Yankees star Aaron Judge pulled from win over Orioles early after being hit in hand by pitch

Yankees star Aaron Judge was pulled from New York’s 4-2 win over the Baltimore Orioles early on Tuesday after he took a fastball to the hand while at the plate.

Thankfully for the Yankees, Judge seems to have avoided a major injury.

Judge was up to bat in the third inning at Yankee Stadium when a fastball from Orioles starter Albert Suarez drilled him in the hand. Judge was shaken up in the moment, and he hopped around a bit while holding his fingers before walking to first.

Judge remained in the game and took the field at the top of the fourth inning. It seemed initially that he had avoided injury altogether.

By the time Judge was due up at the plate at the bottom of the inning, the Yankees pulled him from the game. Trent Grisham came in to pinch-hit for him.

The replays of the hit don’t look great. Judge appeared to take the ball straight to his left pinky at the bottom of the bat, and he seemed to struggle to squeeze his hand with athletic trainers.

Judge underwent initial testing at a local hospital on Tuesday. He confirmed after the game that he didn’t fracture his left hand and that all tests came back negative. The move to pull him from the game, Yankees manager Aaron Boone said, was done as a precaution.

While tests came back negative, it’s unclear how long Judge might be sidelined. He said he was hopeful that he’d be able to play Wednesday.

The Yankees held a 3-0 lead over the Orioles when Judge was pulled from the game. He entered Tuesday with a .299 batting average with 26 home runs and 64 RBI in 73 games this season, his ninth in the league.

Judge’s injury is the second significant one for the Yankees in recent days. They lost first baseman Anthony Rizzo for at least two months after he fractured his arm in an awkward collision in their loss to the Boston Red Sox on Sunday.

Despite losing Judge early, the Yankees held on to grab a two-run win over the Orioles. After the Yanks jumped up to a 4-0 lead, Anthony Santander hit a two-run homer for the Orioles in the ninth inning, but that was as close as they got.

The Yankees hold a 51-24 record, which is good for first in the AL East. The Orioles have lost three of their past five and trail the Yankees by 2.5 games in the division.