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New York Yankees starting pitcher Domingo Germán was scratched from Monday’s start against the Tampa Bay Rays due to an arm injury, so it caught many by surprise when he entered the game in the fifth inning out of the bullpen.
Germán wound up pitching five shutout innings in relief with four strikeouts and two hits allowed, but the damage was already done as New York went on to lose 5-1 at Yankee Stadium.
After the game, Yankees manager Aaron Boone explained the usage of Germán, saying he was cleared by the team doctor in the early evening but he was only available out of the bullpen due to the lack of warmup time to start the game:
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Aaron Boone explains the decision process behind Domingo Germán appearing in relief against the Rays. pic.twitter.com/V3R43kNPaw
Rookie right-hander Jhony Brito, who was recalled from Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre to replace Germán as the starter, surrendered five earned runs on six hits, four of which were home runs, in four innings of work.
The Yankees offense was nonexistent, as they were held to three hits and scored only on a solo home run by Jake Bauers in the second inning.
It was just a few hours earlier that Boone said Germán felt discomfort in his armpit on Sunday and was unable to play catch, which led to the decision to scratch him from the start, per ESPN.
“We just didn’t feel like we could risk sending him out there and then if we had to pull the plug in the first inning or something, it would put us in a tough situation,” Boone said before the game. “So he’s going to see the doctor I think in about an hour just to rule anything out. We don’t think it’s an IL situation, but want him to see the doctor and just make sure.”
In the end, it appears that the Yankees avoided another disappointing injury in a season filled with them. Boone noted after the game that there doesn’t appear to be any structural damage to Germán, and he denied that using him out of the bullpen was part of a strategy to try to throw Tampa Bay off balance.
The Yankees will try to bounce back when they face the Rays in Game 2 of their series on Tuesday night.
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