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Giants hire former catcher Buster Posey as president of baseball operations, replacing Farhan Zaidi
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Giants hire former catcher Buster Posey as president of baseball operations, replacing Farhan Zaidi

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — The San Francisco Giants have hired former catcher Buster Posey as president of baseball operations and fired Farhan Zaidi.

Chairman Greg Johnson made the announcement Monday after the Giants finished 80-82 in manager Bob Melvin’s first season — with one more win than 2023. San Francisco has not reached the playoffs since winning the NL West in 2021.

Posey, 37, joined the club’s ownership group in September 2022, less than a year after retiring in November 2021.

“As we look ahead, I am excited to share that Buster Posey will now take on an expanded role as the new president of baseball operations,” Johnson said in a statement. “We are looking for someone who can define, direct and lead the baseball philosophy of this franchise and we believe Buster is the perfect fit. Buster has the demeanor, intelligence and drive to do this job, and we are confident he and Bob Melvin will work together to bring winning baseball back to San Francisco.”

Posey was a seven-time All-Star with a career batting average of .302. He was San Francisco’s fifth overall draft pick in the 2008 amateur draft out of Florida State.

He and his wife, Kristen, moved their family back to the East Bay suburb of Lafayette last year after living in their native Georgia for a period immediately following his retirement. He called it a career after the Giants’ franchise-record 107 wins in 2021. He opted out of the pandemic-shortened 2020 campaign.

Zaidi was hired from the rival Los Angeles Dodgers in November 2018.

“We appreciate Farhan’s dedication to the organization and his passion for making an impact in our community during his six years with the Giants,” Johnson said. “Ultimately, the results are not what we hoped for, and while that responsibility is shared by all of us, we have decided that change is needed.”

Johnson, Posey and Melvin were scheduled to address the media at Oracle Park on Tuesday.

It was unclear which candidates from underrepresented groups were being considered by the Giants, as required by Major League Baseball.

“We are also fully committed to following the Selig Rule and ensuring diversity in hiring for all of our open positions,” Johnson said.

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APMLB: https://apnews.com/MLB