SAN FRANCISCO -- Marco Luciano spent about 20 minutes Wednesday afternoon sitting on the dugout bench. He was waiting for the coaching staff to come out so he could do defensive drills, but the glove he had with him might not be needed too often in the second half.
The trade of Jorge Soler was made in part to clear the runway for Luciano, who has the inside track on being the designated hitter for the next two months. It's a way to get the 22-year-old consistent big league at-bats, although long term, the Giants hope to find different avenues.
Luciano has always been a top prospect because he combines power with a premium position. The Giants are hopeful he can find a permanent home on the dirt as soon as next season, but for now, they believe he's ready for a different role.
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"We've talked about the defensive progress that Marco has made, but being able to bring him up and even just initially have him DH and get comfortable, I think there's a lot of value in that," president of baseball operations Farhan Zaidi said on the Giants Talk podcast. "I think we'll see him some in the field, too. We certainly don't see him as a DH long-term, and with his ability to play in the field, I think we'll see some of that. I think that's going to be important for his development."
Luciano was the DH for both games against the A's, the first two without Soler, and went 2-for-6 with a double and two strikeouts. The Giants are committed to letting him ride the highs and lows during this latest call-up, and if Luciano can keep having the type of at-bats he did in Triple-A in July, the dropoff from Soler to a rookie won't be that steep.
But no organization dreams of turning a top prospect into a DH. The staff will work with Luciano at shortstop and second base, with the latter being a much more likely spot when he plays the field over the next two months.
Luciano has been a shortstop his whole professional career, but he struggled defensively during a previous call-up this year, seemingly validating the concerns of talent evaluators outside of the organization who long have believed he will need a position change. He made 16 starts at second base in Triple-A before the Giants called him back up and the staff there felt he was starting to settle in.
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"I think he's getting increasingly comfortable," Zaidi said. "The errors have been high. Some of that is focus play-to-play and pitch-to-pitch, which is an area of development."
The Giants have not had the conversation yet about Luciano's long-term fit. It's possible that the greatest need this offseason is at second base, where Thairo Estrada looks like a potential non-tender candidate. If Matt Chapman opts out, it could be at third base, although that's Casey Schmitt's natural position and he's the best defender of the young infielders.
Wilmer Flores, another tall shortstop, eventually became a first baseman at the big league level. Some within the organization have felt for years that they should just move Luciano to a corner outfield spot and let him focus more on hitting. He drew Alfonso Soriano comps as a young prospect, and that's the path Soriano ultimately took.
There are complications, though. Zaidi said any talk of the outfield would have to come in the offseason, not over the next two months, and even then it's not all that appealing.
"When we think about getting (Jung Hoo) Lee back and what (Heliot) Ramos has done and having (Luis) Matos in the organization -- we just drafted James Tibbs III, who we think is going to move quickly -- the outfield can fill up quickly," Zaidi said. "When you have a prospect who plays on the dirt like Marco, you always want to make sure you exhaust those opportunities before moving them out there (to the outfield) because it can just create more of a crunch.
"I think we're going to start having more of those conversations. I'd still like to see how Marco does. He has been playing more second base and we'll probably still see him at shortstop some."
There is no rush to make a decision, although it seems likely that Luciano will come to camp next season with a new position. Right now, the Giants just want him to focus on getting comfortable in the batter's box at the big league level.
Ironically, the DH spot can be as difficult as any for young players who are not used to taking their cuts and then sitting around for a couple of innings. But Luciano said it doesn't bother him. He did it a bit in the minors and felt comfortable.
"Whatever they want me to do, I'm going to be ready and just take advantage of this opportunity," he said.
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