With nervousness growing among the Yankees’ pitchers, whose playoff roles are still unclear, Thursday night’s 2-1 win in 10 innings over the Red Sox was their moment of relaxation.

Nestor Cortes, returning from a brief hiatus from the bullpen in Chicago, pitched a solid five innings (nine strikeouts), and manager Aaron Boone, still testing some relief positions – including closer – brought in the A-version of Clay Holmes, who benched the ghost runner in the 10th inning, giving the Yankees their second consecutive extra-inning win.

With Luke Weaver and Jake Cousins ​​– Boone’s two best high-leverage relief pitchers — unavailable, the decisive spot went to a shaky Holmes, who trotted in from the bullpen to boos from the Bronx crowd. But Holmes needed just six throws for the final two outs, a grounder to third base and a fly ball to left, before being followed by a standing ovation.

“Of course you want to get through,” said Holmes, who leads the majors with 12 blown saves. “And to win here is something special.”

As for Cortes, he walked back his weekend discontent over being kicked out of the rotation. There’s a good chance he’ll go to the bullpen in October — the Yankees could use his help in relief — but Cortes pitched like he deserved to stay in the bullpen on Thursday, allowing one run on three hits. He’s now 4-0 with a 1.85 ERA in his last six appearances, including five starts.

“I’m just trying to go out here and throw as many zeros as I can,” Cortes said. “I know last week I may have seemed like I was asking for too much, but I made my point. And at the end of the day, I’m going to do whatever this team asks of me to win.”

Knowing all this, I asked pitching coach Matt Blake before Thursday’s game about the daunting challenge ahead of him and the process already underway that actually began last Saturday when Cortes – the Yankees’ Opening Day starter – was moved to the bullpen to succeed the returning Clarke Schmidt.

Simply put, it’s a puzzle, except different pieces may fit into multiple holes. That’s why I used the word “complicated” to describe the Yankees’ pitching scenario. Blake chose a different adjective.

“I would say a convoluted situation,” Blake said. “Where there are moving parts in the rotation, there are moving parts in the bullpen. There are evolving roles, and we just have to be clear in our communication with guys. Because as much as we can say this is the best role, they have to understand why that’s the best role and where they’re going to land. They have to understand the mental aspect of changing roles and different innings or different situations.”

The Yankees’ decision-makers don’t even know exactly who’s going where. They have an idea based on what they’ve seen: Schmidt and Luis Gil shone last weekend against the Cubs, Cortes skillfully took on a relief role, Holmes failed as a closer.

But the Yankees also have 15 games left to evaluate their pitchers. As for the rotation, the Yankees have the reigning Cy Young winner in Gerrit Cole and are virtually guaranteed to follow suit with Carlos Rodon. Beyond that, however, Schmidt seems to have the edge at No. 3 over Gil, Cortes and Marcus Stroman.

How much can performance over the next two weeks affect these lineups? I asked Boone that question before Cortes’ start on Thursday. Schmidt will make his second start since a three-month stint on the IL (latium strain) on Friday against Boston.

“We’re just going to take it all in and try to make the best decisions to put the guys in positions to be successful,” Boone said. “That’s the focus.”

Schmidt pitched like an ace before his injury ruined his season in May, posting a 2.52 ERA and 67 strikeouts in 60 2⁄3 innings in 11 starts. The Yankees saw signs of that again on Saturday with his 4 2⁄3 scoreless innings against the Cubs, but he’s only pitched 75 times and is still considered to be in the process of building his arm strength. While Schmidt has experience in the bullpen, with 30 relief appearances over the past four seasons, he’s too tempting in the rotation. Gil, who just returned from a back strain, also falls into that category. Despite his midseason lapse, he’s still 13-6 with a 3.18 ERA and a 10.3 K/9 rate.

It’s also a question of how much the Yankees believe their bullpen needs to be strengthened, as Boone is woefully short on reliable options. Aside from Luke Weaver, who is now the de facto closer, there are far too many question marks. Schmidt would be a tremendous multi-inning backup, and perhaps Gil in short spurts.

The Yankees have a few more pressing matters to attend to before October. Namely, keeping the Orioles from the division title so they can avoid having one of their best pitchers eliminated in a wild-card round. But Boone & Co. will still be in the playoffs.

They’re just a long way from solving the pitching puzzle and knowing how to best utilize that personnel once they do.

David Lennon is an award-winning columnist, a voter for the Baseball Hall of Fame, and has covered six no-hitters, including two perfect games.