New York Yankees v Seattle Mariners / Stephen Brashear/GettyImages

Right before the start of the postseason, the New York Yankees lost both Nestor Cortes and Anthony Rizzo to injuries. We’d call it “devastating” but it’s exactly what this organization and fanbase is used to by now.

Cortes was the more impactful loss because of how valuable pitching is come October. He’s expected to remain out for the ALDS with a flexor strain in his throwing arm. Many suspected such an injury would more than likely wipe him out for the entire playoff run.

But the Yankees got news on Sunday that could foster some positive thinking. Cortes played catch for the first time since hitting the shelf with the injury (he hasn’t thrown since Sept. 18). Should the Yankees advance to the ALCS, play will begin on Monday.

That gives Cortes a week to try and get up to speed. That sounds rather aggressive and unrealistic, so it’s likely the Yankees take it day by day and put him on the roster later down the road should he respond well.

It could be a massive boost for the pitching staff, which only features 11 arms during the NLDS against the Kansas City Royals.

Yankees News: Nestor Cortes injury update, Alex Verdugo comments, Aaron Judge

Though it was ugly, the Yankees triumphed against the Royals in Game 1 on Saturday. They eked out a narrow 6-5 win thanks to Alex Verdugo, who made a couple of great defensive plays and went 2-for-3 with the game-winning RBI and a walk. For all those lobbying for Jasson Dominguez to get the start, Verdugo made an emphatic statement with his play despite his season-long struggles.

What made it better was that he was extremely candid in the postgame. He knew fans were getting on him while he was letting his performance crater. He knew they had every right to get on him. And he was very much upset with himself.

We’re not going to sit here and pretend like Verdugo’s 2024 output is all of a sudden forgivable because he came through in the postseason opener. His solid play will need to sustain in order for that to happen. That said, the talent is there. The clutch ability is there. He just has to put it all together and focus in order to make it happen. Then we can talk about the ultimate praise.

On the other side of the coin in Game 1, Aaron Judge had a concerning outing. After going 0-for-5 with five strikeouts in his final regular season appearance, Judge went 0-for-4 with three strikeouts against the Royals, as KC perfectly executed their plan to use Michael Wacha against him.

It felt like more of the same for Judge in the postseason. Though Yankees fans can be harsh at times, Judge really hasn’t been an October stalwart outside of a few key moments. And they’ve never really been magnified because the Yankees never won.

The numbers in totality look bad, too. Judge is hitting .206 with a .758 OPS with 69 strikeouts in 45 games. Yes, his 13 home runs and 25 RBI are solid, but he also only has four doubles. It’s a very bizarre mish-mash of statistics for somebody who has put up three surefire MVP seasons as well as abbreviated ones due to injury.

That said, Judge’s focus seems like it might be on another level based on what he told ESPN prior to the start of the postseason. He said “If you don’t win [it all], then what’s the point?” while acknowledging the Yankees’ winning culture.

We like the sound of it. Now we just need to see it put to the test.