I have a plan to save the Giants.

Not this season, which is lost in the fog, but starting next season.

The key is Shohei Otani, a 23-year-old Japanese player who has ascended to whatever level is above superstar.

Otani is a phenomenal right-handed power pitcher and lefty-swinging power hitter. One top MLB team official called Otani “the best baseball player in the world.”

Indications are strong that Otani will leave Japan to try his hand in the major leagues next season, after four seasons in Japan’s major leagues.

The Giants are hot on the trail. A source tells me that top executives of the team have gone or soon will fly to Japan to see Otani.

If Otani makes the jump now rather than waiting one more year, he would kiss off millions of dollars because of convoluted signing rules. He doesn’t care. He can’t wait. He’s a baseball player, not a money counter.

Assuming Otani’s Japanese team releases him in November, he will become The Prize. Every team wants him, and because of those complicated rules that limit his first contract, every MLB team can afford him. (OK, maybe not the A’s.)

The Giants and 11 other teams would be limited to offering Otani a max bonus of $300,000, so if it comes down to simply money, the Giants are screwed.

But remember, the Giants have a lot to offer in terms of geography, culture, tradition, ballpark, opportunities outside baseball and the city.

On Monday, I asked Giants general manager Bobby Evans if his team could be a legitimate bidder for Otani.

“Yeah,” Evans said, “but legitimate suitor might be a better term.”

There’s the key. It’s going to be a courtship, not a bidding war. That’s where my plan comes in.

To woo Otani, the Giants should assemble this SWAT team: Stephen Curry, Klay Thompson, Draymond Green, Andre Iguodala and Steve Kerr.

That’s the crew (plus Joe Lacob and Bob Myers) that flew to the Hamptons a year ago and courted the socks off of Kevin Durant in the greatest sales job in modern sports history.

The Warriors’ five could hit Otani with championship charm, win him over with their vision of the athletic joy and artistic fulfillment he could find in the Bay Area.

Think I’m joking? Try being around those five Warriors for any period of time without being convinced that sports success is about much more than simply putting a bunch of skilled athletes together.

Otani’s decision isn’t going to come from the wallet, it’s going to come from his heart and soul.

“The interesting thing about Otani,” Evans said, “is his interest in coming (to MLB) doesn’t really seem to be about money. ... There may be some intangibles that exist that make one place more appealing than another. Certainly you like your chances if you’re the city of San Francisco, other things aside.”

I told Evans that it might come down to his charm.

“I’m worried about that, actually,” he said, laughing. “I hope not.”

By the way, Evans is not my source on the Giants’ looky-loo trip to Japan, but he might be in that traveling party.

Winning Otani’s heart could depend on enlightened thinking. He planned to leave Japan for America straight out of high school but was talked into staying by a team willing to let him be an outfielder/designated hitter and a starting pitcher.

“Given his success at both,” Evans said, “I wouldn’t be the least bit surprised if (being allowed to pitch and hit) isn’t a priority, and I don’t think anybody would deny him an opportunity to do both.”

I would dispute that. Many teams would be unwilling to let Otani be a full-time pitcher and a part-time position player. The Giants are old-school in many ways, they would have reservations, but they must toss those reservations out the window.

Otani is no novelty. By all accounts, he is intelligent, humble and good-natured, clean-living, a great teammate. He is 6-foot-4, 189 pounds, throws the ball 102.5 miles per hour and hits the ball hard. For the Giants and every other MLB suitor, there will be no such thing as going overboard to try to land him.

The Giants must promise Otani an extended opportunity to pitch and play the outfield (he’s speedy), even if that seems crazy and risky and counter to all baseball logic.

The Giants must let Otani know that San Francisco is the place where he can truly develop his game and his personality, explore the limits of baseball, and experience life to its fullest.

The Giants must send the Warriors’ recruiting crew to Japan and let Steph and the guys make their pitch, sell their dream. Then have Jerry West make a follow-up phone call.

Scott Ostler is a San Francisco Chronicle columnist. Email: sostler@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @scottostler