February 28, 20251 yr 6 minutes ago, DirtySox said: Quote 36. Gavin Kilen 2B Ht: 5'11" | Wt: 185 | B-T: L-R School: Tennessee Committed/Drafted: Red Sox ’22 (13) Age At Draft: 21.3 BA Grade/Risk: 50/High Following a modest freshman season in 2023, Kilen broke out in 2024 and hit .330/.361/.591 with 35 extra-base hits and 41 RBIs. He has a short, compact stroke with some quickness in his hands. Kilen’s bat-to-ball skills are strong and he managed an impressive in-zone contact rate of 93%, including 95% against fastballs. He’s a hit-over-power offensive profile and might not grow into much more home run juice, though he should stick at a middle infield position, even if that’s more likely second base than shortstop in pro ball. Edited February 28, 20251 yr by DirtySox
February 28, 20251 yr 12 minutes ago, DirtySox said: Damn. Looks like that poor kid got hit with the ball off the adult's hands.
March 1, 20251 yr My guy is hangin in there. Not bad for not playing for two years. The strikeouts are piling up a bit but he's also getting his hits. Pretty good left on left AB here. Hopefully he has most of the rust shakin off by conference play and he can really start showing what he can do.
March 4, 20251 yr Wow. Law has Liam Doyle as his number 1 draft prospect. Also Gavin Kilen at 6. Law definitely does his own thing. Or he's just ahead of the curve? Edited March 4, 20251 yr by DirtySox
March 4, 20251 yr Law's Top 30 Draft Prospects https://www.nytimes.com/athletic/6165485/2025/03/04/mlb-draft-2025-rankings-prospects-keith-law-liam-doyle-ethan-holliday/ Will share the top 15. Quote 1.) Liam Doyle 2.) Ethan Holliday 3.) Aiva Arquette 4.) Jamie Arnold 5.) Kayson Cunningham 6.) Gaven Kilen 7.) Jace LaViolette 8.) Ike Irish 9.) Brendan Summerhill 10.) Eli Willits 11.) Riley Quick 12.) JoJo Parker 13.) Tyler Bremner 14.) Billy Carlson 15.) Cam Cannarella Edited March 4, 20251 yr by DirtySox
March 4, 20251 yr 4 Up Arrow College Hitters 2025 Draft. https://www.baseballamerica.com/stories/4-up-arrow-college-hitters-to-know-in-the-2025-mlb-draft-class/ Will post the blurbs on two of them. Quote Aiva Arquette, SS, Oregon State (No. 16) .432/.542/.730, 3 HR, 2 2B, 16.7 BB%, 14.6 K% Arquette has one of the most exciting profiles in the class. It’s extremely easy to dream on a 6-foot-5, 220-pound shortstop with the sort of raw power and bat speed he possesses. Entering the spring, showing a less aggressive approach that would help him tap into his big power more frequently was one of the key checkpoints evaluators were looking to see. So far, so good. While playing a competitive early season schedule with Oregon State, Arquette has gone 16-for-37 (.432) with three home runs, two doubles, more walks (8) than strikeouts and just a single multi-strikeout (7) game. Hitting in the two-hole between fellow top-two-round talents Trent Caraway and Gavin Turley, Arquette has so far cut his chase rate from 29% in 2024 to just 19% in his first 10 games this spring. Maintaining that sort of pitch selection throughout the spring season would go a long way in showing teams he has the ability to make adjustments and is making strides as a hitter. Back in his high school days when Arquette was the top-ranked prospect out of Hawaii, he had a reputation as a glove-first player. A majority of Arquette’s hits this year have come on pitches in the middle or outer third of the plate where he’s able to get extended. Given his long levers, it will be interesting to see how he reacts when pitchers are capable of consistently attacking him on the inner third with quality velocity. He has more than enough bat speed to handle above-average velocity—with performance against 92+ mph pitches historically to back that up—but attacking inside with intent isn’t often a strength of many college pitchers. Arquette has played every game this season at shortstop and made his first error on Sunday when he unnecessarily rushed a lazy throw and tossed a one-hopper across the diamond to first that wasn’t handled. There’s something in the water at Oregon State because, like Travis Bazzana before him, Arquette seems to prefer dropping down and throwing from a low arm slot even on plays where that doesn’t appear necessary. Quote Gavin Kilen, 