Former New York Yankees and now Milwaukee Brewers starting pitcher Nestor Cortes' return to the Bronx didn't go as planned, to put it mildly.
It was a rough day at the office for Cortes from the jump. The Yankees spoiled his Brewers debut immediately, rattling off back-to-back-to-back home runs on three straight pitches to open the contest. New York continued to pour it on, knocking on the door of the MLB single-game home run record en route to a 20-9 victory.
To make matters worse, Cortes ostensibly couldn't have been a much worse sport following his and the Brewers' brutal outing against the Yankees. Not only did he not address the media, but the southpaw made a mad dash toward the exit and evaded the press.
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Nestor Cortes dodging the media only makes getting obliterated by the Yankees look even worse
Per Max Goodman of NJ.com, Cortes wasn't available to speak with reporters after the game "because he already left Yankee Stadium." Yikes. Talk about a poor display, on and off the field.
When entering your ex's house, a place you once called him, walking in and out of the building with your head held high shows strength. Regardless of what happens between arriving and exiting, the goal is to remind them what they're missing and that letting you go was a mistake. Instead, Cortes did the opposite, further validating the Yankees' decision to trade him to Milwaukee this past winter with his in- and postgame performance.
Cortes was a main piece in the Yankees-Brewers offseason swap that sent two-time All-Star closer Devin Williams to the Big Apple. His departure was seemingly foreshadowed by New York's signing of standout left-hander Max Fried.
Nevertheless, Yankees fans presumably still had a bone to pick with Cortes. He gave up a walk-off grand slam to Los Angeles Dodgers star Freddie Freeman in Game 1 of last year's World Series, which hasn't been forgotten. But the club's star-studded lineup helped them exercise some demons.