Padres' Nestor Cortes: Slated for another sim game
Rotowire
Cortes (biceps) will toss another sim game early in the coming week, per MLB.com.
Cortes' most recent sim game, which took place Friday, lasted two innings and went well, according to Padres manager Mike Shildt. The team nonetheless wants the veteran lefty to throw to hitters one more time before potentially returning to the big-league club. That would still give Cortes a chance of being activated from the IL before the end of the regular season, though that likely wouldn't happen until near the end of the coming week.
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Padres' Nestor Cortes: Set to face hitters this weekend
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Cortes (biceps) is scheduled to face live hitters Friday at the Padres' facility in Arizona, Kevin Acee of The San Diego Union-Tribune reports.
Cortes has thrown multiple bullpen sessions since landing on the injured list Sept. 5 due to left biceps tendinitis and is now ready to take the next step in the recovery process by facing hitters. Assuming Friday's workout goes well, Cortes will likely be activated from the IL for the final week of the regular season. Cortes doesn't tentatively line up for a start next week, but with the likelihood that the Padres' playoff positioning will be solidified ahead of their final series next weekend versus the Diamondbacks, Acee speculates that Nick Pivetta won't be asked to start against Arizona. As a result, the Padres could turn to Cortes to make a 3-to-4-inning start or bulk-relief appearance at some point during the series.
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Padres' Nestor Cortes: Resumes mound work
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Cortes (biceps) was cleared to throw off a mound Saturday, MLB.com reports.
Cortes was moved to the injured list Sept. 5 after he experienced left biceps tendinitis coming out of his start two days earlier, but he's already begun to start throwing again following a brief shutdown period. The southpaw isn't on track to return from the IL later this week when first eligible, but he's holding out hope to contribute for the Padres at some point in the final week of the regular season. Cortes had been serving as the Padres' No. 5 starter prior to landing on the shelf, but it's unclear if he would immediately slot back into the rotation if he's activated next week.
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Padres' Nestor Cortes: Shelved with biceps injury
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The Padres placed Cortes (biceps) on the 15-day injured list Friday.
San Diego recalled reliever Ron Marinaccio from Triple-A El Paso in a corresponding move, but the Padres plan to call up Randy Vasquez from El Paso to fill the gap in the rotation Saturday in Colorado. Cortes' placement on the IL comes just two days after he turned in the worst of his six starts with the Padres since being acquired from the Brewers at the trade deadline. He took a loss against the Orioles after allowing six earned runs on seven hits -- including four home runs -- and three walks over just 2.1 innings.
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Padres' Nestor Cortes: Headed for injured list
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The Padres will place Cortes on the injured list due to left biceps tendinitis, Jeff Sanders of The San Diego Union-Tribune reports.
Cortes seemingly picked up the injury during Wednesday's start, when he yielded six runs and four home runs across 2.1 innings against the Orioles. Since being dealt to San Diego from Milwaukee, Cortes has a 5.47 ERA and a 21:13 K:BB across 26.1 innings and six appearances. Michael King (knee) is nearing a return and could fill Cortes' spot in the rotation.
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Padres' Nestor Cortes: Gives up four homers
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Cortes (2-4) took the loss Wednesday against the Orioles, allowing six runs on seven hits and three walks across 2.1 innings. He struck out two.
It was a rough day for the left-hander, who gave up a homer to Jackson Holliday to lead off the game before giving up five runs on three straight long balls in the third. Cortes has pitched only 5.1 innings across his last two starts, giving up nine runs on 12 hits in that span. His ERA is up to 6.29 with a 1.63 WHIP and 29:20 K:BB across 34.1 innings between the Padres and Brewers this season.
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Padres' Nestor Cortes: Shortened outing yields third loss
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Cortes (2-3) took the loss Friday against the Twins, allowing three runs on five hits and two walks in three-plus innings. He struck out two.
It's possible Cortes would have worked deeper into the outing, but he was ejected in the middle of the fourth inning, per Bobby Nightengale of The Minnesota Star Tribune. It was still a poor showing by the 30-year-old left-hander, who tied a season low in punchouts and issued multiple free passes for the fifth time in seven starts in 2025. Cortes has an uninspiring 5.06 ERA, 1.44 WHIP and 27:17 K:BB over 32 frames, though he should carry some upside in mixed leagues next week against an Orioles team with a .674 OPS versus left-handed pitching since the beginning of August.
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Padres' Nestor Cortes: Impressive in second win
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Cortes (2-2) allowed one hit and struck out three without walking a batter over six scoreless innings to earn the win over the Dodgers on Saturday.
