SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. -- Joey Bart’s Spring Training performance with the Giants re-emphasized that his ascent to the Major Leagues is a question of “when” and not “if.” Moreover, his Cactus League efforts suggested that he’ll almost surely complete his one-way trip to the bigs this year.

The Giants reassigned Bart, ranked by MLB Pipeline as the Giants' top prospect and No. 14 overall in baseball, to Minor League camp before their 16-3 loss Tuesday afternoon to the Chicago Cubs. Farhan Zaidi, San Francisco’s president of baseball operations, explained that demoting Bart now would give the organization’s top prospect an opportunity to start broadening the background and accumulating the experience he needs to thrive in the Majors.

Bart’s Spring Training performance indicated that he should be able to negotiate his learning curve rather easily. In nine Cactus League games, the 23-year-old catcher batted .438 (7-for-16) with two home runs and a 1.401 OPS. Impressive as these numbers were, Zaidi pointed out that Bart has accumulated less than 100 at-bats above the Class A level -- 79, to be precise, at Double-A Richmond last year. The Giants want to see him build a backlog of 300 to 500 additional at-bats before they would consider recalling him.

The Giants need no immediate catching help. Buster Posey has looked resilient this spring, batting .455 (10-for-22) with one home run, six RBIs and a 1.206 OPS.

Zaidi observed that Bart also needs added exposure to the subtleties of catching, such as calling the proper sequence of pitches and developing relationships with pitchers. And though catching will remain Bart’s focus, the Giants want to see him play a smattering of first base in case they need his right-handed bat there.

Zaidi wouldn’t reveal whether the organization intends to send Bart to Richmond or Triple-A Sacramento to open the season. Zaidi added that moving Bart to Minor League camp would enable the Giants to avoid a personnel backlog in Major League camp.

“I think it’s time for him to get ready for the season on the Minor League side and get more regular at-bats, obviously,” Zaidi said. “This is the time of the spring when guys start getting closer to playing full games. And we’ve got a couple of guys [Rob Brantly, Tyler Heineman] in competition for the backup [catching] spot, and we need to see more of them.”

Zaidi and Giants manager Gabe Kapler discussed all this during what they described as an upbeat meeting with Bart, who declared that he will tackle each item on his agenda so he can wear a San Francisco uniform before season’s end.

“That’s his expectation, for sure,” Zaidi said. “That’s a reasonable goal for him and for us.”

Infielder Cristhian Adames also was reassigned to Minor League camp. Right-hander Enderson Franco and outfielder Joe McCarthy were optioned to Triple-A Sacramento.

Noteworthy
• Mauricio Dubón’s playing time in center field could increase because of the club’s depth at second base. Dubón leads the Giants with 28 innings played at second base, but Donovan Solano (23 innings), Wilmer Flores (22) and Yolmer Sánchez (19) need playing time.

“I know he’s excited about it,” Zaidi said of Dubón’s prospective move to the outfield. “And he’s actually looked pretty good in center field so far.”

• Zaidi acknowledged the possibility that reliever Tony Watson, who’s expected to throw live batting practice soon, won’t be ready for Opening Day. Asked who might replace Watson as the Giants’ prospective closer, Zaidi said, “I don’t think there’s a favorite right now. We’ll continue to evaluate it.”

Up next
Giants newcomer Kevin Gausman has made a good early impression, holding opponents to an .087 batting average through three spring starts. The right-hander will be on the mound again Wednesday when the Giants face the Rangers at 1:05 p.m. PT at Surprise Stadium. The game will be available via MLB.TV and Gameday Audio.