Robert Louis Wilson (born April 8, 1983) 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 ...

catcher Catcher is a Baseball positions, position in baseball and softball. When a Batter (baseball), batter takes their at bat, turn to hit, the catcher crouches behind home plate, in front of the (home plate, home) Umpire (baseball), umpire, and recei ...

and current

coach Coach may refer to: Guidance/instruction * Coach (sport), a director of athletes' training and activities * Coaching, the practice of guiding an individual through a process ** Acting coach, a teacher who trains performers Transportation * Co ...

. He is the catching coordinator for the Texas Rangers of

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). He played in MLB for 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 ...

Arizona Diamondbacks The Arizona Diamondbacks (colloquially known as the D-backs) are an American professional baseball team based in Phoenix. The Diamondbacks compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) West division. The f ...

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 ...

, Texas Rangers,

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 ...

, and

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 ...

Amateur career

Originally from

Dunedin, Florida Dunedin is a city in Pinellas County, Florida, United States. The name comes from ''Dùn Èideann'', the Scottish Gaelic name for Edinburgh, the capital of Scotland. Dunedin is part of the Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater metropolitan area and is ...

, Wilson attended Seminole High School. At Seminole High, Wilson was part of a team that won the state and national championship and finished an undefeated 31-0. Wilson then attended

St. Petersburg College St. Petersburg College (SPC) is a public college in Pinellas County, Florida. It is part of the Florida College System and one of the institutions in the system designated a "state college," as it offers a greater number of bachelor's degrees th ...

St. Petersburg, Florida St. Petersburg is a city in Pinellas County, Florida, United States. As of the 2020 census, the population was 258,308, making it the fifth-most populous city in Florida and the second-largest city in the Tampa Bay Area, after Tampa. It is the ...

Professional career

Los Angeles Angeles of Anaheim

Wilson began the season for the

Salt Lake Bees The Salt Lake Bees are a Minor League Baseball team of the Pacific Coast League (PCL) and the Triple-A affiliate of the Los Angeles Angels. They are located in Salt Lake City, Utah, and play their home games at Smith's Ballpark. The ballpark op ...

, the Angels' Triple-A affiliate. He began the season hitting .339 in 16 games with no

home run In baseball, a home run (abbreviated HR) is scored when the ball is hit in such a way that the batter is able to circle the bases and reach home plate safely in one play without any errors being committed by the defensive team. A home run i ...

s and 12 RBI. On April 28, , Wilson was recalled by the major league club and made his major league debut on that same day against the

Oakland Athletics The Oakland Athletics (often referred to as the A's) are an American professional baseball team based in Oakland, California. The Athletics compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) West division. The te ...

. He came in as a defensive replacement for

Mike Napoli Mike may refer to: Animals * Mike (cat), cat and guardian of the British Museum * Mike the Headless Chicken, chicken that lived for 18 months after his head had been cut off * Mike (chimpanzee), a chimpanzee featured in several books and document ...

and in his first

at-bat In baseball, an at bat (AB) or time at bat is a batter's turn batting against a pitcher. An at bat is different from a plate appearance. A batter is credited with a plate appearance regardless of what happens during their turn at bat, but a bat ...

, hit a

single Single may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media * Single (music), a song release Songs * "Single" (Natasha Bedingfield song), 2004 * "Single" (New Kids on the Block and Ne-Yo song), 2008 * "Single" (William Wei song), 2016 * "Single", by ...

off

Dallas Braden Dallas Lee Braden (born August 13, 1983) is an American former professional baseball player and television sports commentator. He played in Major League Baseball as a left-handed pitcher from to as a member of the Oakland Athletics and, wh ...

. On April 23, 2010, while playing catcher for the Angels against the

New York Yankees The New York Yankees are an American professional baseball team based in the Boroughs of New York City, New York City borough of the Bronx. The Yankees compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Amer ...

, Wilson was involved in a head-on collision with

Mark Teixeira Mark Charles Teixeira ( ; born April 11, 1980), nicknamed "Tex", is an American former professional baseball first baseman who played 14 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Texas Rangers, Atlanta Braves, Los Angeles Angels of Anahei ...

, who was attempting to slide into home. Wilson was knocked away, injuring his head and ankle.

then came in and caught the remainder of the game. On July 27, 2011, Wilson caught

Ervin Santana Ervin Ramon Santana (born Johan Ramon Santana; December 12, 1982) is a Dominican professional baseball pitcher who is a free agent. He has previously played in MLB for the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim, Kansas City Royals (twice), Atlanta Braves ...

's no-hitter against 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 ...

, nearly two years after catching Sean O'Sullivan's no-hitter with Triple-A

on July 28, 2009.

Toronto Blue Jays

On October 22, 2012, Wilson was claimed off waivers by the

Toronto Blue Jays The Toronto Blue Jays are a Canadian professional baseball team based in Toronto. The Blue Jays compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East division. Since 1989, the team has played its home games ...

. Pitcher Chad Beck was designated for assignment to make room on the 40-man roster for Wilson. On November 30, the Blue Jays announced that they were not offering Wilson a contract for 2013, and he became a free agent.

New York Yankees

On December 13, 2012, the Yankees signed Wilson to a minor league contract with an invitation to spring training.

Arizona Diamondbacks

Wilson signed a minor league contract with an invite to Spring Training with the

in October 2013. He declined a minor league assignment on October 12, becoming a free agent.

