MLB News: Aaron Judge delivers strong message to Nestor Cortes after Game 1 loss to Dodgers

Aaron Judge and Nestor Cortes came close to securing a win in Game 1 of the 2024 World Series, with the Yankees taking the lead several times throughout the game. However, They finally fell in the 10th inning due to a walk-off grand slam by Freddie Freeman.

After the tough loss, Judge spoke out and delivered a message of confidence and support to his teammate Nestor Cortes. who was one strike away from ending the game before Freeman's 409-foot home run to right field brought in Taylor, Edman and Betts to seal the Dodgers' 6-3 victory.

“I have confidence in all of our guys. It doesn't matter who it is, doesn't matter who climbs the hill. He knows he has a job to do. I don’t want anyone else out there on the mound.” Judge said, expressing his confidence in Cortes and all of the Yankees' pitchers taking the mound.

Cortes had been sidelined for over a month with an elbow injury and was recently hired by manager Aaron Boone as a World Series reliever as he was not yet ready to return as a starter.

Does Cortes have postseason experience?

Game 1 against the Dodgers marked Cortes' first appearance of the 2024 postseason. His previous postseason experience came in 2022 against the Cleveland GuardiansWhen he started in all three games, he threw one pitch, although the Yankees lost two of them.

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MLB News: Yankees' Aaron Boone sends clear message to Dodgers ahead of World Series Game 2

When did Nestor Cortes join the Yankees?

Nestor Cortes first joined the Yankees in 2019, briefly traded to Seattle for one season and returned to the Bronx in 2021. Since then, he has steadily established himself as a key starter. His best season in terms of wins came in 2022 with 28 starts and an overall record of 12-4.

Richard “Richie” Tovar is a bilingual sports journalist with over 13 years of experience and a bachelor’s degree in statistics. Richard was born and raised in Venezuela. He has always had a deep connection to American sports, particularly the NFL, which he follows closely and covers extensively alongside college football. Since he comes from a baseball-loving country, he also covers the MLB every season. Since joining Bolavip US in 2021, Richard has continued to develop as a writer and has expressed his passion for numbers and statistics in many of his articles. Outside of sports, he enjoys programming, being outdoors, going to the gym, and cooking home-cooked meals.