Posey plans to announce his retirement from professional baseball Thursday, Andrew Baggarly of The Athletic reports.

EDGE Analysis

The 34-year-old has a $22 million club option for 2022 -- which is the last year of his contract -- and the news certainly comes as a surprise after he posted one of the best offensive seasons of his 12-year career in 2021. Posey looked revitalized this season after sitting out the shortened campaign last year, and he hit .304/.390/.499 with 18 homers, 23 doubles, 56 RBI and 68 runs in 113 games. Curt Casali is the only other catcher on the Giants' big-league roster, and the retirement should open the path for prospect Joey Bart to compete for the starting job in spring training.