Coming into last night’s game, the Yankees had scored seven or more runs in their last six home games. Make it seven, as the Yanks beat the Royals 7-1 behind seven strong innings from Chien-Ming Wang.

Robinson Cano got the Yankees on the board with a solo homer off Royals starter Odalis Perez with two outs in the second inning. The Royals tied things up in the top of the third on a trio of two-out singles by David DeJesus, Mark Grudzielanek, and budding Yankee killer Ross Gload, but that was all they’d get against Wang. The Yanks, meanwhile, added two in the fourth against Perez, three in the sixth against Perez and reliever Ryan Braun, and that magical seventh run in the eighth thanks to a throwing error by Tony Peña Jr. Mike Myers, Luis Vizcaino, and Mariano Rivera sealed the deal. Textbook.

Along the way, Alex Rodriguez doubled, walked and drove in a run with a sac fly, but did not go long, hitting deep fly outs for his two outs. Melky Cabrera, meanwhile, went 3 for 5 with a pair of doubles, one of which was a screaming liner that hit off Braun’s leg and caromed into the stands behind the Yankee dugout for a bizarre infield ground rule double.

Today, Phil Hughes makes his long-awaited return from the disabled list to take on Kyle Davies in the latter’s first start as a Royal. Davies, who came over from the Braves in exchange for Octavio Dotel, had a 7.26 ERA in his last nine starts for the Braves. Hughes, meanwhile, did this during his minor league rehab: 21 2/3 IP, 10 H, 2 R, 1 ER, 8 BB, 25 K, 0.83 WHIP, 0.42 ERA. That after no-hitting the Rangers for 6 1/3 innings in his second major league start.