3 former SF Giants pitchers took the ball in MLB playoffs yesterday

The SF Giants may not be in the playoffs, but some familiar faces are. Yesterday saw three former Giants start in the NLCS and ALCS. Let's see how all three of them fared with the spotlight on them.

3 former SF Giants starters pitched in the playoffs yesterday

1. Sean Manaea took down the Dodgers

Sean Manaea was just a Giant last year in 2023. I have already argued that his success this year with the New York Mets in the regular season and postseason shows that the Giants misused him last season by not using him as a starting pitcher consistently. He continued to make the Giants look bad with his performance yesterday.

He pitched 5 innings and only allowed 2 earned runs although he did load the bases in the 6th inning with no outs thanks in part to an error by his second baseman.

The Mets were able to get out of the inning still leading 6-3 and did not allow any more runs after that, taking Game 2 to even up the series at one game apiece. It was another great postseason showing from Manaea who went 7 innings and only allowed one run in his last start.

2. Alex Cobb struggled against the Guardians

The Giants traded veteran Alex Cobb at the trade deadline even though he did not throw a pitch in a Giants uniform all year due to injury. He was a solid starter for the Giants in 2022 and 2023, with a 3.73 and 3.87 ERA in each season respectively in roughly 150 innings of work both years.

The injury bug got him in 2024 and the Giants decided to ride with rookie Hayden Birdsong in the rotation which is why they felt comfortable trading Cobb especially with him being a free agent after the year.

He dealt with injuries in Cleveland as well, starting only 3 games in the regular season. The Guardians have had to rely on him this postseason and he has not had his best stuff. He gave up 2 earned runs in 3 innings against the Detroit Tigers in the ALDS. Then last night against the New York Yankees he allowed 3 earned runs in 2 and 2/3 innings.

One feels for Cobb since he has pitched so little this year due to injuries. We will have to see how much the Guardians rely on him after these struggles.

3. Carlos Rodón bounced back against the Guardians

Going up against Cobb and the Guardians was Carlos Rodón. The hard-throwing lefty was a member of the Giants in 2022 and was teammates with Cobb. Rodón had a great season with the Giants as he pitched to an ERA of 2.88 in 178 innings pitched. He opted out of his deal with the Giants after 2022 and signed a large deal with the Yankees. It didn't help that he took an oblique shot at Giants fans after leaving.

The Giants looked smart not to sign him in 2023 as he had a 6.85 ERA in an injury-plagued campaign, but he bounced back a bit in 2024 with a 3.96 ERA in 175 innings.

His first postseason start with the Yankees in the ALDS against the Kansas City Royals was not very good at all as he gave up 4 earned runs in 3 and 2/3 innings in a losing effort.

He turned that around last night against the Guardians going 6 strong innings with 9 strikeouts while only allowing one run on a solo home run. If Rodón helps the Yankees win the World Series this year, his contract will have been well worth it.

That is how some familiar faces performed yesterday. We will have to see how former Giants perform the rest of the postseason and dream of the day when we can see the Giants back in the playoffs.