The Orioles used two home runs from Mark Reynolds, including a solo shot in the ninth inning, to beat the Yankees, 6-1, in New York Friday.

The Orioles are now two games behind the first-place Yankees in the American League East with games still coming in New York Saturday and Sunday. The Orioles are 6-6 against New York this season and 5-2 in Yankee Stadium this season.

Reynolds' first home run, a two-run shot, came in the second inning. J.J. Hardy hit a solo homer in the sixth.

Miguel Gonzalez did a masterful job of escaping a sixth-inning jam, when there were runners on first and second. Suzuki eventually got to third, and Derek Jeter was on first, but Gonzalez got both Nick Swisher and Robinson Cano out to end the inning.

Gonzalez allowed just two hits during the first six innings on perhaps the biggest stage of his career. Earlier this week, manager Buck Showalter said he wasn't worried about Gonzalez's nerves at Yankee Stadium, and the starter, who spent the first half of the season in Triple-A Norfolk, delivered through much of Friday's game.

Darren O'Day took over for Gonzalez during the eighth inning. Reynolds made a spectacular play during the inning, diving to his right to rob Jayson Nix of a likely single. O'Day then got Jeter to fly out and Swisher to strike out.

Yankees starter Hiroki Kuroda pitched relatively well, but for some reason the Yankees don't often give him solid run support. Kuroda went 8.1 innings, giving up eight hits.

After Reynolds hit his ninth-inning homer off Derek Lowe, Markakis singled home Robert Andino.

Outside of a homer allowed to Curtis Granderson in the ninth, left-hander Brian Matusz looked sharp during the ninth inning out of the bullpen.

Posted Aug. 31, 2012