I think most managers would prefer it if their players opted out of playing in the World Baseball Classic. They tend not to say so too loudly because the Official Position of Major League Baseball is that the WBC is awesome sauce on top of a tasty, international market expanding sundae, but you figure most would rather have their players in camp, ramping up to the season in a slower, more conventional manner rather than playing real competitive baseball.
In the case of Buster Posey, who will not be playing in the WBC, Bruce Bochy doesn’t bother to hide his happiness:
“Every player has the decision and we respect the decision,” Bochy said. “In our case, sure, we played till November. For a catcher, in particular, that’s a long season – and Buster spent all last offseason rehabbing. He played a lot more games than we thought. So I think he’s doing the right thing because he understands how much earlier he’d have to crank it up and be game ready.”
