Yankees P Nestor Cortes is closed with a rotator cuff strain, “probably” made for the season
Running back Nestor Curtis can only run for the New York Yankees once in total.
the team Curtis was placed on the 15-day injured list Friday, retroactive to Tuesday, with a left cuff strain, six days after he returned from a shoulder injury that had sidelined him since May.
Talk to reporters after the moveCurtis reportedly said the current plan for him would not require surgery, but he would be banned from pitching for a month. He said he felt erratic pain during his return on Sunday that was similar to his initial shoulder problem, but in a different location.
Yankees manager Aaron Boone later admitted It will be difficult for Curtis to return this season. The current lockout will take him to mid-September, at which point he’ll have to start rehab just to stand a chance at a Yankees late-season or postseason appearance.
Cortes, an All-Star last year, currently has a 4.97 ERA, 4.49 FIP and 1.247 WHIP with 67 strikeouts in 63 1/3 innings across 12 starts, 11 of which were in April and May. He didn’t look like the pitcher he’d been with the Yankees the two seasons prior to him, but his return provided cause for optimism with eight hits in four innings with only one hit allowed, a solo homer, against the Houston Astros.
Now, Curtis’ final start could be his last of 2023, continuing an injury-plagued season for the Yankees. The team stayed in last place in the AL East at 59-56, but only five games back from the Toronto Blue Jays for last place in the wild card.
With Carlos Rodon and Frankie Montas still at IL, the Yankees may have to try to catch the Jays in a rotation composed of Gerrit Cole, Luis Severino, Johnny Prieto, Clark Schmidt and Randy Vasquez.
