Christian Koss Has Given the Giants a Much-Needed Feel Good Story

The San Francisco Giants are in the midst of one of the worst stretches of baseball we’ve seen this year. They’ve been the worst team in the league since acquiring Rafael Devers, and aside from a few bright moments, there hasn’t been much to cheer about.

The pitching has slightly regressed, the bullpen is a shell of its pre-deadline self, and the offense has been better, but still not special. It’s been a rough two months for Giants fans, seeing their team go 19-34 since June 15.

However, injuries have given the organization an extended look at an unexpected bright spot. Matt Chapman was out with a hand injury for around a month prior to the All-Star break. The next week, his replacement, Casey Schmitt, also got injured and was out for close to a month.

This opened the runway for Christian Koss, and up to this point, he’s taken full advantage.

Stats updated prior to games on August 18.

The Journey to 2025

Koss first broke onto the scene for the UC Irvine Anteaters in 2019. His freshman and sophomore seasons were nothing to write home about. However, his third, and what ended up being his last, year of college ball was special.

Koss held a slash line of .307/.397/.490 with an .888 OPS. He also drove in 30 runs and tallied just under 100 total bases. It was a breakout season for the utility infielder and good enough to hear his name called in the 2019 MLB Draft.

The Colorado Rockies selected him in the 12th round, and he signed for a mere $180,000. His first taste of pro ball was successful, as he hit .332 and held a wRC+ of 169 in 2019 at the rookie ball level.

However, that winter, he was traded from Colorado to the Boston Red Sox, the team with whom he’d spend the majority of his time in the minor leagues. In the three years Koss spent in the Red Sox organization, he racked up just under 1,300 plate appearances.

In that time, he didn’t blow anyone away, but was always solid. From 2021 to 2023, he held just a 92 wRC+ but posted a fine slash of .258/.310/.420 with 36 home runs. However, something must have stood out to San Francisco’s then-president of baseball operations, Farhan Zaidi. He decided to acquire Koss from the Red Sox in March of 2024.

Koss impressed in his one season spent in the Giants’ minor league system. He hit just under .300 (.299) and held a 134 wRC+ once the season ended. Yet, he was nowhere near being a top prospect, and once spring training came around earlier this year, he was barely on the front office’s radar.

A Long-Awaited MLB Debut

When spring training had concluded, Koss shocked the fanbase by making the Giants’ 26-man Opening Day roster. Familiar names to the organization, Schmitt and Brett Wisely, seemed like locks for the team’s infield options off the bench.

However, Koss played well enough in the spring to beat out Wisely for that last spot.

Alex Pavlovic of NBC Sports Bay Area had this to say about the Giants’ decision:

“The biggest surprise on the Opening Day roster, Koss won over the coaching staff this spring. The conversations about making the initial roster picked up in recent days, and Koss had a lot of backers in the organization. He’s a good defender at short who took advantage of a lot of time this spring, playing hard and playing well. Koss hit .325 this spring with a homer and three doubles.”

The early returns for Koss on the season weren’t great. He looked overpowered at the plate and even struggled in the field at times. However, on May 13, everything changed. Koss came up with bases juiced in the second inning and launched a grand slam for his first career home run.