle. Phillies fans helped him remember the hit he needed by chanting “Double! Double!” during his at-bat. Bryce Harper also gave him a helpful tip.
“Harper was at the top stop letting me know,” Wilson said, laughing. “If you hit it, keep running. Don’t stop until second.”
With the Phillies leading comfortably, Wilson hit a ball to right field that was almost caught by Washington’s right fielder, Alex Call. Call’s diving attempt came up short, and the ball hit his glove and rolled toward center field, allowing Wilson to follow Harper’s advice.
Wilson raced to second base, becoming the first rookie in Phillies history to hit for the cycle.
His teammates celebrated wildly in the dugout and slapped the railing, while former Phillie John Kruk gave him a standing ovation from the stands where he was calling the game. The fans who stayed for the 13-3 win got to witness this special achievement.
Wilson said, “I thought it was more in the gap. I saw him closing in and I was like, ‘You’ve got to be kidding.’ I saw it trickle out and, fortunately, he didn’t catch it.”
With his pregnant wife cheering from the stands — they are expecting a boy on September 1 — Wilson hit a triple and a single in the fourth inning, homered in the seventh, and became the ninth Phillies player to hit for the cycle.
Wilson achieved the 10th cycle in Phillies history. Chuck Klein had done it twice. He is the first player to hit for the cycle at Citizens Bank Park since David Bell in 2004 and the first Phillies player to do so since catcher J.T. Realmuto in 2023.
Batting eighth, Wilson joined other players who have hit for the cycle this season, including Texas Rangers outfielder Wyatt Langford, Houston Astros designated hitter Yordan Alvarez, and Miami Marlins infielder Xavier Edwards.
The 29-year-old Wilson started in left field against Nationals’ left-handed pitcher Mitchell Parker, showing that manager Rob Thomson is comfortable giving Wilson more chances to bat against lefties than outfielder Brandon Marsh.
If Wilson continues to perform like this, he should get plenty of playing time for the NL East leaders.
“He can run the bases, he can steal a base. He’s got a lot of qualities,” Thomson said. One of those qualities is delivering in key moments, especially against Washington.
Wilson played 706 games in the minors before being called up last season. He homered in his first major league at-bat against the Nationals, though he was overshadowed by Michael Lorenzen’s no-hitter in Lorenzen’s first home start with the Phillies.
Even with Alec Bohm and Nick Castellanos hitting home runs, Wilson’s performance was the highlight of the game.
MLB is taking his cleats, bats, and most of his gear, but not his batting gloves.
“I don’t know what they’re doing with it,” Wilson said. “I’m going to have to figure it out.”
Wilson, who was picked by the Milwaukee Brewers in the 17th round of the 2016 draft, did manage to get a few extra bases due to Washington’s defense. He hit his first major league triple off the right field wall, and the ball rolled so far past Call that the second baseman had to retrieve it.
“I kind of had a trip up around second base and almost ate it a little bit,” Wilson said. “I didn’t see the ball coming back toward me because of the videoboard. I thought he was right on the ball. I was taking a direct line to second base. As I was further out, I saw him coming out for the ball and that’s when I took off.”
Wilson began the season in Triple-A and hasn’t played much since his second call-up in July. He was batting .273 with two home runs and six RBIs in 15 games. Since being recalled from Lehigh Valley on July 12, he’s batting .414 (12 for 29) in his last eight starts.