The San Francisco Giants are preparing themselves for life without starting pitcher Carlos Rodon after just one season with the team.

Giants president of baseball operations Farhan Zaidi admitted as much on Friday after their season ended, noting that he expects the team to be in the market for at least one starting pitcher this offseason (via Maria Guardado of MLB.com).

“Obviously we fully anticipate Carlos to opt out and that will create an opening on our pitching staff,” Zaidi said, per Andrew Baggarly of The Athletic.

Carlos Rodon signed a two-year, $44 million deal with the Giants in the offseason before the 2022 campaign started. However, he has an opt-out clause in his contract that he can exercise if he reaches 110 innings pitched. He had 178 on the season, which is a career-high.

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Of course it would be bizarre for Rodon not to opt out, as going to free agency allows him to command a higher salary. He is well expected to fetch a $100 million or more deal in the offseason as a starting pitcher. In 31 starts for San Francisco, he had a 2.88 ERA, along with a 2.25 FIP.

As for the Giants, they know very well it'll be difficult to find a starting pitcher, especially since they are hoping to return to relevance after missing the playoffs this 2022. They were just on top of the NL West in 2021, but have since quickly fallen.

It remains to be seen how the team will navigate the offseason, but at least Farhan Zaidi and co. are realistic about their expectations.