Giants Evaluating Three Catchers To Replace Buster Posey
SAN FRANCISCO (KPIX) -- On Friday Buster Posey opted out of the 60-game 2020 season, citing health concerns after he and his wife Kristen adopted twin babies.
Posey was given full support from all levels of the franchise.
"It's a tough weight to put on your soul to be coming to play baseball and risking their lives," teammate Hunter Pence said.
Posey is a 6-time all star, a 3-time World Series Champion, and a National League MVP. Replacing his resume is next to impossible, but with less than two weeks until opening day, the Giants are taking a stab at it.
One thing seems certain, they will not thrust top prospect Joey Bart into the spotlight. Despite being on the franchise's "taxi squad", the former second overall draft pick is slowly being groomed.
President Farhan Zaidi admitted that the position could be in flux to start. "Whether it's a timeshare or there's going to be a starter and a backup, we'll have to see."
At this point, manager Gabe Kapler is focusing on three catchers, two of them likely to make the opening day roster: Tyler Heineman, Rob Brantly, and Chadwick Tromp.
Heineman is a former 8th round pick of the Houston Astros in 2012 and made his Major League debut last year with the Miami Marlins. He was a walk-on at UCLA and eventually became a finalist for the Johnny Bench award. He caught some flack on social media for saying he was reporting to camp in "San Fran" (a faux pas to some), but later apologized.
The Giants are Rob Brantly's ninth franchise since he was selected in the third round by the Tigers in 2010. The 30-year-old has played in 126 major league games; one of them with Kapler who managed the Phillies in 2019.
Tromp has received the most buzz in camp since he was added to the roster on July 4. He's a native of Aruba and has zero major league experience, but carried a .965 OPS last season in the Reds minor league system. He also belted two home runs in Sunday's intersquad game at Oracle Park.
