For the past six years, we have all been lucky to be witnesses to arguably the best ball player to ever hail from Marion County.
Amid the coronavirus pandemic with the rest of the 2020 season in doubt, his Columbia Academy career may be over, but the memories of watching Slade Wilks absolutely obliterate baseballs will never cease in the minds of fans of America’s greatest pastime.
His otherworldly stats tell the story of a once-in-a-lifetime talent: One-hundred-and-forty games, .418 batting average, .592 on-base percentage, .953 slugging percentage, 1.596 on-base plus slugging percentage, 50 home runs, 150 RBI, 171 runs scored, 46 stolen bases and 85 strikeouts in 57 innings pitched.
The 6-foot-2, 215-pound outfielder has enjoyed an illustrious prep career, highlighted by a 2017 state championship and being named both a Perfect Game and Under Armour All-American, which places him among the nation’s top prospects.
With light tower power from the left side, a great eye at the plate, speed on the basepaths and athleticism to produce web gems, there’s nothing Wilks can’t do on a ball field. He also just so happens to throw in the low 90s off the mound.
“He’s the total package,” Cougars head coach Keith Stanley said. “He does it all and remains humble while doing it all.”
Stanley said he’s been lucky to coach a player like Wilks and he only hopes he’s taught Wilks as much as he’s taught him.
“I tell people all the time I’m probably not going to be able to coach someone like him ever again. It’s a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to coach someone like him,” he said. “It’s not only his skill level but the type of kid he is. You rarely come across the kids who can play at the level he can but also when the lights turn off the type of kid he presents himself as. It’s unmatched.”
His former coach, Heath Smith, who led the Cougars to the title in ’17, grew up in Mississippi, played at Pearl River Community College and has coached at CA, South Forrest Attendance Center and Copiah Academy but has never seen such an advanced player at such a young age as Wilks in the state.
“Everybody always talks about Corey Dickerson and Hunter Renfroe in private school and a lot of local guys but just to hit in any environment — it doesn’t matter if it’s a big park, small park, on the road, into the wind, wind at his back, against 95 (mph) in the summer against top arms or facing a weaker pitcher in the 70s in district — to be able to adjust like him, I’ve never seen that type of maturity in a high school kid,” he said.
Smith actually got to coach against Wilks this year on opening day as an assistant at Copiah. After witnessing so many teams pitch around Wilks when he was the head coach, Smith wanted to see him hit and the rest of the coaching staff wanted to attack him, especially considering it was the Colonels’ first game. Wilks made them all pay, leading off the game with a monster home run to right center field and launching an opposite-field, three-run jack that seemed to be hit off the end of his bat his second time up to the plate. The next two times he came up, Copiah intentionally walked him.
“I got to see what everybody else got to see. You know he can hit, but he still has to do it. At the end of the day when we played him, he did it,” Smith said with a laugh. “It was fun to watch and humbling to watch being on the other side to see how it negatively impacted our team.”
Wilks was actually on pace to set the Mississippi high school home run record held by Stringer’s Heath Graham. The record was set nearly 27 years ago at 60 career long balls, and Wilks, if the season is canceled, will finish with 50. This season he had hit six in just 10 games, and at that pace with 13 more regular season games and likely another 10 to 15 postseason games — take the average and say he would’ve played 25 more games total — he was on pace to hit 15 more home runs this year, bringing his career mark to 65.
While he was aware that he was nearing the record, Wilks said he wasn’t approaching any at-bat with the idea that one swing could bring him closer to the record but that it was something he definitely wanted to achieve. He said it would’ve been something cool he could he say he’s done because he worked hard for it.
“If the season hadn’t been cut short, I would’ve had a chance if I had kept playing like I had been,” he said.
For the love of the game
Stanley said Wilks is likely practicing seven days a week, either hitting in the cage at his house or at the CA field during his down time working on some aspect of his game to make himself better. Beyond the physical profile, the God-given ability and tremendous work ethic, Stanley said Wilks knows the game inside and out, stemming from a deep love for baseball.
