He Was Once the A's 'Catcher of the Future'—Is he Now San Francisco's Future Manager?

Buster Posey is after a catcher for the Giants managerial opening

Sep 21, 2013; Oakland, CA, USA; Oakland Athletics catcher Kurt Suzuki (22) high five teammates after hitting a two run home run against the Minnesota Twins during the seventh inning at O.co Coliseum. Mandatory Credit: Kelley L Cox-Imagn Images | Kelley L Cox-Imagn Images

After firing former A's manager Bob Melvin following the conclusion of a .500 campaign in 2025, the San Francisco Giants have reportedly already interviewed former A's catcher Kurt Suzuki for the opening.

The Giants are looking to replace Melvin, a former catcher himself, with a more recently retired backstop, according to Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle. Suzuki is currently a special assistant to the general manager of the Los Angeles Angels after he spent the final two years of his career with the club.

Angels GM Perry Minasian is also expected to speak to the media on Saturday, perhaps shedding light on his own future. While the Angels have a managerial vacancy of their own, Minasian's status for 2026 has not yet been determined.

Suzuki, who turns 42 on October 4, retired from baseball after the 2022 season, spending time with the A's (2007-13), Washington Nationals (2012-13, 2019-20), Minnesota Twins (2014-16), Atlanta Braves (2017-18), and then the Angels from 2021-22.

The A's traded Suzuki in August of 2012 for David Freitas, who ended up being flipped to the Baltimore Orioles a little over a year later as part of the Jim Johnson trade. Jemile Weeks was the other piece of that deal.

The A's then re-acquired Suzuki in 2014 in exchange for ninth-rounder Dakota Bacus, who made 11 appearances out of the bullpen for the Nationals during the 2020 campaign.

For fans of the green and gold during this era, and even well before, they can remember beloved broadcaster Ray Fosse always hying up Suzuki's skills behind the dish. Fosse was, you guessed it, a former catcher. Over his 16-year career, Suzuki ended being a below average hitter, posting a 90 OPS+,

By the time the advanced metrics came around, Zuk was already in his age 31 season, and the defense that we'd heard so much about for the first eight years of his career didn't show up on the measured analytics. That said, his blocking was pretty solid, though his pop time sat over two seconds and his framing (a relatively new stat at the time) was ranked well below average.

For pop time purposes, Shea Langeliers ranked highly at 1.89 seconds this past season, putting him in the 91st percentile, showing that 2.09 is just not great.

That said, Suzuki was always a beloved teammate in his time in the green and gold, and Slusser notes that his "high energy level and positivity" as being hallmarks of Cleveland Guardians manager (and former A's catcher) Stephen Vogt. Those skills will also be more important in a potential managerial role than his blocking or pop time.

It's not a big surprise that Buster Posey is after a catcher to lead the Giants into the future, being that he's a former backstop himself and a decent amount of current managers are also former catchers. The A's current manager, Mark Kotsay, is one of the exceptions, and he's shown that being able to read the roster and communicate, which are the real keys to being a successful leader in today's game.

Catchers may be equipped to deal with some of the actual managing that happens in a game, but that can be learned. It's also important to not lose the clubhouse during rough patches. Kotsay has had to navigate the team's messy relocation saga while also building up a young roster, and he's done a tremendous job given the circumstances.