San Francisco Chronicle - (Sunday)
It’s time to make Posey a Giant for life
Extension should be atop to-do list
All along, it made sense for Brandon Crawford to be the first member of the Final Three to get a new contract.
The Giants have no one else in the organization capable of emerging as the everyday shortstop next season. The thinking is that Marco Luciano is a couple of years away and Mauricio Dubon will assume more of a utility role.
So Crawford, 34, got a two-year, $32 million extension to stick around through 2023, meaning order will remain at a crucial position and a potent bat will remain in the middle of the lineup.
Almost as quickly as the Crawford news broke Friday, speculation surfaced over who’s next, and it took about two seconds to conclude it needs to be Buster Posey, one of three holdovers from the championship era, along with Crawford and Brandon Belt. Without Crawford and Posey, the Giants wouldn’t be rolling along with the majors’ best record, let alone leading the National League West. Their All-Star seasons, as stunning as they are for 34year-olds who seemed to be on the downside as recently as 2019, both with OPSs in the .600s, are reasons 1 and 1A for why the Giants are this good.
Crawford’s OPS in 2021 entering Saturday: .904. Posey’s: .982.
Like Crawford, Posey went on record saying he wanted to retire a Giant. The catcher didn’t grow up in the Bay Area like Crawford but has settled here with his family. As with Crawford, it’s tough to imagine Posey playing anywhere else but San Francisco.
Furthermore, prospect Joey Bart’s progress isn’t to the point he’d be considered the No. 1 catcher next year. If anything, he’d replace Curt Casali as the guy who’d start once every series, though Casali would be tough to let go considering his defensive contributions.
The Posey contract situation is more complicated than Crawford’s if only because Posey has a $22 million club option for 2022. He could hold off on re-signing and threaten to force the Giants to consider exercising the option, giving him extra bargaining power and, ultimately, a two-year deal far north of Crawford’s $32 million.
Posey isn’t the type to play hardball with the only organization he knows. But business, as they say, is business. While he mans a premium position like Crawford, Posey plays less than Crawford as part of the blueprint to keep his legs strong and his bat potent through the second half.
Still, his value is off the charts not only for how he handles the pitching staff but for how he remains a consistent offensive force.
The Giants would prefer to avoid prolonged negotiations with their most decorated player, the common denominator to all three championships, especially because they’ve got a slew of other players on the verge of free agency.
President of baseball operations Farhan Zaidi confirmed negotiations are ongoing with other free agents to be, saying, “We’ll continue to have them behind closed doors.”
Starting pitchers Kevin Gausman, Anthony DeSclafani, Alex Wood and Johnny Cueto are eligible, along with infielders Donovan Solano and Wilmer Flores, unless Flores’ $3.5 million option will be picked up, which seems likely.
While Belt once seemed a lock to stay in San Francisco longer term, as the poster child for what the coaching staff values — plate awareness, the ability to lay off bad pitches and drive good ones, a penchant for both drawing a walk and clearing the wall — he hasn’t been able to avoid injuries, and the Giants have a laundry list of first basemen.
Of course, there’s also Kris Bryant, the trade-deadline pickup who’d be the most expensive to re-sign, well into nine figures, so he’s probably a long shot for the Giants, who need to focus on restructuring their rotation.
It would be wise for the Giants to consummate a deal for Posey sooner rather than later, before the playoff race gets hotter and heavier. While extensions are rare this late in a season, especially for contenders who have their eyes on the October prize, Zaidi swears these talks are not a distraction.
“Our guys have been incredibly focused this year,” he said. “When you look at month-to-month record of this team, how consistent it’s been, it shows it’s just a group of ultimate professionals.”
While manager Gabe Kapler said he’s confident Crawford can sustain his high level of play at least two more years, noting ...
“He takes care of his body the right way. He has the right kind of internal motivation. He’s driven to be one of best shortstops in baseball. He’s driven to be excellent for this organization. He has it all inside of him. He has the right makeup to make this work.”
... Kapler will be saying similar things about Posey if or when the catcher gets his new deal.
“I remember seeing him in the offseason and kind of being wowed by his physical condition,” Kapler said. “A lot of that is weight-room work but also hip and ankle mobility work and just being consistent with his treatment. He came into camp in marvelous physical condition.”
Intangibles applied to Crawford also can be applied to Posey. Good teammates. Clubhouse leaders. Efficient workers. Proprietors of big moments. It makes sense to bring Crawford back, and ditto for Posey.
The seven-time All-Star is on deck.