Yankees' Jordan Montgomery having forearm tested in New York

HOUSTON – Yankees starter Jordan Montgomery made an early exit on Tuesday night, due to left forearm tightness, though he's hoping to miss just one turn.

After the Yankees' 4-0 victory against the Astros at Minute Maid Park, the lefty said that his level of concern is "not too high'' and that he's dealt with similar issues before.

"It's not like I’m hurting really that bad,'' said Montgomery, who did not come out for Tuesday's second inning. "(It's) just enough to be there and kind of scare you a little bit.''

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Montgomery is headed back to New York on Wednesday morning, and will undergo an MRI and an exam by the club's physician, Dr. Christopher Ahmad.

But with Montgomery already a candidate to land on the 10-day disabled list, Yankees manager Aaron Boone said he's likely to tab Domingo German to take Sunday's turn at Yankee Stadium against Cleveland.

German gave the Yanks a huge lift, tossing four scoreless innings in relief of Montgomery and battling against veteran ace Justin Verlander - who struck out 14 batters in eight scoreless innings.

Montgomery pitched a 1-2-3 inning, getting George Springer on a fly out, Jose Altuve on a groundout and Carlos Correa on a fly out.

"That’s probably the best inning I’ve had this year,'' Montgomery said with a laugh about his seven-pitch effort.

However, pitching coach Larry Rothschild noticed that Montgomery's fastball velocity was down to 88 mph and made the suggestion that he not continue.

"We didn't mess around at that point,'' Boone said.

"I couldn’t really let it rip, honestly,'' Montgomery said, adding that he felt some discomfort about every other pitch.

"(Throwing 88 mph) is not horrible but you want to go out with your best stuff. Like I said, it might be a quick fix, so might as well do it.

"Maybe just miss a start. You never know,'' Montgomery said. "I would be surprised if it’s something (significant).''

Montgomery admitted that he's felt something for the past few days, getting treatment and doing some exercises to combat the discomfort.

"I just thought I could kind of throw through it,'' said Montgomery.

"Certainly there's concern,'' Boone said before the MRI results are in.

Naturally, any forearm issue leads to the worry that it might be the harbinger of an elbow issue that might require Tommy John surgery.

However, as a minor leaguer, "I've had forearm tightness before,'' Montgomery said. "I don’t know necessarily in the same area, but I think it’s all the same.''

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