Alex Cabrera slugged his 45th roundtripper of the season and Mitsutaka Goto struck out nine and scattered two hits over 62/3 innings as the Seibu Lions won their fourth game in a row with a 5-2 victory over the Pacific League-leading Kintetsu Buffaloes on Tuesday at the Seibu Dome. With the win and the Daiei Hawks' loss to the Lotte Marines, the Lions moved up to within a game of first place in the Pacific League standings. The Buffaloes lead the Hawks by a half game.
Central League WonLostTiedPct.GB Yakult 65 40 5 .619 - Yomiuri 63 56 2 .529 9.0 Hiroshima 51 53 6 .490 13.5 Yokohama 52 57 3 .477 15.0 Chunichi 53 59 3 .473 15.5 Hanshin 47 66 1 .416 22.0 Pacific League WonLostTiedPct.GB Kintetsu 65 54 2 .546 - Daiei 65 55 1 .542 0.5 Seibu 65 56 0 .537 1.0 Lotte 57 59 2 .491 6.5 Orix 56 59 4 .487 7.0 Nippon Ham 46 71 3 .393 18.0
The Lions took a 1-0 lead on a bases-loaded walk in the second inning.