Former Yankees pitcher Nestor Cortes isn’t holding back when it comes to last season’s World Series, suggesting that the Yankees were the better team despite falling short against the Dodgers.

MLB: Los Angeles Dodgers at New York Yankees

In an interview with The Athletic’s Tyler Kepner, Cortes shared his perspective on what went wrong for New York in their championship showdown, pointing to missed opportunities and a disastrous moment that ultimately shifted the series.

The Grand Slam That Changed Everything

Cortes, who was battling an elbow injury, made his return to the mound in Game 1 of the World Series. It turned out to be a decision that backfired. With the Yankees holding a late lead, Cortes left a fastball over the plate to Freddie Freeman, who launched a game-winning grand slam. The momentum swung heavily in the Dodgers’ favor, and the Yankees never seemed to recover.
MLB: Boston Red Sox at New York Yankees, nestor cortesCredit: Gregory Fisher-Imagn Images
“We had done enough to win that game,” Cortes said. “They can talk whatever they want to talk, but we win Game 1 — which we should have — we lost 2 and 3, we win Game 4 and we should have won Game 5. Then we go back to L.A. up 3 to 2.”

While Cortes acknowledged the mistakes the team made, he still believes the Yankees had what it took to win the series if things had unfolded differently.

Who Deserves the Blame?

Cortes took some accountability for his role in the loss but also pointed out the broader failures of the team. The decision to send him out there in the first place falls on manager Aaron Boone, who likely gambled on Cortes despite his injury because of his past postseason success. It was a high-risk move, and the Yankees paid the price.

“So people can say it slipped away from us, people can say we made a lot of mistakes, which we did,” Cortes continued. “But at the end of the day, we were the better team. I see it that way, and I’m sure everybody in that clubhouse sees it that way.”

Regardless of how the Yankees feel about the way things played out, the Dodgers capitalized on every mistake and ultimately earned the championship. Cortes admitted as much, saying, “They deserve all the credit in the world, they won the World Series. At the moment, they showed they were the better team.”

Yankees Move On With Max Fried

The Yankees didn’t waste time making changes this offseason. They shipped Cortes and infield prospect Caleb Durbin to the Brewers in exchange for elite closer Devin Williams, strengthening their bullpen in a major way. To replace Cortes in the rotation, they handed out a massive eight-year, $218 million contract to Max Fried, hoping he can be the missing piece to take the team over the top in 2025.

For all of Cortes’ confidence in last year’s team, the Yankees are betting that their new-look roster will be even better this time around.