SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. — Day after glorious sun-splashed day last summer, Michael Morse filled his social-media pages with photos of him and his family boating in Florida. He was tanned, living the life of leisure with the content look of a retired ballplayer.

Morse might have been on that boat Thursday, instead of taking a physical at Scottsdale Stadium, if not for a chat with Giants general manager Bobby Evans at Hunter Pence’s wedding in November.

Morse told Evans he thought he still could play at 34. Sometime between the “I dos” and the Pences cutting the cake, Morse had a handshake agreement with Evans to come to spring training and try to win a job as a backup outfielder for the team he helped win a World Series title in 2014.

“I told him I’m one of the best hitters off the bench mentality-wise,” Morse said. “He said, ‘Come to camp. If you do well, you’ll have a chance to make the team. If you don’t, then you know you’re done. Before you go through the rest of your life with what-ifs, just see.’

“What other team would do that? I’m probably the luckiest guy in camp.”

Moreover, the Giants are the only team for which he is interested in playing.

“I had so much fun here,” he said. “I could hit .900 here (in the spring), and if they don’t have a spot for me, I’ll go home and be with my daughters.”

Morse’s chances of reviving his career remain slim. He has not played since the Pirates released him April 21 after eight hitless at-bats. Since his last day with the Giants in 2014, Morse has signed with the Marlins, been a Dodger for one day before being redirected to Pittsburgh in a three-way deal, and dabbled in television and radio.

He and the Giants talked about a reunion last summer, but they wanted him to go to Triple-A to get at-bats. Morse wanted no part of Sacramento, especially after the Giants signed former San Diego outfielder Chris Denorfia and stashed him there.

Spending time on a boat with his family seemed more attractive, though Morse had not lost the itch entirely. The game pulled at him as he did studio analysis for MLB Network and CBS Radio. He watched players on TV and thought, “I can do that. I’m better than him.”

Then, at Pence’s wedding, Evans issued the challenge to prove it.

Morse and Pence had a great bromance during their year together in San Francisco. When Morse told Pence about the handshake agreement, Pence said, “I got married and you’re coming back? Perfect!”

Morse’s summer of leisure allowed his body to heal and mind to clear. Running drills and live batting practice against teammates throwing 95 mph will let him know quickly if this comeback attempt is a pipe dream or a dream come true. He joked that during the club’s first full-squad workout Friday, he will turn to reporters and flash a thumbs up or a thumbs down.

He said he feels “awesome. I feel very athletic this year over other years. Every contract should have one year where you don’t have to play, to heal up your body.”

Evans wants to see more than physical fitness and desire. He wants to see Morse’s bat speed and abilities in left field, which were average at best when he was with the Giants. In fact, he played mainly first base for the Marlins and Pirates. (He didn’t actually don a Dodgers uniform but acquired one on a lark.)

Nobody remembers Morse’s defense. His legacy is an eighth-inning, pinch-hit homer off Pat Neshek that tied Game 5 of the 2014 National League Championship Series against the Cardinals, an inning before Travis Ishikawa won the pennant with a three-run homer.

Morse wants that feeling again. With the competition for backup outfield spots wide open, who knows?

Henry Schulman is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: hschulman@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @hankschulman