San Francisco Giants Select Outfield Prospect, Option Struggling Infielder

The San Francisco Giants made a shocking roster move before Wednesday's game.

Feb 21, 2024; Scottsdale, AZ, USA; San Francisco Giants outfielder Grant McCray poses for Photo Day at Scottsdale Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Rick Scuteri-USA TODAY Sports / Rick Scuteri-USA TODAY Sports

The San Francisco Giants announced on Wednesday that they have optioned infielder/DH Marco Luciano and selected the contract of outfielder Grant McCray. Given the front office's comments about Luciano after the deadline, this move came as a bit of a surprise in that the Giants are currently in need of an everyday DH. That being said, McCray is an exciting young outfielder.

McCray was just named the number 11 prospect in the Giants system in MLB Pipeline's new rankings, and has been a bit up and down in the system since he was drafted. McCray has some exciting tools, namely his plus-plus running ability. He is also a plus defender who will slide into centerfield with San Francisco.

2022 saw a big breakout from the 23-year-old, in which he hit 23 home runs and stole 43 bases. In 2023, his slugging percentage dropped nearly 100 points, but he stole even more bases, swiping 52 bags.

The outfielders numbers have stayed around where they were last year so far in 2024. In 97 games between Double-A and Triple-A, he has a .776 OPS with 12 home runs, 26 doubles and seven triples. His stolen base numbers are down, however, as he only has 14 this season.

McCray will provide another left-handed bat for the outfield and at the very least will play good defense in center in order for Heliot Ramos to move back to a corner. He will provide a threat to go on the bases at any time and could be a dangerous pinch runner, as well.

The Marco Luciano situation continues to cause head scratching. After the Giants traded Jorge Soler, President of Baseball Operations, Farhan Zaidi, talked about this being an opportunity for Luciano to get everyday at-bats.

That wasn't the case, though. The 22-year-old was brought back, played five games, then didn't get an at-bat from August 6th. to August 12th. He went just 3-for-17 in his first five games back, but the whole point of trading Soler was to get Luciano on the field to grow as a major leaguer.

It's entirely possible there is some other situation going on with Luciano, but since there has been no reports, it just seems that the team is becoming impatient. He will go back to Sacramento to get everyday at-bats and can hopefully find a groove there.

With Luciano gone, the likely option at DH is a Mark Canha and LaMonte Wade Jr. splitting time at DH and first, depending on the matchup. That is to be seen, but for now, the Giants will count on Grant McCray to provide plus defense in center.