Giants excited to get SS Kilen at No. 13 in Draft

The Giants kicked off the 2025 MLB Draft -- their first under new president of baseball operations Buster Posey -- by selecting Tennessee infielder Gavin Kilen with the 13th overall pick on Sunday.

Kilen, 21, was previously selected by the Red Sox -- his favorite team growing up -- in the 13th round of the 2022 Draft, as a Top 100 prospect out of Milton High School in Wisconsin. But he opted not to sign with Boston, instead honoring his commitment to play college baseball at Louisville.

A lot has changed since for Kilen, MLB Pipeline’s No. 21 Draft prospect and second-ranked second baseman.

After two years at Louisville, the left-handed-hitting Kilen transferred to Tennessee, where he slashed .357/.441/.671 with a 1.112 OPS and 15 home runs, earning first-team All-American honors from Perfect Game and Baseball America.

There’s no questioning Kilen’s elite bat-to-ball skills: He’s a contact-oriented hitter with a 60-grade hit tool. Pipeline notes that Kilen has a tendency to chase pitches out of the strike zone, though he did have more walks (30) than strikeouts (27) during his junior season.

It remains to be seen how Kilen’s power will project at the next level, as a 5-foot-11 middle infielder. Still, he’s seen significant growth in the power department, increasing his slugging percentage every season. After slugging .338 without a home run as a freshman, Kilen hit the second-most home runs of any Tennessee player in 2025.

“I’ve always done a really good job making contact,” Kilen said Monday. “For me, this year, it was kind of the switch of, ‘Alright, you can make good contact, but let’s try and hit for -- not necessarily more power, but let’s put yourself in better counts to do more damage.’ Catch balls in front, higher exit velocities. I think the bat-to-ball has been a knack I’ve always had playing baseball.”

Defensively, Kilen profiles as a second baseman, mostly because of average arm strength, though the Giants plan to try to develop him as a shortstop for now. Kilen has plenty of experience there, too, as he started 54 games at shortstop for the Cardinals as a sophomore in ’24.

“It’s a middle-of-the-diamond player who played a lot of shortstop over his three-year college career,” Giants senior director of amateur scouting Michael Holmes said on a Zoom call with reporters. “He also played a little second base. Kind of elite bat-to-ball skills. We’re talking about a career 10% strikeout rate for him in his college years. More walks than strikeouts. We think it’s more of a line-drive hitter, but it was a guy that was able to hit 15 home runs this year, so we think there’s some power to come. Just really excited to have him.”

Kilen’s father, Chris, played baseball at the University of Louisiana-Monroe and was drafted by the Twins in 1993. He also has a connection to former Dodger and current Reds utility player Gavin Lux, as the two played for the same coach in a Wisconsin summer league, albeit six years apart.

“I feel like I’ve grown up in his shadow my entire life, being Little Gav to Big Gav because he was way older,” Kilen said.

The Giants forfeited their second- and fifth-round Draft picks after signing qualified free agent Willy Adames to a seven-year, $182 million deal over the offseason, so they had to wait until the third round to make their next selection.

Here’s how they ended Day 1 of the Draft:

Trevor Cohen, OF (No. 85 overall, third round)

• Bats/throws: L/L
• School: Rutgers
• Calling Card: Cohen, a native of Brigantine, N.J., wasn’t ranked among MLB Pipeline’s Top 250 Draft prospects, though he’s another left-handed hitter who is known for his contact skills, as he hit .387 with 24 doubles, one triple, two home runs and 19 steals over 57 games for Rutgers this year. Cohen posted an 8% strikeout rate in college and finished with more walks (30) than strikeouts (15) during his junior season for the Scarlet Knights. He didn’t flash a ton of power at the collegiate level, hitting only four homers over three seasons, but the Giants believe they can teach him to elevate the ball more once they bring him into the organization. Cohen primarily played right field at Rutgers in deference to Peyton Bonds, the nephew of Giants legend Barry Bonds, but Holmes said he believes Cohen has the tools to stick in center field.
• Quote: “We thought he was a little underrated,” Holmes said. “Our area scout Carmen Carcone was very passionate about the player, knew him very well, spent a lot of time with him, spent a lot of time watching him. We were able to get a lot of looks on him this spring. In a lot of ways, he won us over with his interview at the Combine. I’m a big believer in not only betting on players and talent, but people. The time we sat down with him at the Combine kind of really sold us on the individual he was.”

The 2025 MLB Draft will conclude with Rounds 4-20 on Monday, with selections beginning at 8:30 a.m. PT.