Guardians acquire starter Alex Cobb from Giants

The Guardians acquired pitcher Alex Cobb from the San Francisco Giants ahead of Tuesday’s trade deadline, giving Cleveland a starter to shore up the back end of its rotation.

Cleveland is sending back Jacob Bresnahan, a 13th-round pick in 2023, as well as a player to be named later, the team announced.

The trade of Cobb — who is in the last year of a three-year, $28 million deal — also clears at least some payroll obligation for the Giants.

Cobb has not pitched this year after having hip surgery and some cortisone shots in his arm, but he was expected to rejoin the Giants’ rotation this weekend.

The Guardians are expected to have him make one more rehab start before joining their rotation. Cobb has 230 starts in the big leagues with a 77-75 record and a career ERA of 3.85 ERA. The Guardians have the best bullpen in baseball, leading the majors in ERA by nearly half a run.

But they also have used their relief corps heavily; going into last week, five Cleveland relievers ranked among the top 22 MLB pitchers in appearances, partly because the rotation has been problematic.