SF Giants Players Review 2026: Caleb Kilian’s strong return unraveled in the ninth

Caleb Kilian was one of the many inspiring stories that emerged from an otherwise forgettable 2026 campaign for the SF Giants. Drafted by San Francisco in the eighth round of the 2019 MLB draft out of Texas Tech, Kilian was part of the Kris Bryant trade with the Chicago Cubs in 2021. After a Cubs tenure marked by injuries and little MLB success, he returned to the Giants as a non-roster invitee competing for a relief job.

His full-circle season got off to a promising start before a shift in role proved ill-suited. Kilian's second stint with the Giants came to a premature end, as the right-hander was included in one of the team's many moves at the trade deadline.

Kilian’s promising start gave way to ninth-inning struggles

As one of the major surprises, Kilian made the opening-day roster after posting a 0.96 ERA over 9 1/3 innings in the Cactus League. His go-to pitch, the fastball, reached 99.1 mph in his debut in late February.

Kilian officially made his Giants debut on the day his contract was selected, March 25, on Opening Day against the New York Yankees. He pitched a perfect inning. By the end of April, 14 innings and 13 appearances into his season, Kilian had allowed just one earned run, good enough for a 0.64 ERA. He earned his first MLB win on April 18 against the Nationals, when he threw two scoreless innings.

Following the Giants' decision not to settle on a designated closer but instead to do it by committee, Kilian received his first few save opportunities in May. He got the job done in his first one against the Padres despite giving up a leadoff home run that cut the Giants' lead to one run. His next two, against the Dodgers and White Sox, went smoothly, with Kilian throwing 1 1/3 perfect innings against Los Angeles and striking out the side against Chicago. His first collapse came on May 29 at Coors Field.

Entering with a three-run cushion over the Rockies, Kilian surrendered two home runs: a game-tying two-run blast to Hunter Goodman and a walk-off, three-run no-doubter to Ezequiel Tovar. His ERA jumped from 2.22 to 3.96 after that performance.

When the Giants eventually decided to establish a regular closer, they went with Kilian, who had a 3.34 ERA and four saves in 28 appearances at that point. Kilian's recovery from his disastrous outing in Colorado came in the form of nine straight scoreless innings, before his next meltdown happened.

On June 25 against the Athletics, Kilian was tagged with his second blown save of the season after he turned a one-run lead into a three-run deficit in the top of the ninth inning.

Kilian would record his eighth and final save with the Giants on July 4, his third blown save on July 10 against that same Rockies team, and make his final appearance with San Francisco on August 1. He was traded on August 3 as part of the move that sent him along with Luis Arraez to the Phillies in exchange for pitching prospects Ramon Marquez and Marty Gair.

Things truly started to go south for Kilian when he was named the team's closer. Before being named the closer, he had posted a 3.34 ERA in 29 2/3 innings. From June 12, the date he was named closer, through his final game with the Giants, he posted a 6.14 ERA in 14 2/3 innings. The disparity between his ninth-inning numbers and those in all other innings is even more bewildering: an 8.84 ERA in 19 1/3 innings in the ninth compared to a 0.72 ERA – two earned runs in 25 innings – in all other innings. Despite occupying the official closer role for just a few weeks and leaving the team with two months left on the schedule, Kilian's eight saves still led the Giants.

Following his trade to Philadelphia, Kilian made just four appearances with the Phillies before suffering an oblique injury that put an end to his season. The beginning was exciting, the ending was disappointing, but Kilian nonetheless left his mark on this 2026 season.

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