Discussing how the Yankees should utilize their starters can be a tricky subject considering just how brilliant Luis Gil was last time out as a starter and the overall body of work for Clarke Schmidt. It seems like one of those two should be ticketed for a bullpen role when the rotation shrinks in October given their strikeout stuff and solid velocity, but they may not be the best option for that role. Sometimes, the correct answer is an unorthodox one, the kind of pitcher who you would discount for the job.
Nestor Cortes may not profile like the kind of reliever the Yankees need, but there are some strong reasons for why they should get him acclimated to a bullpen role.
Why Nestor Cortes Is a Great Candidate For the Yankees’ Bullpen
One of the biggest misconceptions about Nestor Cortes is that his stuff doesn’t translate well into a bullpen role because he doesn’t throw particularly hard. The left-hander has some swing-and-miss in his game, with a riding fastball that he can go to up in the zone and both a cutter and changeup to pick up some strikeouts and change eye levels. 2023 was a disastrous season and 2024 has been more of a mediocre one, but in both seasons Cortes has been remarkable first time through the order.
Furthermore, the Yankees struggle to get production from their left-handed relievers, as only Tim Hill has proven to be a consistent and reliable southpaw for this bullpen. He’s a groundball specialist who rarely misses bats, and Cortes would be a much-needed strikeout arm from the left-handed side who can neutralize same-handed threats. Left-handed batters are slashing .211/.259/.297 against Cortes this season, and while it would seem weird to have a pitcher with a low-90s fastball try and get outs in the postseason, stuff goes beyond just velocity.
Nestor Cortes gets elite riding action on his four-seamer which allows it to play up in the zone, and it sets up both his changeup and cutter as he can change eye levels in both directions. The average left-handed starter has a 93 Stuff+ while the 2022 All-Star has a 100, meaning he’s firmly above-average in that regard. You can also expect an uptick in velocity with shorter spurts, as we’ve seen him average 93 MPH on the fastball in some starts and is throwing harder than he ever has on average at 92 MPH.
READ MORE: Yankees’ star rookie pitcher tosses a perfectly-timed gem
This isn’t to say that velocity isn’t important, because it absolutely is, but rather to say there’s more that goes into having success than just throwing hard. Movement and release points play a huge role in determining whether a pitch is a plus-offering or not, and a pitcher can make it over or underperform it’s grade depending on their command of it. Considering how well Cortes is able to navigate through a lineup first-time through, it would suggest that he just becomes less deceptive as the outing goes on, but out of the bullpen that doesn’t matter.
If you get similar production in a bullpen role from Nestor Cortes that you get from him first-time through, you’d be looking at one of your best relievers. It’s not a perfect science, but if you remove a pitcher’s greatest weaknesses, they would get a great deal better. Other variables matter here, such as a pitcher’s ability to get their prep work done and get hot in a bullpen role versus a starter’s, but Cortes has been a reliever on this team before.
People forget that he broke through with the Yankees thanks to his remarkable work in relief back in 2021, striking out 35.4% of batters faced with a 2.29 ERA out of the bullpen in 2021. Nestor Cortes’ game is built on deception and command, things that can be a lot less effective once a batter has seen your arsenal 2-3 times in a game. He doesn’t have the overpowering fastball of Luis Gil or the wipe-out slider of Clarke Schmidt, but Cortes could be a valuable bullpen piece and the Yankees could try him out in that role come October.