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Giants Newest First Round Pick Gavin Kilen Hits Major Minor League Milestone

Originally posted on San Francisco Giants on SI
By Michael Brauner | Last updated Aug 8, 2025 10:08 AM ET

The San Francisco Giants do not have a farm system considered to be anywhere near the best in baseball and lack the kind of top end talent many of their rivals have.

Though there are couple of names at the very top who may project as future stars, depth throughout is looked at as a concern when compared to some other teams across baseball.

The newest prospect in the system though could be looking to change that reality just weeks after being selected by the Giants.

Back in July, San Francisco used their first round selection -- No. 13 overall -- on Tennessee Volunteers infielder Gavin Kilen following a huge season in the SEC.

Kilen is getting a chance to get his feet wet here at the back end of the minor league season with Single-A San Jose, and on Thursday he filled up the stat sheet for the first time.

Collecting his first two hits along with three RBI, it was the first flash fans have gotten to see from their potential future star:

Gavin Kilen is on the board!

After posting a 1.112 OPS for @Vol_Baseball, the @SFGiants' 2025 first-rounder tallies his first two professional hits and RBIs for the Single-A @SJGiants: pic.twitter.com/gSplHqllyY
— MLB Pipeline (@MLBPipeline) August 7, 2025

Impressively, both singles were fired the other way on opposite field rockets to bring some runners in scoring position home. It was Kilen's third game as a professional, and he finished with two hits and three RBI.

When Can Giants Fans Expect Kilen in the Big Leagues?

As a three-year college player, Kilen is not quite as experienced as the average first round non-high school prospect, but he did have by far his best collegiate season in 2025 after transferring to Tennessee.

Over 53 games this year, the 21-year-old slashed an extremely impressive .357/.441/.671 with 15 home runs and 46 RBI, building off a great sophomore season at Louisville before the transfer.

Where Kilen is at next season is going to be the best indicator of when fans can expect him in the big leagues. If he can start the 2026 season in High-A or at least get there fairly early on, it's the exact kind of track San Francisco is going to want him on.

If he is dominating his way through High-A and can get to Double-A at some point next year, this would likely be the quickest route possible and potentially have him with the Giants by the tail end of the 2027 season.

More likely, it won't be until at least 2028 that Kilen is ready to make the jump.

While even in a best case it's going to be a few years before fans in San Francisco get the chance to see Kilen, he has a chance here to establish himself as a must watch prospect over the next calendar year.

This article first appeared on San Francisco Giants on SI and was syndicated with permission.

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