Nestor Cortes, once known as the quirky lefty with the funky deliveries, is now simply known as the Yankees’ best starter. The left-hander delivered again, flirting with a no-hitter into the eighth inning as the Yankees edged out the Rangers 1-0 at the Stadium in a matinee make-up of Saturday’s rained out game.
Cortes struck out 11, one shy of his career-high, and worked around four walks, but pitched 7.1 scoreless innings. The Yankees were also scoreless until Aaron Judge scored from first on Anthony Rizzo’s fly ball single to left-center field in the bottom of the eighth.
That was too late to give Cortes a win, but it did give the Yankees (20-8) the series win over the Rangers (11-16). They have won 13 of their last 15 games and seven of their nine completed series this season.
With Clay Holmes warming up behind him before the eighth inning even started, Cortes struck out Charlie Culberson on a 91-mile an hour fastball. Eli White connected on a 1-2 four-seam fastball and looped it into shallow center field to break up the no-hit bid.
It also ended Cortes’ day after throwing 103 pitches. Yankees manager Aaron Boone waited on the top step of the dugout for an extra beat to let the fans get up and give the young lefty the standing ovation he deserved.
Holmes coaxed a double-play ground ball out of Marcus Semien to end the Rangers’ threat.
Boone had righthander Chad Green get warmed up in the bullpen after Cortes walked Corey Seager to lead off the seventh inning. The Yankees got him out at second on Jonah Heim’s fielder’s choice, but Cortes then walked Nick Solak, sending pitching coach Matt Blake to the mound. With two on and one out, Cortes struck out Andy Ibanez on a 86-mile-an-hour cutter on the outside corner. Kole Calhoun grounded out to second base to end the inning and the threat.
As the only starter pitching on regular rest this turn through the rotation because of a scheduled day off and two rainouts, Cortes set the tone with a nine-pitch first inning in which he struck out the first two batters he faced. The cutter was his most effective pitch, getting 12 swings and misses with it. He had 17 whiffs total Monday.
He walked Heim to lead off the second inning, but then he retired 13 straight batters. He walked the No.9 hitter Eli White in the sixth.
After coming to spring training this March not knowing if he would be in the rotation or the bullpen, Cortes has been the Bombers’ best starter so far this year. He took his first loss of the season Wednesday night against the Blue Jays in Toronto, allowing just two earned runs on four hits and raising his ERA to a team-best 1.82 ERA. Since he made his 2021 season debut last May 30, Cortes had the lowest ERA (2.68) in the American League.
The tightrope that Cortes and Boone had to walk Monday was that while the lefty was dominating the Rangers hitters, the Yankees lineup hadn’t given him a single run to work with.
The Bombers had the bases loaded in the fifth inning when Judge sat on a 94-mile an hour fastball down the middle and then struck out swinging. Rizzo followed by getting called out on a 96-mph fastball down the middle.
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