The Bronx has always been kind to Nestor Cortes, but that was not the case on Saturday.
The Yankees’ southpaw entered the game against the Rays having allowed no more than three runs in each of his last 26 starts at Yankee Stadium, the longest such streak in franchise history. But Tampa Bay put a forceful end to that.
The Rays, facing a lefty for the first time since April 18 — a remarkable stretch in its own right — charged Cortes with six earned runs. Taylor Walls started the scoring with an RBI single in the second inning before a five-run fifth sent Cortes to the showers.
The frame included walks to Nos. 7 and 8 hitters Manuel Margot and Jose Siri — the latter of which came on pitch clock violation – and a single from No. 9 hitter Francisco Mejia. Leadoff man Yandy Diaz then ripped the first grand slam of his career.
While the Yankees were able to come back and win, 9-8, Cortes totaled seven hits, two walks, three strikeouts and 10 hard-hit balls over 4.1 innings.
“He just kind of hit the wall there a little bit, I guess,” Aaron Boone said afterward. “But the walks at the bottom of the order there to start the inning kind of did him in a little bit.”
The manager noted that Cortes’ stuff and power were there, and Boone thought the pitcher did a nice job of settling in after Walls’ single.
“He was really good through four,” catcher Kyle Higashioka added, “and then that last inning, we just kind of had a little trouble finding the zone, and the big hit was kind of a killer blow.”
Boone said Cortes’ command “went away” at the end. That’s been a theme in 2023.
“Seems like that’s been the story of my season this year,” Cortes said. “Kind of in the fifth inning on, lose some command, then starting to search and giving up that big hit. That’s happened a couple of times already. Gotta fix that.”
A recipient of Cy Young vote shares last season, Cortes now has a 5.53 ERA this season.
He began the year with a 3.49 ERA and no more than three earned runs allowed over his first five starts. Cortes’ last three starts, however, have seen him tally 14 innings, 18 hits, 15 earned runs, eight walks, 14 strikeouts, four homers and 25 hard-hit balls.
Cortes’ April 30 start was the first to inflate his ERA, as he served up seven earned runs to the Rangers in Texas. But he also walked four against Oakland on May 8, though he held the lowly A’s to two runs.
Cortes’ spring training was delayed by a hamstring strain, and he more recently battled strep throat. But the hurler said that he feels like his usual self on Saturday.
“I gotta be honest, I have no restrictions,” Cortes continued. “I don’t feel any pain anywhere. It’s just a matter of commanding the ball when I need to the most.”
So what’s been causing his recent struggles?
Cortes wasn’t sure if the pitch clock, which requires pitchers to work faster, could be contributing to fatigue. He also cited some other possibilities, but he kept coming back to command being the root of his problems.
“It’s hard to say,” Cortes said when asked about the clock. “I work pretty fast. It’s not like I feel my body taking a left turn there at the end. It’s just a matter of making pitches at that time in a crucial moment.
“It could be a mix of things. It could be third time through a lineup. It could be running out of gas. Command hasn’t been great. If I’m able to command the ball a little better, things could be different.”
While Cortes is going through a rough stretch, the Yankees are confident that he’ll soon return to being the pitcher who recorded a 2.61 ERA from 2021-2022.
“We gotta get him over the hump there, and he will,” Boone said.
Higashioka expressed similar faith in a person he’s caught since both were minor leaguers.
“We believe in him,” the backstop said. “He’s a phenomenal pitcher. So we know he’s gonna shake this.”
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