BALTIMORE — Carlos Rodón’s first night back did not need to become a masterpiece.

It needed to become a beginning.

After more than seven weeks away from the Yankees rotation, Rodón returned Tuesday at Camden Yards and gave New York four innings that mattered considerably more than their modest length suggested.

The Yankees beat the Baltimore Orioles 3–1, improving to 70–55 and opening an important AL East series with the kind of victory that rarely dominates highlight shows but frequently matters in September.

Rodón, sidelined since late June, allowed one run across four innings. He struck out four and threw 66 pitches.

There was some rust. There was traffic.

There was also one sequence that probably told the Yankees more about his night than anything else.

In the second inning, a defensive mistake involving Jazz Chisholm Jr. helped Baltimore load the bases with one out. The situation could have turned Rodón’s return into an early disaster.

Instead, he struck out the next two hitters.

No damage.

For a pitcher coming off the injured list, that was arguably more encouraging than a clean one two three inning. Rodón had to pitch under stress, execute with runners everywhere and find a way out.

Baltimore eventually got him in the third.

Coby Mayo drove a solo home run to left, answering the homer Trent Grisham had hit earlier in the inning.

That made it 1–1.

And for several innings, that was the entire game.

The Yankees were hardly overwhelming offensively. Orioles starter Shane Baz struck out a season-high 10 hitters and repeatedly kept New York from building sustained pressure.

Grisham changed that twice.

His third-inning homer traveled 403 feet and provided New York’s first run. Then, in the seventh, with the game still tied, he came through again.

Grisham singled to center.

George Lombard Jr. scored.

Jahmai Jones scored.

Suddenly, 1–1 had become 3–1.

Those were all the runs the Yankees would score.

They were also all the runs they needed.

That became possible because New York’s bullpen turned Rodón’s abbreviated return into a complete pitching performance.

Yerry De Los Santos supplied two scoreless innings and earned the victory. The relief corps covered the final five innings without allowing Baltimore to score, and David Bednar closed the ninth.

There is something appropriate about a game like this happening in August.

By now, contenders are rarely perfect.

Bodies hurt.

Lineups change.

Rotations require patchwork.

The difference between surviving and sliding often comes down to whether a club can win on nights when its offense does not overwhelm anybody.

The Yankees did that Tuesday.

Grisham drove in all three runs, but this victory was also about the pitching infrastructure holding together long enough for one hitter to find two decisive moments.

More importantly, it was about Rodón being part of that infrastructure again.

New York has spent much of this season dealing with injuries and uncertainty, and Rodón’s absence removed another established arm from a rotation that could use stability as the schedule moves deeper into August.

Nobody should overreact to four innings.

Rodón did not return and instantly become a postseason ace.

That was never a reasonable expectation.

But he threw 66 pitches. He navigated trouble. He generated four strikeouts. He allowed only one run.

Then he handed the baseball to a bullpen that completed the job.

For the Yankees, that is enough for now.

The next stage will involve length.

Then consistency.

Then determining exactly what Rodón can provide if New York reaches October.

Tuesday was merely the first test.

He passed it.

And Grisham made sure the Yankees did not waste it.

His offensive performance was particularly valuable because there was almost no margin for error. New York did not have six runs waiting behind him. It did not overwhelm Baltimore with a parade of extra-base hits.

Grisham homered.

Grisham delivered the go-ahead hit.

The pitchers protected it.

That was the game.

Baseball occasionally makes winning look far more complicated than it needs to be. Tuesday was the opposite.

Get your starter back.

Survive the dangerous inning.

Find the big hit.

Trust the bullpen.

Shake hands.

Leave town with another win.

The social media caption afterward required only three words.

Good night, Baltimore.

But for a Yankees team thinking beyond one August night, the more important message might have been even simpler.

Carlos Rodón is back.

And that could matter long after Camden Yards goes quiet.