The New York Yankees are gearing up for a return to the postseason as one of the best teams in baseball. Health has been on their side recently, but the Yankees pitching staff might be taking a blow less than a week before the MLB playoffs begin.

Yankees pitcher Nestor Cortes, who is scheduled to start Wednesday against the Baltimore Orioles, is getting an MRI on his left throwing elbow, per Jack Curry. His status for Wednesday, and the playoffs, is unclear.

Cortes has been among New York's top arms as of late with four of his last six starts registered as quality starts. He allowed one run across his last three outings (15 1/3 innings) scattering seven hits and seven walks with 18 strikeouts.

After allowing six runs in an Aug. 8 start, Cortes lowered his ERA from 4.42 to 3.77 across his next seven outings. Overall this season, Cortes is 9-10 in 31 appearances (30 starts) and leads the Yankees with 174 1/3 innings, a career-high for the 29-year-old.

Cortes likely doesn’t factor into the Yankees' postseason rotation, but he is expected to be an important pitcher out of the bullpen. Regardless of his role in October, New York was banking on him to be healthy. Now the Yanks will wait and see if Cortes is available for the remainder of the regular season, let alone the playoffs.

Yankees pitching plans taking a hit?

New York Yankees starting pitcher Nestor Cortes (right) hands the game ball to manager Aaron Boone (left) during the fifth inning against the San Francisco Giants at Oracle Park.
Darren Yamashita-Imagn Images
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Pitching depth is important in the MLB playoffs, especially when a team expects to make a deep run. The Yankees have their sights on a World Series title. Losing a reliable arm in Nestor Cortes would hurt their chances, even if only by a slim margin.

The good news is New York needs one win in their last five games to secure a top-two seed and a first-round bye in the American League playoffs. That would give the Yankees five days of rest before hosting Game 1 of the ALDS on Oct. 5.

The Yankees figure to start Gerrit Cole, Carlos Rodon and Luis Gil in their first three playoff games, with Clarke Schmidt the leading candidate to be a fourth starter if needed. Cortes has worked his way back into the mix with his latest performances, but New York might see him more suited in the bullpen as a multi-inning option.

Of course, that now rests on the lefty being able to throw in the postseason. Elbow concerns are never something a pitcher wants to go through and the timing for Cortes is brutal.

Maybe this is a slight scare and he just needs a few days off. That could essentially turn into a ghost stint on the 10-day injured list should the Yankees hold him out for the rest of the regular season and clinch a bye.

Regardless, the Yanks and their fans await the results of a crucial MRI that could impact New York's postseason pitching staff.