​Phillies reportedly in contract talks with ex-Yankees All-Star pitcher originally appeared on The Sporting News.
Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.The Philadelphia Phillies went into the 2026 MLB trade deadline with a need in the outfield, the bullpen, and the rotation. They got some reliever help and then added Luis Arraez, shifting their defense around to upgrade the offense.But the one thing they didn’t add was another starting pitcher. While Dave Dombrowski didn’t address that position at the deadline, he is reportedly close to making a move in the middle of August.According to Chris Cotillo of MassLive.com, the Phillies are reportedly in talks to sign former New York Yankees left-handed All-Star pitcher Nestor Cortes.Phillies in talks to sign Nestor Cortes”Per source, ex-Yankees Nestor Cortes is in talks with the Phillies on a free agent deal,” Cotillo reports. “Red Sox were involved some as Cortes has been working out for teams. He had arm surgery last fall.”The Phillies didn’t add any starting pitching help at the trade deadline, and didn’t then claim or sign a free agent in the week or so afterwards. But now, they’re reportedly in talks to land a former All-Star.Cortes is a 31-year-old left-handed pitcher who has experience as a starter and coming out of the bullpen. He infamously allowed Freddie Freeman a walk-off home run in the 2024 MLB World Series, but he’s been a solid pitcher in his career.Last season, however, was a bit shaky. He played for the Milwaukee Brewers, posting a 9.00 ERA in two starts before being traded to the San Diego Padres.In six starts for San Diego, he posted a 5.47 ERA with a 1-3 record and 0.0 bWAR. Not the best season for Cortes, especially considering he also needed surgery and has been working back from it for a while now.But if the Phillies can get Cortes back to his 2024 self, when he posted a 3.77 ERA in 174.1 innings, or his 2.44 ERA in 158.1 innings during an All-Star season for the Yankees, then they could have a quality lefty pitcher on their hands.MORE: Phillies expected to name Alex Cora manager after 2026 unless they win the World SeriesWhile he is a starting pitcher, the Phillies have a set five-man rotation. Cristopher Sanchez, Zack Wheeler, Jesus Luzardo, Aaron Nola, and Andrew Painter make up the rotation right now.They could be adding Cortes to move to a six-man rotation and help save the arms for the postseason. Or, maybe Wheeler lands on the injured list amid his recent struggles to give him a bit of a break before the postseason, with Cortes taking his spot.But the more likely scenario is that Cortes will be a long reliever out of the bullpen for Philadelphia, something this club desperately needs with how heavily taxed this bullpen has been in August.Regardless of how Cortes will be used, he first needs to officially sign with the Phillies, and they’ll need to make a spot on the roster for him.This is an interesting potential addition for the Phi