Cortes turned in his best start of the season, retiring 16 straight batters to begin the game before giving up a single to Miguel Rojas in the sixth inning. This was Cortes' second quality start of the campaign, both of which account for his two wins. He's at a 4.66 ERA, 1.34 WHIP and 25:15 K:BB through 29 innings over six starts. The southpaw will look to carry this momentum into his next start, which is tentatively scheduled to come in Minnesota.
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Padres' Nestor Cortes: Done in by early homers
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Cortes (1-2) allowed four runs on seven hits and four walks while striking out five over 5.2 innings to take the loss versus the Giants on Monday.
Cortes gave up all four runs on three home runs in the first inning. He had allowed just one homer over his first two starts as a Padre, but his home debut for the team started poorly, and the damage was too much for his teammates to overcome. On the year, Cortes is now at a 5.87 ERA, 1.65 WHIP and 22:15 K:BB through 23 innings across five starts between San Diego and Milwaukee. He is projected for a tough home start versus the Dodgers this weekend.
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Padres' Nestor Cortes: Strikes out six in no-decision
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Cortes allowed a run on six hits and a walk while striking out six over 4.2 innings in a no-decision versus the Giants on Tuesday.
Cortes was an out shy of qualifying for the win. He threw 79 pitches (54 strikes), just three more pitches than he had in his San Diego debut last Wednesday, so it's possible the Padres will keep some limits in place. He's allowed a total of three runs on nine hits and four walks over 9.1 innings over his two starts with the Padres. The southpaw is tentatively scheduled for a rematch with the Giants early next week, which will be in San Diego.
Padres' Nestor Cortes: Tepid results in Padres debut
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Cortes allowed two runs on three hits and three walks while striking out three batters over 4.2 innings in a no-decision against Arizona on Wednesday.
Cortes made his debut with San Diego after joining the club via a trade from Milwaukee on July 31. The veteran lefty was wrapping up his rehab from an elbow injury at the time of the deal and was able to jump into the Padres' rotation Wednesday and handle a relatively healthy workload of 76 pitches. However, he seemed to have some rust in his first big-league start since April 3, as he threw just 45 strikes and walked three batters. Cortes also served up a long homer to Corbin Carroll, though he was at least able to keep San Diego from falling too far behind, and the Padres eventually pulled out the win with a comeback in the ninth inning. Cortes is slated to make his second start with his new team next week in San Francisco.
Cortes (elbow) is scheduled to start Wednesday's game against the Diamondbacks at Chase Field.
San Diego reinstated Cortes from the 60-day injured list Sunday, but he'll end up waiting a few days before entering the rotation as a replacement for Randy Vasquez, who was optioned to Triple-A El Paso in a corresponding move. Acquired from the Brewers this past Thursday, Cortes made just two starts at the big-league level before landing on the IL on April 6 due to a left elbow strain. Before being traded, Cortes proved his health over the course of a four-start rehab assignment in July, during which he turned in a 1.00 ERA, 0.72 WHIP and 18:3 K:BB in 18 innings. After building up to 93 pitches in his final rehab outing July 24, Cortes isn't expected to face a workload restriction Wednesday in his Padres debut.
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Padres' Nestor Cortes: Comes off injured list
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The Padres reinstated Cortes (elbow) from the 60-day injured list Sunday.
Shortly after being acquired from the Brewers at the trade deadline, Cortes will join the Padres' 26-man active roster after missing about four months due to a flexor strain. The left-hander threw 93 pitches over 5.2 innings during his final rehab outing at Triple-A Nashville on July 24, so he should be able to handle a full starter's workload whenever he makes his Padres debut. The open spot in San Diego's rotation lines up for next weekend versus Boston, but the Padres could have Cortes take the mound during the three-game series in Arizona that begins Monday.
The Padres acquired Cortes (elbow), infielder Jorge Quintana and cash from the Brewers on Thursday in exchange for outfielder Brandon Lockridge, Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic reports.
Cortes had been on the Brewers' 60-day injured list due to a left elbow flexor strain, but he should be ready to rejoin the big leagues after completing a four-start rehab assignment and building up to 5.2 innings and 93 pitches in his most recent outing for Triple-A Nashville on July 24. However, with the Milwaukee rotation fully stocked at the big-league level and the team having viable starting arms on hand at the Triple-A level in right-handers Chad Patrick, Logan Henderson and Tobias Myers, Cortes was deemed an expendable piece. He'll have a better chance at earning a full-time rotation spot in San Diego, where he could step in to replace right-hander Randy Vasquez as the team's No. 5 starter. Both Vasquez and Cortes could be in danger of moving to the bullpen when Michael King (shoulder) returns from the injured list, however.
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