Newly minted champion Giants face decision on keeping Pablo Sandoval

With the World Series championship in hand, the most pressing question for the San Francisco Giants is whether to bring back their cleanup batter, third baseman Pablo Sandoval.

Sandoval, 28, becomes a free agent Thursday; the Giants say they want to retain him. He hit .429 in the World Series and looked surprisingly agile — at times spectacular — on defense.

“Great players have a way of rising to the occasion,” Giants Manager Bruce Bochy said. “He did that. You could see a difference in Pablo once the postseason started. His focus, his third-base play was as good as I’ve seen from any third baseman.”

Bochy said he hoped the Giants would be able to retain Sandoval. They reportedly offered him three years and about $40 million last spring, his agent reportedly countered with five years and about $90 million.

He is the rare free agent that plays a premium position and hits the market before 30, so he is likely to get at least as much money as his agent wanted last spring. The Boston Red Sox, Chicago White Sox and New York Yankees are believed to be interested.

To keep Sandoval, the Giants might have to guarantee more years than they would like, given their concerns over his ability to keep his weight in check. After the Giants won the 2012 World Series — in which Sandoval was the most valuable player — they paid to retain outfielder Hunter Pence (five years, $90 million), outfielder Angel Pagan (four years, $40 million) and infielder Marco Scutaro (three years, $20 million).

After they won the 2010 World Series, they lost infielder Juan Uribe to the Dodgers (three years, $21 million) but outbid the Dodgers to retain infielder Aubrey Huff (two years, $22 million).

The Giants’ internal options – minor league first baseman/third baseman Adam Duvall and utility infielders Joaquin Arias and Matt Duffy – are limited in replacing Sandoval.

“He’s clearly our first choice,” assistant general manager Bobby Evans said. “Our track record is good about trying to bring our guys back.”

Hey, you’re Ned Yost

The Kansas City Royals’ unlikely march to the World Series has made Manager Ned Yost the most suddenly recognizable man in town.

“In September, I could go anywhere in this town and maybe get recognized by about one out of 30 people,” Yost said Wednesday. “ I can’t go anywhere in this town now without being recognized by everybody, which is kind of strange and different for me.

“Even when we were in San Francisco -- I guess being on TV every night for a month it’s been different --I was shocked on how many people would stop me on the street walking down to get a cup of coffee to take pictures.”

Short hops

These Royals revived baseball in Kansas City, and in appreciation the crowd chanted “Let’s Go Royals” after the last out. The Royals, a team that had not even appeared in the postseason since 1985, will hold a rally and season celebration Thursday at Kauffman Stadium. … Bret Saberhagen, who pitched the Game 7 shutout that clinched the Royals’ 1985 championship, threw out the ceremonial first pitch on Wednesday. In 1982, as a senior at Cleveland High in Reseda, Saberhagen threw a no-hitter in the city championship game at Dodger Stadium. … Giants ace Madison Bumgarner posted a 0.43 earned-run average in the World Series, the lowest among pitchers with at least 15 innings in a single Series since Sandy Koufax recorded an 0.38 ERA for the 1965 Dodgers. Koufax and Bumgarner each pitched Game 7 on two days’ rest; Koufax worked nine innings and Bumgarner five. … Since the Dodgers’ last World Series game – their Game 5 victory in 1988 – the Giants have played 27 World Series games and won 15.

bill.shaikin@latimes.com

Twitter: @BillShaikin