Gary Sanchez: New York Yankees catcher takes foul tip to groin

Oct. 4 (UPI) -- The New York Yankees might have won the game, but Gary Sanchez lost on one pitch Tuesday when he was hit in the groin.

Sanchez was manning the backstop in the top of the sixth inning of the Yankees' 8-4 American League Wildcard victory against the Minnesota Twins at Yankee Stadium.

Twins second baseman Brian Dozier stepped up to the plate with the Yankees winning 7-4. Dozier had a 2-1 count against Yankees pitcher David Robertson before hacking two foul balls off of knuckle curves, one of them tipped off of his bat during a big swing and drilled Sanchez between the legs.

Sanchez bent over in pain as Robertson screamed and cringed, knowing where the ball had hit his teammate. Dozier took a walk on the play.

The Yankees catcher somehow managed to stay in the game.

"Poor guy. I had a great view of it, he just took a tough shot right there," Robertson told reporters after the game, according to the New York Daily News. "I just felt for him. I'm wearing a cup, too. I just know how it feels to get hit there. It's not fun."

Sanchez went 2-for-4, with a run scored in the victory. Dozier was also 2-for-4. He had a run scored, an RBI and a walk in the loss.

"We wanted that momentum to stay our way," Yankees shortstop Didi Gregorius told MLB.com. "When we ended up tying the game in the first, that meant a lot for us, for the fans and the guys in the dugout. It was just amazing. From there, we kept scoring and that helped us to win the game."

The Yankees advanced to face the Cleveland Indians at 7:38 p.m. Thursday in the American League Division Series at Progressive Field in Cleveland, Ohio.