Giants choose franchise legend to be next team president

Posey replaces Farhan Zaidi, who the team parted ways with after the 80-82 season. While Zaidi won Executive of the Year honors after founding the club to win a record 107 games in 2021, it was the club’s only postseason appearance in his six years as president of baseball operations.

After a .500 season in 2022 followed by 79- and 80-win campaigns, the Giants are turning into a team legend.

The seven-time All-Star catcher was the National League Rookie of the Year in 2010 and MVP in 2012. Posey unexpectedly retired after the 2021 season, when he hit .308 and hit 18 home runs, leaving a $22 million salary on the table. A year later, he joined the team’s ownership group.

There were signs that Posey was ready to take on a larger role in the organization. He was already an advisor to Zaidi and team president Greg Johnson, and a member of the team’s board of directors. When contract extension negotiations with third baseman Matt Chapman stalled in August, it was Posey who reportedly stepped in to finalize the deal.

It’s unclear what Posey’s philosophy as team president will be, but the Giants’ three title teams have been built around a strong starting offense, good defense and a defensive-minded young catcher (like the team’s current shortstop, Patrick Bailey). This could bode well for the Giants’ chances of resigning Blake Snell, as Zaidi didn’t like giving long contracts, especially to pitchers.

There is also a sense that Posey will be more decisive than Zaidi, who was criticized for his reluctance to act at the trade deadline. Zaidi rarely added players in the middle of the season and didn’t frequently trade away veterans heading into free agency. That middle ground between rebuilding and competing is that the Giants have hovered around .500 in four of Zaidi’s last five seasons.

If nothing else, owning the Giants has given their fans a few more years of patience that has soured over the past few years with Zaidi’s approach. Posey is one of the team’s most beloved players of all time, which will give him an edge at least for a while.

One thing Posey knows well is that no matter what the executive says or what analytics he uses, nothing matters more than winning on the field.