SF Giants make it clear: Buster Posey will be a centerpiece of 2022 team if he wants to be

SAN FRANCISCO — As long as Buster Posey wants to play baseball next year, he’ll be a member of the San Francisco Giants.

During an end-of-season news conference on Monday at Oracle Park, Giants president of baseball operations Farhan Zaidi called Posey, 34, the “best catcher” in the majors and indicated the club would be willing to exercise a $22 million team option for 2022.

“Obviously we want to have conversations with Buster and continue to have internal conversations, but having him on this team next year is a high priority,” Zaidi said.

Posey spoke in the Giants’ dugout immediately following the team’s 2-1 loss in Game 5 of the NLDS on Thursday and hinted he was in no rush to make a decision about his future. The seven-time All-Star said he planned to talk with his wife Kristen about the possibility of playing again and that he looked forward to spending time with his four children this winter, but did not make any statements expressing a strong desire to return for another year.

Zaidi and Giants manager Gabe Kapler hinted Monday they anticipate Posey will be a centerpiece of the 2022 roster and said the future of the catching position is bright after one of the team’s top prospects, Joey Bart, spent most of the season with Triple-A Sacramento.

“I think we’re in a lot better position than we were two years ago when Buster opted out, and obviously for really good and understandable reasons,” Zaidi said. “We didn’t have Joey in a state where he was maybe as big league ready as he is now. We’re in a much better position with Joey.”

Posey signed an eight-year, $159 million extension in March, 2013 after winning the 2012 National League MVP Award. The contract, which includes the club option for 2022, was the second largest signed by a catcher, trailing only the eight-year, $184 million contract Joe Mauer signed with the Twins in March, 2010.

At various points during the second half of Posey’s contract, it appeared unlikely the Giants would be interested in picking up his 2022 option as he underwent major hip surgery in 2018, posted career-lows at the plate in 2019 and sat out the 2020 season to protect the health of recently adopted newborn identical twins.

The calculus changed with an outstanding 2021 season for Posey in which he hit .304 and posted an .889 OPS that represented the highest mark since he ended his MVP season with a .957 OPS. Posey also drew rave reviews from the Giants’ pitching staff as many of the team’s starting pitchers including Kevin Gausman and Logan Webb credited him for helping them set new career-highs on the mound.