There's no pleasure in being right about this particular issue, but as I noted a little while back, Buster Posey is taking a beating behind the plate.
After Buster took another foul ball to the face on Sunday afternoon in a win against the A's, Bruce Bochy noticed it, too.
"He's taken more than I've ever seen," said manager Bochy. "He's getting enough shots that are hitting him pretty good that I've got concern."
Posey really is getting killed, and it's not just "because he's catching." (And, perhaps, I'm not even "right" -- the concern with Mauer doesn't relate to freakish foulballs to the face so much as it is lower leg injuries.)
There's some theorizing, per Carl Steward of the San Jose Mercury-News, that Posey's problem might actually be his mask -- Posey uses the new, modified one that looks more like a hockey goalie's mask, instead of the old-school one that even guys like Mauer rock.
"He's never worn the other mask, and I was talking to him during the course of the game, that maybe in spring training we can make that transition," Bochy said.
By then, of course, it might be too late, and Posey could be on the season-ending DL with concussion symptoms. But that doesn't mean he's going to try and make the swap mid-season.
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"Everything trainers and doctors have told me is that shock absorption is equal on both styles of masks," Posey said. "I'd be open to it, but I think it'd be something I'd wait to do until next spring training."
So, how about, as I've previously noted, a position switch?
As Steward notes, things are a bit crowded in the Giants infield, at least where Posey would play. Aubrey Huff's at first until Brandon Belt shows up, and Pablo Sandoval's locked into third.
But it's entirely feasible that the Giants could slide Posey from catcher to first and Belt from first to outfield in some sort of unheard of rotation that would likely make Tony LaRussa jealous, just because it's so unorthodox.
And don't forget that Posey once played all nine positions in a game while at Florida State. It's not like he can't adapt, even if things at the big-league level are a lot different.
The bottom line is he's getting killed back there, and there are just too many warning signs right now for the Giants to ignore and risk future growth from their franchise player because of the dangers that come with his position.
