Giants aspiring for familiar identity under Posey’s leadership originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area
SAN FRANCISCO — It has been nearly two months since the Giants underwent a front office overhaul, and there haven’t been many specifics about what’s ahead.
The traditional end-of-season press conference with management instead turned into a day introducing Buster Posey as the new president of baseball operations, and Posey’s time behind the podium was mostly spent talking about the fact that, well, Buster Posey was now president of baseball operations. He hasn’t made any offseason moves yet that hint at how he will build, and just about every headline that has come out of Oracle Park has been about additions around Posey in the front office or on the coaching staff.
It has been a stretch light on details, at least for the public, but several Giants have met with reporters in different venues and there’s certainly a theme if you listen closely. Patrick Bailey summed it up neatly near the end of a Zoom call earlier this month to celebrate his first Gold Glove Award.
“I think he’s going to hold us to a different standard,” Bailey said of Posey being hired. “The one thing that I keep hearing is mentioning the ’10, ’12 and ’14 teams (and) pitching and defense. I think that’s obviously a big deal. I think that you can control the little things, and I think that leads to your best chance of winning, especially in San Francisco.”
The Giants did not always have a clear identity under Farhan Zaidi, who talked often of getting more athletic but had trouble building rosters that could play even league-average defense. At the deadline this year, he mentioned how the Giants could have the best rotation in baseball down the stretch, and that’s certainly something they thought was a possibility when they signed Blake Snell in March. But the group finished in the bottom half of the league in ERA and was 29th in innings pitched.
Posey now is in charge because he won three titles in San Francisco, and those teams had a clear theme. There were star-studded rotations and dominant bullpens led by the Core Four, and while Bruce Bochy was never afraid to throw a lumbering bat out in left field or chase a three-run homer, his lineups were generally filled with strong defenders.
Posey played with two Gold Glove winners on the dirt in Brandon Crawford and Joe Panik, and Brandon Belt probably should have won at least one. The outfield was a rotating cast, but Gregor Blanco was a standout defender during the latter two runs and others like Hunter Pence, Andres Torres and Angel Pagan (in his earlier years) made sure the Giants backed their pitching in close games.
If there’s been one undercurrent to all of the public statements over the past six months, it has been that the Giants are again ready to commit to pitching and defense. On Tuesday’s Giants Talk Podcast, new general manager Zack Minasian spoke passionately about why that needs to be this team’s identity.
“I’ve said this time and time again: I think it all starts on the mound (and) we’ll try and support our pitchers as much as possible,” he said. “We can think back to the championship teams that were here in the past and you can point to (Tim) Lincecum, (Matt) Cain, (Madison) Bumgarner, but obviously even the pitching beyond that: The Core Four relievers, signing a pitcher like Tim Hudson, trading for a pitcher like Jake Peavy. I definitely think it’s going to be a part of our identity going forward, but also recognizing those teams had pillars of positional players that were mainstays here.
“Not only did they mean something to the organization, but to the community. Players like Buster Posey, Brandon Belt, Brandon Crawford, and we want to have those players. We want to have players that are out there day in and day out. Hopefully Matt Chapman is that player — we surely invested in him and are excited that he’s here.
“Jung Hoo Lee is someone that we think can turn into that type of player. Heliot Ramos, Tyler Fitzgerald (and) Patrick Bailey, I think (he) is probably the best defender in all of baseball. To have those players and to start having pillars that we can build around and players our fans can connect to, that’s where it all starts for us.”
The Giants have two pillars in place, and one of them shows how important defense will be to the Posey regime. He took on a key role in negotiating Chapman’s extension during the season, an early hint that Posey might be ready for more responsibility moving forward.
More evidence will come Friday, when the Giants make their decisions on whether to tender contracts to arbitration-eligible players. Mike Yastrzemski is the most expensive of this year’s class, but bringing him back would be a commitment to having a strong defensive outfield. Yastrzemski was a Gold Glove finalist this past season.
As the hot stove heats up, the Giants expect to focus on shortstops, and signing either Willy Adames or Ha-Seong Kim would further commit the Giants to playing strong defense. Either addition would move Fitzgerald to second base, where Minasian said he “can be a plus defender.”
Kim, in particular, would give the Giants a defensive edge. Already, they have two of the best in the world at two key spots, with both Bailey and Chapman winning Gold Gloves and being in prime position to run it back next season.
While shortstop is the most obvious hole, the Giants also will have plenty of opportunities in the coming weeks to add to their staff. A reunion with Snell is a possibility and Corbin Burnes has fans within the organization. It’s a good winter to add pitching, with plenty of veteran or upside options beyond those two.
On that Zoom call with Bailey, Chapman reiterated that he’s ready to recruit marquee free agents if Posey wants him to, and he said he has been in touch with the new boss, as well as manager Bob Melvin. Asked about Posey taking over, Chapman said it’s “exciting” for the organization. The players trust that Posey will find the right identity to get them back to the postseason.
“He’s obviously somebody that’s a legend in this organization and somebody that has a lot of respect top to bottom in the organization,” Chapman said. “I think he knows what it takes to win. I’m excited to be a part of it. I think that the Giants have a very high standard and they’re committed to winning and they want to win championships, and obviously what was going on before just wasn’t cutting it.
“To have Buster come in and start this new face of the Giants and bring back the style of baseball and the winning environment that he’s used to, I think it’s got to excite people. I know it excites the players.”
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