 Wilhelm finished second in the Rookie of the Year Award voting to Joe Black.Wilhelm made 69 relief appearances in 1953, his win-loss record decreased to 7–8 and he issued 77 walks against 71 strikeouts.Wilhelm was named to the NL All-Star team that year, but he did not play in the game because team manager Charlie Dressen did not think that any of the catchers could handle his knuckleball.