DENVER -- The Giants need a spark, so they dove deep into their Minor League system to call up a kid who describes himself as a “hair-on-fire” player.
As they fend off the cellar-dwelling Rockies, who trailed the Giants by a half-game in the standings entering the finale of their three-game set Sunday, the Giants selected the contract of outfielder Jonah Cox from Double-A Richmond.
Cox, 24 and a native of Louisville, Colo., outside of Denver, got the news at a team meeting with the manager when the subject was how to handle oneself in the Major League environment.
“We talked about how to act like a big leaguer and the way you play,” Cox recalled.
Little did he know, he would end up being “Exhibit A” at the end of the discussion.
“I got on a flight from Akron to Chicago at 7 o'clock [Saturday night], and got into O'Hare at like 10, and then the flight got delayed and delayed and delayed and delayed, and so I ended up leaving at like 7 o'clock this morning,” Cox explained.
Flight delays notwithstanding, it’s fair to say Cox arrived in the big leagues ahead of schedule.
It’s rare these days to see a player jump from Double-A to the Majors, and it can sometimes be an indictment of a team’s depth rather than a testament to a player’s early prowess, but Cox won a closer look by hitting .400 (64-for-160) with 11 doubles, five triples, six homers, 35 RBIs, 31 runs scored and 27 stolen bases in 44 games with Richmond this season.
“He certainly earned it,” manager Tony Vitello said. “He was actually born in Colorado, so for him to get here is a great thing. As you can imagine, he's pretty juiced.”
Other Giants players to make the leap from Double-A to their debut include Miguel Gomez (2017), Madison Bumgarner (’09) and Pablo Sandoval (’08).
“He's a heady player, a JUCO guy, comes from a great, great, great college program at Oral Roberts, and had success there, and he really hasn't slowed down,” Vitello said. “This momentum is something that I think will continue for him at this level, regardless of how long he's with us.”
Cox’s speed precedes him and has helped get him on the radar of prospect watchers, but he didn’t hit .400 through speed alone.
“My experience with all young players, the more physical you get, and the more experienced, the more at-bats you get, the better you become offensively,” Vitello said. “He's really swung the bat well.”
In addition to his speed and his head for baseball, Cox has a big league pedigree, with his father, Darron Cox, making the Majors as a catcher with the Expos for 15 games in 1999. He’s also married to Kate Cox, a successful college golfer who recently transferred to Notre Dame.
“I get to be a trophy husband in the offseason, which is awesome,” Cox said.
Bryce Eldridge is a familiar face in the Giants’ clubhouse for Cox, as the two played together in San Jose in the California League and in High-A in Eugene, both in 2024. But beyond that, he doesn’t know the Major League players yet. Cox wasn’t slotted for the big leagues as he started his fourth year of pro ball, and he spent Spring Training in Minor League camp.
“I was kind of there and just kind of watching, [trying to] be seen but not heard,” Cox said of his Spring Training experience this year.
He crossed paths with Vitello at the College World Series in Omaha but still had not met him yet on the morning he first suited up in a big league uniform.
Vitello considered starting him Sunday, but after Cox’s overnight ordeal at O’Hare, he decided to let him catch his breath before penciling him into the lineup card.
“It's an exciting day,” Vitello said of Cox’s arrival. “The more you are in this, the more you realize you have to turn the page quicker than the average person, and it's a new day. It's gorgeous outside, and you inject a little life into the locker room, and just the possibilities of what we might do with all the assets he has.”
In a corresponding move, the Giants optioned outfielder Will Brennan to Triple-A Sacramento. The club also recalled right-handed reliever Tristan Beck from Triple-A. Left-handed reliever Ryan Borucki was designated for assignment after pitching Saturday night, when he allowed three runs over the game’s final two innings.