Buster Posey's Return to MVP Form Makes Giants Very Dangerous Contenders

Buster Posey is back. You don't need to see the stat line to know this, although it doesn't hurt: .309 batting average, 20 home runs and 82 RBI entering play Friday.

Really, all you need to see is the San Francisco Giants catcher taking an at-bat. Pick an at-bat, any at-bat.

Let's take one from Thursday's game, a 6-2 victory over the Arizona Diamondbacks.

Bottom of the sixth. Two outs. Runners on first and second. Posey, who would end up going 3-for-5, gets a first-pitch, 98 mph fastball and smacks it the other way for an RBI single.

Nothing spectacular. Just a sweet, balanced, inside-out cut and another run on the board.

The Giants have been scoring a lot of runs lately, more than any other National League team since the All-Star break, in fact.

Not coincidentally, during that same span Posey has rediscovered the stroke that won him an NL MVP in 2012 and helped carry the Giants to their second championship since 2010.

"He’s feeling pretty good up there. It’s fun to see," Giants pitcher Tim Hudson said of his scalding backstop, per SFGate.com's John Shea. "We need to jump on his shoulders and get us through this last month and win some ballgames and make it interesting here."

Chris Szagola/Associated Press

San Francisco is certainly making it interesting. With Thursday's win, the 81-65 Giants inched within two games of the idle Los Angeles Dodgers in the NL West. The old rivals clash starting Friday for a crucial three-game set at AT&T Park.

The Dodgers will throw out Hyun-Jin Ryu, Zack Greinke and Clayton Kershaw, maybe the best trio of starters in the game. The Giants will counter with Buster Posey, maybe the hottest hitter on the planet.

Posey didn't exactly stumble out of the gate. He hit .277 with 10 home runs and 46 RBI pre-All-Star break. Respectable production, especially for a catcher. 

The Giants, though, expect more than respectable from their 27-year-old star. As Mike Axisa of CBSSports.com put it, "If you gave the Giants' brass some truth serum, I'm guessing they'd say they were expecting a little more from Posey in the first half."

Whatever Posey's drinking, it's working. He's been particularly otherworldly in September, hitting .472 with a 1.238 OPS. Overall, he's posted a .359 average since the break and has doubled his home run output.

Manager Bruce Bochy credits the turnaround to a new approach, per ESPN.com's Buster Olney:

"

Tilted back in his chair in the visitors clubhouse at Comerica Park on Saturday morning, San Francisco Giants manager Bruce Bochy started to explain Buster Posey's recent hot streak by talking about his history as a great hitter, about a swing that has always been simple and effective. But in the midst of that, Bochy veered and focused on a tangible change that Posey has made. Bochy said he might’ve gotten too passive in his plate appearances earlier this season, perhaps getting himself in a hole in the ball-strike count. 

"

It's been a season of digging in and out of holes for the Giants, who built a 9.5-game division lead in early June only to hit the skids and watch the rival Dodgers whiz pass them in the standings.

Ben Margot/Associated Press

Now, the Giants have rediscovered their mojo at exactly the right time. And they're doing it behind the guy you'd expect, the cherubic, aw-shucks face of the franchise. 

Really, it should come as no surprise. After winning Rookie of the Year and his first World Series ring in a charmed 2010 campaign, Posey suffered a horrific, season-ending ankle injury in 2011.

Then came the MVP, the second ring and—why not?—a batting title to boot.

This is a player who defines resilience. A player you'd be foolish to bet against.

Posey's not the only reason for the Giants' recent success. Trade-deadline pickup Jake Peavy and the surprising Yusmeiro Petit have steadied a rotation that was hurting from the losses of Matt Cain to season-ending elbow surgery and Tim Lincecum to continued ineffectiveness. 

And others, including right fielder Hunter Pence and rookie second baseman Joe Panik, are swinging it well.

Posey is the fulcrum, though. The catalyst. And his torrid production makes the Giants a team no one wants to face. Now, or in the postseason. 

"I'm just getting good pitches to hit," Posey told Alex Pavlovic of Giants Extra with characteristic humility. 

Still, as another potential playoff run approaches, he can't hide his excitement entirely. "This," he told SFGate.com's Shea after smacking a walk-off home run Aug. 27, "is a fun time of year."

All statistics courtesy of Baseball-Reference.com unless otherwise noted.