SCOTTSDALE, Arizona — Outfielder Victor Bericoto will not leave Arizona having made the Opening Day roster, one of three players who were reassigned to minor league camp on Friday afternoon. He will, however, leave camp with some hardware in hand.

Bericoto was named the 2026 Barney Nugent Award winner, which goes to the Giant in his first major league camp, “whose performance and dedication in spring training best exemplify the San Francisco Giants’ spirit, much like Nugent did in his time with San Francisco.” The award is voted on by players, coaches, training staff and clubhouse staff. He is the first Venezuelan-born player to win the award since Felix Escalona in 2002.

“I told him he’s going to play in the big leagues at some point — that’s a definite,” said manager Tony Vitello. “And I hope that I’m the one that gets to coach him.”

Bericoto, 24, left quite the impression during Cactus League play. Among Giants who have played at least 10 games, Bericoto leads San Francisco in batting average (.474), home runs (three), RBIs (14) and OPS (1.264). One of Bericoto’s most impressive moments of spring was hitting a no-doubt grand slam against the Los Angeles Dodgers.

Infielder Parks Harber, the Giants’ No. 16 prospect per Baseball America, performed well in his first major league camp as well before sustaining a hamstring injury. Over 17 games, Harber went 10-for-28 (.357) with a home run and four RBIs while generating an average exit velocity of 95.0 mph. Despite Harber’s strong play, Vitello said Bericoto “ran away with those votes.”

Bericoto, who re-signed with the Giants this offseason on a minor league deal, spent most of last season with Double-A Richmond aside from an 11-game cameo with Triple-A Sacramento.

Over 93 games with the Flying Squirrels, Bericoto hit .267 with 12 home runs, 49 RBIs and a .784 OPS. He will likely start the season with Sacramento along with top prospect Bryce Eldridge, who was optioned to Triple-A Thursday.

Along with Bericoto, infielder Oslevis Basabe and right-hander Gregory Santos were also reassigned to minor league camp.

The 26-year-old Santos, who originally made his debut with the Giants in 2021, made an early compelling case to make the Opening Day roster as a non-roster invitee but had two shaky outings after missing time due to a personal matter. When asked what Santos has to do going forward, Vitello emphasized the importance of Santos trusting his stuff.

“You can’t say that about every guy. Other guys might need to implement a couple other things, but he really has stuff,” Vitello said. “If he just kind of tries to cram it down the opponent’s throat, it’s going to work out for him more times than not.”

Bericoto originally signed with the Giants in July 2018 and has spent his entire career in the organization. Over 526 minor league games, Bericoto has a career .276/.350/.442 slash line with 72 home runs and 331 RBIs.

Bader managing hamstring tightness

Center fielder Harrison Bader is currently dealing with left hamstring tightness and is considered day-to-day, but manager Tony Vitello believes that Bader should be ready for Opening Night next Wednesday against the New York Yankees at Oracle Park.

Bader, 31, dealt with a right thumb contusion right before playing for Team Israel during the World Baseball Classic, but was able to participate in the tournament without restrictions. The outfielder is 6-for-19 (.316) with a home run and six RBIs during Cactus League play. During the WBC, Bader went 3-for-14 (.214) with a home run during pool play.