Buster

Posey

Bumgarner hasn’t officially announced his retirement, but he also hasn’t pitched in the big leagues since a disastrous four-start stretch to open the 2023 season, which led to the Diamondbacks releasing him and eating the final $37 million left on his contract. The 35-year-old lefty cemented his legacy with the Giants earlier in his career as one of the legendary postseason performers of his era and appears likely to head back to the Bay Area in a limited role either as a guest instructor at spring training or front office consultant.

Posey takes over for Farhan Zaidi, who led the Giants to a sub-.500 record in five of the six seasons while he was at the helm. Posey was the face of the Giants franchise for years after he was drafted 5th overall in 2008. He was the 2012 NL MVP and a seven-time All-Star catcher, helped usher in the most successful era in Giants history He retired following the Giants’ remarkable 2021 season and joined the Giants’ ownership group in September 2022. “We are looking for someone who can define, direct and lead this franchise’s baseball philosophy and we feel that Buster is the perfect fit,” said Giants chairman Greg Johnson. “Buster has the demeanor, intelligence, and drive to do this job, and we are confident that he and Bob Melvin will work together to bring back winning baseball to San Francisco.”

The team had just extended Zaidi through 2026 after last season, which was surprising at the time since the Giants had been over .500 just once in his five-year tenure coming into this year. As it turns out, one more sub-.500 season was the last straw. Zaidi was hired away from the Los Angeles Dodgers after the 2018 season and while his first year wasn’t tremendous, the Giants won a franchise-record 107 games in 2021. He drew some ire for his preference for intense platoons and the Giants’ inability to consistently land big-name free agents, but he was principally responsible for many shrewd signings, like acquiring Mike Yastrzemski, LaMonte Wade Jr., and Thairo Estrada for little-to-nothing. Sadly, those moves couldn’t push the Giants into playoff contention this season, and yet Zaidi still didn’t sell off many assets at the trade deadline, which led to more fan ire. The Giants will be switching gears pretty drastically by handing the reins over the Buster Posey, who was the franchise’s starting catcher for a long time and just recently retired. What his vision is for the team remains to be seen.

Posey had just a .688 OPS in 2019 and opted out of the truncated 2020 season before posting a .889 OPS with 18 home runs for the National League West-winning Giants in 2021. It turned out to be his final season, as the 34-year-old announced his retirement earlier this month.

He was the biggest slam-dunk winner during awards season. After missing the entire 2020 season following a stage 3 colon cancer diagnosis which required six months of chemotherapy, Mancini returned in 2021 to put up a .758 OPS with 21 home runs and 71 RBI for the Orioles.

Posey made the decision at a press conference on Thursday. The 34-year-old will go down as one of the best to wear a Giants’ uniform; helping the franchise win three titles, slashing .302/.372/.460 while playing outstanding defense behind the plate and winning an MVP in 2012. He’ll be eligible for Hall of Fame voting in five years, and the only question will be how high his voting percentage will be. With Posey now retired, the Giants likely turn to top prospect Joey Bart behind the plate.

A legendary backstop, who possessed elite offensive and defensive abilities, Posey served as the centerpiece of three World Series championship squads with the Giants. He’s elected to step away from the game at just 34-years-old. The seven-time All-Star selection and 2012 National League MVP closes out an illustrious career with a remarkable .302/.372/.460 triple-slash line across 12 seasons. He’s certainly destined for the Hall of Fame.

It’s not the same thing as MVP, but it could be a precursor. Harper was excellent in 2021 with a .309 average, 35 homers and 42 doubles. Other National League winners include Jonathan India being named Rookie of the Year, Max Scherzer winning the award for best pitcher and Buster Posey being named the Comeback Player of the Year.

Well, duh. Posey’s contract includes a $22 million club option for next year or a $3 million buyout. The question is whether they’ll simply pick up the option or negotiate an extension. Posey would obviously be negotiating from a position of strength, as the 34-year-old turned back the clock this year by slashing .304/.390/.499 with 18 homers over 113 games. He’s also still valuable for his contributions behind the plate.

Posey doubled off of Julio Urias to lead off the fourth inning, but was stranded there. He then singled off of Joe Kelly in the sixth and was erased on a fielder’s choice. The second of his three knocks gave him 54 career postseason hits, passing Pablo Sandoval to set a new Giants franchise record. It looks as though taking the 2020 season off has done wonders for the 34-year-old backstop, who should be expected to start every game behind the plate for the Giants this postseason.