Former top SF Giants power-hitting prospect has been a mixed bag so far in 2025

Former top SF Giants power-hitting prospect Marco Luciano returned to Triple-A for a third season in 2025. They hope that he can use the time with the Sacramento River Cats to learn the nuances of left field and refine his swing at the plate. For the latter task, it has been a mixed bag so far.

Former top SF Giants power-hitting prospect has been a mixed bag so far in 2025

While returning to the same level for a third straight year is usually never a good sign, it has been somewhat different for Luciano. He was moved up to Triple-A after a hot streak in Double-A in 2023. This was due in part to the fact that he was already on the 40-man roster. That tends to rush development.

Oftentimes, teams like to let prospects get a healthy number of reps before moving up to the next level, but the Giants were more aggressive with Luciano.

Of course, Luciano's development has not gone as expected in recent years, and the Giants have done him no favors. They committed to him at shortstop, then decommitted after a rough patch. They moved Jorge Soler to open up at-bats for him at DH, but quickly backpedaled on that idea.

The front office is seemingly being more patient this offseason, and that is probably the best thing for the new outfielder. They have enough outfielders on the 40-man roster that there should be no reason to call him up sooner than when or if they deem him ready.

The right-handed bat is entering a critical point in his time with the Giants, as he has nearly exhausted his third and final option year. A player burns an option year when he has spent at least 20 days in the minors. That will happen this month.

At that point, teams need to balance development with getting as good an evaluation as possible. The Giants can still be patient, but they will want to know what he can do by the end of the season.

So, how has Luciano looked in 2025? Well, he is slashing .216/.330/.378 (93 wRC+) with a 14.8 percent walk rate, 29.5 percent strikeout rate, and a .162 ISO in 88 plate appearances. That is not the type of stat line that jumps off the page.

The 23-year-old bat has done a nice job of limiting his chase rate to 21.3 percent. In fact, he is just not swinging the bat all that much, so while he is making better swing decisions, the Giants would probably be happy to see him be a little more aggressive. At the very least, he has demonstrated good knowldge of the strike zone.

Luciano's strikeout rate is elevated, and that will likely be a quality he demonstrates as his career progresses. On the bright side, the strikeout rate is not due to swing-and-miss concerns on pitches in the zone. He has done a nice job of covering that. It is more a combination of being passive and chasing.

The right-handed bat has no problem making hard contact. He has posted a 91.3-MPH average exit velocity in 2025, up from 89.8 MPH in Sacramento last season. In Friday night's 11-8 win over the Salt Lake Bees, Luciano had three batted balls with an exit velocity above 99 MPH. One of his doubles had an exit velocity of 109.5 MPH, and displayed the raw power he has generally shown as a pro.

This is where things get tricky. Luciano's average launch angle is 8.0 degrees, up from 5.6 degrees last season. That is a modest improvement, and is important for his development.

Luciano's biggest challenge is not how hard he is hitting the ball, but how he is hitting the ball. It is a tough mix of hitting a few too many ground balls and not being able to pull the ball. When you watch him hit, he has no problem hitting the ball hard, but oftentimes, it is funky contact to the opposite field.

While teams want to see hitters lift and pull the ball, Luciano is nearly doing the opposite of that. He has seen a notable improvement in his ground ball rate, posting a 39.6 percent ground ball rate in 2025 compared to a 49.8 percent ground ball rate last season.

Luciano has the raw power, but that is limited due to a bat that is not pulling the ball in the air with more regularity. It could be a timing issue, too. If that quality sees improvement, you should see his power numbers begin to spike.

In the meantime, it has not been a breakout year in the early going. There have been modest improvements across the board, but everything is not clicking quite yet. The Giants are in no rush to push him to the majors, so he has time to work through this in a lower-pressure environment. This is how the Giants should have approached it from the start.