Grady Wilson

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Grady Herbert Wilson

• Bats Right, Throws Right
• Height 6' 0", Weight 170 lb.
• School Jacksonville State Teachers College
• Debut May 15, 1948
• Final Game July 15, 1948
• Born November 23, 1922 in Columbus, GA USA
• Died July 23, 2003 in Columbus, GA USA

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Biographical Information

Georgia native Grady Wilson spent eighteen active seasons in professional baseball from 1946 to 1959. After College and before baseball he spent four years (1942-1945) in the United States Army during World War II. He spent his first season with the Milford Red Sox of the class D Eastern Shore League as their shortstop and hit .314 with 12 home runs in 124 games. Grady was drafted by the St. Louis Cardinals from the Boston Red Sox on November 10, 1946 in the minor league draft.

The Cardinals sent Grady to the Allentown Cardinals of the class B Interstate League in 1947 and the infielder hit at a .301 clip with 11 homers in 132 games. This performance got him drafted by the Philadelphia Phillies from the Cardinals in the 1947 Rule V Draft. Before he got suited up with the Phillies they sold him to the Pittsburgh Pirates on April 5, 1948.

Grady made his debut with the Pirates on May 15, 1948 and appeared in just 12 games with 10 at-bats, picked up one base-hit and made two errors afield and he played his last game in the big leagues on July 15, for the Pirates, or any other big league club, for that matter. It was Grady's luck to be playing shortstop with the Pirates, when the regular shortstop was Stan Rojek playing perhaps his best major league season. Wilson spent the rest of the 1948 year with the New Orleans Pelicans of the Southern Association, appearing in 20 games and hitting at a .234 clip.

Grady was more or less lost in 1949, being traded by the Pirates with Ed Bahr to the Brooklyn Dodgers for Nanny Fernandez and bouncing around with four different clubs, appearing in 86 games and hitting .291. He spent the rest of his active playing years (1950-1959) In both the South Atlantic League and the Southern Association, hitting right at a .260 and .270 average. After a poor start in 1959 he ended his active playing career with the Chattanooga club that gave him a minor league career record of appearing in 938 games and an estimated 3,235 at-bats with a .270 batting average.

After his active playing time was finished Grady took up the managing end of the game and spent six seasons in the Milwaukee and Kansas City organizations. (See Chart Below).

After baseball Wilson returned to his native Columbus, GA, where he worked and lived until his death on July 23, 2003, at the age of 80.

Year-by-Year Managerial Record

Year	Team	League	Record	Finish	Organization	Playoffs	Notes
1957	Jacksonville (FL) Braves	South Atlantic League	1-2	--	Milwaukee Braves	--	replaced Mickey Owen (29-32) on June 13/ replaced by Joe Just (46-44) on June 16
1961	Albuquerque Dukes	Sophomore League	64-63	3rd	Kansas City A's	Lost Leagur Finals
1962	Minot Mallards	Northern League	44-80	8th	Kansas City A's
1963	Burlington (IA) Bees	Midwest League	72-52	2nd	Kansas City A's	none
1964	Daytona Beach Islanders	Florida State League		--	Kansas City A's	--	replaced by Charles "Butch" Cole on June 15 / replaced Bill Posedel on June 20 / replaced by Lew Krausse on July 25
1966	Lewiston Broncs	Northwest League	27-56	4th	Kansas City A's	none