Guardians right-hander Alex Cobb is finally finding his way back to October baseball

But it took a while. Eleven years to be exact.

Manager Stephen Vogt said Cobb will start Game 3 of the ALDS against the Tigers on Wednesday afternoon at Comerica Park. Game time is 3:08 p.m

Cobb is excited to get back to baseball in October.

“I think there's probably no one in these playoffs who appreciates it more than me after being out of it for so long,” Cobb said before Game 2 on Monday. “It's hard to even think about all the things that had to happen for me to get back on track.”

Cobb spent six years with the Rays, three with Baltimore, two with San Francisco and one with the Angels. The postseason never came.

This year the waiting time got longer every day.

Cobb was on the injured list with the Giants earlier this year after undergoing surgery on his right hip. He rushed to get back and ended up with a sore right arm and a blister. When the Guardians acquired him on July 30, Cobb was still on the injured list and he wasn't exactly thrilled about being traded.

“I didn’t want to get traded,” Cobb said. “I was coming back from an injury. I was in a place where I would feel comfortable getting my feet wet again.”

But a trade is a trade is a trade.

“If you have the opportunity to move to a contending team, it’s a lot easier,” Cobb said.

Likewise the presence of manager Stephen Vogt and substitute coach Craig Albernaz. Cobb, Vogt and Albernaz played together in the Rays' minor league system.

“We all came together in the minors,” Cobb said. “To experience this moment and have a chance to get back to the postseason with these guys, you can’t help but be really excited.”

The delays continued. A torn fingernail on his right index finger and a blister on the middle finger of the same hand limited him to three regular-season starts and placed Cobb on the injured list not once, but twice. He hasn't made a big league start since September 1, when he retired 18 straight Pirates.

By the time Cobb and the medical staff were able to get the bladder under control, it was too late for him to begin rehabilitation. So he held bullpen sessions and moved on to simulated games.

In the Guardians' downtime between the end of the regular season and the start of the ALDS on Saturday, Cobb made an impact with a simulated four-inning game.

“The other day we created a very difficult environment for him with the crowd noise because our guys competed against him with a full field,” Vogt said. “He even said, 'I'm ready.'

“I think it's really good to get that simulated game and be able to recreate a little bit of what a game is going to be like. But he's been a pitcher for so many years. I don’t think he will be shaken or upset.”

The Guardians have starters Gavin Williams and Joe Cantillo on the ALDS squad. They left Ben Lively, who made 29 starts, off the ALDS roster. So they had other options, but stuck with Cobb.

Despite all the setbacks this year, big and small, Cobb kept telling himself, “It will be worth it in the end.”

There were moments of doubt, but Cobb said, “To have an organization and a coaching staff that has the confidence in me to still add me to the roster, I'm extremely grateful for the opportunity.”

Cleveland Shadow

It was cloudy and cloudy for most of Monday, but the sun broke through just in time for first pitch at 4:09 p.m. She cast shade on the Progressive Field diamond, something pitchers love and batters can do without.

Tigers manager AJ Hinch was asked about the shadows on Sunday.

“This is all about shadows and how difficult it is to go from day to night,” he said. “It will go both ways. We know they will be there when the sun shines. When it is cloudy the impact is less.

“I think it's literally a 'see how it goes' with the shadows. I also saw that on Saturday at a few games in other stadiums. It’s October baseball.”

Finally

Former Guardians right-hander Josh Tomlin threw out the ceremonial first pitch for Game 2. Carlos Carrasco, his old teammate, caught him. There was a few hairs on Tomlin's pitch. . .The Guardians observed a moment of silence before Monday's game for former Plain Dealer and Cleveland Press columnist Dan Coughlin, who died Saturday evening.