Tadahito Iguchi hit a three-run homer and Pedro Valdes broke a 4-4 tie with a two-run single in the seventh inning as the Fukuoka Daiei Hawks held on for a 6-5 victory over the Osaka Kintetsu Buffaloes on Wednesday.
Hawks starter Junji Hoshino fires a pitch against the Osaka Kintetsu Buffaloes in Daiei's 6-5 win in Fukuoka.
The Hawks squandered a four-run lead in the top of the seventh but Valdes, who was 0-for-3 before the at-bat, provided a clutch two-out single off Hideo Koike (0-2) at Fukuoka Dome to give manager Sadaharu Oh, who turns 64 on Thursday, an early birthday present.
Iguchi went 3-for-4 with a homer in the fifth and Kenji Jojima added a solo shot -- his 14th this season -- in the sixth to give Daiei a 4-0 lead.