Nevius: Giants' weird year comes to an end

On this, the final day, we can finally say it. It’s been a weird year for the Giants.

It began with the promise of a team ready to try anything. No really. Anything. Can you name the left and right fielders on opening day?

And it ended with the familiar faces: Madison Bumgarner, Buster Posey and the Brandons, Crawford and Belt. And none of them, not even the redoubtable MadBum, look likely to regain their former form.

And yet, there was Mike Yastrzemski. And Stephen Vogt, of all people.

There were so many things we didn’t see coming. That CEO Larry Baer would be caught up in a video scandal when he wrestled a cell phone from his wife. That Joe Panik would be gone, whoosh, just like that. That not only would Jeff Samardzija stay healthy, he’d be a warrior.

We began the season with the knowledge that there would be no new manager. The team gave Bruce Bochy - helluva guy, nobody disagrees - the best parting gift a retiring employee can get. A farewell tour.

OK, so no big changes then.

And yet, there was Farhan Zaidi. The team hired the outside-the-box thinker who promptly charmed the sports media. Then he signed an ambidextrous pitcher. Whoa. This could be crazy.

But the team was terrible at the end of last year, so when they belly-flopped early this season, there wasn’t a lot of patience among observers. The Giants were left for dead. Or at least clinically unresponsive.

And yet, there was Alex Dickerson. Dick is either proof that one big bat can lift a whole team or a reflection on how feeble the Giants’ offense really was.

Dickerson, whom most fans would not have been able to pick out of a police lineup prior to his trade from San Diego, debuted with a grand slam on June 21 and just kept hitting. The team was 31-42 when he arrived. They then went on a 21-8 run and by July 23 they were at 52-50. They even kindled hopes of a playoff run.

But Dickerson experienced the kind of dings that have troubled him throughout his career. Whether it was his injuries or the law of averages, the team slipped back under .500 to end the year.

Which is about the best the Giants could have hoped for. No one expected this to be a playoff team. And the way we media types gave up on them when they faltered (raises hand) shows you just how unpleasant it could have been if the whole season had been a stinker.

So you get this. Some downs, some ups, a flicker of hope and then a slow glide to “Thanks, Boch.”

Now, however, it is time for some tough talk, which is something the Giants always find uncomfortable. But some loose ends must be addressed.

For starters, apparently Baer is still in charge. The team may say it is run by a five-person board, but if Baer is in his old office and at his regular seat in meetings, he’s back. We’ll watch how that plays out.

Zaidi, meanwhile, looks like a find. For a nice guy, he’s ruthlessly results-oriented. He may have started two outfielders you’d never heard of on opening day, but when they didn’t produce they were gone. He shipped out Mark Melancon with his killer contract, and spun the wheel on one minor leaguer after another - and quickly sent them away if they didn’t work out.

He brought in Kevin Pillar, who turned out to be a must-see center fielder. He believed in Vogt, who not only set a clubhouse tone, but has hit with surprising pop.

So it looks like Zaidi knows what he’s doing.

There will be other topics for the offseason. The new manager search will have us all a’Twitter. The exact dimensions of the outfield walls will be up for debate. (But not the bullpens, which will definitely be moved off the field of play.)

But the major calls are going to be the roster.

Do you give Bumgarner a budget-busting contract because he was a local World Series hero? That’s the old Giants thinking. Is that still true?

And, of course, what to do with Buster? He’s been The Guy for so long it took us a while to realize his offensive numbers were way down.

He looks world-weary and spent. By the end of the year he was regularly being replaced by Vogt, which is shocking.

But the real number is 2021, the last year of Posey’s contract. That’s two more years at over $21 million per. Pretty pricey for single-digit home runs and sub-50 RBIs. The old Giants would give him a farewell tour. What will the new ones do?

Same with Belt and Crawford, each of whom are also signed for two more years. Even the most objective observer would say their production is down and not trending up.

On the other hand, what do I know? I thought bringing back Pablo Sandoval was dumb - an example of what Zaidi called a “team mascot.”

Instead, Sandoval not only hit with power, he was such a welcome and lively presence in the clubhouse that I was genuinely sorry when his season ended with an injury.

So I thought he was a mistake and by the end I was a fan.

It’s been a weird year.

Contact C.W. Nevius at cw.nevius@pressdemocrat.com. Twitter: @cwnevius