Yankees Have Orioles' Number: 21230

It often seems like, when the Yankees score a lot of runs in a game, their next game turns very quiet, and we start to think, "You know, a couple of those runs from last night would feel pretty good right about now."

In this series against the Baltimore Orioles at Camden Yards, it has been the other way around. The Yankees lost 3-2 on Monday, but, last night, they broke out.

21230. That was the Yankees' linescore from the 1st 5 innings. That also happens to be a ZIP Code from Baltimore, to the west and south of Camden Yards, including M&T Bank Stadium, home of the NFL's Ravens. Camden Yards's ZIP Code is 21201.

Brett Gardner hit a home run in the 1st inning. So did Matt Holliday. Holliday hit another in the 3rd, chasing Chris Tillman, who usually pitches well against the Yankees. Gardner hit another in the 4th. Both men now have 11 home runs on the season, and we're still, for 1 more day, in May. And these weren't el cheapo homers, either: They averaged 404 feet.

When Aaron Judge doubled in the 4th, to make it 8-0, it felt like a little bit of a letdown, as we now come to expect a home run from Da Judge.

Luis Severino pitched shutout ball into the 6th, and was removed by Joe Girardi with 6 1/3rd innings pitched, having allowed 1 run on 7 hits, 1 walk, and 8 strikeouts. But, you know Joe and his binder: 100 pitches is 100 pitches. Tommy Layne and Adam Warren each got an out in the 7th.

Bryan Mitchell got into trouble in the 8th, and Tyler Clippard was brought on to get the last 4 outs. Sometimes, this kind of situation turns nasty, and what was an 8-0 lead could seriously threaten to become a 9-8 loss. Not this time: Clippard didn't allow a baserunner.

Yankees 8, Orioles 3. WP: Severino (4-2). No save. LP: Tillman (1-2).

The Yankees now lead the American League Eastern Division by 3 games over the Boston Red Sox, 4 1/2 over the Orioles, 5 over the Tampa Bay Rays, and 6 1/2 over the Toronto Blue Jays, who have gone from horrible in April to respectable in May. In the all-important loss column, the Yanks lead the Sox by 4, the O's by 5, and both the Rays and the Jays by 8. (The Yankees have a game in hand on the O's, 2 on the Sox, 3 on the Jays and 4 on the Rays.)

The series concludes tonight. Masahiro Tanaka starts against Kevin Gausman. Then, the Yankees head up to Canada to take on those pesky Blue Jays.