William Hayward "Mookie" Wilson (born February 9, 1956) is an American former Major League Baseball outfielder and coach remembered as the Met who hit the ground ball that rolled through Bill Buckner's legs in the bottom of the 10th inning of game six of the 1986 World Series. A switch hitter with excellent speed, his positive attitude and hustle immediately endeared him to a New York Mets fan base with precious few stars to root for when he first came up in the early s. He was enshrined in the New York Mets Hall of Fame in . Early life Born in Bamberg, South Carolina, William Hayward Wilson was nicknamed Mookie as a small child. He pitched for the Bamberg-Ehrhardt High School Red Raiders baseball team under coach David Horton. College In the mid-s, South Carolina State University, a program located in Orangeburg, South Carolina and very near Wilson's hometown, discontinued its baseball program just days after Wilson had signed a letter of intent to play for the Bulldogs. As a result, Mookie attended Spartanburg Methodist College for the and seasons. While attending Spartanburg Methodist, Mookie was drafted by the Los Angeles Dodgers in the fourth round of the January amateur draft but he did not sign. Instead, Mookie transferred to play for The University of South Carolina Gamecocks, preferring to attempt to better his draft stock by playing for former New York Yankees great and fellow South Carolina native Bobby Richardson who was the head coach of the Gamecocks at the time. The gamble paid off as Wilson was selected in the second round of the 1977 Major League Baseball draft by the New York Mets. Mookie was part of the Gamecocks' second team to play for a national championship in Omaha, Nebraska in the 1977 College World Series. He was also named to the All-Tournament team as an outfielder. He earned a B.S. degree from Mercy College. Playing career New York Mets International League Rookie of the Year Wilson batted .284 with 22 home runs, 184 runs batted in, and 160 stolen bases in four seasons in the Mets' farm system, and earned International League Rookie of the Year honors in . After stealing 50 bases and scoring 92 runs for the Tidewater Tides in , Mookie was called up to the majors when rosters expanded that September. Though he got off to a slow start (0 for