Shoulder problems derailed the season of one of the most impressive pitchers on the New York Yankees roster from 2021 and 2022: Nestor Cortes.
His first injured list stint came in early June, as he went down with a left rotator cuff strain.
It took him about two months to get ready to return, and he did it with an impressive four-inning cameo against the Houston Astros in which he struck out eight batters on August 5.
Unfortunately, he found himself back on the injured list less than a week after that outing.
There was a slight chance he returned this season, even if it was extremely unlikely given the fact he couldn’t quite shake off the same injury while spending two months on the shelf.
On Tuesday, the Yankees made things official: Cortes won’t be returning in 2023.
“The #Yankees have claimed RHP Luke Weaver from the Mariners. Nestor Cortes transferred to the 60-day injured list,” Yankees insider Bryan Hoch tweeted.
The #Yankees have claimed RHP Luke Weaver from the Mariners. Nestor Cortes transferred to the 60-day injured list.
— Bryan Hoch ⚾️ (@BryanHoch) September 12, 2023
Sending Cortes to the 60-day injured list again means that there will be no time for him to return before the end of the season.
He wasn’t going to be able to do that anyway, so this is just a procedural move to make room on the 40-man roster for Weaver.
The Yankees need warm bodies to eat innings and Weaver was recently designated for assignment by the Seattle Mariners.
Weaver hasn’t been good in limited action in 2023, though.
The 30-year-old righty has an ugly 6.77 ERA, a 1.61 WHIP, and a 93/37 K/BB ratio in 110.1 innings.
As for Cortes, he will try to get healthy and have a normal spring training in 2024.
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