Giants hire Buster Posey in huge front office shakeup
Sep 6, 2019; Los Angeles, CA, USA; San Francisco Giants catcher Buster Posey (28) reacts during the game against the Los Angeles Dodgers at Dodger Stadium. The Giants defeated the Dodgers 5-4. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports
The San Francisco Giants are making some massive front office changes after a disappointing season, clearing out the front office and bringing in Buster Posey to run the organization.
The Giants announced Monday that they have fired team president Farhan Zaidi after six years. Zaidi will be replaced by franchise legend Buster Posey, who had previously been a member of the organization’s board of directors.
Giants chairman Greg Johnson was full of praise for Posey in a statement, saying the organization believes he has all the necessary qualities to work with manager Bob Melvin and deliver a winner.
Statement from Giants chairman Greg Johnson: pic.twitter.com/rD3enfAMKf
— Andrew Baggarly (@extrabaggs) September 30, 2024
“We are looking for someone who can define, direct and lead this franchise’s baseball philosophy and we feel that Buster is the perfect fit,” Johnson said. “Buster has the demeanor, intelligence and drive to do this job, and we are confident that he and Bob Melvin will work together to bring back winning baseball to San Francisco.”
The Giants hired Zaidi in 2018 away from the rival Los Angeles Dodgers, and his tenure was initially a success, as the team won 107 games in 2021. They suffered an NLDS exit at the hands of the Dodgers, however, and have largely failed to replicate that success since. The team finished just 80-82 this year despite adding Matt Chapman and Blake Snell during the offseason.
Posey, a future Hall of Famer, retired after that 2021 season and has seen his influence within the Giants organization grow since then. There were hints this move could be coming late last season, when he reportedly intervened above Zaidi to finish off an important contract negotiation that some in the organization felt Zaidi was botching. Perhaps the writing was already on the wall at that point.