SAN FRANCISCO — How does a closer who can’not pitch help his team win? The question is a perfect strike for an existentialist like the San Francisco Giants’ Brian Wilson, who is on the disabled list after having reconstructive surgery on his right elbow, his season shut down after two appearances in April.

Two years ago, Wilson struck out the Texas Rangers’ Nelson Cruz on a full-count slider to deliver the Giants’ first World Series championship since 1954, when they still played in New York. Now, San Francisco is back in the National League Championship Series and is again being led by Wilson, who is relying on his quick wit instead of his fastball and is operating from the dugout instead of the mound.

A bushy-bearded closer who collected 48 saves in the 2010 regular season, Wilson has become the hairiest cheerleader in sports, a yell leader operating without a script or a filter.

It is a marked shift for Wilson, who has gone from trying everything in his power to make the opposing batter fail to doing whatever he can to help his teammates succeed. He pumps them up and keeps them grounded, his manner a mix of Dr. Phil and Rollen Stewart, the fan known as Rainbow Man who attended major sports events in a multicolored Afro.