Zimmermann struggles early and Flaa debuts in 5-1 loss (updated)

The evidence that Chris Holt had rejoined the Orioles tonight, resuming his duties as pitching coach, was laid out for everyone in the top of the third inning after another Yankees batter scalded a Bruce Zimmermann pitch.

He'd rather stay in the dugout and take his chances with the television cameras, but the Yankees were making loud noises. The hits, the outs, it didn't matter.

Holt missed the last series while attending to a personal matter and went through intake testing yesterday. He counseled Zimmermann, the local product who tried hard to minimize the damage while Corey Kluber was silencing the Orioles early.

When manager Brandon Hyde appeared in the fourth, Zimmermann's night was over.

Zimmermann was charged with four runs in 3 2/3 innings, the last scoring after Dillon Tate inherited a bases-loaded, two-out jam, and the Yankees defeated the Orioles 5-1 before an announced crowd of 6,662 at Camden Yards.

Aaron Judge lined a home run into the left field seats in the third, with an exit velocity of 116.2 mph per Statcast. Kyle Higashioka homered to right field in the fourth, with DJ Stewart losing the ball in the lights before it landed in the seats, and Zimmermann's line was complete after Gio Urshela singled off Tate to score DJ LeMahieu.

The four-game series resumes Wednesday night with the Orioles 10-13 overall and 3-9 at home.

"Just thought he left some balls out over the plate," Hyde said of Zimmermann. "Obviously gave up some hard contact early, kind of battled through those first three innings and we were still In the game when he left the game. It wasn't the best night for him. They squared him up quite a bit. He's got to be able to pitch in a little bit more. I don't think his stuff was as crisp as it has been in the past."

Jay Flaa, 28, became the fifth Oriole to make his major league debut this month when he replaced Cole Sulser with the bases empty and two outs in the eighth. Higashioka fouled out to catcher Chance Sisco.

The sixth-round draft pick in 2015 is the 20th native of North Dakota to reach the majors. He walked the first two batters in the ninth, received a visit from Holt, induced a double play grounder from Giancarlo Stanton and struck out Judge on a slider.

"I think he was setting them up," Hyde said. "Two walks to start the inning and escape artist. No, that was obviously really cool."

The Orioles optioned Flaa tonight to create a spot for Dean Kremer, who starts Wednesday night.

"It was pretty surreal being out there. It was obviously a lot of emotions building up to that and everything," said Flaa, who had his parents, girlfriend, her parents and his neighbors in the stands.

"It was just kind of like, not really worrying about who was in the box. I've got enough going on with trying to control my heart rate. It was one of those things where it was more of an internal battle, just focusing on just playing baseball, the game I've played my whole life."

Left fielder Austin Hays threw out Stanton at the plate to end the fourth and notch another outfield assist. Zimmermann surrendered a career-high nine hits - though his time in the majors has been brief - and turned in his shortest start in 2021.

The Yankees had filled the bases on two singles and a walk, the latter to Judge, who earlier hit his 20th career home run against the Orioles in 56 games.

Tate tossed 2 1/3 scoreless innings on only 20 pitches heading into the seventh, but Stanton led off with a 434-foot home run to center field, exit velocity 114.1 mph, for a 5-1 lead. Judge struck out and Sulser entered.

The longest outings for Tate as an Oriole occurred in 2019 when he twice completed three innings.

Zimmermann was behind 1-0 just eight pitches into his start. LeMahieu doubled, held on Stanton's grounder, took third base on Judge's sharp single to left and scored on Urshela's fly ball to center field.

LeMahieu wasn't interested in testing Hays' arm. Judge must have shared his notes last night.

The Yankees were the last team in the majors without a sacrifice fly. Your crazy stat of the night. They also lead the majors with 12 runners thrown out on the bases.

Zimmermann stranded Higashioka and Rougned Odor after two-out singles in the second, falling behind LeMahieu 3-1 and retiring him on a full-count popup.

An 11-pitch first inning was followed by 23 in the second and 23 in the third, which included two strikeouts, a Gleyber Torres double and Aaron Hicks' liner to short.

"It's probably one of the best (lineups) in baseball despite how their record is," Zimmermann said. "Everybody knew they were going to break out eventually. You just don't get a break through that lineup. There's just a lot of guys with a lot of power, so you kind of just have to be on the entire time and keep them off balance.

"To be honest it was probably the best I felt in a couple starts mechanically speaking. I felt like I had a lot better command through the zone. I needed to execute more fastballs in. That was pretty apparent when they were able to stay on the off-speed stuff with those singles and hard hit balls to the infield. I just wasn't keeping them off balance enough with the fastball in.

"I think my stuff still plays very well against them, I've just got to execute a little better."

Kluber walked Hays with one out in the second inning and hit Sisco, but Ryan Mountcastle grounded sharply, as in 99.2 mph, into a 5-4-3 double play.

Mountcastle began the night in a 2-for-31 slump. He also flied out, roped a single into center field and struck out with two on and two outs in the eighth.

Sisco took over the team lead with his second hit by pitch. He ranked first last summer with six, was tied for second in 2019 with nine and led the Orioles in 2018 with 11 despite his part-time status.

Sisco hasn't drawn a walk this season. In a separate note, he's 4-for-4 throwing out runners attempting to steal after nabbing Torres tonight.

The Orioles didn't have a hit until Trey Mancini led off the fourth with a double and scored on Maikel Franco's infield hit - his team-leading 17th RBI of the season.

"Franco gives himself a chance because he's in the action every at-bat, every pitch," Hyde said. "He's trying to do damage ... He's got a feel for the barrel, he's got a feel to get hits."

Hays lined out to Urshela with runners on the corners and one out in the sixth inning. Judge made a leaping catch in front of the grounds crew shed in the seventh to rob Pat Valaika and hold Mountcastle at first base.

Valaika flied out to right field in all four at-bats.

Kluber, the two-time Cy Young Award winner with the Indians, held the Orioles to one run in 6 2/3 innings and lowered his career ERA against them to 2.73 in 56 innings. Jonathan Loaisiga stranded two runners in the seventh and two more in the eighth.