That can play, right?
Néstor Cortes ’superpowers shouldn’t just lift these funk Yankees and bring them to October. Who says this traveler can’t provoke them until a parade?
The articulate South African weaved a few more dreams on Friday night at Yankee Stadium, spinning seven masterful tickets to lead his club to a rare laugh of a 10-2 victory over the boxing twins. It was the Yankees’ eighth straight victory and 30th in 41 tests. This stretch began in the Bronx on July 4, the second game of a Subway Series game against the Mets, when Cortes made his first start of the season and limited cross-bridge rivals to a race of more than 3 ¹ / ₃ entries in a 4 -2 Yankees victory.
This is what we, in the comic book industry (no, I’m not really in the comic book industry), call a “home story”.
And if you prefer “The Hialeah Kid” or “Nasty Nestor” as a handle, the latter is becoming a favorite t-shirt, along with the mustache cartoon, worn by his teammates during the practice of pre-batting in the game), Cortes has the aura of some fictional creation when he combines the secret of his success with his very modest beginnings.
“Suddenly, when you get a t-shirt like that, it’s like you’re finally doing it,” Cortes said.
“He goes outside and is not afraid,” DJ LeMahieu said.
A selection from the Yankees ’36th round in the 2013 amateur draft, Cortes was selected by the Orioles in the 2017 Rule 5 draft. He was returned to the Yankees in April 2018, replaced by the Yankees in Seattle in November 2019 and released by the Mariners last October. If the Yankees didn’t know what they had (How could they, after posting an ERA of 5.67 in 33 appearances for them as bulk in 2019?), Accredit them for having returned it twice, the second time the last January.
Because this time it’s a completely different pitcher. His fast ball speed has jumped one mile per hour compared to the average of 89.5 in 2019. He throws his curve ball more often than he used to do, and it’s a dramatically different tone, his sacrificed vertical movement in his favor. from the horizontal.
“In spring training, I wanted something sweeter, something bigger,” he said. “The Yankees pitching staff helped me try to create that field.”
Throw an increased speed for his fast ball, as well as his legal mockery on the field (the different arm slots, quick throws and the like), and he begins to understand how this guy, who started the season with a league ERA career major of 6.72, leads 2.56 this season after achieving a high career with his seven frames of work and tying another with his seven attacks.
“He’s doing a great job,” Gemini manager Rocco Baldelli said. “He’s throwing with a bit of speed at the beginning of the count, but then he has enough fast ball and enough deception to get him in and make it work. He comes from a slightly different angle, because the guys don’t look comfortable in the box.
“It simply came to our notice then. It is not uncommon to see how successful he has been. … He seems to have a really good feeling about what’s going on right now. Things are looking good, even better than I expected.
Said Aaron Judge, who contributed a homer (just like LeMahieu and the resurrected Luke Voit): “Every throw is stressful when you work your magic on the mound.”
The Yankees hope to have Corey Kluber back in the starting rotation soon, and maybe also Domingo German, two more postseason starting options to join Gerrit Cole, Jameson Taillon and Jordan Montgomery. Cortés may not stand this Survivor game.
However, what do you think of having it in the bullring, ready to launch as a multi-entry weapon? This sounds tempting to Yankees. It’s hard to see Cortes swallowing the bets, regardless of what he’s already surpassed.
“Obviously, to get to the big leagues, I’ll take everything I can get … as long as he’s here and we win games,” Cortes said.
Unpleasant, but disinterested. It’s a good combination for an unknown hero who has more to offer.