Buster Posey contract: Giants star forfeiting millions to ride off into the sunset

San Francisco Giants catcher Buster Posey is walking away from millions to retire and spend time with his family.

Posey has made plenty of money in his playing days, so giving away the remainder of his contract isn’t exactly a major hit. Still, it’s rare to see a professional athlete walk away at their peak. Yet, that’s exactly what Posey is doing.

The 34-year-old hit .304 last season, with 18 home runs and 56 RBIs. He’s more than capable behind the plate, and this is after he took the year off due to concerns about COVID-19.

The Giants won a league-high 107 games last year. Without their leader, San Francisco will likely turn to Joey Bart, who now goes from one of baseball’s top prospects to potential catcher of the future.

Buster Posey contract: What are his career earnings?

Posey will walk away from $22 million on the final year of his contract. Per Spotrac, 2022 was a club option year, but the Giants were always likely to renew. Posey was excellent last season and is an All-Star caliber talent, even at this age, behind the dish.

His career earnings at this point are somewhere over $142 million. Posey’s been well worth the investment for San Francisco, as the Giants have won three World Series titles with him behind the dish.

Buster Posey Hall of Fame

Posey is close to a surefire Hall of Famer, even if he is retiring early. He’s a seven-time All-Star, four-time Silver Slugger, a Gold Glove winner, former MVP, rookie of the year and a two-time comeback player of the year. The man has earned his spot in Cooperstown.

Posey ends his career with just 1,500 hits and 158 home runs in 12 years. Despite the numerous honors in his name, those two benchmarks fall a bit short of what he likely would’ve ended up with had he played out the remainder of his career as expected.

Nonetheless, for the BBWAA to leave Posey out of the Hall would be a shame to the game itself.