>> building a better bay area, moving forward, finding solutions. this is abc 7 news. kristen: hello. i am kristen sze. you are watching "getting answers." >> what a moment for buster posey. a season that ended up being an m.v.p. season, buster posey just delivered a huge haymaker to the cincinnati reds. kristen: who could forget? every giants fans remembers when buster posey hit that grand slam in the playoff series in 2012. >> look at the emotion there. buster posey won the m.v.p. that year. he was part of three championship seasons.

a day of mixed emotions. we have happiness for buster posey to go out on his own but the sadness that we will not see him as a giant anymore. kristen: very mixed but so great he had a wonderful season and he is about to make his official announcement. i am kristen sze. thank you for joining us for this special edition of this one of countless moments that buster posey has given fans in the bay area. we are doing things a little different today. he is announcing his retirement and it is a celebration of his amazing career. >> when you talk about the last remaining giant on the roster from the last three world series, you are talking about the face of the franchise. three-time world series champ, seven-time all-star, national league m.v.p., golden glove, rookie of the year. you name it, he has done it but one of the things we talked

about before we came on the air and we should mention that there is a news conference we are waiting for at oracle park. everyone is gathering there. buster posey end as wife will be there along with giants management and there may be some former teammate who are in the back that want to salute buster. but the catching position is more than just numbers. there are so many intangibles. and buster was the glue of the franchise for more than a decade. just think about how many personalities you have to deal with on a day to day day day a five-man rotation and relief pitchers. kristen: you listed some of his accomplishments and let's add to that, this past year's n.l. comeback player. in a way, as someone that has hollow him for a long ash that

has followed him for a long time, it is great to see him go out on top. to have that kind of amazing season, to be able to walk out at this particular juncture. we know he wants to focus on his family. he towo little babies, babies, e of twins. you're not going to start crying here, i hope. just think about -- i was thinking about this today -- kristen: you are going to get choked up. >> imagine if lynn sikkim showed up. and madison bumgarner and brian wilson who was his own zany character, sergio romo to effectively manage all of these personalities in game and then come if things go well, you get the big buster hug at the end but he has been the face of the

franchise and the glue of the franchise. i thought, after he took the covid year off, understandable. he wanted to make the decision to be with his wife who will be at the podium as they talk about the decision that they made together but just thinking about -- ok, he came back and had a great season and the giants won 107 games and you are thinking, he is under a team option that they could pick up for $22 million. they would pick that up in a heartbeat and of course, he is coming back. who would leave this situation? the giants could have been in the world series. you are thinking, there is no way he is leaving now. but, he is. kristen: and you know what, as we walk down memory lane looking at these great moments, don't forget the perfect game that he also caught.

he made all of his pitchers sh ine and there is leadership there. when i hear some of the baseball writers talk about whether he will be in the hall of fame, cooperstown, in my mind, i am thinking, for sure -- it is not just the numbers. there are so many intangibles. his leadership and how he made everyone around him better. that is hard to measure. larry: i have been looking at a couple of articles from national baseball writers and i was stunned. to me, there is no doubt and obviously, we are biased and we are also in san francisco so we got a chance to watch him for a dozen years, he is a hall of famer. there is -- it is a no-brainer. look at the pure numbers, 158 homers. that was like 2.5 seasons for barry bonds at times.

he finishes with a career batting average over .300 but it is not like his numbers were so astronomical in an age where all of the metrics and analytics are so important. you would hope voters would not hold that against him. it is really simple. ias never won a world series before buster posey came to san francisco. he arrives in the next year they win. they win three on his watch. ok? cause and effect? there were other players involved but he was the glue and he kept everything together at times when things are not necessarily always going well we talked about with the grand slam in 2012 when the giants had to come back to win. oh my goodness! yes. if there is one guy in a pressure situation that you want up with a bat in his hands, it

is clearly buster posey or it was for a decade. and this is the other part of it, and i am sure it will be touched on -- here we go. he is at the podium right now. we probably have a minute to talk. you think about the injuries he has overcome and his ankle was basically shattered and he had to come back from that. what did he do? he came back as player of the year and the giants in the world series. you are telling me he is not a hall of famer? kristen: he has my vote. larry: and he had hip surgery. just look at this collision that was brutal in 2011. it cost buster a year off his career not to mention the rehab he had to go through and nobody knew -- in fact, they changed the rules on how you can block home plate or make a tag at home plate. it was buster posey ruled that the giants lobbied for because of the injury that he suffered.

