Nestor Cortes has emerged into one of the most interesting stories in baseball. With his ever-changing arm slots, his constant sliding of speeds, and his ability to use any combination of the two to keep hitters off balance, the pitcher has piqued MLB fans' interest with his 1.50 ERA and 5-1 record.
He's also piqued the interest of television analyst Jim Kaat, who landed himself in a bit of hot water when he referred to Cortes as "Nestor the Molester" during a Twins-Tigers broadcast while talking about players he likes.
“'Nestor the Molester,' Nestor Cortes,” the 83-year-old Kaat said on the broadcast. “Angles and different speeds. He's a pitcher.”
Kaat was planning to reach out to Cortes directly to talk about the comment, and the Twins' VP of communications David Morse said the organization talked to Kaat privately after the game.
“Obviously, we take these matters seriously and like in all cases will handle this internally and privately,” Morse said.
Cortes addressed Kaat's comment as well.
"I'm sure, you know, he didn't really mean it, and people make mistakes, but it didn't offend me at all,'' Cortes said, per the Associated Press. "So, you know, I don't really have anything more than just that, honestly."
Cortes took to Twitter to again defend Kaat, saying that he knew the veteran broadcaster just made a mistake.
"Jim Kaat has spent an entire lifetime in this game we love," Cortes said. "He reached out to me and apologized for his remark last night, but he didn't need to. We all make mistakes and feel 100% there was no malice intended. I plan on lifting him up with this tweet and I hope others do too. No sweat here Jim!"
— Nestor Cortes (@Cortes_1210) June 3, 2022
These comments aren't Kaat's first brush with questionable phrasing in the last 12 months. In October, Kaat said it was in teams' best interest to "get a 40-acre field full of" players like White Sox third baseman Yoan Moncada. The comment brought to mind the promise of reparations for slavery that were unfilled after the Civil War, which were 40 acres and a mule.
“Earlier in the game when Yoan Moncada was at the plate, in an attempt to compliment the great player that he is, I used a poor choice of words that resulted in an insensitive and hurtful remark,” Kaat said at the time. “And I’m sorry for that.”
It's unknown if Kaat will face any kind of punishment for his latest comments, although Cortes doesn't seem too worked up one way or the other.
Cortes, for his part, turned in another sterling performance against the Angels Thursday, throwing seven innings and allowing no runs for New York in a 5-1 win in the first leg of a doubleheader.
Last December, Kaat was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame by the Hall's Golden Days Era Committee. The longtime MLB pitcher will be inducted in Cooperstown in July.
