BALTIMORE (Ticker) -- For the second straight night, it was time for a former Baltimore Orioles pitcher to have his way at Camden Yards while getting all the support he needed from Robin Ventura.

Mike Mussina pitched seven scoreless innings and Ventura hit a three-run homer to help the New York Yankees to a 4-1 victory.

The Yankees won twice in the season-opening three-game series and return to New York to host their 100th homer opener Friday afternoon against the Tampa Bay Devil Rays.

Mussina, who pitched for the Orioles before signing with the Yankees as a free agent prior to last season, made the trip home more pleasurable with a dominant performance in which he allowed just four hits, walked one and struck out three.

"I am very happy I can throw this way early in the season. It is only one game but it is a great way to get started," said Mussina, who had no trouble with the 54-degree temperature. "I was happy to get off on the right foot. It was like old times again."

"If he does what he did today all year he is going to have a great year," Yankees catcher Jorge Posada said.

Mussina improved to 4-1 in five career starts against Baltimore and now finds himself completely comfortable pitching for the Yankees, especially since he is no longer the center of attention.

"I had my new year. Now people are hanging out at other people's lockers," Mussina said. "You find a way to deal with the change."

Mike Stanton pitched the eighth and Jay Tessmer struggled in the ninth before Mariano Rivera recorded the final two outs for his second save in as many nights.

One night earlier, David Wells, who called Camden Yards home in 1996, pitched into the eighth inning of a 1-0 win over the Orioles. The only run came on a homer by Ventura, another of the Yankees' offseason acquisitions.

Ventura found his stroke again Thursday. Jason Giambi and Jorge Posada singled in the fourth before Ventura homered to center field off loser Sidney Ponson (0-1) on an 0-2 pitch over the middle of the plate for his 250th career homer.

"I hit the ball hard, but the distance came from his velocity," Ventura said. "He left the pitch over the plate more than he wanted to. I am trying for a good at-bat, a few good swings, that's all."

Ponson also surrendered a solo homer to Nick Johnson in the fifth and allowed seven hits in six innings. Ponson is 0-5 with a 5.94 ERA in his last eight starts against the Yankees.

The Orioles went 17 innings without a run before pushing one across in the ninth.

"We need to get some offense going. We had chances," Orioles manager Mike Hargrove said. "We got some leadoff hitters on and we did nothing with them."

Tessmer retired the first batter he faced before walking Jay Gibbons and Tony Batista. Rivera relieved and promptly surrendered an RBI single to Melvin Mora.

But Rivera quickly settled down by striking out Brook Fordyce and getting Mike Bordick to fly out to right to end the game.