he has had an impact off and on the field and we have not even gotten to the work he has done in the community. >> facebook the listeners listening in on 104.5 and buster posey end is wife, greg johnson, the giants president and ceo, larry baer and the giants president of baseball operations. today's rundown will include opening remarks from buster followed by greg, larry, and the president and then we will open it up for questions to buster. i would like to note that greg and larry and the president will be available for one on ones and group interviews following the press conference. with that, i am turning it over to buster.

buster: i am here today announcing that i am retiring. a lot of you out there probably no i first instinct is not to run and get behind the microphone. but as i thought about what i wanted to say today, i realized it is such a unique opportunity to publicly bank so many people -- thank so many people that helped me get there and stay here and fulfill a lifelong dream. -- dream playing major league baseball. so, first, i would like to thank the woman sitting up with me here today. kristen, most importantly, thank you for being an amazing mom to our kids. thank you for the love and support from the first game to the last. it does not seem like it was that long ago where i remember you sitting at the high school games with your dad. and then florida state

university. and then, just a couple of years later, you were in the stands cheering with the rest of the giants community as we won our first title. celebrate all of the great moments. and i think more portly, thank you for being there at some of the lower ones. you know better than anybody how hard i would take not performing the way that i wanted to but your love and perspective about what was truly important helped me through those times. i know these years on the west coast will be some of our fondest as we look back and i am so excited to share life with you and watching our kids grow. the people that you are becoming.

we are so blessed to have kind, caring, and empathetic children. being your dad is the greatest joy of my life. for just being great parents and for setting great examples and being role models. all of us as parents know there is so much that goes into that. so just, thank you, number one for being great parents. thanks for the time spent at the hundreds of practices spent for me and my siblings, for teaching me the responsibility for caring for other people, thanks for teaching me how to compete, how to handle victories and how to handle the defeats. i am not strictly talking about sports. most import play, thank you for giving me the foundation of knowing that baseball is a vessel that can be used to create wonderful memories and

impact people's lives but ultimately it is not what defines you. we are looking forward to having more time with all of you. it is -- to my team, relationship of 15 years. we have a relationship for 15 years. kristen and i feel very fortunate to have had both of you as part of our team the entire way. our business relationships have definitely turned into friendships that will last a lifetime. thank you, both for all of your hard work and loyalty. there is a group here that i have worked closely with over my years, shayna, bertha, tess, and match. thank you for your behind the scenes work that does not get recognized all of the time. kristen and i have both enjoyed getting to know you and have cherished the friendships that have come from that. to the giants ownership, front

office, trainers, there are so many teams within the teams that help us play worse -- help us players perform to the best of our ability. this is a direct correlation to the people that i mentioned. the entire medical staff, without you, i might have been done five years ago. thank you for your friendship, for a caring about players, for coming to work a lot of days before anyone else and leaving after an -- after everyone else has gone home. nobody better than you guys. to the old crew, thank you for being here today. bobby, thank you for being here. rags, billy, bam bam, i have so many great memories when i think of all of you. thank you for being leaders for such a long time.

i know how fortunate i am to have spent the first 10 years playing beneath you. and as i mentioned with gretchen, thank you for caring about the people that work for you. all of these great memories that we have from working with you would not mean anything without great relationships. i think it is a reason why the fans got behind our team in the way that they did. they could see that the players and the coaches that were taking the field cared about one another. and that we wanted one another to succeed. larry, craig -- greg, rob, thank you for hiring great people and bringing great players to this organization. thank you for always making an effort to humanize the players to the fans. it is probably something early and my career that i thought was a waste of time, and i did not understand it but as the years have passed, i realize how impactful that can be and if it impacts one person in a positive way, it is worth the time and

