NEW YORK — NEW YORK (AP) — Aaron Judge was hit in the left hand by a pitch in the Yankees’ 4-2 victory over the Baltimore Orioles on Tuesday night in the series opener between the American League’s winningest teams, another concern for New York just one game after first baseman Anthony Rizzo broke his right forearm.
Judge appeared to be hit in the pinky finger by a 152.1 mph fastball from Albert Suárez (3-1) in the third inning. The hitter initially remained in the game, but was lifted for a pinch hit in the fourth. The Yankees said he was going to a hospital for tests.
New York said before the game that it expects Rizzo will be sidelined for eight weeks due to an injury he suffered in a collision at first base on Sunday in Boston. The Yankees also placed relievers Ian Hamilton and Cody Poteet on the injured list, but expect to activate Gerrit Cole to make his season debut against the Orioles on Wednesday after the reigning AL Cy Young award winner recovered from inflammation. on the nerve in the right elbow.
Nestor Cortes (4-5) pitched six scoreless innings and Anthony Volpe, Giancarlo Stanton, Gleyber Torres and DJ LeMahieu drove in runs for the Yankees (51-24), who have the best record in the majors but are just 10-10 against AL East rivals. The second-place Orioles (47-25) won three of four at home against New York from April 29 to May 2 and are 17-7 against their division.
Anthony Santander hit a two-run home run in the ninth off Clay Holmes, his ninth home run in June and 18th this season. Holmes hasn’t allowed a home run since August 28.
New York brought in 25-year-old Ben Rice to make his major league debut. Before a sellout crowd of 47,429, Rice played seven innings at first base and went 1 for 4 with a single in a two-run third that built a 3-0 lead. Volpe drove in the first run with a single in the second inning.
Rice, who played most of his minor league games as a catcher, showed some inexperience when he moved to right to field Austin Hays’ second-inning grounder, which Torres could have hit at second. Thinking Rice would cover first, Cortes remained on the mound and Hays reached with an infield hit.
Yankees manager Aaron Boone reached the bottom of the sixth after attending his son Brandon’s high school graduation. Bench coach Brad Ausmus was in charge during the first innings.
Pitching with a mint green glove stitched with “Hialeah Kid,” Cortes allowed five hits with six strikeouts and no walks. He is 4-2 with a 1.57 ERA at home and 0-3 with a 5.57 ERA on the road.
Suárez lost for the first time with the Orioles, throwing 96 pitches and managing just 11 strikeouts. He allowed three runs, six hits and five walks as the Yankees stranded nine runners in the first four innings.
Suárez’s win against the Los Angeles Angels on April 22 was his first since June 23, 2016, with San Francisco. The 2,860 days between wins as a starting pitcher was the second longest in 70 years, according to the Elias Sports Bureau, behind only Travis Blackley’s 2,906 from 2004-12.
TRAINER’S ROOM
Orioles: 3B Jordan Westburg left midway through the second inning with left hip discomfort one inning later colliding with baserunner Juan Soto.
Yankees: Rizzo was placed on the 10-day IL. … Hamilton (right lat strain, retroactive to Monday) and Poteet (right triceps strain, retroactive to Saturday) were placed on 15-day IL. Hamilton will not play for three to four weeks and Poteet for one to two weeks. … RHP Clarke Schmidt (lat strain) was reassigned to 60-day IL. … RHPs Scott Effross (Tommy John surgery, back surgery, knee surgery) and JT Brubaker (Tommy John surgery) begin rehab duties Wednesday at Class A Tampa.
NEXT
LHP Cade Povich (0-1, 4.76 ERA) starts for the Orioles against Cole.
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