Houston Sports - Don Wilson

Don Wilson

Born: February 12, 1945

Sport: Baseball (104-92, 3.15 ERA, 1-time All-Star) 

Professional athletics is often a glamorous arena, with the best individuals earning a significant measure of fame and income.  However it always involves a measure of sacrifice to reach the pinnacle of any sport, usually in the form of hard work and commitment but sometimes also with relationship or health challenges.  Other times, the bright lights tend to obscure the reality that the players that fans are excited to follow are simply normal people.  Today we'll take a look at the abbreviated life of Don Wilson, a Houston athlete who had a promising trajectory that was cut off all too soon. 

Houston's Astrodome and surrounding areas in 1966

Although Don Wilson was born in Monroe, Louisiana, he and his older brother began playing baseball together after moving to the Los Angeles suburb of Compton, California.  Don initially played the infield for the local Little League and high school teams, but when big brother Willy's throwing arm got fatigued and he asked Don to pitch a few games, the young man found the position he loved.  From then on, he stayed on the pitcher's mound, although he continued to idolize many of the amazing African American hitters of the day, such as Eddie Banks, Willie Mays, and Hank Aaron.  After graduating from Centennial High School, the younger Wilson enrolled in Compton Community College in 1963.  Scouts quickly began to notice his potential as a flame thrower, although both his velocity and control needed to be improved.  A talent scout for the Houston Astros approached Wilson during his freshman year, but during the game he seemed to have disappeared.  Wilson, angered by what he perceived as a lack of care, fired a pitch with everything he had - it sailed above the batter's box and smashed violently into the screen behind the plate.  The scout, however, was observing from a distance and was impressed enough with the strength of the throw to get the young man signed to a professional contract. 

Traveling to Florida to train in the minor leagues, Don Wilson initially worked on increasing his pitch speed as a reliever.  But after just a year he had moved up to the class A league and returned to the starting rotation.  In 1966 he started the season in AA ball, and after showing continued improvement the major league team called him up in September of that same year, while just 21 years old and without any AAA experience.  He only made one appearance but made it count, throwing 6 innings to get the win against the Reds, striking out seven and giving up just two runs.  Realizing that he might be able to meet some of his boyhood heroes, he purchased a baseball during the off-season that he planned to carry around secretly to get the autographs of some of baseball's greats.  Wilson solidified his position in the Astros starting rotation and was never demoted back to the minor leagues. 

Although Don Wilson had a successful year during his first full season with Houston, finishing with a winning record and a sub-3.00 ERA, the team did not play well and lost over 90 games.  Nevertheless, Wilson managed to toss a no-hitter against the Braves (the first ever in a domed stadium or on artificial turf, and which ended with a strikeout of the mighty Hank Aaron) and performed so well that team owner Roy Hoffeinz decided to write a new contract for him in order to give the young pitcher a raise.  With more money and security in-hand, Wilson and his wife purchased a home in Houston to settle down.  By the time 1969 began, Wilson had worked his way to the top of the rotation and became the Astros Opening Day starter.  That season he also notched his second career no-hitter, this time against Cincinnati, and it came the day after Reds pitcher Jim Maloney had fired a no-hitter against Houston.  Wilson found the revenge especially sweet, as he had been the subject of taunts from the Reds dugout.  By season's end Wilson led the league in fewest hits allowed per nine innings and also headed a trio of Astros pitchers to have 200 or more strikeouts, while the staff set a major league record for strikeouts in a single season.  The team also had their first non-losing season in franchise history, finishing 81-81 and inspiring management to once again tear up and rewrite Wilson's contact.  He also served to break color barriers in the still-segregated city of Houston, sharing a room with a white teammate during the team's road trips, despite complaints and hate mail. 

As Don Wilson's star continued to rise, he finally got national recognition by being named to his only All-Star game during the 1971 season.  He was beloved by his team, being chosen as the Astros MVP for the year and earning praise from the manager to the media.  By the end of the 1974 season, Wilson had crossed the 100-win threshold and was enjoying the popularity that came along with his success.  Tragedy struck on January 5, 1975, however, as Wilson's wife Bernice called the police after finding her husband unresponsive in the passenger seat of his car.  Both Wilson and his 5 year old son, Alex, were proclaimed dead from carbon monoxide poisoning - the father inside a closed garage and the son in the bedroom above.  Bernice was treated at a local hospital, as was 9 year old daughter Denise, who eventually survived a coma and brain damage from her exposure.  Despite a lack of clarity on what happened, which led to a great deal of speculation about the possibility of suicide or murder, the police investigation finally concluded that both deaths had been accidental.  The Astros, which introduced their rainbow jerseys the following season, added a patch on their uniform tops in Wilson's memory before retiring his number 40 during the second month of the season.  Today, a special plaque remembering Don Wilson is included at the team stadium along their left field Wall of Honor. 

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