| Central League | |||||
| Won | Lost | Tied | Pct. | GB | |
| Yomiuri | 72 | 50 | 0 | .590 | - |
| Chunichi | 60 | 57 | 0 | .513 | 9.5 |
| Yokohama | 59 | 58 | 1 | .504 | 10.5 |
| Yakult | 54 | 57 | 1 | .486 | 12.5 |
| Hiroshima | 54 | 64 | 1 | .458 | 16.0 |
| Hanshin | 53 | 66 | 1 | .445 | 17.5 |
| Pacific League | |||||
| Won | Lost | Tied | Pct. | GB | |
| Daiei | 66 | 52 | 2 | .559 | - |
| Seibu | 61 | 54 | 5 | .530 | 3.5 |
| Nippon Ham | 61 | 58 | 1 | .513 | 5.5 |
| Lotte | 54 | 59 | 5 | .478 | 9.5 |
| Orix | 53 | 61 | 3 | .465 | 11.0 |
| Kintetsu | 54 | 65 | 2 | .454 | 12.5 |
Daisuke Motoki and Tomohiro Nioka had RBI singles in the 10th inning Thursday as the Yomiuri Giants held on for an 8-7 victory over the stubborn Hanshin Tigers at Koshien Stadium in Nishinomiya, Hyogo Prefecture.
The victory placed the Giants within six wins of their first Central League pennant since 1996 and spoiled a three-run homer by Tony Tarasco in the eighth inning that gave Hanshin a short-lived 5-4 lead.
Southpaw Kazuhiro Hiramatsu picked up the win with 1 1/3 innings of relief and Kazuhiro Kiyohara hit a solo homer for the Giants in the win.
BayStars 7, Swallows 1
At Tokyo's Jingu Stadium, Takanori Suzuki homered and drove in three runs and Bobby Rose chased in two of his own as Yokohama broke open a close game with a four-run ninth for a win over Yakult.
Yokohama's Kazuo Fukumori allowed five hits and struck out five over 5 1/3 innings for the win.