Giants' top draft pick is a talented catcher and a potentially great hitter
By Steve Corkran
MediaNews staff
06/13/2008

Four years ago, Florida State University baseball coach Mike Martin dispatched assistant coach Jamey Shouppe to check out a Leesburg (Ga.) High School standout named Gerald "Buster" Posey.

Shouppe took one look at Posey, grabbed the nearest phone and summoned Martin. A short time later, Martin packed his radar gun and notebook into his suitcase and dashed across the border into southwestern Georgia.

"Coach Shouppe said, 'You need to recruit the guy because I don't want to be responsible for losing him. Get down here now!'" Martin recalled of his first look at Posey.

Posey has spent the past three seasons carving out a stellar college career that culminated with his being selected by the Giants with the fifth pick of the Major League Baseball amateur draft earlier this month. He followed that by leading the Seminoles into the College World Series, where Florida State begins play today against Stanford.

Posey, 21, was regarded by many as the most-talented player available in the draft. The Giants were thrilled that Posey lasted until No. 5.

"We were able to get an all-around catcher," said Brian Sabean, Giants senior vice president and general manager. "We think Buster has upside potential on both sides of the ball. He is a converted shortstop who can really catch and throw and is going to be a run producer with the bat, so it's kind of like getting two players in one. It is very difficult to get an all-around catcher, especially a run producer."

The Giants secured more than just a strong-armed catcher and potentially productive hitter. By all accounts, Posey's value transcends his receiving skills and hitting prowess.

Friends, teammates, coaches and family use such words as leader, role model and gentleman when describing Posey, the oldest of Demp and Traci Posey's four children.

Posey, like many of his peers, is a student of the game. More important, mother Traci Posey says, he is a "student of life."

Hence, Posey's handshake is firm, his eye contact consistent and his humility always in check.

"I'm very conscious of how important that first impression can be," Posey said in an interview with the Tallahassee (Fla.) Democrat. "But, at the same time, it's not something I have to work on too hard just because of the way my parents raised me.

"Since I was little, they've been really good about when I meet somebody making sure that I look them in the eye. Just have respect for everybody. That's what most people look for ��" that you give them the respect they deserve."

These days Posey, who's 6-foot-2 and 200 pounds, is finding that respect isn't hard to come by on the baseball field.

Such is the power of leading the nation in numerous offensive categories. He tops in the nation in batting average (.460), slugging percentage (.887) and RBI (92). He also has 26 home runs. His showing earned him the award of Collegiate Baseball's player of the year. Oh, and he also is an Academic All-American based on his 3.87 grade-point average.

Two years ago, Posey was the Seminoles' starting shortstop. Then, assistant coach Mike Martin Jr. saw something in Posey that led him to believe that he could have a bigger impact on the game from behind the plate.

"Buster can play any position, but I consider him a major league catcher because he has all of the intangibles," Martin said. "You want a player like him involved with every pitch, not at shortstop where he might touch the ball twice in a game. His leadership is second to none."

Some players likely would have resisted such a radical change from shortstop to catcher. Not Posey, who bats and throws right-handed.

"He was excited because it was something that he could work at," Traci Posey said from her Leesburg home. "He likes that. "... He's never satisfied."

That Posey made such a seamless transition should come as no surprise. He leads the Seminoles with six saves and has played every position this season, including one game in which he played all nine.

Defensively, Posey has thrown out better than 40 percent of those attempting to steal. Add it up, and the Giants' decision to select Posey was an easy one.

John Barr, a top adviser to Sabean, presided over the Giants draft this year. He scouted Posey since the time Martin first laid eyes on his prized player at Leesburg High.

Posey "was a consideration for the selection since the day I took this position," said Barr, who was hired this past winter.

Sabean said he didn't need much convincing. Now, it's only a matter of when Posey replaces current starter Bengie Molina.

"(Posey's) on the fast track, and Bengie's clock is winding down," Sabean said of Molina, who turns 34 in July and is under contract through next season. "It's really up to (Posey) how soon he wants to get going and how soon he can get here."

Martin likens Posey to Boston Red Sox catcher Jason Varitek in terms of leadership, defense and competitiveness. One huge difference, though: "Buster can run well," Martin said.

One of Posey's youth baseball coaches tells the story of Posey retreating to his house after a subpar game. It was there that Posey threw balls off the barn and swatted balls off a tee, while teammates played video games.

"That's Buster," Traci Posey said. "He perceives days when he doesn't do as well as he expects to do as opportunities for added motivation. He isn't going to stop until he figures it out."

Posey is the highest-drafted player since 1997 for the Giants. Some experts projected him to go No. 1 to the Tampa Bay Rays. A rumor that surfaced before the draft that Posey would command a $12 million signing bonus might have scared off the Rays and other teams.

Regardless, Posey figures to set his first Giants record whenever he signs his first contract. Pitcher Tim Lincecum's $2.025 million signing bonus is the benchmark. Last year's No. 5 pick received $6 million.

In the end, Martin said, the Giants won't be disappointed.

"In my 29 years, he's the best player I've ever coached," Martin said. "More than that, he's at the top of the best people I've ever coached. You're talking about a special young man, a one-of-a-kind person who has it all."

Contact Steve Corkran at scorkran@bayareanewsgroup.com.

NAME: Gerald "Buster" Posey
AGE: 21
HEIGHT: 6-foot-2
WEIGHT: 200 pounds
SCHOOL: Florida State
DRAFT: Fifth overall by the Giants

DID YOU KNOW?: Posey is an academic All-American with a 3.87 grade-point average

quotable: "(Posey's) on the fast track, and Bengie's (Molina) clock is winding down. It's really up to (Posey) how soon he wants to get going and how soon he can get here." -- Giants GM Brian Sabean

college stats
AVG.: .470*
SLG.: . 887*
RBI: 92*
* led the nation