Outfielder Jonah Cox joined the San Francisco Giants for his MLB debut on Sunday, becoming the first Richmond Flying Squirrels player in nearly nine years to be called to the majors directly from Double-A.
His first major league action came in the Giantsâ 14-6 win over the Colorado Rockies on Sunday afternoon at Coors Field in Denver. Cox entered as a pinch-runner in the eighth inning and quickly raced around the bases to score a run.
In the ninth, he hit a double in his first major league plate appearance.
The MiLB leader in batting average this year, Cox hit .400 over 44 games with the Flying Squirrels. He was also second in the minors in OPS (1.097), fifth in slugging percentage (.644) and tied for seventh in stolen bases (27). He led the Eastern League in those categories as well as on-base percentage (.453), hits (64) and triples (5).
Flying Squirrels manager Dennis Pelfrey called a team meeting on Saturday afternoon on the road in Akron, Ohio, setting a stage to give Cox the news of his promotion surrounded by his teammates. Â
Cox packed his gear and headed out to the sidewalk to wait for a car to take him to the airport, fielding calls ranging from his own travel itinerary to coordinating with the Giants to get his family to Denver.
Many of them did not have to travel far. Cox grew up about 20 minutes north of Denver in Louisville, Colo.
The journey from Akron to Denver included Cox spending nine hours overnight at O'Hare International Airport in Chicago waiting out delayed flights.
Jumping from Richmond straight to the majors is not unprecedented, but it is rare. Cox became the seventh player in Flying Squirrels history to be selected from Richmond to the Giantsâ major league roster for his MLB debut. Overall, he was the 121st Flying Squirrels player to reach the majors.
Darren Ford was the first. He was part of the Flying Squirrelsâ inaugural season in 2010 and had been added to the Giantsâ 40-man roster the previous year to protect him from being eligible for the Rule 5 Draft. This was back when rosters expanded on September 1. Ford was added to the Giants roster and used as a pinch-runner and defensive player.
After rewriting the Flying Squirrelsâ record book in 2011, pitcher Eric Surkamp was called up to the majors from Richmond in 2011. He made his MLB debut in San Francisco on August 27, 2011, and allowed one run over six innings against the Houston Astros.
Matt Duffy had one of the best seasons in franchise history with the Flying Squirrels in 2014. He was called up to the majors from Double-A to make his debut on August 1, although his debut is technically listed as May 22 because he entered a game that had been suspended months earlier and resumed in August. Duffy stuck with the Giants all the way through their World Series title run that year to kick off nine MLB seasons.
The same day Duffy was called up to the majors, Jarrett Parker also received a promotion from Richmond to San Francisco. However, he did not get into a game before being optioned to Triple-A Fresno the next day. Parker eventually did play his first MLB game on June 13, 2015.
After a breakout season where he went 11-for-11 in save attempts with Richmond, Hunter Strickland was promoted to the Giants from Double-A and made his MLB debut on September 1, 2014. He pitched eight times in the Postseason that year as the Giants won the World Series, the first of his two titles. He was also part of the Washington Nationalsâ 2019 World Series run and has played 11 seasons in the majors.
Dan Slania spent parts of four seasons in Richmond. On June 30, 2017, he made the only appearance of his MLB career and threw a 1-2-3 relief inning at PNC Park. With the Giants in Pittsburgh and Mark Melancon going down with an injury, Slania was called up from Richmond to make his one appearance and optioned back to the Eastern League the next day.
A few weeks later, Miguel GĂłmez was promoted to the Giants for the first time from Richmond. After a good first half of the year in Double-A, he was selected to play in the Eastern League All-Star Game in New Hampshire, but he missed the festivities to head out west and make his MLB debut against the Miami Marlins on July 7, 2017. Â GĂłmez returned to Richmond in 2018 and was again called up to the majors from Double-A in May.
This year, Cox became just the second qualified hitter to bat .400 or higher through the first two calendar months of the Eastern League season since at least 2005. The other was Vladimir Guerrero Jr. with the New Hampshire Fisher Cats in 2018.
After starring at Oral Roberts and helping the program reach the College World Series in 2023, Cox was selected in the sixth round of that summer's MLB Draft by the Oakland Athletics. On February 2, 2024, he was traded to the Giants. This year was his first season at Double-A.Â
Cox is the fifth Flying Squirrels alum to debut in the majors this season. Pitcher William Kempner (2023 Flying Squirrels) debuted with the Marlins on May 5. Last yearâs team MVP, Victor Bericoto (2023-2025), was called up by the Giants and played his first game on May 22.
Bryan Torres (2021) homered in his MLB debut for the St. Louis Cardinals on May 23. Tanner Andrews (2022) made his first two pitching appearances in the majors with the Toronto Blue Jays last week, debuting on May 25.
On Tuesday, the Flying Squirrels begin a stretch of 12 home games over 13 days through June 14. Tickets are available online at SquirrelsBaseball.com/Tickets, by phone at 804-359-FUNN (3866) or in person at the CarMax Park ticket office.