The World Series is over. The Dodgers are champions. And following a month-long search, the Giants have their general manager.

Welcome to the offseason.

Buster Posey, the franchise icon turned new president of baseball operations, faces the task of bringing winning baseball back to San Francisco. On Friday, Posey elevated Zack Minasian from vice president of pro scouting to general manager, the first box he’s checked in his new role. Now that that’s squared away, the organization’s attention turns to luring top-end talent, of which there is plenty.

For the third time in the last three offseasons, the Giants will attempt to sign a superstar in the prime of his career.

They missed on Aaron Judge. They missed on Shohei Ohtani. They missed on Bryce Harper. They missed on Carlos Correa (due to a failed physical). Will they also miss on Juan Soto?

Regardless of whether they sign Soto, the Giants are a team in need of reinforcements. They got an early jump on their offseason by signing Matt Chapman to an extension in September, but they’ll need far more if they want to compete with the defending champions.

The Juan Soto of it all >> There’s not much about Soto that hasn’t been said already. He’s been one of baseball’s best players since debuting as a teenager. He’s somehow lived up to being called the Dominican Ted Williams. He excels under the postseason pressure, and his career will likely end with a plaque in Cooperstown.

The calculus is simple. His .285 batting average, plus his .421 on-base percentage, plus his .532 slugging percentage, plus his 201 career home runs, plus his four All-Star appearances, plus his 26 years on this planet equal a contract that will be in excess of $500 million — if not $600 million.

If Soto wants to be a Giant, he will be a Giant. San Francisco was willing to meet Ohtani’s $700 million demands last year, and there’s no reason to think the team wouldn’t be willing to do the same with Soto.

The Giants can still roll out a fine outfield of Heliot Ramos, Jung Hoo Lee and Mike Yastrzemski if Soto chooses elsewhere. Posey and Co. likely won’t be content with fine.

Soto not only instantly improves the team, but provides them with a true box office draw that they haven’t had in years. And, for what it’s worth, he’s always excelled here, with seven homers and a 1.050 OPS in 22 games.

Who captains the infield? >> The Marco Luciano Era never really began, but the Marco Luciano Era certainly feels like it has ended. In 27 games, Luciano was a net negative on both sides of the ball. He didn’t hit (.562 OPS) and he didn’t field (-6 defensive runs saved). He never got a true extended run at short, and if the 23-year-old has a role with the team going forward, it likely won’t be at shortstop.

Tyler Fitzgerald not Luciano — ended up being the rookie to assume the starting shortstop role. While Fitzgerald enjoyed a breakout, there’s reason to be skeptical of his ability to repeat that production next season given his strikeout rate (31.7%), quality of contact (22nd percentile in average exit velocity) and poor defense at shortstop (-6 defensive runs saved), among other metrics.

The free-agent market, then, presents two enticing options: Willy Adames and Ha-Seong Kim.

Adames, tucked away from the baseball mainstream in Tampa Bay and Milwaukee, has been one of baseball’s most productive shortstops over the last half-decade. Since 2019, Adames ranks ninth among all shortstops in WAR (20.1, per Fangraphs). He enjoyed a contract-year breakout, posting career-highs in homers (32) and steals (21). A nine-figure contract is likely in his future.

Kim, by contrast, finds himself in a more ambiguous spot. The 29-year-old underwent season-ending surgery in September due to a small tear in his right shoulder labrum and finished this past season as a below-average hitter (96 OPS+), though his defense (four outs above average) remained excellent.

When healthy, Kim provides speed, defense, versatility and a bit of pop. Coming off the surgery, it’ll be interesting to see whether Kim vies for a multi-year deal or signs a one-year pillow contract to reclaim his value.

Kim would have familiarity in San Francisco, too. Not only did he play under Bob Melvin in San Diego, but Jung Hoo Lee, a teammate of Kim’s in the KBO, expressed his desire to play alongside Kim.

So … about the rotation >> Even with Logan Webb turning in another excellent season and Blake Snell’s second-half dominance, San Francisco’s rotation finished in the bottom half of baseball in innings (19th), ERA (19th) and WAR (23rd, per Fangraphs). And aside from Webb, who finished with a 3.47 ERA over 204 2/3 innings, San Francisco’s current rotation options each have question marks.

The Giants need depth, and there are plenty of options available.

This year’s free agent pool features a trifecta of top-of-the-line starters in Corbin Burnes, Max Fried and, of course, Snell, who exercised his player option on Friday and became a free agent.

From there, the market features middle-rotation arms such as former Giants Sean Manaea and Jose Quintana, Jack Flaherty, Yusei Kikuchi, Nathan Eovaldi, Michael Wacha and Luis Severino. Shane Bieber, the 2020 Cy Young Award winner, also hits the open market after undergoing Tommy John surgery in April.

Gerrit Cole, 34, surprisingly opted out of his Yankees contract. New York can only void the opt out if the team adds one year and $36 million on top of the four years and $144 million on his deal.

Who’s on first? >> Last season, the Giants’ first basemen had a combined .699 OPS, a number that ranked 21st among all teams. Their 14 combined home runs were tied with the Nationals for the second-fewest. That won’t play.

Bryce Eldridge began the season with Low-A San Jose but ended the season with Triple-A Sacramento, hitting .291 with 23 homers and 92 RBIs across four levels. But the 20-year-old has only played eight games above Double-A and likely requires more seasoning with the River Cats.

Pete Alonso, who turns 30 in December, would certainly provide power. Since 2019, only Judge (232) has hit more home runs than Alonso (226). He enters free agency following, by his standards, a down year, finishing with career-lows in homers (34) and OPS (.788), but he’d provide a power presence that the Giants haven’t had in years.

Christian Walker, 33, has hit 95 homers over the last three seasons with the Diamondbacks and is in line to win his third straight Gold Glove. Paul Goldschmidt, 37, will be on the market, but the future Hall of Famer is on the decline and coming off his first season as a below-average hitter (98 OPS+).

Ray, Flores both opt into contracts >> Left-hander Robbie Ray did not opt out of his contract with the Giants and will remain in San Francisco, according to ESPN’s Jeff Passan. Ray has two years and $50 million remaining on the five-year, $115 million deal he signed before the start of the 2022 season.

Additionally, infielder Wilmer Flores has exercised his player option for the 2025 season, the Giants announced on Saturday morning.

The news comes a day after left-hander Blake Snell opted out of his contract and became a free agent.

Ray, acquired via trade with the Mariners last season, didn’t make his debut for the Giants until late July as he recovered from Tommy John surgery. In seven starts with San Francisco, Ray had a 4.70 ERA with 43 strikeouts over 30 2/3 innings. The 33-year-old left-hander and former Cy Young Award winner stands to anchor next year’s rotation alongside Logan Webb.

Flores signed a three-year, $16.5 million extension with San Francisco in September 2022 with a mutual option for 2025. If Flores exercised his opt out, the Giants would’ve then had a club option for $8.5 million, which they would’ve likely declined.

Flores, 33, is coming off the worst season of his major-league career, posting career lows in batting average (.206), on-base percentage (.277) and slugging percentage (.318) with four homers and 26 RBIs. Defensively, Flores was worth -2 defensive runs saved at first base. In August, Flores underwent a Tenex procedure on his right knee that ended his season early.