Marco

Luciano

Luciano lasted eight days on the Orioles’ 40-man, which is longer than most of their waiver pickups this winter. Maybe they’ll get lucky and sneak him through waivers, as they just did with Jhonkensy Noel.

The Pirates just claimed Luciano off waivers from the Giants on December 19th and then designated him for assignment two weeks later. Luciano is just 24 years old and was a top 50 prospect in baseball less than two weeks ago. This is a nice flyer for Baltimore, even though they have nowhere to play the prospects they already have.

Luciano’s time in the Pittsburgh organization is very likely to be short, as the 24-year-old was just claimed off waivers at the beginning of December. The former top prospect could sneak through unclaimed this time, but it seems likely someone will take that chance.

Luciano is not long removed from being considered one of the top hitting prospects in baseball, but the 24-year-old has seen his stock drop considerably due to poor play in both the minors and brief stints in the majors. He’ll get a chance to shine in a new organization, but this is definitely a wait-and-see type of profile from a fantasy perspective.

It’ll be interesting to see how that plays out. Rafael Devers, Matt Chapman and Willy Adames aren’t much for routine days off. The Giants are certainly committed to those three and probably Jung Hoo Lee, Heliot Ramos and Patrick Bailey as 2026 regulars, leaving openings at second, in right field and at DH. But the first two of those spots are currently occupied by younger players anyway in Casey Schmitt and Drew Gilbert. We wouldn’t expect much to change with the core group going forward. Marco Luciano, Luis Matos and maybe Wade Meckler could get looks between the outfield and the DH spot.

Yeah, with the River Cats racking up 17 runs last night, that’s seven plate appearances in a nine-inning game. Luciano, strictly a left fielder now, was just 5-for-41 on the season going into the contest. A shockingly early cut from the spring roster last month — he was sent down on March 5 — Luciano is going to need to excel to get another chance with the Giants. He seems like a candidate to be thrown into a trade this summer.

Luciano was moved to the outfield this spring, and the Giants will give him more reps in the grass at the Triple-A level before a potential call-up. Black is one of the more talented arms in the San Francisco system and could make appearances for the Giants by the end of 2025, but his inconsistent command makes him a tough sell from a fantasy perspective.

The hope according to Posey is that a move away from shortstop will help “unlock” Luciano’s offensive potential. The 23-year-old has not had much success at the highest level with a line of just .217/.286/304 in 135 appearances at the plate, but he isn’t far removed from being considered one of the top prospects in baseball. He also will likely be eligible at a couple of positions in 2025, which doesn’t hurt.

Luciano was sent down as the corresponding move for the Giants to activate Matt Chapman from the paternity list. He was 16-for-76 (.211) with no home runs and three RBI. Luciano didn’t produce, but he also didn’t get as much of an opportunity as many assumed he would after the Giants traded Jorge Soler.

Fitzgerald is day-to-day with tightness in his lower back. Marco Luciano is the starting second baseman, with Brett Wisely moving over to shortstop while Fitzgerald recuperates.