The New York Yankees and the Cleveland Guardians are going to play the biggest and most important game of their season.
Game 5 of the American League Division Series is necessary because the two squads are so competitive that they have each won two games in the best-of-five matchup.
As you can imagine, it will be an all-hands-on-deck affair in which both teams won’t be afraid to use all of their resources to ensure they get to face the Houston Astros in the Championship Series.
For the Yankees, that means Nestor Cortes is available.
“Nestor Cortes is available for tomorrow’s game, Aaron Boone says. He would be coming in on short rest, though he’d be pitching in relief for Game 5,” The Athletic’s Lindsey Adler tweeted.
Nestor Cortes is available for tomorrow’s game, Aaron Boone says. He would be coming in on short rest, though he’d be pitching in relief for Game 5.
— Lindsey Adler (@lindseyadler) October 17, 2022
Cortes pitched Game 2 on Friday in the Bronx, which resulted on a 4-2 victory for the Guards.
Cortes Would Be Pitching On Two Days Rest
He would be pitching on two days rest, which would be preposterous if he was expected to start or cover four or five innings.
That won’t be the case, though, unless the game goes to extra innings or something similarly unexpected.
If the Yankees jump to an early lead, they will most likely avoid using Cortes with the Astros series in mind.
If the game stays close and the Yanks need pitchers, however, he will certainly enter the game to cover an inning or two.
The Yanks’ decimated bullpen needs all the help it can handle: injuries have derailed the unit.
The Yankees may have a more explosive offense than the Guardians, but it’s evident that Cleveland holds the bullpen advantage both in quality and depth.
That’s why the Yankees need to think outside the box to even things.
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