The New York Yankees are just about ready to take the field at Dodger Stadium and play Game 1 of the World Series against LA. They are sending their stellar lineup and their best pitcher, Gerrit Cole, to the mound.
Nestor Cortes was included in the Yankees’ World Series roster
Before revealing their lineup, they unveiled their 26-man roster with left-hander Nestor Cortes on it. The talented veteran won’t be able to pitch a normal starter’s workload, but he will be ready to help from relief.
What are the Yankees expecting from him? What will his body allow him to do? The hurler himself tried to answer these questions and discussed his role in the Fall Classic:
“Nestor Cortes says he expects to be used out of the bullpen in the World Series and that lefty-lefty matchups will be the “best runway” for him, and that “one inning is what we’re looking for, it might be two ups. I’m ready for whatever’s needed”, he said, per SNY.
Cortes can help the Yankees deal with some tough lefties
The Dodgers were the best and most productive offense by OPS against southpaws, with a .795 mark in the regular season. They do have some specific lefty hitters that Cortes could help them retire: Shohei Ohtani, Max Muncy, Freddie Freeman, and Gavin Lux are some of them.
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Cortes, who had a 3.77 ERA in the regular season, was much more effective against lefties (.204 batting average against) than righties (2.56). He has a chance to be a weapon for the Yankees if they use him right and have some respect for the injury he is dealing with.
It’s not easy to come back from a flexor strain in four weeks, yet here we are. Cortes was willing to risk it all for a chance to win the World Series with the Yankees, and he will do everything in his power to help.
