Gary Sanchez caught the first five innings of their 6-2 loss to the Red Sox Friday night at Fenway Park before leaving the game with back spasms. He was pinch-hit for by backup Rob Brantly to begin the top of the sixth.

Sanchez did not outwardly show any signs of injury. The backstop had sat out Thursday’s series opener after getting “dinged” by a few foul tips in Wednesday’s win over the Phillies, manager Aaron Boone said.

Sanchez was 0-for-1 with a strikeout and a run scored before exiting. He had caught Gerrit Cole for a second straight start.

With Kyle Higashioka still on the COVID-19 list — he is scheduled to meet the team in Boston on Sunday to fly to Tampa for a Monday workout where his status will be reevaluated — Brantly was tasked with catching the rest of Friday’s game.

Since the All-Star break, the Yankees have been playing without starters Aaron Judge and Gio Urshela (COVID-19) and Luke Voit (knee).

This story originally appeared on: NyPost - Author:Greg Joyce