Watch: Aaron Judge Fires 97mph Throw In Yankees’ 4-2 Loss To Twins

The New York Yankees lost to the Minnesota Twins 4-2 in Monday night’s three-game series opener in Minneapolis, but Aaron Judge managed to deliver one impressive defensive play early in the contest.

Yankees Twins Aaron Judge throw

With Minnesota leading 1-0 in the bottom of the third inning, Brian Dozier attempted to score on a sacrifice fly, but Judge fired a 97.7 mph toss from right field to catcher Austin Romine to just tag out the Twins second baseman. Romine’s touch on the back came less than a second before Dozier reached home with his left hand.

“Off the bat, I’m trying to first make the catch, then once I was able to get behind it, you try to give [catcher Austin] Romine a nice easy hop,” Judge said. “He made a great tag on Dozier there. Dozier tried to slide around and get his hand in, but what a tag by Romine.”

The rookie outfielder’s throw was his hardest of the year and traveled 262 feet on one hop.

Joe Mauer ignited the Twins’ game-winning rally in the eighth with a leadoff single that Judge narrowly missed, and Miguel Sano then added a single to left field. Eduardo Escobar followed with the game-winning hit in the same frame, a go-ahead, pinch-hit RBI single to left. Eddie Rosario then delivered an RBI double — his second of the game — by smacking a grounder into right field to stretch Minnesota’s lead to 4-2 in the eighth.

“We found a way, had to scratch across a couple in the eighth there,” said Twins manager Paul Molitor. “Escobar did a nice job on an off-speed pitch. He can go down and get those, especially right-handed. Our bullpen preserved the lead, and we beat the rain. So we’ll take it.”

Rain began pouring at Target Field in the eighth and grew more intense in the ninth, but Brandon Kintzler retired the Yankees to close it out.

Yankees righty Bryan Mitchell allowed two runs (one earned) on six hits in five innings of work during his first start of the season, while the Bombers’ rookie first baseman Garrett Cooper went 3-for-4 with two doubles and an RBI.

Romine belted a double to right-center field in the fifth inning to score Cooper and put New York within 2-1.

“After getting that first hit [on Sunday], you feel like you can get comfortable in the box,” Cooper said. “It was a matter of time. You get that first one out of the way and you can relax up there to do what you normally do.”

Mitchell was charged with a run-scoring error in the third when he couldn’t corral Starlin Castro’s toss at first while covering the base with two outs. Zack Granite thus scored and the Twins went up 2-0.

“I was there, I was on the bag, and it was off the end of my glove,” Mitchell said. “I don’t know if I looked away at the last second, but that’s just a ball I need to catch.”

Yankees reliever Caleb Smith took the loss despite a strong three-inning MLB debut that saw him retire six straight batters in the sixth and seventh along with three strikeouts and three groundouts. The rookie left-hander also allowed four hits and two runs in the eighth.

“I thought it was two pitches I didn’t execute, and they cost me,” Smith said.

The Yankees’ loss came on the heels of several terrible injury-related news. On Monday, it was revealed first baseman Greg Bird would undergo right ankle surgery on Tuesday, and manager Joe Girardi said Bird is expected to be out at least six weeks and could potentially miss the rest of the season.  Bird fouled a ball off the ankle the last week of spring training and has not been right since, playing in only 19 games.

New York also learned on Monday that right-handed pitcher Michael Pineda would undergo season-ending Tommy John-type right elbow surgery, as was expected. The surgery will also be performed Tuesday.

The Twins offered a pregame video tribute and moment of silence for BOB WOLFF, the New York broadcaster who died Saturday. Wolff was part of the Twins’ original broadcast crew in 1961, and followed the team from Washington, D.C.

The second game of the three-game series will be held Tuesday at 8:10 pm EST at Target Field. Right-hander Luis Cessa will make his fourth start of the year for the Yankees (47-44, 3rd in AL East), while righty Bartolo Colon will make his Twins (47-45, 2nd in AL Central) debut against the Yankees after signing a Minor League deal on July 7.

BOSTON, MA – JULY 16: Aaron Judge #99 of the New York Yankees begins to the round the bases before he is robbed of a home run by Jackie Bradley Jr. #19 of the Boston Red Sox in the eighth inning of game two of a doubleheader against the New York Yankees at Fenway Park on July (Photo by Adam Glanzman/Getty Images)