DALLAS -- Buster Posey did a lot of things at an elite level as a player. He was an MVP, a Gold Glove Award winner, and one of the best-hitting catchers in the game's history. He was known for his leadership and his toughness, and for over a decade he was the face of the franchise at Oracle Park.
He was not, however, somebody who made it particularly easy for kids who might want to dress up as their favorite ballplayer for Halloween.
Posey played it straight, keeping his pant legs down and his arms mostly free of wristbands or eye-popping colors. If it was cold, the sleeves were simply black. His catcher's gear was standard, and he didn't have a shoe locker that teammates would raid. The emotions only really poured out after a title or a no-hitter.
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"I wasn't a guy that played with flare," Posey said Tuesday, smiling, "But I understand that there's value to that."
On his first day as president of baseball operations, Posey talked about how the Giants have to remember they're in the memory-making business. Before his first day at the Winter Meetings, he agreed to terms with a shortstop who fits that mold.
The Giants had Willy Adames at the top of their wish list all offseason and locked him up Saturday, doing so as the rest of the market waited for Juan Soto to make a decision. On Tuesday, Adames passed his physical and signed a seven-year, $182 million contract. A few minutes after it was announced, he posted a well-produced video to his Instagram page which included a bold message: "ARE YOU READY?"
The Giants signed Adames for his power and his ability to bring stability at shortstop. They gush about his leadership and how he connects with 25 other teammates on a daily basis. But there's another element, too. Adames will flip bats and create dugout celebrations.
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He'll join Matt Chapman in making sure the team knows how to enjoy a win, and he may take the lead in preparing players for games. Earlier this week, a former minor league teammate of his talked excitedly about how Adames had a different handshake with every member of his Triple-A team and was that group's leader despite being one of the younger prospects.
Add it up and there are a lot of ways for the new Giant to make memories.
"When you think about a 10-year-old coming to the ballpark to see their favorite player, there's going to be a lot of Adames jerseys, I would venture to say, in the stands now," Posey told NBC Sports Bay Area. "He's a great player (and) the personality is going to come through, the willingness to win and be a great teammate and to understand that he's getting to do a lifelong dream on a stage in front of other people that love to watch him play and compete. It's going to be fun for all of us to watch."
The Giants know they were boring at many points of the last three seasons, but ultimately there's nothing more exciting than winning, and Posey is confident that Adames is the one to get the Giants back into contention. He mentioned his intensity and drive and said Adames is the type to buy into a "grit mentality." In that way, the Giants view him as another version of Chapman, who helped energize the clubhouse on and off the field last year but also displayed an ability to show up for nine innings every night no matter how his body felt.
"We talked about Matt Chapman, a guy that's going to be on the field and he's going to give it everything you've got," Posey said. "Willy is another guy (like that). When you have leaders like that, when you have veterans like that, it's much easier for younger players to walk into the clubhouse, whether it's (their) first, second, third year or maybe they're a minor leaguer and they look at these guys like, 'This is the way to go about your business.'
"I just believe that long term, those players have an impact that we'll never really be able to know how important it is. I see Willy as one of those guys."
The Giants are betting big that Adames and Chapman will keep the ship headed in the right direction, committing $333 million to the two infielders over the past four months. Posey called them the best left side in baseball, and he has given Bob Melvin the ability to come to the ballpark every day and know that he'll have two powerful right-handed bats in the heart of his lineup.
When Posey asked Melvin for his opinion on the free agent, the manager noted that Adames played 161 games last season. That's rare in today's game, but Adames has always been one to show up when the lights turn on. He has played at least 140 games in the last five full MLB seasons and has taken more than 600 plate appearances in three consecutive seasons.
Melvin went over Adames' track record and told his new boss that it appears the star shortstop loves to play baseball. When you're committing nine figures to a free agent, that certainly helps you feel a bit more comfortable, and it became an even easier decision once Adames made it clear that he was just as passionate about joining the Giants.
"He showed an interest early on that he believed in the vision of what we're trying to do here," Posey said. "And we're just thrilled that we got the best shortstop on the market."