Easily overlooked SF Giants outfielder gets off to hot start in Triple-A

The SF Giants kicked off their season with a victory over the Cincinnati Reds on Thursday. Their Triple-A affiliate, the Sacramento River Cats, started their season on Friday and Marco Luciano got off to a very hot start at the plate.

In four plate appearances, Luciano walked twice and hit a three-run home run which helped power the River Cats to a commanding 8-0 victory in their opener.

It is obviously just one game, but it is nice to see Luciano get off to a good start this season after last season was a struggle for him at the major league level.

SF Giants prospect Marco Luciano gets off to hot start in the minors

Luciano was one of the top prospects in the organization last year and was presumed to be the team's starting shortstop going into spring training but veteran Nick Ahmed beat him out for the job.

Eventually, Luciano did make his way onto the big league roster but his defense at shortstop was awful and his performance at the plate did not justify how much of a liability his glove was. In 76 at-bats with the Giants last season, he slashed .211/.259/.303 with three RBI.

After the season, the Giants announced that Luciano would be converted to an outfielder. His defense was simply not cutting it in the infield, so the outfield seemed like a good place for him to get back on track.

He played the corner outfield positions in spring training and looked decent out there. It will surely take time before he is fully confident playing new positions, but if he can be serviceable on defense that is all the Giants could ask for.

However, the only way we are going to see him in a Giants uniform in 2025 is if he gets red-hot with the bat in Triple-A. As of right now, outfielder Grant McCray is probably ahead of him on the depth chart and would get the nod if the Giants needed another outfielder.

Things could change quickly though if Luciano keeps on blasting impressive opposite field home runs. He is still just 23 years old so he has plenty of time to get back to being the player he is capable of being.

Just last year, we saw an overlooked outfielder Heliot Ramos start the season in Triple-A and he ended up being an All-Star for the Giants and is now an integral part of the middle of the order.

Perhaps we will see Luciano follow a similar trajectory in 2025 if he can build upon his solid start to the Triple-A season.