Report: Posey worked directly with Chapman to get extension done
Even in retirement, Buster Posey is making his presence felt.
The longtime San Francisco Giants catcher worked personally with Matt Chapman on the six-year, $151-million contract extension he signed Sept. 5, sources told The Athletic's Andrew Baggarly.
Posey and the rest of the Giants' executive board grew frustrated with the lack of progress between president of baseball operations Farhan Zaidi and Chapman's agent, Scott Boras, Baggarly adds.
Posey reportedly hammered out the contract's basic structure with Chapman, which included a full no-trade clause that Zaidi had not included since the talks began in August.
The Giants' board of directors reportedly viewed Chapman as a no-brainer candidate for a lucrative extension. Posey's intervention allowed them to circumvent Boras in negotiations and reflected a lack of trust in the agent and Zaidi to finish the deal, Baggarly notes.
"I viewed myself and ownership working in total sync," Zaidi said. "This was a priority to get done. I'd expect them to be heavily involved in a deal of this magnitude, and they were."
Posey joined the Giants' ownership group after purchasing a minority interest in the team before he retired in 2022.
Zaidi, meanwhile, has found himself under fire with San Francisco heading for another disappointing finish. The club hasn't finished above .500 since going 107-55 in 2021, Posey's last season as a player.
The Giants have also publicly struggled to sign marquee free agents during Zaidi's tenure. Their failed pursuits of Aaron Judge and Carlos Correa made headlines, while the completed deals - such as Jorge Soler and Blake Snell - have mostly disappointed.
Signing and extending Chapman was a much-needed victory. The 31-year-old has accrued the National League's sixth-most fWAR (5.0) in his first season with the Giants while posting his highest OPS+ (122) since 2019.
Posey won the 2012 MVP and led the Giants to three World Series titles during his 12-year playing career.