Detroit Tigers: Saying goodbye to Buster Posey

San Francisco Giants catcher Buster Posey unexpectedly retired this week, so we thought it might be nice to look back on his limited run-ins with the Detroit Tigers.

Now, Detroit Tigers fans can be excused if they don’t have any particularly strong memories of Buster Posey. He spent the entirety of his career playing for the San Francisco Giants, and of his 1,371 career regular season games, just 6 came against the Tigers.

Posey was scheduled for four more games against the Tigers in 2022, but he has chosen to end his career on his own terms.

It’s a bit disappointing for fans to miss out on another chance to see one of the best catchers in MLB history, but perhaps Tigers fans have already seen enough of Posey for a lifetime.

Because of course those six regular season games weren’t Buster Posey’s only experience against the Detroit Tigers.

It’s not terribly nice to reference the 2012 World Series around Tigers fans, but next season is the 10-year anniversary of that series, so they might as well get used to it now.

In 2012 Buster Posey had one of the best seasons ever for a catcher (to FanGraphs it was THE best catcher season ever), but Posey didn’t have a particularly noteworthy postseason. He did hit three home runs, but he batted just .200 and only scored five runs.

But, in a manner befitting one of the most unassuming superstars in history, he still had a huge impact on the World Series.

In addition to catching two shutouts — something he did far more than any other catcher — he also made an impressive tag on a hugely important relay in Game 2, and then he sucked the air out of Comerica Park with a late two-run homer in Game 4:

The Giants wrapped up their sweep just a few innings later, and Posey’s shouts of joy were one of the few sounds in the stadium.

Buster Posey’s Accomplishments

• Rookie of the Year (2010)
• MVP (2012)
• Batting Title (2012)
• Comeback Player of the Year (2012)
• 7x All-Star
• 4x Silver Slugger
• 3x World Series winner
• Gold Glove (2016)

And there may be more to come. Buster Posey is a finalist for another Comeback Player of the Year award, and he seems like a good bet to pick up his 5th Silver Slugger award. From a production and talent perspective, Buster Posey was still in his prime.

Detroit sports fans might not have seen Posey play much, but they can certainly relate to watching a superstar leave too soon. It’s a sad day for the sport, but we were all lucky to have seen Buster Posey play at all.