Yankees Looming Miss Could Decide NL Pennant

After being an afterthought for much of the 2025 season, former New York Yankees left-hander Nestor Cortes could be a deciding factor in the tight National League West race.

The Yankees traded Cortes to the Milwaukee Brewers as part of the December deal for reliever Devin Williams.

The southpaw opened his Brewers career in March by facing his former club in his first start of the season. The Yankees roughed up their ex-teammate for eight earned runs (including five home runs) in just two innings of work.

The left-hander spent much of his time in Milwaukee on the injured list. Facing a glut of starting pitching, the Brewers traded Cortes to the San Diego Padres ahead of the MLB deadline.

Before the Brewers traded Cortes to the Padres, the New York Post's Jon Heyman teased a possible reunion with the Yankees ahead of the trade deadline following season-ending injuries to Gerrit Cole and Clarke Schmidt.

But Yankees general manager Brian Cashman went in another direction, loading up on relievers before the deadline by acquiring David Bednar from the Pittsburgh Pirates, Camilo Doval from the San Francisco Giants and Jake Bird from the Colorado Rockies.

However New York's attempt to create a "super pen" has failed. Bird is back in the minors and the Yankees have dropped to third place in the American League East and second place in the AL Wild Card standings.

Meanwhile Cortes has returned to the form which made him an All-Star in the Bronx. The 30-year-old has made four starts for the Padres, going 1-1 with a 3.00 ERA. His most impressive appearance came on Saturday, when he threw six shutout innings in a 5-1 win over the Los Angeles Dodgers.