SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. — All along, the Giants planned to ship prized prospect Joey Bart back to the minor leagues, even though it seems he’s a can’t-miss big-league star.

On Tuesday, reality hit. The catcher was reassigned to minor-league camp in the latest round of cuts.

Bart didn’t exactly play himself off the roster. He went 7-for-16 (.438) with two homers and posted a 1.401 OPS in 19 plate appearances, a small sample size but the latest example of his whopping potential.

Management wants Bart to get more time at the higher minor-league levels. He has just 87 plate appearances above Class A, all at Double-A Richmond last year.

“Frankly, we didn’t see him making the Opening Day roster, and it was a possibility to send him out in the first wave” of cuts, president of baseball operations Farhan Zaidi said. “It’s really a testament to the work he did. He earned the right to stay a little beyond that first round.”

Zaidi said Bart could play some first base in the minors. That way, he’d be prepped in case he’s called to play the position with the Giants.

Reporting to minor-league camp will give Bart a chance to get more regular playing time. On Tuesday, six-time All-Star catcher Buster Posey got his third start in four days.

“It’s time for (Bart) to go get ready for the season over on the minor-league side, get more regular at-bats,” Zaidi said. “This is the time of spring guys start getting closer to playing full games.”

Also, management needs to see more of Rob Brantly and Tyler Heineman, journeymen who are in competition for the backup spot, though it’s possible the Giants could find another option elsewhere.

Some fans would prefer to see Bart join the Giants sooner rather than later, but Zaidi cited Bart’s limited time in the higher minors, some of it because of injuries that detoured his development.

“You don’t ever want to have strong restrictions,” Zaidi said. “Roughly for a position player, you’d like to see at least 300, 400, 500 at-bats at the upper levels before you can feel comfortable with a guy hitting the ground running at the big-league level.”

Zaidi didn’t say whether Bart would open in Double-A or Triple-A, but it’s virtually a given he’ll play in the majors this season.

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

Bart noted in spring training that he wasn’t caught up in his statistics but the process of preparing for the season: “I want to keep taking the right steps every day and improve my swing and overall approach at the plate, keep trending in the right way regardless.”

Aside from Bart, the Giants reassigned infielder Cristhian Adames and optioned outfielder Joe McCarthy and pitcher Enderson Franco to Triple-A Sacramento.

In other moves, the Giants claimed outfielder Jose Siri from the Mariners and placed catcher Aramis Garcia on the 60-day injured list. Siri will report to minor-league camp.

John Shea covers the Giants for The San Francisco Chronicle. Email: jshea@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @JohnSheaHey