No hamstring problem for ace in his return

BALTIMORE — Gerrit Cole made it through five innings in his first outing since leaving with a tight left hamstring in his previous start and was fairly pleased with the results in a 7-2 win over the Orioles at Camden Yards on Tuesday night.

“It responded well,’’ Cole said of his hamstring. “Part of the job as a starting pitcher is to be able to grind.”

Cole pitched with a wrap on his left leg, which he said made it “tough to move around,” especially when covering first base. He plans to modify it before his next outing.

Still, he limited Baltimore to one run in five innings, although he needed 108 pitches, with three walks and seven strikeouts.

“I would have liked to pitch a little deeper,’’ Cole said.

➤ The Yankees still expect Domingo German to give them some important innings down the stretch despite having been out since July.

“That’s the hope,’’ Aaron Boone said.

The right-hander began a rehab assignment with Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre on Tuesday and tossed two scoreless innings, striking out four and throwing 25 pitches. He hadn’t pitched since July 31, on the injured list with right shoulder inflammation.

Boone left open the possibility German might be back with the Yankees by this weekend for his next appearance, which would be out of the bullpen, since there’s not enough time left in the season to build him up to be a starter. He would likely be limited to 30-45 pitches.

“We expect him to be part of this sooner than later,’’ Boone said.

Michael King also could play a vital role in the pen. He tossed three scoreless innings Tuesday.

➤ Luis Severino is expected to face batters this week as he tries to come back from the shoulder tightness that stalled his rehab from Tommy John surgery, which was already set back by a strained groin.