Tom Wilhelmsen

Organization Prospect Rankings

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  Ranked Seattle Mariners #8 prospect in 2012
  Wilhelmsen walked away from the game in 2005 after being suspended by the Brewers for the entire 2004 season following a positive test for marijuana. After four years of traveling the world and working as a bartender in Tucson, he wanted to give baseball another shot. He went to the independent Golden League in 2009 before reuniting with Mariners GM Jack Zduriencik, who drafted him as Milwaukee's scouting director in 2002. Wilhelmsen capped his improbable story by opening 2011 in Seattle. Wilhelmsen's best pitch is his fastball, which usually arrives at 93-95 mph and tops out at 98. He backs it up with a 12-to-6 curveball that features good velocity (76-78 mph) and depth. When he started off slowly in the big leagues, the Mariners sent him down to Double-A to work on his changeup as a starter. The changeup improved and has some fade, but it's still fringy and he's not a rotation option for the long term. But the extra work as a starter helped Wilhelmsen repeat his delivery, get consistent downward plane on his fastball and gain confidence. Once he returned to Seattle in August, Wilhelmsen posted a 2.35 ERA and a 22-4 K-BB ratio in 23 innings. He enters 2012 as one of the Mariners' top set-up men and will get a shot at closing if something happens to Brandon League.
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  Ranked Seattle Mariners #26 prospect in 2011
  Wilhelmsen may have the most interesting backstory in the minor leagues. A seventh-round pick by then- Brewers scouting director Jack Zduriencik in 2002, he pitched only one year in the minors after signing for $250,000. He missed all of 2004 after Milwaukee suspended him twice for testing positive for marijuana use, then walked away from the game. He spent the next three years backpacking around the world and bartending in Tucson. Wilhelmsen got the itch to pitch again, joining the Tucson club in the independent Golden League in 2009. Now the general manager of the Mariners, Zduriencik gave Wilhelmsen a second chance by signing him to a minor league contract in 2010. He showed enough in 74 innings in the low minors and in an Arizona Fall League stint to claim a spot on the 40-man roster. Wilhelmsen throws his fastball at 91-93 mph, topping out at 96. He gets good downhill angle on the pitch and commands it well, but it doesn't have a lot of movement. His best offering is a hard 12-to-6 curveball that he throws in the upper 70s with sharp break and good depth. He also mixes in a changeup with fade and sink. The three-pitch mix and his clean delivery give him what he needs to continue as a starter, but Seattle had him relieve in the AFL to limit his innings and that may have been a glimpse of things to come. His advanced age and power curve make him a candidate to be fast-tracked if the Mariners make him a full-time reliever in 2010.
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  Ranked Milwaukee Brewers #14 prospect in 2004
  Wilhelmsen didn't pitch in 2002 after signing late, so the Brewers didn't know what to expect when they sent him to low Class A last year at age 19. To say the least, they were pleasantly surprised. "He might have the best arm in the organization," scouting director Jack Zduriencik said. One National League scout went a step further, saying Wilhelmsen was the best righthander he had ever seen in the Midwest League. He gets his fastball to the plate regularly in the mid-90s, and his lanky body should fill out with time and make him even stronger. His heater does lack movement, however, because he throws straight over the top. He also has a good curveball and a decent changeup, and the NL scout graded both as plus-plus pitches in one outing. Wilhelmsen did experience elbow problems that caused him to be shut down for most of the second half. He also has maturity issues. Some call him a flake, others merely a free spirit. In other words, he's a lefthander trapped in a righthander's body. Once Wilhelmsen grows up, there should be no stopping him because he has the raw stuff to win big. Despite his youth, he could start 2004 in Double-A.

Minor League Top Prospects

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  Ranked Midwest League #9 prospect in 2003
  Opinions were divided on Wilhelmsen. The NL scout called him the best righthander he had ever seen in the league after clocking his fastball at 98 mph and grading his curveball and changeup as 70 on the 20-80 scouting scale. Others thought his heater lacked movement and weren't as impressed by his other pitches. Wilhelmsen's fastball usually sits at 92-94 mph, and it would have more life if he didn't throw straight over the top. Because he didn't trust his other pitches, he didn't miss as many bats as his stuff would suggest he should. Wilhelmsen had a 1.73 ERA through May, then got hammered in June before complaining of elbow discomfort. Afterward he made just two brief mid-August appearances in Rookie ball. His goofy makeup is another concern.

• December, 2011 Scouting Report
  Background: Wilhelmsen walked away from the game in 2005 after being suspended by the Brewers for the entire 2004 season following a positive test for marijuana. After four years of traveling the world and working as a bartender in Tucson, he wanted to give baseball another shot. He went to the independent Golden League in 2009 before reuniting with Mariners GM Jack Zduriencik, who drafted him as Milwaukee's scouting director in 2002. Scouting Report: Wilhelmsen's best pitch is his fastball, which usually arrives at 93-95 mph and tops out at 98. He backs it up with a 12-to-6 curveball that features good velocity (76-78 mph) and depth. When he started off slowly in the big leagues, the Mariners sent him down to Double-A to work on his changeup as a starter. The changeup improved and has some fade, but it's still fringy and he's not a rotation option for the long term. But the extra work as a starter helped Wilhelmsen repeat his delivery, get consistent downward plane on his fastball and gain confidence.The Future: Once he returned to Seattle in August, Wilhelmsen posted a 2.35 ERA and a 22-4 K-BB ratio in 23 innings. He enters 2012 as one of the Mariners' top set-up men and will get a shot at closing if something happens to Brandon League.