Back from COVID-19 list, Yankees shortstop Gleyber Torres played key role late in Corey Kluber's no-hitter

ARLINGTON, Texas – Nothing like being thrown right into the fire.

Gleyber Torres, who returned Wednesday afternoon from the COVID-19 injured list, started that night at shortstop and had an eventful game, to say the least.

The shortstop singled in his first at-bat and reached base three times.

Oh, right, this too:

The 24-year-old, shifted to the first base side of second base in the ninth, fielded Willie Calhoun’s grounder and fired to Luke Voit to end Corey Kluber’s no-hitter, the 11th in franchise history and first since David Cone’s perfect game in 1999.

"I was a little nervous for sure," Torres said Thursday morning with a smile. "Kluber threw really well for eight innings and we didn’t want to make a mistake in that last inning. In that inning I was really focused to do whatever I could to help him. It was a special night for me. First time in my career I’ve been part of a no-hitter. Happy for him, happy for us."

As for testing positive for COVID-19 a second time – Torres had it in December – he was perplexed to say the least.

"When the trainers called and told me I had COVID, I was like, ‘are you sure?’ " said Torres who, like roughly 95 percent of the traveling party, is fully vaccinated. "It was something everybody was confused about."

Torres said at no point did he feel any symptoms.

"I didn’t feel anything at all," he said. "I was surprised."

Different approaches

It’s supposedly a cardinal baseball sin to discuss a no-hitter, though not everyone worries about those kind of things. Tyler Wade, for instance, mentioned after Wednesday’s game that centerfielder Brett Gardner, as the pair went to their positions for the bottom of the seventh (Wade was in right), the veteran "came up to me and said, ‘you know we’ve got a no-hitter going, right?’ I was like, ‘yeah, man, just keep it down, keep it down.’ "

Jordan Montgomery, slated to start Friday night at the Stadium against the White Sox, sounded as if he would have been horrified if he had heard such a thing.

"Me and Jameson (Taillon) sat in the same seat since the third inning," Montgomery said. "Didn’t want to move, didn’t do anything. Don’t say anything about it, try not to think about it. Once he got to the top of the seventh, we looked at each other and it was like, ‘man, this might happen.’"

Frazier still down

Clint Frazier sat a second straight game with the neck stiffness that kept him out of Wednesday’s lineup.

"Still just stiffness in that neck and we just want to get back to New York [for testing) and see what we’re dealing with," Boone said. "Hopefully get some better news on that."

Judge OK

After playing rightfield Monday, then DH’ing Tuesday and Wednesday, Aaron Judge was given Thursday off.

"With some of the lower body issues he’s dealt with and kind of nursed through early in the season, just want to make sure I don’t run him into the ground," Boone said. "Especially as well as he’s playing for us."

Judge, 0-for-10 in his career as a pinch hitter, snapped that streak in the seventh with an RBI single.

Odor back

Rougned Odor, who returned from the IL Tuesday only to be placed on the paternity list Wednesday as his wife gave birth to a baby girl in the early morning hours Wednesday, returned to the lineup Thursday. Outfielder Ryan LaMarre was placed on the IL with the right hamstring strain suffered Wednesday night running down the first-base line in the third inning.

By Erik Boland

erik.boland@newsday.comeboland11

Erik Boland started in Newsday's sports department in 2002. He covered high school and college sports, then shifted to the Jets beat. He has covered the Yankees since 2009.