I think the Yankees playing a baseball game in under two and a half hours might be one of the signs of the apocalypse and if it isn’t, it should be. In fact, the Yankees – Orioles game was the first 7:05 p.m. start to finish tonight. When does that ever happen? And does anyone else remember the Yankees – Orioles match-ups of the mid to late 1990′s? You youngsters think Yankee – Red Sox games are bad? Please, those games in the 1990′s were epic.

Anyway, earlier today I wrote about Hiroki Kuroda who was searching for his second win of the season and well wouldn’t you know it? He got it tonight! Kuroda looked great as he held first place Baltimore – that’s still really amusing to type – to four hits and one run over seven innings of work. He walked only one batter and struck out three.

All he needed to win the game was Eric Chavez’s two run home run in the bottom of the second. Thankfully for the Yankee offense, Kuroda was on top of his game and David Robertson and Mariano Rivera did their usual scoreless inning stuff. Lather, rinse, repeat.

Jason Hammel was the tough luck loser for the Orioles. He gave up five hits and two runs in six innings while striking out five and walking two.

Aside from Kuroda’s heroics, Eduardo Nunez’s first night in left field was a big story. Manager Joe Girardi joked that the one time they put him in the outfield during Spring Training, no balls were hit to him so naturally he had two put outs in the first three plays of the game. Poor Nuney was tested out there tonight but to the shock of many Yankee fans, he passed his first outfield ‘exam’ with flying colors.

And speaking of left field, Brett Gardner looks to be on the way back. The Yankees are looking at Thursday as a possible return. Another outfielder on the mend is Nick Swisher who strained his left hamstring yesterday. It looks like he’s not going on the DL.

Hold on to your butts people, tomorrow’s match up is Phil Hughes vs. Brian Matusz. I’m envisioning something like 13-11 as a final score. I hope I’m wrong and that Hughes surprises the heck out of everyone – me included.