RICHMOND, Va. >> Bryce Eldridge doesn’t know how he got so lucky.

The Double-A Richmond Flying Squirrels, the San Francisco Giants’ only minor-league affiliate on the East Coast, play a little less than 100 miles from Eldridge’s hometown of Vienna, Virginia. And Eldridge, a 20-year-old not yet two years removed from high school, is enjoying every opportunity to play in his home state.

His family attends nearly every home game. He’s slept in his own bed on off days. He hangs out with his friends when he has the time. The Flying Squirrels pack The Diamond, their 9,560-seat ballpark, nearly every night, and some percentage of that crowd can be attributed to the native Virginian’s presence.

Yes, the Giants’ top prospect loves playing close to home. He’ll also be on the first flight out when the time comes. California, soon, will be calling — Sacramento, then San Francisco.

“I’m not getting caught up on when or if it happens this year, but if it does, it does,” Eldridge told this news organization this week. “I’m just going to trust in Buster (Posey) and the front office. Whatever their decision is, I’m ready to go whenever they call me.”

For all Eldridge’s potential, his chances of making the majors this season are slim.

Posey tempered those expectations during the MLB Winter Meetings, noting how the 20-year-old Eldridge would only be a sophomore had he attended college. There’s no shortage of fans clamoring for Eldridge to join the Giants sooner rather than later — especially with LaMonte Wade Jr. struggling, specifically, and the entire team struggling, generally. For now, Eldridge will continue to ride the bus.

The 6-foot-7 first baseman missed several weeks due to a left wrist injury that he sustained during spring training, pushing his season debut back to April 22. Eldridge started slow despite homering in his first at-bat of the season, but since May, he owns a slash line of .318/.376/.541 with four home runs over 29 games. This output comes after Eldridge hit 23 homers with 92 RBIs over four levels last season.

The long-term question with Eldridge is not his bat, but his defense. The Giants drafted Eldridge out of James Madison High School as a two-way player but quickly scrapped those plans. They initially placed him in right field in ‘23 but moved him to first base last season. There have been growing pains for Eldridge, who has committed 23 errors in 120 career games at first base, but the organization has surrounded him with mentors to work on his defense.

Matt Williams and J.T. Snow, who own a combined 10 Gold Gloves, worked with Eldridge during his first big league spring training. Joe Panik, the former Giants second baseman turned special assistant, joined the Flying Squirrels last week and worked with Eldridge. And in recent months, Eldridge has gotten plenty familiar with one of the best first basemen in franchise history.

“He’s definitely going to be a major leaguer,” said special assistant Will Clark, a five-time All-Star.