Buster Posey offers tribute to slain Navy SEAL and Giants fan

As news arrived in the United States that Navy SEAL William "Ryan" Owens was killed last weekend in Yemen during a raid against al Qaeda, San Francisco Giants catcher Buster Posey was noticeably affected.

The three-time World Series champion and four-time All-Star published his condolences via an Instagram post, which included a photo of Owens in the Giants' clubhouse.

According to Posey, Owens was a "big Giants fan" who "would come to spring training frequently."

"Ryan Owens was a hero that is gone way too soon," Posey wrote at the end of his post.

Owens, 36, served as a Chief Special Warfare Operator for Navy SEAL Team Six, the unit that carried out the 2011 raid that killed Osama bin Laden.

Giants reliever Hunter Strickland and Sergio Romo, a current free agent who played the past eight-and-a-half seasons in San Francisco, also posted similar Instagram messages about Owens.

-- Nick Ostiller