2B, Tennessee (No. 58) .486/.615/1.270, 7 HR, 2 2B, 25.0 BB%, 3.8 K% Kilen’s white-hot week three makes him arguably the most impressive Division I hitter in the country. The Tennessee second baseman was named the SEC’s player of the week after he went 11-for-18 (.611) with five home runs, including back-to-back two-homer games at the Astros Foundation College Classic. After just 11 games, Kilen is only two home runs shy of his 2024 season total (and career best) of nine. The power surge is surprising for scouts who expected to see a steady player with solid-ish tools across the board and an offensive package built more on contact than pop. Prior to this spring, Kilen homered just nine times in 402 plate appearances with Louisville (2.2% HR/PA rate) and hit just two home runs in 215 plate appearances with a wood bat in the Cape Cod League (0.9% HR/PA rate). At the moment, he has seven home runs in 52 plate appearances—good for a 13.5% HR/PA rate that blows his previous power numbers out of the water. Kilen is listed at 187 pounds this spring compared to an 180-pound listing in 2024. His setup and swing at the plate look fairly similar to his Louisville swing from a year ago, with perhaps a tick more hand speed and intent via video. Kilen’s physicality and raw power are much different from 2024 Tennessee second baseman Christian Moore, who started in a similar spot to Kilen on last year’s board and ultimately pushed his way into the eighth overall pick. Moore entered his draft year with 10- and 17-homer seasons already under his belt, so after cutting his strikeout rate as a junior, his 34-homer campaign wasn’t shocking. He’d always flashed the raw power before. Kilen’s game is more well-rounded with fewer holes but less juice. He’s never struck out more than a 9.4% clip, he defends second base at a solid level and projects to stick on the dirt in pro ball fairly safely. If scouts view his uptick in power as a material change in his profile and not some illusion of the current hot-bat environment of college baseball, it would be easy to see him going in the supplemental first-round range similar to Griff O’Ferrall (32nd, Orioles) and Kyle DeBarge (33rd, Twins). The other two that are listed are RJ Austin and Kane Kepley. Kinda wild that BA has Kilen as a supplemental 1st round guy and Law has him 6th overall currently. Edited March 4, 20251 yr by DirtySox
March 4, 20251 yr On 3/1/2025 at 10:16 PM, ChiSoxFanMike said: Who are we hoping the Sox take at #10? I know it’s early but still. I am for Appenzeller. Get another stud lefty.
March 4, 20251 yr 6 hours ago, Springfield Soxfan said: I am for Appenzeller. Get another stud lefty. I want the best available player of course, but at some point I think they will face diminishing returns if they keep drafting pitchers in the first round. They desperately need bats. Unless they draft pitchers, develop them, and then trade them for more proven bats.
March 6, 20251 yr 16 minutes ago, Harold's Leg Lift said: Shai would make a very interesting 3-4 round pick. Vikings, right?
March 7, 20251 yr I don’t know what to make of Summerhill at 1-10. There’s power but not tons. I think there are questions about the hit tool. He has played cf, but it doesn’t look like he’s gonna stick there. Also, I would rather draft hitters out of the SEC. Sox haven’t had a ton of success out of what used to be the PAC-12.
March 7, 20251 yr 1 hour ago, Timmy U said: I don’t know what to make of Summerhill at 1-10. There’s power but not tons. I think there are questions about the hit tool. He has played cf, but it doesn’t look like he’s gonna stick there. Also, I would rather draft hitters out of the SEC. Sox haven’t had a ton of success out of what used to be the PAC-12. I'm not on Summerhill either. He was a terrible makeup guy in HS. I heard he's matured during his time at AZ but I still can't do it.
March 8, 20251 yr Houston is really making a case to be a top 10 pick. He made himself some serious money at the gym.
March 8, 20251 yr 2 hours ago, Timmy U said: Houston is really making a case to be a top 10 pick. He made himself some serious money at the gym. and he's a lock to stay at SS. Dude can really pick it.
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