From contender to fire sale in less than two years.

Hey, it's Zack.

This one connects directly to Issue #2 of The Save.

That is where we talked about Rafael Devers. How Boston gave him a franchise record extension. How they signed Alex Bregman and gave him Devers' position without telling him first. How Devers was traded to San Francisco while he was one of the best hitters in baseball.

One year later the Giants are trying to trade him again.

And Devers is just one piece of a much bigger problem in San Francisco.

THE ENTRANCE

Buster Posey took over as president of baseball operations before the 2025 season. One of the greatest catchers in the history of the game. A Hall of Famer. A beloved figure in San Francisco and across baseball.

He wasted no time. He signed Willy Adames to a seven year $182 million deal. He extended Matt Chapman for six years $151 million. He took on Devers and the hundreds of millions remaining on his contract from Boston. He signed Luis Arraez, Adrian Houser, Tyler Mahle and others to fill out the roster.

The message was clear. The Giants were ready to get back to their winning ways. Not so long ago this was a franchise that won three World Series championships in five years. They wanted that feeling back.

It has not worked.

As of this week the Giants have one of the worst records in baseball. They are more than sixteen games back in the NL West and more than seven games out of the final wild card spot. This will be their fifth consecutive season without a playoff appearance. Five straight years of missing the postseason while spending at a level that should have produced results by now. And they are now actively shopping the same players Posey brought in to lead the franchise back to relevance.

Then there is the manager question. When Bob Melvin was dismissed after going 81 and 81 last season Posey had his pick of experienced candidates. Former Orioles manager Brandon Hyde was available. Kurt Suzuki and Vance Wilson both former big league catchers with professional experience interviewed for the job. Instead Posey hired Tony Vitello the head coach at the University of Tennessee. Vitello had never played or coached a single game in professional baseball. He became the first college coach in MLB history to move directly to a major league manager position without any professional experience whatsoever. Posey even paid a $3 million buyout to get him out of his Tennessee contract.