Adam Robert Wilk (born December 9, 1987) is an American former professional
baseball
Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each, taking turns batting and fielding. The game occurs over the course of several plays, with each play generally beginning when a player on the fielding tea ...
pitcher
In baseball, the pitcher is the player who throws ("pitches") the baseball from the pitcher's mound toward the catcher to begin each play, with the goal of retiring a batter, who attempts to either make contact with the pitched ball or draw ...
. He previously played in
Major League Baseball
Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball organization and the oldest major professional sports league in the world. MLB is composed of 30 total teams, divided equally between the National League (NL) and the American League (AL), ...
(MLB) for the
Detroit Tigers
The Detroit Tigers are an American professional baseball team based in Detroit. The Tigers compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member of the American League (AL) Central division. One of the AL's eight charter franchises, the club was f ...
,
Los Angeles of Anaheim,
New York Mets
The New York Mets are an American professional baseball team based in the New York City borough of Queens. The Mets compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member of the National League (NL) East division. They are one of two major league ...
, and
Minnesota Twins
The Minnesota Twins are an American professional baseball team based in Minneapolis. The Twins compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Central Division. The team is named after the Twin Cities area w ...
as well as in the
KBO League
The KBO League (), officially the Shinhan Bank SOL KBO League, is the highest level league of baseball in South Korea. The KBO League was founded with six franchises in 1982 and is the most popular sports league in South Korea. The Kia Tigers ar ...
with the
NC Dinos
The NC Dinos ( ko, NC 다이노스) are a South Korean professional baseball team based in Changwon. They are a member of the KBO League. Since 2019, their home stadium is Changwon NC Park. NC Dinos are owned by video game developer NCSoft Corpo ...
.
Amateur career
Wilk graduated from
Cypress High School
Cypress High School is a public high school in the city of Cypress, California. It was founded in 1973 and serves grades 9 through 12. Cypress is one of eight high schools in the Anaheim Union High School District (AUHSD).
History
Cypress was fir ...
in
Cypress, California
Cypress is a city in northwestern Orange County within Southern California. Its population was 50,151 at the 2020 census.
History
The first people living in the area now known as Cypress were the Gabrieleno, a Native American tribe of the Ton ...
, then attended
Long Beach State
California State University, Long Beach (CSULB) is a public research university in Long Beach, California. The 322-acre campus is the second largest of the 23-school California State University system (CSU) and one of the largest universities i ...
, and in 2007 played for the
Newport Gulls
The Newport Gulls are a wooden-bat, collegiate summer baseball team based in Newport, Rhode Island. The Newport Gulls Baseball Club is a member of both the New England Collegiate Baseball League and the NECBL's Coastal Division. Since 2001, the Gu ...
of the
NECBL. He still holds the team records for lowest opponent batting average (.153) and fewest hits allowed (25). In 2008, he played
collegiate summer baseball
Collegiate summer baseball leagues are amateur baseball leagues in the United States and Canada featuring players who have attended at least one year of college and have at least one year of athletic eligibility remaining. Generally, they operat ...
with the
Orleans Cardinals
The Orleans Firebirds, formerly the Orleans Cardinals, are a collegiate summer baseball team based in Orleans, Massachusetts. The team is a member of the Cape Cod Baseball League (CCBL) and plays in the league's East Division. The Firebirds play ...
of the
Cape Cod Baseball League
The Cape Cod Baseball League (CCBL or Cape League) is a collegiate summer baseball wooden bat league located on Cape Cod in the U.S. state of Massachusetts. One of the nation's premier collegiate summer leagues, the league boasts over one thousan ...
and was named a league all-star.
Professional career
Detroit Tigers
The Detroit Tigers called Wilk up to the majors for the first time on May 24, 2011 when
Phil Coke
Phillip Douglas Coke (born July 19, 1982) is an American former professional baseball pitcher. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the New York Yankees, Detroit Tigers, Chicago Cubs, Toronto Blue Jays, and Pittsburgh Pirates.
Baseball c ...
was placed on the 15-day disabled list with a bone bruise in his right foot.
On May 26, 2011, Wilk made his major league debut against the
Boston Red Sox
The Boston Red Sox are an American professional baseball team based in Boston. The Red Sox compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East division. Founded in as one of the American League's eight ...
