Vance Wilson
From The Met Wiki
Vance Wilson was a catcher for the Mets from 1999 to 2004. He batted .254 in 286 games with the team. Wilson had 17 home runs and 92 runs batted in as a Met.
After appearing in a total of five games in 1999 and 2000, Wilson had a .298 batting average for the Mets in 2001. He collected 17 hits for 20 total bases during the season. On July 4, Vance doubled for his first major league hit in a 2-1 Mets win over the Cubs at Shea Stadium. He singled and drove in two runs in the Mets’ 4-2 victory at Arizona on August 4. Wilson had a pair of singles, an RBI and a run scored in a 4-3 Mets triumph over the Brewers on August 9 at Shea. He also drove in two runs as the Mets defeated the Phillies, 6-2, at Shea on August 30.
In 2002, Wilson played in 74 games with the Mets. He had five homers and 26 RBIs for the year. At Atlanta on April 6, Vance hit a two-run double in an 11-2 Mets victory over the Braves. He hit his first major league home run in a 9-8 Mets loss to the Expos in 11 innings on April 13 at Shea. Wilson homered, singled and drove in two runs in the Mets’ 11-2 win over the Yankees in the Bronx on June 29. He had three singles, a run scored and an RBI in a 9-0 Mets victory at Milwaukee on August 8. At Philadelphia on September 8, Vance had a three-run homer and a run-scoring single in the Mets’ 11-3 win over the Phillies. He also had three singles and a run scored in the Mets’ 6-3 victory over the Expos on September 21 at Shea.
Wilson had 100 total bases in the 2003 season. He had 28 runs scored and 39 RBIs for the year. At Shea on April 4, Vance hit a two-run double to put the Mets ahead to stay in a 4-0 win over the Expos. He homered in a 3-2 Mets victory over the Dodgers on May 6 at Shea. Wilson had two singles, a double and two RBIs in a 10-4 Mets win over the Braves at Shea on June 1. He singled, homered and drove in five runs in the Mets’ 11-0 triumph at Texas on June 12. At Anaheim on June 15, Vance singled three times and scored a run in an 8-0 Mets win over the Angels. He also hit a three-run homer in the Mets’ 10-1 victory on August 5 at Houston.
In 2004, Wilson hit .274 in 79 games played. He had four homers and 21 RBIs for the season. At Shea on May 9, Vance had a pair of doubles and a run scored in a 6-5 Mets triumph over the Brewers in 11 innings. He hit a three-run homer in the Mets’ 7-4 win at Arizona on May 13. Wilson had a home run and two singles in a 6-1 Mets victory over the Phillies on July 18 at Shea. He had four singles in a 19-10 Mets loss at Montreal on July 26. On August 5 at Milwaukee, Vance singled and homered in the Mets’ 11-6 win over the Brewers. He also had a single and two doubles in a 10-3 Mets triumph at Colorado on August 19.
On January 6, 2005, Wilson was traded to the Detroit Tigers. He batted .240 in two seasons with the Detroit team. In 2009, Vance completed his playing career in the Kansas City Royals’ system. He became the manager of the Kane County Cougars (the Royals’ A-level team in Geneva, Illinois) in 2011.
