SAN FRANCISCO -- Buster Posey tends to always make the right plays on the field and say the right things off the field. But around the clubhouse, Posey is known as a bit of a prankster.
His latest attempt involved Brandon Belt, who received his first World Series championship ring during a ceremony on Sunday. Manager Bruce Bochy gave Posey a small ring during spring training and Posey took it to Belt and told him that it was the ring the Giants would be getting on April 7.
"I think it was a San Jose Giants championship ring," said a laughing Belt, who wasn't fooled.
SF Giants World Series Rings
The Giants picked up the real rings on Sunday during an elegant pre-game ceremony on the infield at AT&T Park. The rings, made by Tiffany & Co., have a white gold face that includes the "SF" logo made out of 52 melee diamonds. On both sides of the ring, seven round diamonds represent the organization's seven championships.
Each ring includes an individual player's name, uniform number and a cable car design, and the rings also are etched with a nod to the 2012 postseason victories.
General manager Brian Sabean and manager Bruce Bochy picked their rings up first, followed by Giants legends and then a steady stream of players. Matt Cain and Buster Posey were given their rings and then promptly ran down to the bullpen to begin warming up for the St. Louis Cardinals. The rest of the team was introduced in numerical order.
It was a special day for all the Giants, but few appeared as touched as Ryan Vogelsong, who took a long journey just to get back to the big leagues. After he was handed his ring, Vogelsong stared intently at it the entire time as he walked out to his designated spot on the infield. Barry Zito received a loud ovation during his second ring ceremony, but first as a main contributor. Veteran Marco Scutaro proudly waived his first ring in front of the scoreboard cameras.
Aubrey Huff was the only former Giant to show up and received a loud ovation. Former closer and fan-favorite Brian Wilson was a no-show.
Sabean and Bochy helped design the ring and Tiffany sought input from Giants players. But Bochy didn't sneak a peak at the new rings before the ceremony, saying he preferred to be surprised.
"This is our grand finale," Bochy said before the game. "It's always a special day when you're getting World Series championship rings. You wear it with pride."
You don't, however, wear both at once, Bochy joked. He said he likely will wear the 2010 ring to most special events, but imagines that some of his players will show both rings off on occasion.
"It's symbolic of what you've been trying to do your whole career," Bochy said of the first ring. "It's the first time I've ever had a championship ring on."
For the manager and many veterans, that's a great problem to have. Belt didn't get a ring during the 2011 ceremony but watched from the dugout and said he imagined putting his own championship ring on one day.
"I didn't think it would be this soon," Belt said. ___
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