Tampa Bay Rays

On December 12, 2014, he signed a minor league deal with the

. On April 5, 2015, the Rays selected his contract from their Triple-A affiliate, 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 ...

. On June 14, the Rays sent him outright to Triple-A. He was called back up on July 29.

Texas Rangers

On July 31, 2015, Wilson was claimed off waivers by the Texas Rangers. In his debut with the Rangers, Wilson went 2-4 with 2 RBI against the San Francisco Giants.

Detroit Tigers

On March 29, 2016, the Texas Rangers traded Wilson and Myles Jaye to the

in exchange for Bryan Holaday. Wilson was called up from the

Toledo Mud Hens The Toledo Mud Hens are a Minor League Baseball team of the International League and the Triple-A affiliate of the Detroit Tigers. They are located in Toledo, Ohio, and play their home games at Fifth Third Field. A Mud Hens team has played in ...

on April 12, 2016, when James McCann was placed on the

disabled list In Major League Baseball (MLB), the injured list (IL) is a method for teams to remove their injured players from the roster in order to summon healthy players. Before the 2019 season, it was known as the disabled list (DL). General guidelines ...

Return to Texas

On May 3, 2016, the Tigers traded Wilson back to Texas in exchange for pitcher Chad Bell. Wilson was effective in his return, hitting .250 with two grand slams. Wilson was designated for assignment after the Texas Rangers acquired all star catcher

Jonathan Lucroy Jonathan Charles Lucroy (born June 13, 1986) is a former American professional baseball catcher. Between 2010 and 2021, he spent 12 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB) playing for the Milwaukee Brewers, Texas Rangers, Colorado Rockies, Oakl ...

from the

Milwaukee Brewers The Milwaukee Brewers are an American professional baseball team based in Milwaukee. They compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) National League Central, Central division. The Brewers are named for t ...

Return to Tampa

On August 4, 2016, the Tampa Bay Rays claimed Wilson off waivers from the Texas Rangers and added him to the 40-man roster. He was activated on the 25-man roster on August 5. Wilson finished his 2016 with a .230 batting average. On November 14, Wilson elected free agency after clearing outright waivers.

Los Angeles Dodgers

Wilson signed with the

Los Angeles Dodgers The Los Angeles Dodgers are an American professional baseball team based in Los Angeles. The Dodgers compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) West division. Established in 1883 in the city of Brooklyn ...

as a minor league free agent in advance of the 2017 season. He was assigned to the Triple-A

Oklahoma City Dodgers The Oklahoma City Dodgers are a Minor League Baseball team of the Pacific Coast League (PCL) and the Triple-A affiliate of the Los Angeles Dodgers. They are located in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, and play their home games at Chickasaw Bricktown Bal ...

to begin the season. In 75 games, he hit .243 with 11 homers and 45 RBI.

Minnesota Twins

On November 30, 2017, Wilson signed a minor league contract with the

. Wilson became the backup catcher to Mitch Garver after Jason Castro was ruled out for the rest of the 2018 season after suffering a torn meniscus injury.

Chicago Cubs

On August 30, 2018, Wilson was traded to the

Chicago Cubs The Chicago Cubs are an American professional baseball team based in Chicago. The Cubs compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as part of the National League (NL) Central division. The club plays its home games at Wrigley Field, which is located ...

in exchange for

Chris Gimenez Christopher Paul Gimenez ( ; born December 27, 1982) is an American former professional baseball catcher. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Cleveland Indians, Seattle Mariners, Tampa Bay Rays, Texas Rangers, Chicago Cubs and Minnes ...

and cash.

Detroit Tigers (second stint)

On December 4, 2018, Wilson signed a minor league deal with the

. He was released on March 22, 2019. He re-signed a minor league deal with the Tigers on March 24. The Tigers selected his contract on June 14, and he was promoted to the major league club. On July 28, the Tigers placed Wilson on outright waivers. He hit .091 in 15 games. In 2019, he had the slowest sprint speed of all American League catchers, at 23.2 feet/second. He elected free agency on October 1.

Coaching career

On December 9, 2019, Wilson was hired by the Texas Rangers organization to serve as the manager of the

Frisco RoughRiders The Frisco RoughRiders (often shortened to 'Riders) are a Minor League Baseball team of the Texas League and the Double-A (baseball), Double-A affiliate of the Texas Rangers (baseball), Texas Rangers. They are located in Frisco, Texas, and are nam ...

. On October 26, 2020, Wilson was named the Rangers catching coordinator.

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Wilson, Bobby 1983 births Living people Arkansas Travelers players Arizona Diamondbacks players Baseball coaches from Florida Baseball players from Florida Cedar Rapids Kernels players Detroit Tigers players Durham Bulls players Estrellas Orientales players American expatriate baseball players in the Dominican Republic Inland Empire 66ers players Lobos de Arecibo players Los Angeles Angels players Major League Baseball catchers Major League Baseball coaches Minnesota Twins players Minor league baseball managers Oklahoma City Dodgers players People from Dunedin, Florida Provo Angels players Rancho Cucamonga Quakes players Reno Aces players Rochester Red Wings players Salt Lake Bees players Scranton/Wilkes-Barre RailRiders players Scottsdale Scorpions players Seminole High School (Pinellas County, Florida) alumni St. Petersburg Titans baseball players Tampa Bay Rays players Texas Rangers coaches Texas Rangers players Toledo Mud Hens players