The San Francisco Giants hand out an award at spring training that underscores just how great a spring training one rising prospect enjoyed.
Even though the Giants reassigned Victor Bericoto to minor league camp on Friday, he has such a head-turning spring training that one could see him joining the club in 2026. For his performance, he was given the Barney Nugent Award.
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Per the Giants, the award is voted on by teammates, coaches, training and clubhouse staff and presented to a player in his first big league camp whose performance and dedication best exemplifies the team’s spirit. It is named for Nugent, a former athletic trainer for San Francisco.
It won’t be the last time Giants fans here his name, either.
Victor Bericoto’s Incredible Spring
The recipient of the 2026 Barney Nugent Award is OF Victor Bericoto.
The award is voted on by teammates, coaches, training and clubhouse staff and presented to a player in his first big league camp whose performance and dedication best exemplifies the #SFGiants spirit, similar… pic.twitter.com/IyzphTrNgE
— SFGiants (@SFGiants) March 20, 2026
The 24-year-old from Venezuela was practically unstoppable in 20 spring training games. He slashed .462/.463/.769 with three home runs and 14 RBI. Because several outfielders were playing in the World Baseball Classic, he was afforded extra playing time. That, along with his performance, kept him in Major League spring training until the final weekend.
San Francisco breaks camp on Saturday and heads back to California for three more exhibition games before opening day against the New York Yankees on Wednesday.
By prospect standards, he’s ancient. He’s not listed among MLB Pipeline’s Top 30 prospects for the organization. Less than one-third of the prospects are his age or older. He was a cheap find for San Francisco, as it inked him for $25,000 out of Venezuela in 2018. He was a catcher at the time. The Giants converted him into an outfielder who can also play first base. His development has been on a slow burn for years and it’s now starting to come to a boiling point, a development that may demand a Major League roster spot eventually.
He’s always had a solid bat. He has hit double-digit home runs in each of his last four seasons, including a career-high 27 in 2023 when he split his time between High-A Eugene and Double-A Richmond. He carries a lifetime minor league slash of .276/.350/.442 with 72 home runs and 331 RBI.
He finally got to Triple-A Sacramento last year for 11 games. That’s where he will likely land to start the season. He needs more Triple-A at-bats. But he kept working this winder. He slashed .340/.379/.472 with two home runs and 15 RBI in 31 games for Caracas in the Venezuelan Winter League.
The award is validation for a great spring training. If he builds on that in the minor leagues, his phone may ring soon with an invitation to join the Giants in the Majors.