Amid a disappointing start to the season for the New York Yankees, Nestor Cortes is establishing himself as not just a solid pitcher but a very good one. The 27-year-old is having a phenomenal start to the 2022 season. Yankees fans love him for a good reason: he plays very hard, is not afraid to get weird and is downright good.

In his third start of the season, which came against the Cleveland Guardians, Cortes did two notable things. First, he made this incredible diving play to get Steven Kwan out at first base.

Second, he made Yankees history by recording at least 35 strikeouts and allowing fewer than 10 hits through his first three appearances of the season. For such a historic franchise laden with stars, this is a very notable accomplishment.

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Cortes recorded a 2.90 ERA in 93.0 innings last season. He allowed his first two runs this season, both of them earned, against Cleveland while striking out eight batters in 6.1 innings. Against a Guardians lineup with tons of strong hitters, his performance was very impressive. The Yankees will need more strong outings from Cortes as they look to finally reach the World Series again.

New York has a winning record so far this season because of their elite pitching. While the two arms previously perceived to be the Yankees' two best pitchers — Gerrit Cole and Jonathan Loaisiga — struggle, the rest of the rotation and bullpen have been great. Cortes is leading the way. While the offense continues to flop, the pitchers will have to keep it up.