New York Yankees captain Derek Jeter was removed early from his long-awaited season debut Thursday because of tightness in his quad, manager Joe Girardi said.

Jeter will undergo an MRI but also told Girardi that he felt well enough to play Friday. He was replaced by pinch-hitter Brett Gardner in the eighth inning of New York's 8-4 victory against the Kansas City Royals.

"It just tightened up a little bit, so hopefully it's not a big deal," Jeter said. "It's not frustrating yet. We'll see. They MRI everything around here. I'm going to get an MRI and we'll find out, but I hope it's not a big deal. I don't ever think anything is a big deal, so I'm hoping for the best."

Jeter said his quad tightened up during his third at-bat, and added he didn't think this injury came from pushing too hard in his debut.

"It's just stiff," he said. "We'll find out tomorrow."

Girardi also is hopeful Jeter's latest injury isn't serious.

"We hope it's not much. We won't really know until tomorrow," Girardi said. "Jeet thinks he'll be able to play tomorrow. Hopefully, it's nothing, just leg tightness, and he'll be ready to go."