By Brian Murphy
I’ve left very little doubt when we talk about it — Buster Posey is the guy the Giants need and want as president of baseball operations.
The championship pedigree is unquestioned. The love of the franchise and The City, pure.
But it appears we will have to enjoy the Posey Era under an unspoken financial constraint from ownership.
That much is becoming clear as the Greg Johnson Era enters the year 2026.
The Giants will spend a decent amount of money, but the numbers show that the Johnson regime likes to stay on the safe side of the luxury tax. The Giants enter 2026 with the 12th-highest payroll in MLB — some $20 million under the luxury tax.
Johnson took over as the Giants control person in November of 2019. In the seven seasons since (counting 2026), the team has finished top-10 in payroll just once.
In the decade prior, from 2012-19, the Giants finished top-10 every year — and top-six in MLB six times.
I ain’t no Warren Buffett, but that’s a big-picture change in spending.
This topic comes across the Jock Blog radar because Posey hopped on the “Murph and Markus Show” today and I asked him: “Is it OK you didn’t make a blockbuster move in the offseason?”
He began by defending his off-season signings, fairly lauding the defense of Harrison Bader and batting-title prowess of Luis Arreaz. And then he said:
“Look, I get it — from a fan’s perspective, they wants us to go out and sign every marquee free agent. That sounds great in theory, but that’s not reality . . . we have the talent to win a lot of ballgames.”
Cue the predictable reaction from fans who have DBS — Dodger Beatdown Syndrome.
The pushback: How can we live in a world where the Giants are valued as the fifth-most valuable franchise in MLB, yet have now gone 12th, 16th, 13th, 8th, 12th and 12th in payroll rankings the last six years, including 2026? While living in a world where the Dodgers willingly paid a $169 million dollar *tax bill* last year?
I get it. Comparing any MLB franchise to the Dodgers — even the gazillionaire Mets — is a losing proposition. As much as the Mets tried, they still spent $71 million less than the Dodgers last year. Holy Sultan of Brunei, Batman.
But that doesn’t mean the Giants can’t give Posey more financial ammunition to sign bigger bats, better arms. We’re not asking to spend the gross domestic product of the G7 nations. We’re just asking to add a Zac Gallen here, a Chris Bassitt there. Maybe sprinkle in a Tatsuya Imai.
Alas, this appears to not be the case.
Posey is not the culprit here. If anything, he pushes the boundary as best he can. He convinced ownership to take on Rafael Devers’ 10-year, $313.5 deal, which was a banner move. He signed Willy Adames to a 7-year, $182 million deal to finally find the Giants post-Brandon Crawford answer at shortstop. He personally saw to it that Matt Chapman got his 6-year, $151 million deal.
And maybe those who would defend the Johnson era of control would say — that’s some big iron committed to some key guys.
Reality is, though, the San Diego Padres (sixth in payroll) are outspending the Giants. And the Arizona Diamondbacks are only $18 million behind the Giants.
I get it. Spending does not gift you a championship, as I was just saying to the last quarter-century of Yankee fans. The best teams are built from within. Say the names Lincecum, Bumgarner, Cain, Posey, Sandoval, Romo, Crawford, Belt and smile.
Perhaps Bryce Eldridge and a crew of young’uns will recreate some magic by 2028 or so.
Equally true, though, is that the Giants can afford to sign even more and better players and the general trend of the last several years has been to settle for a little less.
Tony Vitello has the task of getting this crew from 81 wins to maybe 86 or 87 and sneak in the playoffs as a wild card. Perhaps this fresh coat of paint and a little piss and vinegar from the dugout will do the trick.
As Posey told us in the same interview: “Everyone is entitled to their own opinion.”
On to spring training.
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