, relieving
Max Scherzer
Maxwell Martin Scherzer (born July 27, 1984) is an American professional baseball pitcher for the New York Mets of Major League Baseball (MLB). He previously played in MLB for the Arizona Diamondbacks, Detroit Tigers, Washington Nationals, and L ...
in the middle of the third inning. He pitched 3.2 innings, gave up one unearned run, struck out four batters, two hits, and one walk.
On May 28, 2011, Wilk was optioned to Triple-A
Toledo to make room for recently acquired
David Purcey
David Kent Purcey (born April 22, 1982) is an American former professional baseball pitcher. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Toronto Blue Jays, Oakland Athletics, Detroit Tigers and Chicago White Sox.
Amateur career
Purcey attend ...
.
NC Dinos
On December 19, 2012, Wilk's contact was sold by the Tigers to the Korean
NC Dinos
The NC Dinos ( ko, NC 다이노스) are a South Korean professional baseball team based in Changwon. They are a member of the KBO League. Since 2019, their home stadium is Changwon NC Park. NC Dinos are owned by video game developer NCSoft Corpo ...
.
He signed a minor league deal with the
Pittsburgh Pirates
The Pittsburgh Pirates are an American professional baseball team based in Pittsburgh. The Pirates compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) Central division. Founded as part of the American Associati ...
on December 18, 2013.
Los Angeles Angels
Wilk signed a minor league deal with the
Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim
The Los Angeles Angels are an American professional baseball team based in the Los Angeles metropolitan area. The Angels compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) West division. Since 1966, the team ha ...
on December 5, 2014. He was designated for assignment on July 25, 2015.
Tampa Bay Rays
The
Tampa Bay Rays
The Tampa Bay Rays are an American professional baseball team based in St. Petersburg, Florida. The Rays compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League East, East division. Since its inception ...
signed Wilk to a minor league contract on January 19, 2016. Wilk spent the 2016 season pitching for the
Durham Bulls
The Durham Bulls are a Minor League Baseball team of the International League and the Triple-A affiliate of the Tampa Bay Rays. They are located in Durham, North Carolina, and play their home games at Durham Bulls Athletic Park, which opened in ...
. He entered free agency on November 7, 2016.
New York Mets
On January 12, 2017, Wilk signed a minor league contract with the
New York Mets
The New York Mets are an American professional baseball team based in the New York City borough of Queens. The Mets compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member of the National League (NL) East division. They are one of two major league ...
and was invited to
spring training
Spring training is the preseason in Major League Baseball (MLB), a series of practices and exhibition games preceding the start of the regular season. Spring training allows new players to try out for Schedule (workplace), roster and position spo ...
. He was called up to the Mets on May 7, and designated for assignment on May 8.
Minnesota Twins
The
Minnesota Twins
The Minnesota Twins are an American professional baseball team based in Minneapolis. The Twins compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Central Division. The team is named after the Twin Cities area w ...
claimed Wilk on waivers on May 10, 2017. He was designated for assignment on May 27, 2017,
and outrighted to Triple-A two days later. On June 18, Wilk was again designated for assignment. He was released four days later.
Cleveland Indians
On January 20, 2018, Wilk signed a minor league deal with the
Cleveland Indians
The Cleveland Guardians are an American professional baseball team based in Cleveland. The Guardians compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Central division. Since , they have played at Progressive F ...
. He elected free agency on November 3, 2018.
Personal life
Wilk was noted for his community involvement while with the Toledo Mud Hens. In the 2012–2013 offseason, he began his own non-profit organization, the Adam Wilk Foundation.
References
External links
Career statistics and player informationfrom
Korea Baseball Organization
The Korea Baseball Organization (KBO; ko, 한국야구위원회) is the governing body for the professional leagues of baseball in South Korea. The KBO was founded in 1981 and has governed two leagues: the KBO League ( ko, KBO 리그) and KBO ...
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Wilk, Adam
1987 births
Living people
Detroit Tigers players
NC Dinos players
Los Angeles Angels players
New York Mets players
Minnesota Twins players
Long Beach State Dirtbags baseball players
Orleans Firebirds players
Oneonta Tigers players
West Michigan Whitecaps players
Lakeland Flying Tigers players
Erie SeaWolves players
Toledo Mud Hens players
Salt Lake Bees players
Indianapolis Indians players
Major League Baseball pitchers
Baseball players from Anaheim, California
KBO League pitchers
American expatriate baseball players in South Korea
Durham Bulls players
Las Vegas 51s players
Rochester Red Wings players
Columbus Clippers players