Mike Mussina

He has four starts left and little room for error, but when Mike Mussina walks off the mound for the final time this season, it will be as a 20-game winner, a career first. Mussina needs three wins to reach that plateau and to notch 270 victories in his career. Nice symmetry. Twice - both times with the Orioles - he flirted with 20, only to fall one win short. Three times he won 18. He has paid his dues, and the stars are aligned. In his past two games, he beat the Tampa Bay Rays and Boston Red Sox, so it's obvious he isn't running on fumes.

Baseball Yankees @Orioles 7 p.m. [MASN]: The Orioles bring back pitcher Radhames Liz from the exile of Triple-A Norfolk to go against the Yankees and Mike Mussina, who is working on a 16-7 record.

A recap of the Orioles' 11-6 win over the Red Sox last night: It takes three The Orioles trailed 4-0 heading into the bottom of the second, and it appeared that a three-game sweep was inevitable. But they scored three times in the inning, four more in the fourth and three more in the fifth. Ramon Hernandez landed the big blow in the third with a three-run homer off David Aardsma. Melvin Mora did the honors in the fourth, depositing a pitch by Javier Lopez into the left-field seats for a three-run shot of his own. Remember him?

NEW YORK - Mike Mussina's reincarnation as a soft-tossing right-hander has produced impressive results. He entered last night with 13 wins, one off the American League lead, and had allowed two earned runs or fewer in 13 of his previous 17 outings. It seems that everyone is impressed by the transformation - except his former team. The Orioles knocked around Mussina for the second time this season en route to their best offensive game in nearly two years. They pounded out 17 hits and belted four home runs in a 13-4 rout of the New York Yankees before an announced 54,120 at Yankee Stadium.

Orioles@Yankees 7 p.m., MASN The Orioles, three games above .500, begin a three-game series at Yankee Stadium with Daniel Cabrera (4-1) trying to extend his stretch of strong outings. Former Oriole Mike Mussina (above), who is 6-3 so far, starts for the Yankees.

Day ...................... Time ............... TV ......................................... Starters Tonight .............. 7:05............... MASN .................. Mike Mussina (11-10, 4.96) ........................................ ................................................ vs. Jon Leicester (2-3, 6.51) Tomorrow ......... 7:05 ........... MASN ....................... Andy Pettitte (14-9, 3.81) ........................................ ......................................

NOT GETTING IT DONE The Orioles needed Daniel Cabrera to continue his dominance over the home team at Yankee Stadium and to get deep into the game to rest an exhausted bullpen. He did neither. Cabrera's record now stands at 9-17, putting him ahead of Chicago's Jose Contreras for the most losses in the American League and tying St. Louis' Kip Wells for the major league lead. Only four Orioles pitchers have ever lost more games in a season. NOT GETTING IT DONE, PART 2 Trying to protect a three-run lead, Yankees rookie starter Phil Hughes was clearly tiring in the sixth.

Good morning -- Mike Mussina -- You've never sounded so down, but then you've never pitched this badly before.