Gavin Kilen’s first day as a Giant came with a glitch worthy of a movie script.
The San Francisco prospect, now the organization’s No. 2 prospect, said the internet cut out at the worst possible moment on draft night, right as the board was moving toward his name. By the time the Giants made him the No. 13 pick, the family setup at home was already in chaos.
“Internet went out. Two picks before.
The TV goes out. I was trying to hold it,” Kilen told Around the Foghorn at Sunday’s Futures Game in Philadelphia.
Kilen said there were several teams showing interest, but he was basically waiting for the phone to ring and letting the night unfold however it would.
“There were a couple different teams that had a lot of interest in me. It was kind of like ... if I get a phone call, I do, if not, not.
Whatever happens happens. Got a phone call from my agent, Giants are gonna take you here ...
I just remember at 12, the whole TV goes out, and I'm like, 'Mom, we've gotta get this thing rolling'. Ended up getting it on, getting it worked out, but that was one of those crazy stories on Draft Day.”
The ending has been a lot smoother than the setup. Kilen has opened his pro career by hitting .282/.350/.812 at High-A Eugene, production strong enough to earn him a promotion to Double-A after the Futures Game, along with fellow participant Dakota Jordan.
Kilen, a Wisconsin native and Tennessee alum, is now on the cusp of being even closer to the Giants’ fan base, but he also understands something about old loyalties. He grew up rooting for the Red Sox, and Fenway Park remains his dream ballpark outside of Oracle Park, even if he knows what that place can do to left-handed hitters.
Asked when that childhood fandom really fades, Kilen didn’t pretend it disappears completely.
“I don't think sometimes it does,” Kilen admitted. “I think it just becomes more of, 'I'm watching the Giants more, I want to see the Giants win and do well', so it's almost like you join into the team that you brought into.
Especially as you get to know the players, you're at spring training, you get to know these guys on a personal level. It's not just a 'fan', it's, 'I know these guys, and I want to see them succeed and do well'.”
Kilen’s Futures Game appearance was part of a loaded showcase in Philadelphia, though the day itself ended quietly. He went 0-for-1 as the American League beat the National League 6-1 in a sloppy game.
Now the focus shifts back to the climb, and to the new teammates and new relationships that come with it. For Kilen, that means more people to root for - unless they’re standing in the way of the Giants, or maybe the Red Sox.
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