Nestor Needed One Run. He Got It.

It seems to me that, if a baseball team wins, and its starting pitcher comes close to pitching a no-hitter, that starter should be designated the winning pitcher. Yesterday, at Yankee Stadium, it didn't work out that way.

Nestor Cortes started for the Yankees, in the rain-rescheduled finale of a 3-game series against the Texas Rangers. He dangerously allowed a leadoff walk in the 2nd inning, and walked another in the 6th, but stranded the runner each time. He walked the leadoff man in the 7th, got an out, then walked another, and worked out of the jam.

But the Yankees weren't scoring, either. Here, Nasty Nestor was pitching a no-hitter, and the team wasn't even in position to win the game.

Finally, with 1 out in the top of the 8th, he allowed a single to Eli White. Aaron Boone took him out, and Cortes got a standing ovation. Clay Holmes came on, and threw 4 pitches, the 4th resulting in a double play.

With 1 out in the bottom of the 8th, Aaron Judge singled. Anthony Rizzo hit a drive into the gap in left-center. Judge hustled enough to score. Rizzo didn't quite hustle enough to get to 3rd base, and was thrown out there. Nevertheless, the all-important run counted.

Aroldis Chapman got the 1st 2 outs in the 9th, allowed a single, and then got the last out of a very nervy ballgame. Yankees 1, Rangers 0. WP: Holmes (4-0). SV: Chapman (7). LP: Brett Martin (0-3). The Yankees are now 3 games ahead of the Tampa Bay Rays in the American League Eastern Division, 4 in the loss column. It's only 28 games, too early to talk about Magic Numbers.

What a performance by Cortes. At this rate, Jacob deGrom might only be the 4th starter on the Yankees. Certainly, with Max Scherzer having come to town, he's no better than the 2nd starter on the Mets.

Tonight, the Yankees begin a brief 2-game home series against those pesky Toronto Blue Jays. Then it's off to Chicago to play the White Sox.