All the way back in April, we had some doubts about crafty New York Yankees lefty Nestor Cortes.
Understandable, considering Cortes had a good-but-not-great start to the 2024 season. Luis Gil emerging as a reliable starter, plus Clark Schmidt’s shoulder injury, further made Cortes seem the eventual odd man out. All signs pointed to either a trade or moving to the bullpen.
In fact, Cortes had such a rough go of it for over two months. He had an awful 5.68 ERA and 4.84 FIP from June 2 through August 8, as hitters hit .299 against him with a strong .885 OPS and .335 batting average on balls in play (BABIP). The Yankees really need him during this final stretch of the season and that kind of production just won’t do.
Lucky for both parties, the Nestor Cortes of Old 2022 seems to have returned. He’s tossed seven shutout innings in back-to-back starts—including against the AL Central-leading Cleveland Guardians on Wednesday—and without leaning on luck. His FIP is a stellar 1.31 and, best of all, he hasn’t walked anyone.
There is no secret sauce, nor a new method to Nasty Nestor’s madness. The only real difference is he’s utilized his changeup and sweeper more in his last two starts. Other than that, his fastball and cutter are still his primary 1-2 punch.
If Nestor Cortes is indeed back to his old self, it’ll be a relief for the Yankees. Luis Gil is on the IL with a bad back, but also fatigued after throwing a career-high 124.2 innings this season. Carlos Rodon and Marcus Stroman are good, but have been hot and cold all summer. A consistent Cortes stabilizes the playoff rotation behind ace Gerrit Cole.
Moreover, the Yankees should be playing with house money until season’s end. Following Thursday’s matinee finale with Cleveland, New York only has two playoff opponents remaining: Current AL Wild Cards Kansas City and Baltimore. The rest are all on the outside looking in.
Nestor Cortes has already looked strong this month. The Yankees could really use him finishing the season strong.
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