“What a lot people don’t realize is his baseball IQ. He’s played a lot of baseball from T-ball to travel ball. Just about every baseball scenario there is, I feel like the kid has been through,” he said. “He’s been on varsity with us since he was a seventh grader. He’s been every position there is to be in whether it’s pitching, defensively or hitting.”
Although he recognizes baseball is the toughest sport to reach the big stage in because of all of the minor league levels to make it through, Stanley said he truly believes we will see Wilks play in the majors someday. He said that not only does Wilks have the physical and mental tools, but he also already knows how to persevere through adversity after undergoing three separate knee surgeries prior to his freshman season.
Wilks described himself as a “dirtbag” who plays the game hard, doesn’t back down from anybody and whose best tool is his ability to hit and hit for power.
“He’s someone who really loves the game and does whatever he can to make sure his game is at its best at all times,” he said of his own scouting report.
Smith said what adds to Wilks’ greatness is not only his work ethic but his confidence to communicate with both his coaches and teammates. Smith said he’s not afraid to talk through his struggles or help his teammates figure out a pitcher.
“Obviously his physical tools are tremendous — he hits for power, hits for average, throws, runs — then mentally with the work he puts in and the maturity he carries on the field helps not only his performance but his teammates,” he said.
Off the diamond, Stanley said Wilks is just as good of a person as he is a player. He said Wilks is a family-first guy who is in church every Sunday and Wednesday and spends time with his classmates every chance he gets.
Uncertainty surrounding season
Wilks said it’s rough not knowing whether or not his senior season will continue amid the coronavirus suspension, but he’s still training alongside teammate Tate Duncan in Bunker Hill — hitting, throwing and running — as if the season will recommence in a few weeks.
“It’s doubtful, but there’s maybe an outside chance we’ll still play. I’m just trying to stay ready and encourage my teammates to do the same,” he said.
The Cougars senior class had a lot of goals set that Wilks viewed as achievable this year, and he said it would be tough to go out without getting the opportunity to compete for winning a district title and ultimately a second state title. He believes they were just starting to hit their stride and find their identity as a team that could absolutely mash at the dish and was capable of winning the Class 3A title. If they don’t return to the field, Wilks said he has nothing to regret.
“It’s been nothing short of a dream. I gave Cougar baseball my all for six years, and it’s something that will always be special to me and will always have a special place in my heart,” he said.
Winning state in 2017, watching the CA basketball team win the championship this year after all the hard work it put in and hitting his first high school homer as a pinch hitter in the seventh inning as an eighth grader are among Wilks’ top memories. That first dinger off his bat came on Feb. 16 at Silliman Institute, a three-run shot in the top of the seventh with the Cougars trailing 3-0 to tie the game. They ultimately lost 4-3, but it’s a memory he won’t ever forget.
The coaches of MSAIS have been told that if school resumes, so will baseball with a modified schedule, which would likely begin with a district tournament before going straight into the postseason.
The decision
The Southern Miss signee will likely have a big decision to make once the MLB draft rolls around. Though there is no set date yet, the draft is expected to be pushed back to July. At this point Wilks isn’t sure which way he’s leaning between playing in college for the Golden Eagles or jumping straight to pro ball, but he’s been praying about it and knows God will put him in the position that will make him the most effective.
“Maybe if the right team (picks me) or if it’s the right amount of money, which it’s not about money for me, if I feel like it’s right I think I’d go,” he said. “But who knows where the draft is going right now. It may only be five rounds.”
The slugger has had in-home visits with more than 20 major league ball clubs and had been projected to be drafted anywhere from the late first round to the fifth round prior to the pandemic.
The star does have some inside knowledge on the inner workings of pro ball thanks to his cousin, Luke McKenzie, who starred alongside Wilks on the ’17 title team and signed with the Los Angeles Dodgers last year. McKenzie has filled him in on what a pro’s daily routine actually is like compared to what most people assume.
Whatever his future holds, there’s no question Wilks has left a mark on everyone he’s played with, for and against, as well as everyone who had the opportunity to witness his greatness.
