Alex Cobb and the Giants entered Tuesday's series opener at Chase Field with intentions of closing the gap in the standings between themselves and the Arizona Diamondbacks.
By the end of the night, that gap in the NL wild-card race had widened. And the health of one of the Giants' two most reliable starting pitchers now is in question.
Alex Cobb had been dealing with a left hip impingement over the last few weeks, but he was determined to pitch through it as San Francisco chases down the Diamondbacks, Cubs, Marlins and Reds in the NL wild-card race.
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Everything was feeling fine Tuesday in the bullpen during warm-ups, but Cobb found his limit in Phoenix. He exited the Giants' 8-4 loss to the Diamondbacks after two pitches in the third inning due to an apparent flareup in that same hip.
"It just was something that I thought I could pitch through. It's become probably a little bit too much," Cobb told reporters after the loss. "... It's tough because you think it's something you can overcome but just can't."
Cobb said he will talk to Giants trainers and the coaching staff about his next steps -- whether that's making his next start in five days, taking a few extra days of rest between outings or being shelved for the rest of the season.
The Giants, who have relied on Cobb and Logan Webb as their one-two punch atop of the rotation all season, need him if they're going to crack the postseason field. But they need a healthy Cobb -- not the hampered version who allowed five earned runs over two-plus innings in Phoenix.
San Francisco Giants
San Francisco now is three games behind the Cubs for the third and final NL wild-card spot with 11 games to play. Every team ahead of the Giants in the wild-card standings won Tuesday besides the Reds, who lost 7-0 to the Minnesota Twins.
"Nobody is giving up hope. Obviously, you know you needed to come in here and try to win both," Cobb said. "You look around the league and see other teams took care of business. You walk off that mound and put your team in the position they're in -- in a must-win game -- there is no worse feeling.
"Coming in [the clubhouse] and watching the one day that you have the ability to put your presence on making the postseason, and you aren't able to -- it's a letdown. There's no other way to really put it."
Webb takes the ball Wednesday afternoon to wrap up the Giants' regular-season series with the Diamondbacks. San Francisco will try to make up the ground lost Tuesday and avoid plummeting its playoff chances even further.
"You talk about the highs and lows of the season," Cobb said. "When you see the playoff picture get further away from you, in a game that you are able to contribute and you don't, it definitely feels like the lowest part of the season."