Yanks, O’s brawl after Kjerstad hit in head by pitch

BALTIMORE — The New York Yankees took the opener of their three-game set with AL East-leading Baltimore, beating the Orioles 4-1 in a chaotic matchup Friday night that also featured Aaron Judge‘s 33rd homer.

Benches and bullpens cleared and there was some pushing and shoving in the bottom of the ninth after Orioles outfielder Heston Kjerstad was hit around the ear flap of his helmet by a Clay Holmes pitch.

With one out, a 97 mph pitch by Holmes hit Kjerstad in the helmet. After a delay, Kjerstad was able to get up but left the game. Then things escalated, with Orioles manager Brandon Hyde walking toward the New York dugout and pointing, at which point Yankees catcher Austin Wells tried to restrain Hyde but benches and bullpens emptied.

Hyde was ejected.

“It’s an emotional time … I got my guy who just got hit right in the ear,” Hyde said. “I’m upset and then I see their dugout. They’re waving at me and yelling at me, so I just didn’t appreciate it at the time.”

Hyde said that Kjerstad was undergoing tests. He was not made available to reporters after the game.

Gerrit Cole (2-1) pitched six solid innings for the Yankees, who pulled within a game of first place. Baltimore has dropped four in a row.

The teams met for the first time since the Orioles took two of three in New York last month. Since then, the Yankees are 6-13 and Baltimore is 8-12. That has allowed Boston to creep to within 5½ games of the division lead.

“There’s been some balls back and forth hitting guys I think throughout the season — playing with the Orioles,” Judge said in an on-field interview after the game. “So, I think the tension just kind of rose there in a situation where they’re down in the game, you know getting a little heated.

“But, Clay was able to come in here and shut the door.”

Cole allowed a run and five hits, throwing 106 pitches in his longest outing — by both innings and pitches — since returning from elbow problems in the middle of June. Three relievers finished, with Holmes working a hitless ninth for his 21st save in 26 chances.

Baltimore rookie Cade Povich (1-4) permitted three runs and five hits in 5⅓ innings. He walked five and struck out six.

Anthony Volpe led off the second with a single and ended up all the way on third thanks to right fielder Anthony Santander‘s error. Jose Trevino‘s double gave New York a 1-0 lead, and a single by Jahmai Jones brought Trevino home.

The Orioles, who were shut out by the Chicago Cubs on Wednesday and Thursday, put the leadoff man on base five times in the first seven innings against New York, but their only run came on an RBI triple by Ramon Urias in the second.

Judge, who had gone eight games without an RBI or an extra-base hit, answered in the third with a drive past the deep left-field wall at Camden Yards. He leads the major leagues in home runs by five over Shohei Ohtani.

Judge walked in his other four plate appearances.

The Yankees added a run in the ninth on Juan Soto‘s RBI single.

The Orioles are unbeaten in their past 22 series against the AL East, going 16-0-6. The Yankees can end that run with a victory Saturday or Sunday.

Judge said he didn’t expect the emotions from Friday night to carry over.

“This is a division rival … big games coming up ahead, we got bigger things to focus on than that kind of stuff,” he said. “We got games to win.”

The Associated Press contributed to this report.