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- Tugboat Wilkinson is 23 and from Vancouver; he pitched for Canada in the 2026 World Baseball Classic.
- Selected in the 10th round of the 2023 MLB Draft by Cleveland out of Central Arizona College.
- Started 2026 at Double-A Akron, posting a 1.59 ERA across six starts.
- Career minor-league ERA of 2.82 with an impressive 11.8 strikeouts per nine innings.
- Not viewed as an elite prospect but consistently gets outs; could reach the San Francisco Giants major-league staff soon.
Who is Tugboat Wilkinson? Giants trade for stout left-handed pitching prospect originally appeared on The Sporting News. Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
Tugboat Wilkinson has one of the best nicknames in baseball.
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To his mother, he’s Matthew James Wilkinson. But to the world of pro ball, he’s Tugboat, and for good reason.
Wilkinson is listed at 270 pounds while standing just 6-foot-1. He’s a hefty fella.
And now he’s a member of the San Francisco Giants. They acquired him as part of the trade of Patrick Bailey to the Cleveland Guardians on Saturday.
Wilkinson has yet to make his MLB debut, and now he’ll try to reach it in San Francisco.
MORE: This crazy Aaron Judge, Bo Bichette stat sums up Yankees, Mets seasons
Who is Tugboat Wilkinson?
Wilkinson is the Giants’ newest pitching prospect.
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He’s 23 years old and originally from Vancouver, and he represented Canada in the 2026 World Baseball Classic.
He was a 10th-round pick by Cleveland in the 2023 MLB Draft from Central Arizona College.
He has begun this season at Double-A Akron, where he has a 1.59 ERA in six starts.
His career minor league ERA is 2.82, with 11.8 strikeouts per nine innings.
He also had a 0.00 ERA in 2.2 innings for Canada at the WBC.
Wilkinson hasn’t been regarded as the most phenomenal of pitching prospects, but at every level so far, he’s proven more than capable of getting guys out.
That could bring the Tugboat to the Bay Area sooner rather than later.
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