Pavlovic: SF Giants to exercise Alex Cobb's team option for 2024

You can cross one task off of the list for this winter. Alex Pavlovic of NBC Sports Bay Area recently confirmed that the SF Giants plan to exercise Alex Cobb's $10 million team option for 2024, thereby giving them a solid rotation pitcher behind ace Logan Webb.

Pavlovic: SF Giants to exercise Alex Cobb's team option for 2024

On the Giants Talk podcast, Pavlovic and Cole Kuiper recapped an interview the former had with team president of baseball operations Farhan Zaidi. In that recap, the duo discussed the rotation with Pavlovic indicating that the Giants plan to retain Cobb for next season.

"They haven't made it official, but they are going to pick up his [Cobb's] $10 million option. That's 100 percent happening."

October can be a quiet month for teams not in the playoffs. Teams usually wait until the last minute to announce these moves, which take place after the end of the World Series. As Pavlovic notes, the Giants have not made it official yet, but his phrasing leaves no doubt.

It is hardly surprising to hear considering the season the veteran pitcher just finished. He was a solid contributor in a rotation that posted a 4.03 ERA this past season, which ranked as the third-best mark in the National League. Though, the aggressive use of openers clouds that benchmark.

Nevertheless, Cobb posted a 3.87 ERA, 4.01 FIP, 1.32 WHIP, 7.8 K/9, and a 3.54 SO/W ratio in 151.1 innings while earning an NL All-Star nod in 2023. This included a fantastic 57.6 percent ground ball rate. He flirted with a no-hitter as well against the Cincinnati Reds in August.

The 12-year veteran has recorded a 3.80 ERA across two seasons with the Giants. He originally inked a two-year, $18 million contract with a $10 million team option for 2024 and a $2 million buyout. Essentially, the guaranteed portion is $20 million. This has proven to be one of the better bargains in baseball and a relationship that the Giants, not surprisingly, want to continue.

Cobb and Logan Webb will anchor the top of the rotation next season with the expectation that Kyle Harrison plays a major role as well. Keaton Winn and Tristan Beck pitched well enough to earn larger roles next year and more rookies on the way. Plus, Ross Stripling and Anthony DeSclafani are somewhere in the mix, but both will likely be on a short leash. Plus, Sean Manaea is mulling over whether to exercise his opt-out clause.