effort. it is not something you realize when you first become part of a major league organization but it does not take long to realize that some are better than others. this place here has always been a first-class operation. so to you guys sitting up here, thank you for your commitment to the team and to the community. our time together was relatively short though we experienced a lot together. unfortunately, a global pandemic but fortunately followed by a record-setting season of 107 w ins. i really enjoyed getting to know you guys. i know this organization is in great hands with you guys at the helm. i have been blessed to play in a league that has the most talented baseball players in the world. it is a fraternity that i watched from afar from the time

i was five years old until i arrived in september, 2009. and one of the greatest benefits that comes along with that is that you get to meet a lot of great teammates that have similar interests that you do. 8 -- you make certain friends throughout the years that you know will last beyond the game. i feel very fortunate to have made some of those friendships over the years and i look forward to them lasting for years to come. it would be impossible for me to thank each and every teammate that i played with but i had the pleasure to not only play along supremely talented baseball players but good men, good husbands, and good fathers. there are some teammates that i consider as mentors. there are some teammates that we have celebrated thanksgiving with. there are some teammates that last year during the pandemic, we met over zoom for a bible

study once a week. there are teammates that i have shared the joys and hardships of life with. i am truly grateful for these relationships. i understand the time commitment, the preparation, and the hard work that goes into being ready to play each and every day. so, all of my teammates, thank you for the commitment that you made to our teams over the years. and lastly, to the fans, the last week to 10 days, i have been thinking, how do you think a fan base? and the giants fan base is more than just fans. it is a community. and in that sense of community is something we as players can feel on the ballpark when we take the field each night. i also hope it is worked the other way. i hope over the years, you have

been able to see in our teams, a sense of pride that we have all taken in coming together each night and each day working hard with a common goal of pushing each other along the way. and thinking back, some of the best times when you look back at them are the hardest times. when you are going through them, they do not tend to be very fond, but when you get on the others to them, you realize that is when you have truly grown. i think that is one of the best things about sports and hopefully something a lot of fans can identify with as well. over the years, i have heard a lot of stories about what the giants mean two different fans or what baseball means to different fans. when i think back on those stories, there is usually one or two common denominators and it is family and friends. when i was a child, one of my earliest baseball memories is of sid, a speed guy like me.

from the atlanta braves. sliding into home to beat the pittsburgh pirates and game seven of the nlcs to send the race to the world series. to be able to share in the joy with my granddad that christmas as he proudly displayed a picture of sid breen on his t-shirt sliding into home just under the tag is a memory i will never forget. i am sure there are kids out there today who have watched me play my entire career. there might asked -- they might actually be adults now. and there are parents and their grandparents, aunts and uncles, nieces and nephews, cousins that can still remember exactly where they were when the game winning homer was hit that led the 2010

san francisco giants to their first world series tile -- title or when sergio romo shook me off. he snuck a fastball passed miguel cabrera to clinch the second title in three years. or when madison bumgarner came out of the bullpen in game seven against kansas city with 45,000 people and they went deathly silent. they knew at that point the game and the world series was over. or maybe you remember where you were when matt king stood on the back of the mound and gazed up at the crowd taking it all in before the final out of the first ever perfect game in giants franchise history. to me, this is what encapsulates baseball. it is a lot more than just winning or losing games although the winds do feel a lot better -- the wins do feel a lot better. it is about the time spent with

family. the countless nights and days pulling for your team, riding the emotions of the highs and the lows and ultimately enjoying the people that you are with along the way and making great memories together. i am so very humbled to have played a part in some of those memories. to the fans, thank you for all of your support that i have received over the last 13 seasons and i look forward to creating new memories of my own this year with family and friends as i pull for the giants the rest of my life. thank you. [applause] gushing. larry: i am starting to feel chills. i think he spoke for about 12

minutes. my unofficial count. and that is probably like 12 minutes longer than he wanted to do because you can see that he choked up several times. it's listening. >> we fully support your thoughtful and difficult decision. and killian said it best this morning when she referred to both -- buster as the standardbearer of giants excellence. he not only excelled on the field but he was a riot leader that led by example. he has been a consummate professional both off and on the field. i also want to thank kristen for giving so much of buster to the giants over the last 14 years or so. thank you, kristen. buster cares deeply about the game and for me i'm a tremendous sounding board as i called him with questions over the last few years. i gained valuable insights into the state of the game and how we should make thoughtful and incremental changes to improve the game. this is not the end. this is hopefully a new chapter

