Nestor Cortes has endured some ups and downs in 2023. The New York Yankees left-hander pitched well on Monday night at Yankee Stadium though, allowing just two earned runs over five innings pitched versus the Oakland Athletics. With the performance, Cortes made history, becoming the first Yankees pitcher to not allow more than three runs in any of his 26 consecutive starts at Yankee Stadium, per Chris Kirschner of The Athletic.
Limiting runs at Yankee Stadium often proves to be a difficult task. The short right field fence tends to turn long fly balls that would have been outs in other ball parks into home runs. Regardless, Cortes has contained opposing lineups when pitching in front of Yankees fans.
Nestor Cortes' season numbers still don't jump off the page by any means. Through seven starts in 2023, he's pitched to the tune of a 4.74 ERA across 38 innings. Cortes has also tallied 39 strikeouts compared to 11 walks. Just his presence on the mound alone has been valuable to the Yankees though, given the fact that their starting rotation has been decimated by injuries.
Cortes emerged as a star in 2022 for New York, recording an impressive 2.44 ERA over 158.1 innings pitched. He was selected to his first All-Star game and helped the Yankees reach the ALCS.
The team has played a mediocre brand of baseball up to this point in 2023, with Gerrit Cole being their only truly reliable option in the rotation. If Cortes can find his footing and begin pitching well on a more consistent basis, that will certainly benefit the Yankees moving forward.
Follow Us
Subscribe