New York Yankees starting pitcher Nestor Cortes Joe Nicholson-USA TODAY Sports

Two Yankees All-Stars could be eyeing time on injured list

By Tommy Fradenburg | Last updated 6/6/23

Just a week ago, the New York Yankees were excited about the return of some key players ahead of a thrilling series in Los Angeles against the Dodgers.

While Yankee fans will be happy with winning two out of three against one of the best teams in baseball, they'll be unhappy leaving L.A. with a couple of injuries to captain Aaron Judge and starting pitcher Nestor Cortes.

New York manager Aaron Boone told the media on Tuesday that he expects Cortes to go on the injured list with shoulder soreness, while Judge's situation is unclear.

Aaron Boone says that Aaron Judge and Nestor Cortes will be evaluated by team physician Dr. Ahmad tonight.

Cortes is expected to go on the IL, while no determination has been made for Judge yet pic.twitter.com/nz85J5ydc9
— Yankees Videos (@snyyankees) June 6, 2023

Judge hurt his foot making this play in right field on Saturday against the Dodgers. The reigning American League MVP avoiding the injured list would be massive for the Yankees as he currently leads the AL in home runs (19) and the team in RBI (40), despite already spending 10 days on the IL with a hip injury in May.

The Yankees went 4-6 in those 10 games, but if Judge does land back on the IL, New York is better equipped to deal with his absence with Giancarlo Stanton and Josh Donaldson both homering in their first appearances back in the big leagues this weekend.

For Cortes, the Yankees are hoping some time off is the solution to his struggles this year. He threw a career-high 158.1 innings in his 2022 All-Star season, more than 60 innings over his previous career high in 2021, and has run into trouble this year as he gets deeper into games.

Per fangraphs.com, opponents are hitting just .176 against him the first time through the order, but slashing .231 the second time through and .447 the third time. He's surrendered seven of his 10 total home runs the third time through the lineup with an ERA of 23.14.

While Cortes rests his shoulder, the Yankees could turn to youngster Jhony Brito, who made his MLB debut this season and allowed just one run in his first two starts combined but got shelled for seven runs in .2 innings in his third time out. In total, Brito has struck out 30 and pitched to a 5.58 ERA in nine starts this year.

The Yankees begin a series at home with the Chicago White Sox on Tuesday before the first meeting of the season with the Boston Red Sox on June 9.

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