Over the last month, the San Francisco Giants have fallen out of postseason contention, though they were able to finally give slugger Matt Chapman a contract extension.
He had signed a three-year, $54 million deal in the offseason but was expected to opt out. To combat this, the Giants give him a six-year, $151 million extension.
However, for a time, talks had stalled between Chapman and the Giants, and it wasn't until a Giants legend stepped in and helped accelerate those talks that a deal got done.
"According to sources, the Giants' executive board led by Buster Posey became so frustrated by the lack of immediate progress between (Farhan) Zaidi and agent Scott Boras after talks began in August that the ownership group took action,' Andrew Baggarly wrote in The Athletic. "Sources said Posey personally dealt with Chapman to hammer out the basic structure of the contract, which includes a full no-trade provision, one of the sticking points that Zaidi had not included in the team's initial proposal."
As it turns out, the process was not as easy as it originally was thought to be, and it took a little bit of time before the Giants were actually able to give Chapman the contract he wanted.
Fortunately, Posey stepped in and may have ultimately been the deciding factor in getting the deal done. And so, Chapman now remains a Giant for likely the next six seasons.
Posey played his entire Major League career with the Giants and won three World Series titles with the team. He also was a Rookie of the Year, an MVP, a batting champion, a five-time All-Star, and even a Gold Glove winner.
Now, he serves as part of the Giants ownership group. He was a key member of the franchise for years and ultimately played a key role in the Chapman extension.
San Francisco now finally has a star to build around as they turn their focus to the 2025 season. We'll see what comes next for the Giants.
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