Postgame Reaction

The Yankees and Hiroki Kuroda fell to the Tampa Bay Rays for the second straight day to give the Yankees an 0-2 record to start the 2012 season. The tone of the game was set by Eduardo Nunez making an error on the first play of the game. He booted the ball that was chopped to him and the runner eventually scored, and Kuroda made more pitches than he had to.

Let's not pile everything on Nunez though. Kuroda did not help his team out and did not make any big pitches when he needed them. The Yankees ended up scoring four runs in the ninth inning, thanks to a Granderson triple and a Nick Swisher three run dinger.

Tomorrow's game proves to be pivotal not only for Hughes, who is making his first start of the season, but for the Yankees as a team. Getting swept in the first series of the season would not be a good way to get the fans excited. It won't be easy as Hellickson gets the ball for Tampa. On a brighter note, the Yankees hit the reigning ROY winner last year in his starts against the Bombers.