3 Giants prospects who could have big impact in 2025

Thirteen rookies debuted with the Giants in 2024, giving new president of baseball operations Buster Posey a solid core of homegrown talent to build around heading into next year.

Breakthroughs by Heliot Ramos, Tyler Fitzgerald, Hayden Birdsong and others will leave the Giants with fewer holes to fill in free agency this winter, though they’ll need their farm system to continue to produce quality contributors to stay competitive moving forward.

Here are three players who could be poised to take big steps forward and impact the Giants in 2025:

1. Bryce Eldridge, 1B (Giants’ No. 1 prospect, MLB’s No. 35)
No Giants prospect enjoyed a bigger rise this year than Eldridge, who climbed from Single-A San Jose to Triple-A Sacramento in his first full season in pro ball. Eldridge, who turned 20 on Sunday, batted .291 with an .890 OPS and 23 home runs over 116 games during the Minor League season and is currently getting more reps with the Scottsdale Scorpions of the Arizona Fall League.

The 16th overall pick of the 2023 Draft, Eldridge generates huge raw power from his 6-foot-7 frame, but the Giants believe he’ll need to shore up his defense at first base before he’s ready to break into the Majors.

2. Marco Luciano, INF/OF
The Giants hoped the highly touted Luciano would emerge as their new starting shortstop this year, but he couldn’t assuage concerns about his defense and ended up losing the job to veteran Nick Ahmed during Spring Training. When he was briefly called up to fill in at short in May, Luciano committed a series of costly errors that prompted the club to option him back to Triple-A Sacramento.

The Giants tried to take some pressure off Luciano by installing him as their primary designated hitter after trading Jorge Soler to the Braves, but they changed course following the arrival of Jerar Encarnacion and Mark Canha, forcing Luciano to return to the Minors.

The Giants appeared to clear another path for Luciano at second base after outrighting Thairo Estrada to Triple-A, but Luciano continued to struggle at his new position and started only seven of the next 16 games before being demoted for a third time. The 23-year-old rookie spent the final week of the regular season in Arizona, where the Giants planned to get him some work in the outfield for the first time in his professional career.

Despite his up-and-down season, the Giants still believe Luciano could be a big part of their future, especially if he can get comfortable in the outfield and unlock the swing that made him the prize of the organization’s international signing class in 2018. It took Ramos a few years to finally establish himself in the Majors, so the Giants are hoping Luciano will be able to follow a similar path and force his way back into the mix next season.

3. Carson Whisenhunt, LHP (No. 3)
Like Eldridge, Whisenhunt appeared to be on the fast track after zooming from Single-A San Jose to Double-A Richmond in 2023, but his progress hit a snag after he suffered a season-ending left elbow injury last July.

Whisenhunt remained a step away from the big leagues after opening the 2024 campaign at Triple-A Sacramento, but he spent the entire year in the Minors after logging a 5.17 ERA over 27 starts. The 23-year-old lefty is still viewed as the organization’s top pitching prospect and features one of the best changeups in the Minors, so he should have a chance to contribute to the Giants’ rotation in 2025 if he stays healthy and regains the dominance he showed last year, when he recorded a 2.45 ERA with 83 strikeouts over 58 2/3 innings.