Buster Posey showed his greatness as a hitter last season, even while hitting only five home runs.
Hear me out.
Posey hit .284, which was his lowest since 2011 but the second-best by a catcher in 2018, all while using solely his hands. He used his world-class bat control to flip singles left and right, with no lower body and a hip ailment so bad that a microfracture was discovered during season-ending surgery.
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Now imagine if Posey, who turned 32 yesterday, can spin on the ball and use his lower half? From what he saw in spring training, Giants broadcaster Mike Krukow believes a much-improved version of Posey will be at the plate in 2019.
“That’s the first thing I was looking for during spring training, and I saw that," Krukow said Wednesday on KNBR. "He was spinning on the ball, and his batting practice was free and easy. And as the end of spring training came around, he started driving the ball to right field. Last year, he slapped. This year, he’s driving the ball.”
Posey is one of a handful of Giants Krukow believes can hit 20 home runs this season. The catcher hasn't reached that mark since 2014, but the veteran showed he's healthy during spring and a rejuvenation of power could be on its way.
Krukow also believes Posey, who won a Gold Glove in 2016, will be much improved behind the plate as well.
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“When you have a sore hip, you become a one-legged catcher,” Krukow said. “You’ll sit back on one hip because you don’t want to distribute the weight on an injured hip. You can get by, and that’s what (Posey) did, but this year he’s got more symmetry in the way he’s setting up.
"He’s got more bounce in his legs. He’s coming out of the crouch and fielding his position on bunts, and he’s getting those plays much easier now than he did last year. I do think there is significant improvement in his body.”
Even though he was limited to 105 games last season, Posey was still worth 1.5 dWAR, according to Baseball Reference, 1.1 points higher than the previous year. He was also worth 10 defensive runs saved as a catcher, according to FanGraphs, eight runs better than his 2017 performance.
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If the Giants want to defy expectations it all starts with Posey. He appears healthy, and if so, the former MVP can take back his crown as the top catcher in baseball.