Giants prospects Gavin Kilen, Dakota Jordan getting promoted after Futures Game

[ASFN Admin]

You must be registered for see images attach

Infielder Gavin Kilen and outfielder Dakota Jordan from the Giants minor-league system played in the All-Star Futures Game on Sunday in Philadelphia. (Rob Tringali/MLB Photos via Getty Images)


PHILADELPHIA - The 2026 season is becoming more about what the San Francisco Giants have coming rather than what the club is enduring.

Sunday, then, was a good opportunity to scout two of the Giants' top prospects, with last year's first-round pick Gavin Kilen and fast-rising outfielder Dakota Jordan participating in the Futures Game at Citizens Bank Park.

Both are getting promoted to Double-A Richmond this week, they told the Chronicle after the American League's 6-1 win, and they are aware that Jonah Cox made the unusual leap straight from Richmond to the big leagues this year, and that Bryce Eldridge was at Eugene two years ago and was up with San Francisco by the end of last season.

Jordan doubled in his only plate appearance Sunday while Kilen was 0-for-1.

Kilen (pronounced "Key-lin") has already played for big-league manager Tony Vitello; he was Tennessee's starting shortstop last year. The two stay in touch, texting once a month or so, and Vitello follows Kilen's fortunes.

"He's a silent killer," Vitello said. "Not a lot of extra flair or anything like that, but he's very intense and he's very convicted in who he is. He's pretty quick to argue with you if he believes something different, not in a disrespectful way, but he's kind of got that Max (Scherzer) deal, where he'll die on his sword on what his opinion is, which I think makes him a strong player mentality-wise."

Kilen said he loves how Vitello communicates - in parables almost, he said, veering off into stories that wind back into the point he is making. He was stunned when he heard Vitello's name connected with the Giants last offseason. At one point during the process, Kilen told him, "Hey, man, what a great opportunity for you and you've also built such a great thing at Tennessee, where either way you go, everyone's going to respect you and love you and support you."

Kilen is playing mostly shortstop at Eugene but also some second base with Jhonny Level's promotion, and he's totally comfortable at both, he said; he was at second Sunday for the NL team. The Giants still see Kilen as primarily a shortstop, even with a number of highly rated shortstops (such as top prospect Josuar Gonzalez, Luis Hernández and Level) in the system.

"I think the biggest surprise, at least for me personally, is how well he's played at shortstop, because I think coming out of the draft there were more thoughts about second base," said director of player development Kyle Haines. "But Gavin has actually played extremely well to the eye test and with the run-values (metrics), the things that are valued defensively. He's not very flashy, but he's got great instincts and internal clock, he's very sure-handed, very accurate."

Despite an offseason illness that hospitalized him for a week and left him 25 pounds lighter for a while, Kilen is batting .282 with nine homers, and his 65 RBIs are second in the Northwest League, trailing only Jordan.

"Gavin is my guy," Jordan said. "Either I'm hitting before him or he's hitting before me and he's always picking me up if I need it, I'm picking him up if he needs it. Great teammate, and that's the biggest part."

Jordan is something of a revelation this year. He plays all three outfield spots (he considers himself a center fielder but is happy to go wherever needed), is batting .290, has speed (15 steals, caught twice) and power (18 homers lead the Northwest League).

Jordan lacked the luster of a first rounder; a fourth-round pick in 2024, he divided his time between baseball and football in high school before going to Mississippi State initially as a two-way athlete. This intriguing skill set and the football background - Jordan was a running back and a wide receiver at Jackson (Miss.) Academy - means that he often hears the obvious comparisons to Brian Jordan, Deion Sanders, and of course, one of the true greats:

"I don't mind being compared to Bo Jackson," Jordan said. "That's one of the guys I always idled growing up. I mean, I know I grew up in the 2000s, but I feel like I have an old-school soul and I'm a big Bo Jackson fan. I don't see a problem with that.

"I always hear that narrative, ‘Football guy, football guy, football guy.' I just want to show people that I'm a baseball player and I belong in this game."

Jordan spent the winter working at the Giants' minor-league complex in Phoenix and he credited minor-league hitting coordinator Mike McCormack for helping him tap more into his power. Most important for Jordan's breakout, though, was his mentality, he said. "It's just confidence," he said. "I'm just telling myself I want to be here, telling myself, ‘You can compete with anybody.'"

Haines said Jordan has impressed the minor-league staff with his leadership, and the skill set makes him a versatile weapon.

"Dakota can beat out slow choppers, it's a close play at first every time, and he plays so hard and has enough speed he's going to pressure the defense on any play," Haines said. "Then obviously the other teams' pitchers are scared of making mistakes over the middle of the plate because he can turn anything around and leave the yard to all fields quickly and in bunches, too. He's got that ability to take over a game in many regards. He can hit a homer one at-bat, the next at bat, beat out an infield hit and cause havoc."

His lineup and Futures Game buddy Kilen is happy to hype Jordan, too.

"Dakota's just in a really good spot with baseball now mentally - he's there. He's ready," Kilen said. "Not that he wasn't before, but we're really far into the season and he's just a phenomenal player. Good character, works hard. … It's just special to see him get where he's at, and it's just going to keep continuing."

Subscribe​

There’s more to San Francisco with the Chronicle. Subscribe today for just 25¢.
This article originally published at Giants prospects Gavin Kilen, Dakota Jordan getting promoted after Futures Game.

Continue reading...