Cuban-American pitcher Néstor Cortés Jr. made headlines Monday after launch a game without hits until the eighth inning, for the victory (1×0) of the New York Yankees against Texas Rangers.
Although the victory could not be scored, Cortés kept the Rangers unstoppable until the eighth inning, when, after one out and on a count of two balls and two strikes, outfielder Eli White managed to connect an uncatchable to the center, ending the charm of the left-hander of the Bronx Bombers.
A no-hitter into the 8th.
That’s Nasty. ? pic.twitter.com/ebO8CRv33d
— MLB (@MLB) May 9, 2022
Cortés, who recorded his longest outing since making his major league debut in 2018, always remained dominant thanks to his location and mix of cutter, four-seam fastball and slider, weapons that allowed him to retire 11 batters per game. the way of the punch in the 7.1 episodes that he toured for the group directed by Aaron Boone.
The pitcher was generally ahead in the count, throwing his first strike pitch to 22 of the 27 batters he faced. In all, he threw 103 pitches and walked the second, sixth and seventh innings, but didn’t let any opponents get to third base and only two got into scoring position.
the magic of no hitter it was broken in the eighth by White’s hit, whom he had struck out in the third inning. After this indisputable, reliever Clay Holmes (4-0) replaced Cortés and got the last two outs of the inning, vital for the Cuban to finish his job with no runs allowed. Just moments later, Yankees first baseman Anthony Rizzo doubled and drove in the game-winning run off the legs of Aaron Judge.
Cuban left-hander Aroldis Chapman recorded his seventh save of the season, pitching a scoreless ninth inning. In this way, the Antillean closer adds 15 consecutive games without allowing a run, the fourth longest active streak in the Majors.
mesmerized by this angle of @Cortes_1210‘s cutter pic.twitter.com/XtdGynUqyx
— Cut4 (@Cut4) May 9, 2022
But let’s return to Cortés, who has allowed two runs or less in 24 of his last 28 starts (includes 2021 and 2022) in the Majors, in addition to adding eight consecutive duels of these characteristics. This year he has been particularly dominant, as he set a new career high of 12 strikeouts in a game (April 17 vs. Baltimore) and has spectacular numbers in ERA (1.41) and WHIP (0.969) in 32 innings of work.
The game was summarized by the agency App in this way: “Cortés is close to glory and the Yankees reach 20 wins”
With information from Efe, Ap and PL.
