Giants fire veteran manager Bob Melvin after two years as Buster Posey seeks 'different voice'

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SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — Buster Posey will search for a fresh managerial voice to guide the San Francisco Giants, someone with an “obsessive” work ethic and attention to detail.

Manager Bob Melvin was fired Monday after the club missed the playoffs for a fourth straight season.

Posey, San Francisco's President of Baseball Operations, announced the decision. He had shown his confidence in Melvin by exercising the veteran manager's contract option for the 2026 season on July 1.

“Just looking to find a different voice that can take us in a different direction,” Posey said.

Melvin said after Sunday's 4-0 victory against Colorado to conclude his second season that he had received no assurances about managing in 2026.

“It is what it is,” he said, “we'll see what the next day brings.”

The Giants finished 81-81 for one more victory than in Melvin's first year. They haven't reached the postseason since winning the NL West with a franchise-record 107 victories to edge the rival Dodgers by one game in 2021 under then-skipper Gabe Kapler.

Now, another change.

“It’s definitely not ideal but unfortunately we talked about it a lot what the standards are for the Giants and we have high standards,” Posey said. “And I hold myself to those same standards. I understand fully the position that I’m in now. My job and the team’s success is evaluated accordingly as well. You without a doubt hope that there can be consistency in these leadership positions. We’ve got to get back to a place where we’re getting in the playoffs, we’re making runs in playoffs. That’s what our fan base deserves, that’s what the city deserves.”

As Posey begins finalizing his list of candidates, one familiar name has come up as a possibility: the catcher's former manager, Bruce Bochy. He has wrapped up his three-year contract with Texas but Posey noted, “I don’t know what his status is yet so I can’t speak on that.”

The 70-year-old Bochy managed the Giants for 13 seasons from 2007-2019, a run that featured every-other-year World Series titles in 2010, ‘12 and ’14.

Posey said there's no timetable for making a hire — “I want to make sure we get it right” — nor suggested whether he would seek someone with prior managerial experience.

Players offered support for Melvin as the season ended.

“You know how I feel about BoMel, I loved him. He's been my manager for I guess seven years,” said third baseman Matt Chapman, who also played for Melvin with Oakland. “I feel extremely grateful that I get to play for him and he's the same guy every day. He's been steady for us, he's always honest with the players, he has our back. He's done the best with what we've given him. The players, a lot of us didn't play to probably our capabilities.”

The 63-year-old Melvin left the San Diego Padres to return home to the Bay Area and manage the Giants last year for the job he always dreamed of doing as a former catcher with the organization. This is his 22nd year as a major league manager.

Melvin has a 1,678-1,588 career regular-season managerial record. A three-time Manager of the Year who has won the award in both leagues, he has eight postseason appearances while guiding Arizona, Seattle, Oakland, San Diego and the Giants.

San Francisco finished 80-82 in Melvin's first season last year after he replaced Kapler, who was fired with three days remaining in the 2023 season.

Melvin is a native of nearby Palo Alto, California. He attended the University of California-Berkeley and played for his hometown Giants from 1986-88.

This has been his dream job, one he thought about in each visit to Oracle Park as a visiting manager.

“It wasn’t enjoyable. I knew how much this job meant to Bob,” Posey said of their conversation.

The players certainly realized their skipper's passion for being in a place that means so much to him.

While several Giants — including All-Star Logan Webb — said they don't expect Posey to be satisfied with this disappointing year, that didn't necessarily mean they expected a managerial change.

“He's done a great job,” Webb said after Sunday's start. “I know I said some things last time that I think got misconstrued. It had nothing to do with BoMel. He's amazing at what he does. I think at the end of the day, it comes down to us being able to play better as players, and I think everyone in here will say the exact same thing. BoMel's a great leader of men. It's been amazing. I think BoMel is great.”

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