Think twice before you discount the notion of San Francisco’s even-year magic because the Giants were dispatched from the MLB playoffs by the Chicago Cubs in four games. There was a whole lot of magic involved for the Giants to even reach the postseason.

Let’s not forget that it was the Giants who had baseball’s best record (57-33) and a 6.5-game lead in the National League West at the All-Star break. That they managed to reach the playoffs at all after posting a 30-42 second-half record is nothing short of miraculous.

But there’s only so much the baseball gods will do to help a team. At some point, it’s on the players to get the job done. The Giants simply weren’t up to the task, and they’ll head into the offseason looking for ways they can avoid carrying that disappointing finish into 2017.

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