MLB

Hughes sunk in first inning, Yankees split doubleheader

This time, it wasn’t the home run that ruined Phil Hughes’ night. Instead, it was five first-inning singles, a pair of doubles in the third and two more hits in the fifth.

Regardless of the details, it was another subpar outing from Hughes in a 6-0 loss to the Dodgers on Wednesday, as Los Angeles salvaged a split of yesterday’s split doubleheader in The Bronx following the Yankees’ 6-4 victory in the afternoon.

Hughes, a free agent at the end of the season, has won just once in his last seven starts, falling to 3-6.

The day got off to a pretty good start for the Yankees, who were hosting the Dodgers for the first time since the 1981 World Series, with manager Don Mattingly.

There was a chant from the Bleacher Creatures to the former first baseman, a video tribute and other mentions of his name throughout the doubleheader.

Each time, Mattingly doffed his cap to the crowd before his struggling team got the win in the nightcap.

“It was really just like another game,” Mattingly said following the afternoon game. “At that point, it just becomes another game where you are making decisions.”

One decision that paid off was putting Cuban sensation Yasiel Puig in the starting lineup of each game.

The right fielder hammered the ball all over the field in both games and finally homered to lead off the seventh against Adam Warren of the nightcap.

By then, Hughes already had coughed up five runs to the Dodgers. And with the hapless Vernon Wells hitting cleanup and spare part Thomas Neal hitting behind him, the Yankees’ offense had little chance of closing the gap — even against former Met Chris Capuano.

The loss took away from a strong performance in the first game by Hiroki Kuroda, who improved to 7-5 by outpitching Dodgers’ starter Hyun-Jin Ryu.

Like Hughes, Kuroda hadn’t won since May — although he had pitched much better than his fellow right-hander.

Yesterday, he gave up two runs in the seventh and the Yankees held on for a victory, with Mariano Rivera picking up his 25th save after some shaky bullpen work in front of him.

The victory, the Yankees’ second straight after dropping five in a row, didn’t come without drama. The normally reliable Robertson walked the first two batters he faced before retiring the next two to get out of the eighth inning and keep it 6-4.

Rivera ended it with a perfect ninth, striking out Puig for the final out in the teams’ first meeting in The Bronx in over three decades.

dan.martin@nypost.com