Buster Posey takes the reins of the Giants’ front office, enthusiasm is there: “I’m sure he will excel”

SAN FRANCISCO — Buster Posey traded his shin guards for a board seat two years ago when the decorated former San Francisco Giants wide receiver purchased a stake in the franchise he led to three championships of the World Series.

Now Posey takes on The Big Chair.

Posey needs no introduction in San Francisco, but a news conference Tuesday morning will mark the first time he’s been introduced as the club’s president of baseball operations.

Posey, 37, has never worked in baseball administration. He did not negotiate with the agents. He has not entered into commercial discussions with rival clubs. He will have to trade in-depth knowledge of the rules of the game for a detailed understanding of the collective agreement. News of Posey’s elevation to baseball’s chief architect Monday morning, replacing Farhan Zaidi after a six-year tenure ended in disappointment, raised dozens of questions that need answers.

Will Posey oversee a major housecleaning of baseball operations or a targeted restructuring? What positions will the Giants look to fill from the outside? Will he give up his seat on the board of directors? What’s happening to general manager Pete Putila? To what extent will Posey administer day-to-day operations? Will Giants owners finally be confident they can sell fans on a season of “trust in the process” when Posey, who might be considered more trustworthy than Abe Lincoln in the Bay Area, is tasked with running it? Or, do the Giants believe a Posey-led front office can reestablish the Giants as a destination franchise for big-name free agents?

And if none of this works, how could Posey be fired?

Some of these answers, or strong hints of them, will certainly filter through Tuesday’s press conference. For some of Posey’s closest friends and confidants in the game, who greeted Monday’s news with unqualified joy, there was no need to wait for those answers.

“I’m excited for Buster,” former Giants manager Bruce Bochy said via text message. “He has a really good feel for the game. He’s done a great job as a leader on the field, so I’m sure he’ll excel in that leadership role.”

“I’m really happy for Buster and the Giants,” former Giants Gold Glove shortstop Brandon Crawford said via text message. “I think it’s a role he can really succeed in. He’s a smart guy, but he obviously has a baseball background that can help in a lot of ways. He knows what a clubhouse and a winning roster looks like and is a super competitor. I’m excited to see him lead the Giants back to the playoffs.

“I think Buster will be fantastic in this new role and I can’t wait to see what he brings to the table,” Giants right-hander Logan Webb said via text message.

“He’s in the chair now, and knowing Buster as I do, he’s going to surround himself with the best people to cover up his blind spots,” Giants broadcaster and former left-hander Javier López said. “As a former Giants player and fan, I’m excited.”

Giants president and manager Greg Johnson praised Posey’s leadership skills in Monday morning’s announcement, saying the board wanted to replace Zaidi with “someone who can define, lead and direct the philosophy of this franchise and we think Buster is the perfect fit. Buster has the demeanor, intelligence and motivation to get the job done, and we are confident that he and (manager) Bob Melvin will work together to bring winning baseball to San Francisco.

The Giants could have operated with Posey in a shadow leadership role as chief decision maker and hired a new president of baseball operations who would report to him. By putting Posey in the lead, they likely narrowed their potential pool of leadership candidates. But elevating Posey also sent an unquestioned message to the industry and his fans that the Giants are looking for a new path forward. It is a sign of supreme confidence from the ownership group that Posey, who has been Johnson’s star in every area since Posey joined the board, has the broad vision and people skills necessary to boost morale and reestablish an interconnected front office culture.

It’s also a sign that they’re confident Posey is smart enough to figure out the rest.

López said he always imagined Posey would one day take on a formal leadership role within the Giants organization. But not one day, as soon as that.

“I think it’s something he had in mind, something he wanted to do,” López said. “I’m not aware of everything that happened, but the timeline definitely sped up a bit. I just know it’s something he’s passionate about. The organization means so much to him and his family.

Posey retired after the 2021 season and he and his wife, Kristen, returned to Georgia with their four children. They bought a house in suburban Atlanta, a short drive from the homes of López and former Giants right-hander Ryan Vogelsong. The three former teammates played a lot of golf and discussed the current state of the Giants organization. After just a year, the Posey family returned to the Bay Area full-time.

“That’s why he abandoned Vogey and me here in Georgia to go back,” López said with a laugh. “He wants to reestablish the black and orange as the destination franchise in San Francisco.”

And restore part of the culture too. It was hard not to notice last Friday that the Giants presented third baseman Matt Chapman with the Willie Mac Award – a famous honor that is voted on by the club’s players, coaches and staff and recognizes the giant who represents the best excellence and competitive spirit – and only a handful of former winners were present on the field. In recent years, some of the decorations commemorating the three World Series titles from 2010 to 2014 have disappeared from the club’s walls. Zaidi did not wage an orchestrated campaign to erase all signs of the championship era, but there were times when he clearly felt uncomfortable after such a period of celebration as he was leading a franchise that really needed to turn the page in a meaningful way.

In fairness, the final rankings and farm system rankings do not reflect some of the progress Zaidi was able to make during his six seasons when he also had a mandate to field a competitive team each year. This progress just wasn’t enough to justify continuing with him. And although Zaidi was often charismatic and personable in one-on-one interactions, the club officials under him often had no idea what he was thinking or why certain decisions were being made.

According to sources with knowledge of the situation, one specific decision has created waves among scouts and player development officials: allowing pitching director Brian Bannister to work remotely for the entire 2022 season because he refused to comply to the league’s COVID-19 vaccine mandates. As Bannister was unable to visit the branches, others found themselves without direction or to take over.

For many within the Giants front office, the entire operation has developed a work-from-home feel. This echoes how right fielder Mike Yastrzemski described the clubhouse at the end of last season, just a week or two before Zaidi’s hand-picked manager, Gabe Kapler, was fired at the asks the owner: “A kind of ‘fend for yourself’ atmosphere in one way or another has been established.

Posey’s former teammates are quick to attest: they never felt like they had to fend for themselves when Posey was on the field.

“As a catcher, an All-Star and a future Hall of Famer, he definitely has a different goal than a lot of people in that chair,” López said. “It’s a strength for him. This is a person who can understand the ins and outs, the analysis and the different ways of looking at the game.

“Those are big shoes to fill. But I’ve never seen Buster jump on an opportunity without going through a vetting process. I’m sure he’s had many discussions with people in the industry. People like (Texas Rangers president) Chris Young, I’m sure, would have been a resource for him. It is not uncommon for a former player to take on this role. But with his entry point, not having worked in a front office, he’s probably had a lot of discussions about the pros and cons and everything that goes into this business.

Yes, analysis is part of the job. It would be a mistake to assume that Posey’s hiring represents a move away from the analytical decision-making that is integral to every major league front office. Perhaps analytics could inform these decisions rather than guide them. But López is confident that the measures put forward will have a significant place in a Posey administration.

“It’s something he was exposed to, especially towards the end of his career,” López said. “I’m sure he’s seen how much that has helped make him a better player in 2021. So that’s going to be a definite priority for him. He will be able to assess talent with his eyes. But the eyes sometimes deceive us. When you peel the onion, the numbers may give a different indication. I think Buster will be looking for that input, whether it’s trusting a scout’s eyes or balancing that with the numbers.

“If you look at playoff teams, a lot of them have great (research and development) departments. This will be a priority for Buster and the front office as a whole.

(Top Posey photo: Thearon W. Henderson/Getty Images)