Marco Luciano Era Ends with Giants After Pirates Claim Him off Waivers

At one point Marco Luciano was the top prospect in the San Francisco Giants’ system. Now, he’s a Pittsburgh Pirate.

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Marco Luciano’s time with the San Francisco Giants will be marked by unfulfilled promise.

Once the franchise’s top prospect, he was quietly claimed off waivers by the Pittsburgh Pirates on Friday, ending his Giants career with 41 games and 115 at-bats.

San Francisco had hoped he would be the future in the middle of the infield. He played games at both second base and shortstop, but his bat prevented him from sticking in the Majors. The shortstop job is now held by Willy Adames on a long-term deal. Second base is still in flux, but it’s possible that Christian Koss could make the position his in 2026.

Unable to claim a starting job or convert himself into a super-utility player, the Pirates will now give him a chance to win a job in 2026.

The Long and Short of Marco Luciano’s Giants Career

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He only had 41 MLB games, but he spent eight years with the Giants in their system, as he signed with the franchise as an international free agent in 2018 out of the Dominican Republic. Considered one of the top international prospects at the time, he signed a $2.6 million bonus deal to being his pro career.

He paid off almost immediately, teasing the franchise with what it thought was coming. While with the Arizona Complex League Giants in 2019 he led the league with 46 runs and slashed .322/.438/.616. He was also among the Top 5 in home runs, RBI and walks. He was promoted to the Northwest League as a 17-year-old and was named a minor league all-star by multiple outlets.

The COVID shutdown of 2020 didn’t slow him down. He played in the All-Star Futures Game in 2021 and played for both Class-A San Jose and High-A Eugene. He slashed .258/.344/.471 that year, earned multiple postseason all-star honors again and played in the prestigious Arizona Fall League.

By 2022 he was showing off more power and rose to the top of the Giants’ prospect rankings per multiple outlets. After that season, one in which he batted .269, he was moved to the 40-man roster to protect him from the Rule 5 draft, a nod to what San Francisco hoped would be his future in the Majors.

In 2023 he played at Double-A Richmond and Triple-A Sacramento before making his Major League debut late that season. He slashed .231/.333/.308. He split time between Sacramento and San Francisco in 2024, and he slashed .211/.259/.303 in 27 games. He didn’t play in the Majors last season, a sign that the Giants had finally given up on seeing his minor league promise deliver in the Majors.