In the span of two years, Buster Posey has gone from joining the San Francisco Giants’ ownership group and being part of its board of directors to now taking on the role of president of baseball operations.
Fahan Zaidi is out after six years and Posey is in the job after the Giants missed out on the MLB playoffs for the sixth time in seven seasons. Just two seasons ago they won 107 games and the NL West, but the 2023 season saw the team wins its fewest number of games (79) over a full season since 2019 (77).
Posey, 37, is three years removed from retiring after a 12-season MLB career, all in San Francisco. He won Rookie of the Year, MVP and three World Series titles, but now the former catcher is tasked with turning the franchise’s fortunes around and bringing winning baseball back to the area — something that drew him to the job.
“The opportunity to be a part of a team, to have the chance to elevate staff, elevate players. We’re in a memory making business,” Posey said during Tuesday’s introductory press conference. “Sure, winning is great and ultimately that’s our goal, but the overall big picture of being a part of something bigger than yourself is really appealing.”
Posey has already made his mark on the current Giants’ roster. In early September, the team announced an extension for Matt Chapman, which was the culmination of work done by Posey with agent Scott Boras after little ground was made with Zaidi leading the talks from the team side.
Now fully in the role, Posey will look to hire the team’s next GM with Pete Putila being re-assigned in the organization.
“I want a servant leader who can empower people,” Posey said of what he’s seeking in a GM “Ideally someone with a scouting background would be important for me as well. Today’s game is so much about meshing what your eyes see and instincts are with what the data is telling you.”
Posey going from playing to an influential executive role may raise eyebrows around the league, but he said he will utilize the experience of those around him in his decision-making.
Along with hiring a GM, high atop Posey’s to-do list is keeping pitcher Blake Snell. The 31-year-old two-time Cy Young Award winner signed a two-year, $62 million deal with the Giants in March that features a player option for 2025. It’s more than likely Snell will choose to opt out and test the free agent market.
Snell had a tough first half, but finished the 2024 season strong, setting him up to cash in this winter. The Giants are hoping they will be high on his list of potential destinations.
“He’s obviously someone that’s going to be a priority for us to take a hard look at,” Posey said.
Posey has a vision for what he wants a competitive team to look like. Six of his first full MLB seasons saw the Giants finish with a winning record and three ended with titles. With shrewd moves this offseason, it doesn’t have to be a long-term project to field a team capable of being a consistent winner again in San Francisco.
“Hopefully what it’s going to be, and I know [Giants manager] Bob [Melvin] loves this, is good clean baseball,” Posey said. “What I can draw on from being a player is if I went into a game and knew I was prepared to the best of my ability, no matter the outcome or result of the game I could be satisfied with that.
“I’m hopeful our gas will get there, and that’s going to be something that’s really important to them as well.”