Hiroki Kuroda is no stranger to pitching in the National League. He spent the first four years of his major league career with the Dodgers, before joining the New York Yankees this season. On the hill against the Atlanta Braves on Wednesday night, Kuroda was right at home against NL competition, striking out eight and giving up just two runs in six innings in a 3-2 win, capping a three-game series sweep for the Yankees.
Brian McCann hit a two-run homer to right field in the fifth inning, giving Atlanta a short-lived 2-1 lead. In the next frame, Curtis Granderson matched it by taking Tim Hudson deep, driving home Derek Jeter to put the Yanks back on top, ultimately for good.
The win was the sixth in a row for New York, which leads Baltimore by one game for first place in the American League East. The Yankees have won 16 of their last 20 games.
On Friday, the Yankees start a weekend series against the Washington Nationals, who lead the National League East and are also riding a six-game winning streak.
For more news, notes and analysis on the New York Yankees, check out Pinstripe Alley. Then head over to Talking Chop for the Atlanta Braves' fan perspective. For updates from this series, stay tuned to this StoryStream from SB Nation New York.