SEATTLE — Just when the Yankees were feeling good about their overall health, Jake Cousins left the mound with a trainer in the sixth inning Thursday afternoon.
Cousins had thrown just six pitches (the last a slider that struck out Julio Rodriguez) when Aaron Boone and a trainer came out of the dugout to visit him on the mound.
There were no outward signs of injury other than his velocity had dropped across the board, but after a brief conversation, Cousins left the game with a trainer.
The Yankees later announced that Cousins was dealing with right pectoral tightness.
In his first appearance since Sunday, Cousins' first two pitches Thursday were concerning.
He threw a 90.4 mph sinker (below his season average of 95.1) and then hit Josh Rojas with a 91.8 mph fastball (below his season average of 94.9).
Cousins then threw four sliders to Rodriguez that struck him out, but they averaged 80.9 mph, below his season average of 82.1.
At a time when the Yankees are mixing and matching in the late innings without an established closer, Cousins has emerged as a valuable high-leverage arm.
Through Thursday he had a 2.39 ERA with 52 strikeouts in 37 ⅔ innings.
Left-hander Tim Hill came in out of the bullpen to replace Cousins, who underwent Tommy John surgery in 2022 and spent time on the injured list at Triple-A earlier this year with forearm inflammation.
