Nestor Cortes upset over Yankees bullpen move despite sharp outing: Now they do this

If that’s how an unhappy Nestor Cortes pitches, the Yankees will take it.Even if it proves to just be temporary, Cortes was not thrilled about the Yankees moving him to the bullpen for one turn through the rotation.And yet the left-hander, in his first relief appearance since 2021, looked as sharp as he has all season on Saturday, tossing 4 ⅓ no-hit innings to finish off a 2-0 win over the Cubs at Wrigley Field.“Obviously I was upset,” an honest Cortes said after the game.

“I felt like I’ve been, amongst all the starters, the workhorse here.Once Cole went down [in spring training], they picked me to be the Opening Day starter — not necessarily the No.

1, but the Opening Day starter.I had to switch my routine there. “Now they do this.

But I’m never going to back down from a challenge.I’m never going to leave my teammates out to dry.

You’re always going to get my best effort no matter if I’m happy or not.That’s what I did today.

I came out there and proved I can be put in any situation.From here on out, if that’s my role, then I’ll accept it.”With Luis Gil (Friday) and Clarke Schmidt (Saturday) coming back from the injured list this weekend, the Yankees decided to bump Cortes to the bullpen for this turn and have him piggyback Schmidt.The Yankees have said they plan to insert Cortes back into the rotation this coming week during their series against the Red Sox, which begins on Thursday in The Bronx, as they use a six-man rotation one time through.

But after that they are expected to trim down to five starters for the final two weeks of the regular season.“I have no idea [how it’s going to play out],” said Cortes, who entered Saturday with a 4.08 ERA across 28 starts and a team-high 159 innings.“This one caught me by surprise, so we’ll see.

I know they told me that I’m starting against Boston, but after that, with a six-man rotation and off days in between, guys are going to get extra days and I don’t think that’...