The losses are piling up on and off the field for the Yankees.
A season that was already teetering was hit with a blow when Carlos Rodon landed back on the injured list on Monday, and any hope New York had of Nestor Cortes filling the void in the rotation seems to be gone.
Cortes, who impressed in his return to the Yankees on Saturday, is again dealing with an injury and could be the latest starter to land on the shelf.
The Yankees have missed Rodon and Cortes for a majority of the season to this point, on top of Frankie Montas' season-long injury. With Domingo German out for the season due to alcohol treatment and Luis Severino carrying an 8.06 ERA into mid-August, Gerrit Cole and Clarke Schmidt have been the backbone of what was supposed to be a vaunted New York rotation.
MORE: Aaron Boone animatedly mocks Laz Diaz after ejection
Here's what you need to know about Cortes' injury status as the Yankees try to climb back up in the standings.
Nestor Cortes injury update
The Yankees announced Friday that they placed Cortes on the 15-day IL with a rotator cuff strain.
Prior to tonight’s game, the Yankees made the following roster moves:
— New York Yankees (@Yankees) August 11, 2023
• Recalled RHP Jhony Brito (#76) and RHP Randy Vásquez (#98) from Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre.
• Placed LHP Nestor Cortes on the 15-day injured list (retroactive to 8/8) with a left rotator cuff strain.
The move is retroactive to Aug. 8, so Cortes would be eligible return as early as Aug. 23, but the Yankees will be cautious with the lefty after he missed more than two months with a shoulder injury before returning last week. Cortes said Friday that he'll be shut down for a month, making a 2023 return difficult considering the time he would need to build his arm back up.
Nestor Cortes says he’ll be shut down from throwing for about a month.
— Brendan Kuty 🧟♂️ (@BrendanKutyNJ) August 11, 2023
MORE: Where Giancarlo Stanton ranks among slowest MLB players
Cortes didn't look like himself early in the season, posting a 5.16 ERA through his first 11 starts before landing on the IL.
Cortes actually did look like his old self in his return on Saturday, as he allowed just one hit and one run in four innings against the Astros while striking out eight. The Yankees pushed back his second start off the IL due to general soreness, but it wasn't known he was dealing with anything significant until Friday's announcement.
The Yankees were set to start Cortes against his hometown Marlins on Saturday. With opener Ian Hamilton set to start on Friday night, Saturday uncertain with Cortes out, and Severino's turn through the rotation next week up in the air, a strong New York bullpen is at risk of getting overworked as the Yankees try to make up a deficit in the AL wild card race.
The Yankees called up starters Jhony Brito and Randy Vasquez on Friday.
