The Zoom call that was set up for Buster Posey on Friday morning included dozens of reporters, but also several senior Giants executives, members of the ownership group, president of baseball operations Farhan Zaidi and manager Gabe Kapler. A few minutes in, another participant joined.
Zaidi pulled his young son out of his crib and said that, on his first birthday, he wanted to participate. The two then displayed a message for Posey, who had announced a few minutes earlier that he was opting out of the 2020 season to care for twin girls the Poseys are adopting.
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The decision is the right one, and while it puts the Giants in a roster bind two weeks from their opener, Zaidi and Kapler showed 100 percent support for Posey and his decision. This was in part because of the faith Posey has shown in both men over the last two years.
"We want to congratulate you and your family and say we wholeheartedly support your decision," Zaidi said. "People may not know this, but Buster was incredibly supportive of me in my first season. I had a lot of conversations with him and he made the transition for me a lot easier. I never had a chance to publicly thank him for that, and I want to do that now. I know I speak on behalf of a lot of people in the Giants family when I say I support you and we're really going to miss you."
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Posey was the lone player to show up to Kapler's press conference in November, one that got contentious at times, and spoke up in support of the new manager at the time. Kapler brought that up Friday.
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"He just is supportive and thoughtful and caring," Kapler said. "It's an absolute honor to be able to return that support and say I think Buster is making an incredible and thoughtful decision for his family and the one that makes the most sense. I'm proud to be on this call listening and supporting today."
Kapler has two children of his own, and both fathers said they were in touch with Posey in recent weeks as he wrestled with the decision. Zaidi praised Posey for keeping the team in the loop, and said he would take any contributions Posey has off the field over the next two months, although the Giants want him to take as much time as he needs to care for his two new daughters and the rest of his family.
Posey was instrumental this spring in helping Kapler get buy-in from the clubhouse, and he spoke up on a Zoom call last week and urged teammates to take the coronavirus seriously. That set an early tone for the Giants, and no matter how this season goes, there's little doubt they'll welcome Posey back with open arms next season.
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Posey plans to return in 2021 and help Zaidi and Kapler continue to build. For now, though, he will take care of his family knowing the Giants have his back.
"I ultimately would still make the same decision no matter whether I had the support or not, but it's certainly nice to have the leaders of the organization back me in my decision," he said.