San Francisco Giants Legend Couldn't 'Turn Down' Challenge of His New Role

The San Francisco Giants recently had a franchise icon move into a front-office role, and he recently discussed his reasoning behind the choice to do so.

Oct 1, 2024; San Francisco, CA, USA; San Francisco Giants president of baseball operations Buster Posey speaks with the media after an introductory press conference at Oracle Park. | Robert Edwards-Imagn Images

The San Francisco Giants have had lots of changes occur this offseason, primarily when it comes to the roster itself, but also in the front office.

Randy Winn returned to the team where he played five seasons of his career, earning the title of vice president of player development.

In addition to that, a franchise icon also returned to the fold after a few years as a member of the team's board of directors; long-time catcher Buster Posey.

This winter, he was hired as the president of baseball operations, replacing Farhan Zaidi.

Now that Posey has had a few months to settle in, he has an idea of what the job entails and how he may fit into the role for the coming seasons.

He recently discussed his decision to take on such a large position, speaking with Alden Gonzalez of ESPN.

"I've met fans before that genuinely feel like they know me, just because of how much baseball is on TV. That's something that's important to me. I want our fan base to have that connection with our players. I'm hopeful that the 10-year-old out there is pulling on his or her mom's coattail and saying, 'I want to go in because I want to see Player X-Y-Z today.' They want to go buy the jerseys. So yeah, it is about winning. First and foremost, it's about winning. But I think the stories make the winning even better."

He continued on to discuss his perspective of the new position and his reflection on whether or not this is something he can do.

"It's a challenge, and it's hard to turn down a challenge," Posey said. "You want to see, 'Is it something that I can do?' 'Is it something that I'm going to like doing?' 'Is it something that I'm going to be good at?'"

It is clear that this is a good role for the former National League MVP, as his influence alongside Bob Melvin was a large reason why multi-time Platinum Glove Award winner Matt Chapman finalized a six-year extension with the team this past season.

Posey's ability to relate to players, having been one so recently, and show them what comes with being a Giants player is something that will likely resonate strongly with free agents and players already on the roster.

Having someone who played out his entire career for the franchise is important as well.

Posey knows how important baseball is to San Francisco, and how great it feels to win for that fan base, since he's a three-time World Series champion himself.

Hopefully, the success he had on the field translates to his time in the front office.