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SS GAVIN KILEN (LOUISVILLE TO
TENNESSEE)
The Volunteers lost a ton of bats in the MLB Draft, but hit the transfer portal hard and should be able to stave off some of those missing pieces. Kilen will play a major role in that.
He produced some of the best contact rates in the NCAA last year, posting some insane contact and in-zone contact rates. He’s a bit aggressive, which led to a high chase rate, but that didn’t lead to significant Whiff or an increase in strikeouts, he has put up pretty good numbers in both categories.
The big thing about Kilen’s offensive
game is he saw a rise in pull-side power, with his max exit velocity getting up
to 111 mph. Defensively, Killen has solid range at shortstop and enough arm
strength to stick at the position. His quick reaction time helps him get to the
ball with ease. He should be a solid contributor to the Volunteers looking to
be repeat National Champions.
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Gavin Kilen
B/T: L/R
Ht./Wt.: 5-11 / 180
Class: Sophomore
Hometown: Milton, Wis.
High School:Milton
Prev School: Milton HS
CAREER HONORS
• 2024 All-ACC Third Team
• 2023 All-ACC Academic Team
2024: Started 54 of 56 games at shortstop ... Earned third team All-ACC honors finishing with a .330 average, 23 doubles, three triples and nine home runs ... Drove in 41 and scored 39 times ... Led the Cardinals in hits, doubles and total bases ... His 23 doubles were tied for the fifth most in a single season in program history ... Set career highs in RBIs (3) and runs (4) in the win over St. Bonaventure on Feb. 23 ... Tallied five hits in the three-game series against Youngstown State ...
Had a career night against Morehead State on March 6, hitting his first career home run and adding three doubles as part of a 4-for-5 game ... Homered in three consecutive games with home runs in each of the first two games against Northwestern ... Went 2-for-4 with a home run and a career-high four RBIs against Lipscomb on March 12 ... Became the seventh player in Louisville history to hit for the cycle, going 4-for-5 against Virginia Tech on March 16 ...
Notched his third four-hit game
of the year, driving in two against Kentucky on April 16 ... Hit a solo homer
in the win over Miami on April 19 ... Went 2-for-4, including a first inning
grand slam against WKU on April 23 ... Hit a two-run homer in the win over NKU
on April 30 ... Hit a ninth inning two-run walkoff homer in the series opener
against Notre Dame on May 16.
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Kilen led Milton High to its first-ever Division I state
title this year, scoring the winning run in the championship game. The
left-handed hitter has also seen some time with Team USA’s Under 18 squad,
batting .231 with two RBIs over seven games.
“We’ve liked him for a long time now,” Red Sox amateur
scouting director Paul Toboni said. “He’s obviously a premium position player,
being a shortstop, but then he’s got a really advanced feel in the box. The
game moves pretty slowly for him.”
Contact skills and hand-eye coordination are Kilen’s main
characteristics at the plate, traits that could make up for a current lack of
power. The 18-year-old is a ground-ball hitter with the ability to send line
drives all over the field.
Kilen’s future at shortstop is debatable, as MLB Pipeline
rates his speed and strength at “more average than plus,” which could trigger a
future move to second base. Currently committed to Louisville, it’s unclear
whether Kilen will sign with Boston as a 13th-round pick, but it still made
sense for Boston to try to snag a Top-100 prospect that late in the Draft
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