After Outdueling Shohei Ohtani, Nestor Cortes Has No Interest In Hitting

Cortes was asked if he’s jealous that he doesn’t get to hit and pitch like Ohtani, but the Yankees starter is perfectly fine being confined to the mound.

Nestor Cortes doesn’t bring the heat on the mound, and he has no desire to face it in the batter’s box.

The Yankees starter was jokingly asked if he’s jealous of Angels sensation Shohei Ohtani, who gets to hit and pitch. Ohtani started opposite of Cortes in the first game of Tuesday’s double-header between New York and Los Angeles, in addition to DH’ing against him.

“I really don't want to face anybody throwing above 90 mph,” a chuckling Cortes, who throws in the low-90s himself, told reporters after the game. Ohtani, meanwhile, can reach the upper-90s.

“I’m okay staying on this side of the baseball,” Cortes continued. “But what he does is impressive, and if you can do that, more respect to you.”

While Ohtani is indeed impressive – he hit 46 homers while recording a 3.18 ERA in 2021 – Cortes easily outdueled the reigning, unanimous MVP on Tuesday. Ohtani followed up a nightmarish 2021 start at Yankee Stadium with another disappointing outing in the Bronx, lasting just three innings. The Yankees won, 6-1, after Ohtani allowed four earned runs and eight hits, including home runs to Matt Carpenter, Aaron Judge and Gleyber Torres.

Cortes, meanwhile, continued his All-Star caliber campaign, twirling seven scoreless innings while striking out seven. He, however, didn’t have a hit in the game. Ohtani did.

Cortes’s only career plate appearance came in 2021; he didn’t reach base.

In between Tuesday’s games, Angels manager Joe Maddon suggested that Ohtani may have been tipping his pitches. Ohtani tallied just three swings and misses and two strikeouts against New York.

"They're really good at reading pitchers,” Maddon said of the Yankees, per MLB.com’s Rhett Bollinger. “They're very good at."

Maddon’s Yankees counterpart agreed.

“I think we are, too,” Aaron Boone, informed of Maddon’s comments, told reporters before cracking a smile. “Hopefully, we continue to be good at it, too.”

MORE:

• Yankees Smack Three Home Runs off Shohei Ohtani in Big Win Over Angels
• Yankees Should Replace Aaron Hicks With This Center Fielder at Trade Deadline
• Josh Donaldson Should Be Asking Why Yankees Peers Didn’t Back Him

Follow Gary Phillips on Twitter (@GaryHPhillips). Be sure to bookmark Inside The Pinstripes and check back daily for news, analysis and more.