four buster and the giants and we are working for a long term role to keep him part of the giants family. buster, thank you for a wonderful run. while we will miss seeing you behind the plate next year, we understand and support your decision. you will forever be a giant to all of us, not only as one writer said this morning are you represented by about every other dog collar in the bay area as buster posey but you will forever be imprinted on the hearts of giants fans. thank you, buster. larry? larry: i am not sure if buster will remember this but we have a tradition with the giants when they draft pick -- when a draft pick is signed before he goes out to a minor-league assignment in july or august. he comes down and sits in the dugout with us for a gain. in 2008, it was buster's turn.

we had a very exciting signing. the fifth overall pick. and it was exciting being in the draft room with bobby evans and brian and john barr who developed a relationship with oster and buster's family. our lead scout who scouted buster. anyway, first time i had a chance to spend any time with buster and kristen. a little fairytale ran through my mind in that night into the -- into thousand eight, august. the fairytale was -- we are going to have a long and productive player that will be a giant for a long time, maybe even a career and help make memories for the fans. we have a player that would be

adored by the fans, a player that would be involved in the community. in a meeting -- in meaningful ways. a high integrity player. a great teammate. and also, part of this fairytale was a be a player that would help lead us to our first championship in san francisco. in 2008, we had gone 50 years at that point without a championship. but even more powerful than that fairytale wast the fact that, as we went through the next 12 or 13 years together, book ended by a championship in his first year and division championship this year as well as franchise record performance this year with 107 wins, goldplated bookends, by

the way, i got to know buster the person and kristen the person and the posey family. and to share a few reflections on the people that we are honoring today. on the field, the on the field buster, not performance wise but all of the other things he brings as a person, i will never forget in 2010, as a rookie, the way he handled our pitching staff. the disparate personalities of sergio romo, brian wilson, madison bumgarner, matt king, on and on. unbelievable. i learned a lot about psychology , watching that unfold. i will never forget the city

hall celebration in 2010 when buster exhorted his teammates and said, we are going to go home for a couple of weeks and prepare and let's do this again. remember that? i will never forget one of the darkest days of my career in 2011. seeing buster in the clubhouse the night of his injury. and then tracking over time, his unbelievable commitment and the amazing work of our training staff and doctors, climbing the mountain back the next year to m.v.p., batting champ, and, of course, another championship. and then, i will never forget this season and what buster has done with his leadership in

bringing a new group together of coaches and staff together to make memories. and then, off the field, never saying no to an autograph seeker. always looking them in the eye and signing the autograph and saying hello and showing respect. treating every member of our front office staff with respect and dignity. community relations, media relations, the clubhouse personnel, everyone -- telling them how important they are to him. and then, early on, with kristen, hearing their interest in getting involved in the community. and establishing a foundation. but what was really impressive about it was that they wanted to do their homework, their research. get involved and understand. i remember one meeting we had

with a philanthropist at their home. it was the day of a night game and buster and kristen were there talking about what they wanted to do and asking questions and really learning. and from that came the foundation, the affiliation with ucsf, and the amazing work for pediatric cancer. larry: our time is running short on "getting answers." the guys are great. i really want to get answers from kristen, not kristen sze but kristen posey. i want to hear about the decision and unfortunately, we are not going to get that live on television. kristen: we will have it at 4:00, larry. it will be on abc7news.com and the abc 7 news app. larry, i just think he is the king of grays. everything he said about thanking his team and the fans

and as family, it came from his heart. larry: he truly is an icon. don't cry. it is a celebration of buster tonight, several developing stories as we come on the air. president biden's new federal deadline to vaccinate more than 100 million american workers. the biden administration giving businesses with 100 or more employees until january 4th now to require workers to be fully vaccinated or face weekly testing, to turn the corner in this pandemic. bitzs faces fines if they don't help. republican leaders in 26 states vowing to sue. dr. anthony fauci defending the action tonight saying, quote, we know that vaccines absolutely save lives, and we know that mandates work. this, as children 5 to 11 line up across the u.s. tonight to get their first shots. new york city, for one, offering children $100 to get vaccinated. also tonight, the scare for american tourists in mexico.

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