Yankees’ Clarke Schmidt to get MRI after leaving start against Toronto because of forearm tightness

TORONTO (AP) — New York Yankees right-hander Clarke Schmidt was set to have an MRI on Friday after leaving his start Thursday night against Toronto after three innings because of tightness in his right forearm.

Schmidt allowed three runs and four hits, including a home run, in New York’s 8-5 loss that left the Yankees a game behind the Blue Jays for the AL East lead. He walked two and struck out one.

Schmidt said he’s been dealing with soreness in his arm for the past three or four weeks.

“Earlier on in the game it felt OK,” Schmidt said. “As the game progressed it sort of tightened up a little bit on me. I felt like the whole night I was kind of guarding it a little bit on the breaking balls, really not ripping them or trying to get a lot behind them.”

Schmidt threw 55 pitches, 31 strikes.

Schmidt is 4-4 with a 3.32 ERA in 14 starts. He left a June 21 start against Baltimore after throwing a career-high 103 pitches in seven hitless innings, part of a streak of 28 1/3 scoreless innings.

“Any time you’re getting an MRI on your forearm, or whatever the body part is, you’re not feeling happy about it,” Schmidt said. “I’m praying everything is going to be clean and minor. We’ll see what happens.”

Right-hander Clayton Beeter replaced Schmidt to begin the fourth. Beeter allowed three runs in 1 2/3 innings and took the loss.

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