Giants’ Cobb named to MLB First All-Star Team as backup originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area
The Giants no longer have one, but two MLB All-Stars.
Veteran starting pitcher Alex Cobb joins teammate Camilo Doval as San Francisco’s only representatives at Tuesday’s Midsummer Classic at T-Mobile Park.
Cobb was announced Saturday afternoon as a replacement for Atlanta Braves starter Bryce Elder.
Giants manager Gabe Kapler announced Cobb’s All-Star nod to the team before the game. The veteran right-hander addressed his teammates with a heartfelt message.
“There are so many guys at this club that I consider far more deserving to go to this game and so to represent you is truly an honour,” Cobb said. “I’ve wanted it for a long time, it’s surreal that it’s actually happening. It’s one of the best clubs I’ve been part of.
“When we come back for this second half, we’ll have a chance to do something special. Come on enjoy the break, we’ll go and represent ourselves and when we come back, let’s fuck our ass.”
Cobb joined Duane Kuiper and Mike Krukow on NBC Sports Bay Area’s broadcast of Saturday’s game against the Colorado Rockies. The veteran revealed that a phone call from pitching coach Andrew Bailey, who wanted him to meet with Giants coaches earlier in the morning, alerted him to the possibility of good news to follow.
“I’ve been through real lows in my career,” Cobb told Krukow and Kuiper. “I probably felt like I didn’t belong on a big league pitch, let alone an all-star game. To get out of it and try to get better every year and overcome some things and figure out who you are on the mound to get to this point, it really means a lot.”
The honor is Cobb’s first in his 12-year MLB career and is certainly well-deserved.
In 16 starts for the Giants this season, Cobb was 6-2 with a 2.91 ERA in 89 2/3 innings pitched with 86 strikeouts on 21 walks.
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Cobb probably would have been an All-Star in 2013 with the Tampa Bay Rays if not for a freak injury where he was hit in the head by a line drive on the mound and was taken off the field on a stretcher in mid-June beginning . Cobb finished that season with an 11-3 record and a 2.76 ERA in 143 1/3 innings pitched.
However, finally, a 35-year-old Cobb is finally an All-Star.
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