#Yankees feel ‘comfortable’ with Gary Sanchez-Gerrit Cole pair

BOSTON — Gary Sanchez, who didn’t play in the Yankees’ 5-4, 10-inning loss to the Red Sox on Thursday, ”got dinged” by some foul tips in Wednesday’s 10-inning victory over the Phillies in The Bronx, manager Aaron Boone said.

But Sanchez is slated to be behind the plate to catch Gerrit Cole again on Friday at Fenway Park.

With Kyle Higashioka still on the COVID-19 injured list, Sanchez will catch Cole for a second straight start. Cole pitched well to Sanchez in his last start, when he held Boston to one run in six innings in a rain-shortened victory last Saturday.

Boone said he has “felt comfortable” with the pairing “for a while.”

“I kind of love [Higashioka] back there [with Cole],’’ Boone said. “They’ve got a great rapport.”

It often has lined up well that Sanchez could get a day off when Cole was on the mound.

Higashioka’s absence changed that thinking and the new pairing proved to be successful in The Bronx last week.

“I felt Gary and Gerrit worked well together the last time,’’ Boone said.

It was a significant improvement from the previous time Cole faced the Red Sox, when he allowed four runs in the first inning and gave up six runs — five earned — in five innings in a loss at Fenway Park on June 27.

Cole said he has done a better job of being able to “stay disciplined when the volume gets turned up” during games recently, which has helped him bounce back from the rough stretch he endured following MLB’s crackdown on pitchers using sticky substances.

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Luis Severino threw a bullpen session Thursday and is scheduled to throw another live session Saturday.

If that goes well, Severino could begin another rehab assignment. The right-hander was in the second start of his rehab from last year’s Tommy John surgery when he suffered a strained groin that pushed back his return.

Corey Kluber played catch Thursday and is set to throw off a mound Friday for the first time since he suffered a shoulder strain in May.

The Yankees remain hopeful they will get both Severino and Kluber back during the season.

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Sal Romano was selected from Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre prior to Thursday’s game to add another arm to the Yankees’ bullpen and allowed no runs in two-thirds of an inning against the Red Sox. He gave up a single to J.D. Martinez before retiring Hunter Renfroe to end the sixth and got Christian Vazquez to ground out to start the bottom of the seventh.

The 27-year-old Romano had a 5.23 ERA in 14 appearances with the Reds before being DFA’d in May.

In 18 games at Triple-A, Romano has a 3.47 ERA in 23 ¹/₃ innings.

He took the roster spot of right-hander Asher Wojciechowski, who was designated for assignment a day after starting Wednesday’s game against the Phillies.

Adam Warren, also in Triple-A, has been “in consideration’’ for a call-up, Boone said, as he comes back from Tommy John surgery.