Now it’s decision time for Zack Greinke and the Dodgers

The Dodgers’ off-season was a few minutes old when Zack Greinke got the question.

All season long, Greinke had stayed true to his word. He had said he would not discuss whether he would opt out of his contract until the end of the season. Now the Dodgers’ season had ended, rather abruptly and prematurely for all concerned.

So he got the question, sort of. He was asked whether he hoped to be back with the Dodgers next season.

“That would be nice,” he said. “I guess that is my whole response.”

That answer might strike a fan as incomplete and unsatisfying. But those adjectives apply to the season as well, a third consecutive season of great expectations. The Dodgers trotted out Orel Hershiser for the first pitch and replayed the Kirk Gibson home run on the video board, yet again.

When the Dodgers assemble in spring training, it will be 28 years A.G. (After Gibson). Twenty-eight freaking years.

The front office did not play to win this year. David Price still is pitching in the playoffs. Johnny Cueto still is pitching in the playoffs. Greinke is not.

“I thought this season was going to be a lot longer,” Greinke said.

The Dodgers still have all their best prospects. The new owners and the newer front office wanted to build a perennial contender, not go all in this year. They have the financial clout that, say, the Kansas City Royals do not. The window closes soon in Kansas City; the management at Chavez Ravine sees no reason why the Dodgers’ window should ever close.

“It’s got to be the best franchise in the game, I would think,” Greinke said. “They’re in a great situation.”

They. Not we. Worth noting, anyway. By the time the Cy Young Award is announced next month — quite possibly his Cy Young Award — Greinke could be a free agent.

Greinke is expected to opt out of his contract, walking away from three years and $71 million with the likelihood he could get a guarantee for double, maybe triple, that money. The Dodgers are not expected to be interested in a contract that would guarantee Greinke that kind of money into his late 30s; those kinds of contracts are how the window shuts for big-money teams.

Mark Walter, the Dodgers’ chairman and controlling owner, jumped to his feet and joined the standing ovation for Greinke when he was removed in the seventh inning. Todd Boehly, one of the Dodgers’ co-owners, sat in the front row next to the Dodgers dugout, wearing a Greinke jersey.

Walter said he would not invite Greinke for a meeting, just to see if the two could find common ground on a deal that would make sense for both sides. Walter said President of Baseball Operations Andrew Friedman and General Manager Farhan Zaidi are well aware of what the Dodgers’ financial parameters would be in any Greinke deal.

“They know what they should do and shouldn’t do,” Walter said. “I have faith in those guys.”

Greinke said he liked this year’s Dodgers, crediting a front office that assembled a cohesive and deep roster.

“There wasn’t any drama compared to the past couple years,” he said. “Everyone got along pretty well together. It was just a really deep team.

“You always give credit to the Cardinals — if there was someone who got hurt, there was going to be someone to take his place. That’s kind of the feeling I had with our team this year.”

There was no shortage of teammates offering testimonials to Greinke.

“He’s an ace. He’s an amazing pitcher. And he’s a guy who really meshes well with the guys in this clubhouse,” catcher A.J. Ellis said. “And he’s a winner. If you want to get to where you want to go, you want guys like that.”

Said first baseman Adrian Gonzalez: “He’s been incredible the whole time he’s been here. We love him. We hope he opts to stay.”

Hope is all the Dodgers really have with regard to Greinke, at least at this point. The opt-out clause is his, so he could end all the suspense simply by saying he would honor the final three years of his contract.

“I already answered questions about that,” Greinke said.

He was reminded that, when he said he hoped to be back, he had control over the situation.

“See you guys,” he said, walking away from the interview and into an unexpectedly long and assuredly lucrative winter.

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