The World Baseball Classic will be taking place soon in March, meaning that some of the stars of the game will be representing their countries as they partake in the tournament. One player who was set to play, but has now been forced to miss the tournament, is New York Yankees pitcher Nestor Cortes.

Cortes enjoyed a breakout campaign with the Yankees in 2022 (12-4, 2.44 ERA, 163 K, 0.92 WHIP) was set to represent Team USA in the tournament, but he strained his right hamstring and was replaced on their roster. With the World Baseball Classic out of the picture, Cortes has turned his attention to being healthy for the start of the Yankees MLB campaign, and the good news is that it sounds like he should be ready for Opening Day.

Via Bryan Hoch:

“Matt Blake said that he is optimistic about Nestor Cortes (hamstring) being ready for Opening Day. Cortes has continued playing catch but he is not running at the moment.”

This is good news for the Yankees, as Cortes is going to be an important piece of their rotation in 2023. Cortes formed an effective duo with Gerrit Cole last season, and with the team also adding Carlos Rodon in free agency, it's clear that New York has one of the best starting rotations in the league right now.

Cortes will be focused on getting himself healthy ahead of the season, but the good news is that it sounds like this won't force him to miss any time, and he still has over a month until the start of the regular season. Cortes' status will be worth keeping an eye on, but for now, this seems like an encouraging update for him.