The Giants selected offense-first infielder Gavin Kilen with their first-round pick.
The San Francisco Giants selected Tennessee shortstop Gavin Kilen with the 13th overall pick in the 2025 MLB Draft, Overslot’s Joe Doyle reported Kilen would be the selection prior to the announcement. A consensus first-round prospect, it is unclear if Kilen will sign for the full $5,524,300 slot assigned to the pick.
The Angels shook up the draft when they selected UCSB ace Tyler Bremner with the second-overall pick. Bremner had been tied to the Giants in multiple mock drafts and was expected to be selected more in the 6-15 range. With Bremner unexpectedly off the board early, the Giants were on the other end of dominoes as teams had a different group of available players than expected.
San Francisco had been tied to college shortstops by The Athletic and MLB Pipeline prior to the draft. However, Kilen’s defensive future remains up for some debate. While he primarily played shortstop throughout his college career, most experts project him to move to second base as a professional. It’s Kilen’s offensive potential that make him such a highly-regarded prospect.
Kilen hit .357/.441/.671 with 15 home runs and more walks (30) than strikeouts (27) with Tennessee this past season, his first in the SEC. Prior to last season, he had been Louisville’s starting shortstop from 2023-2024. In 2024, he hit .330/.361/.591 with 23 doubles, nine home runs, seven walks, and 22 strikeouts in 234 plate appearances.
As made clear by his stats, Kilen has an excellent penchant for contact, and gap-to-gap power. Without standout physical skills, there are some similarities between Kilen’s profile and former Giants second baseman Joe Panik.
The Giants do not have a second-round pick due to the signing of Willy Adames. With only the first three rounds of the draft taking place on Day 1, San Francisco will make one more selection (85th overall) before their day is done.