"Padres have a Death Star, Dodgers 5" - Giants insider urges Buster Posey rope in Shohei Ohtani, Fernando Tatis Jr.-level stars to compete in NL West
Newly appointed president of baseball operations Buster Posey has been urged by insider Sam Lubman to land a big name to kick off his tenure in office with the San Francisco Giants.
The former catcher has been on the job for only a month and is settling into life as a baseball executive after a decade-long playing career in San Francisco. Before taking office as the president of baseball operation, Posey played a critical role in signing Matt Chapman to a six-year deal. However, Giants insider Sam Lubman wants to see a marquee signing that will help the team become competitive again.
On the Garlic Fries & Baseball Guys podcast, Lubman said that Posey needs to rope in a Shohei Ohtani, Fernando Tatis Jr.-level star to compete in the NL West:
"I do think you need to have a splash move to kick this thing off. If the Giants are coming out of the Winter Meetings without a significant addition to this roster. ... I think you're going into a season where Buster Posey is already going to be behind the eight-ball.
"Padres have a Death Star, Dodgers have five. ... You need to close this gap now. The Giants need to able to compete with the Dodgers and Padres right away."
Buster Posey started his major league career as a player with the San Francisco Giants in 2009 and remained a one-team man until the end of his career in 2021.
He won three World Series titles and an NL MVP award, among several other individual accolades. After retiring, the former catcher joined the 30-member ownership group of the Giants and served on their board of directors.
Giants insider advocates alternate route for Buster Posey to compete with the Dodgers and Padres
While Sam Lubman urged Buster Posey to make a splash move this winter, his co-host in the podcast Joe Shasky believes that the San Francisco Giants need to take a different route. According to Shasky:
"I can't compete with the Dodgers buying free agents. What I can do, is continue to develop my form."
Shasky believes that it's impossible to compete with the Los Angeles Dodgers in the free agent market and that the Giants need to focus on developing their roster instead.
He wants the front office to offload prospects that aren't valuable to them and trade for players who would add more value than they do in their current teams. He's more focused on the long run rather than signing a star player quickly.