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10 hours ago
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After spending the last four seasons with the New York Yankees, Nestor Cortes found himself in new territory this season. The Milwaukee Brewers acquired him in December, but he did not last long.
After spending time on the IL with a flexor strain, the Brew Crew was not willing to open up a roster spot for him. They turned to the trade market, making a deal with the San Diego Padres.
Cortes would only make six appearances after being traded to the Padres, and it was a bit shaky. He finished the regular season with a 1-3 record with a 5.47 ERA across 26.1 innings of work.
Nestor Cortes undergoes surgery, casts shadow over impending free agency
Now with the season over, Nestor Cortes is getting his health in order. According to MLB insider Francys Romero, Cortes successfully underwent surgery to repair the small tendon in his arm that was giving him trouble.
This means that Cortes will miss the next 9 to 10 months before he can return to baseball activities. This is not ideal as the lefty is set to become a free agent when the season comes to an end.
Many teams looking to build starting pitching depth would much rather have someone healthy and ready to go for Opening Day. As it sits, the earliest Cortes could return would be after the All-Star break, and that is if everything goes well.
Cortes will have to hope that a team that already has some decent pitching depth will take a chance on him. However, Jose Urquidy was in a similar position that Cortes is facing and signed a one-year deal with the Detroit Tigers.
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