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Frustrated Nestor Cortes shares eye-opening take after brutal outing for Yankees vs Rays

Originally posted on ClutchPoints | By Scotty White | Last updated 5/11/24

The New York Yankees fell on the road on Saturday against the Tampa Bay Rays, and Nestor Cortes got the start on the rubber for the Yankees. Cortes didn’t have his best outing as he lasted 5.1 innings and he gave up four earned runs and walked three. He got the loss and the Yankees lost the game 7-2.

Tampa Bay jumped on Nestor Cortes early as they scored in the first inning to take a 1-0 lead. The Yankees responded well with two runs of their own in the second, but a three-run frame for the Rays in the third inning put them up for good. The Yankees didn’t score after the second inning, and Tampa Bay added three more runs in the seventh inning to extend their lead.

Cortes typically excels in getting ahead of hitters with his fastball and closing out at bats ahead in the count with his off speed stuff. He had a little bit of trouble throwing strikes to get ahead on Saturday, and he wasn’t too happy with the strike zone after the game.

“From my point of view, it looked like a couple of strikes could have been called,” Cortes said, according to an article from New York Daily News. “But I mean, I don’t think that determined the whole game of mine. I just gotta make better pitches and find that fastball a little earlier.”

Yankees manager Aaron Boone didn’t have anything to say about the strike zone after the contest, but he did notice that Cortes didn’t have his normal command with his fast ball. It’s hard to find success as a pitcher when you’re falling behind in the count.

“I thought he actually kind of righted the ship a little bit and got it going a little bit there in the middle of the game there,” Aaron Boone said. “But just early on, it just seemed like he had a hard time getting that fastball at the top rail like he normally does so well.”

Nestor Cortes has struggled on the road this season

New York Yankees pitcher Nestor Cortes (65) throws the ball against the Tampa Bay Rays during the first inning at Tropicana Field. © Matt Pendleton-USA TODAY Sports

Nestor Cortes has been terrific at Yankee Stadium this season. On the road… not so much. His ERA at home is 1.59, and it is 6.75 on the road.

“Honestly, I haven’t even looked at it,” Cortes said in regards to his home stats vs. road stats. “But I’m imagining because of that question, I pitch better at home. I don’t know. I just gotta make the adjustment of being on the road and pitching. There’s nothing else to it. I feel the same. I prepare the same.”

It was a tough outing for Cortes, but the Yankees came close to making it a game in the later innings. They had a couple deep balls that came up just short of being home runs, and Aaron Boone couldn’t believe that they didn’t go out.

“Two balls, 108 [mph] to that spot,” Boone said. “It’s a little — yeah, I mean, those are homers.”

Unfortunately for the Yankees, they weren’t homers.

The Rays got big days from their top two hitters in the lineup, Yandy Díaz and Randy Arozarena, and Boone wasn’t surprised by their success.

“You know what they’re capable of,” Boone said. “They’re really good hitters, and they made a big difference in them winning the game today.”

Saturday’s game was game two of a three-game series. The Yankees took game one on Friday, and game three will be Sunday in Tampa Bay. The game will get started at 1:40 ET, and it is a rubber match.

This article first appeared on ClutchPoints and was syndicated with permission.

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