Lefty Toshiya Sugiuchi pitched eight effective innings and Nobuhiko Matsunaka hit a three-run homer as the Fukuoka Softbank Hawks edged the Tohoku Rakuten Eagles 3-2 to extend their winning streak to nine games in the Pacific League on Tuesday.
Sugiuchi (4-1) allowed two runs on five hits while striking out two and walking three and Matsunaka homered to the seats in right for a 3-0 lead in the opening frame at Fullcast Stadium.
Takahiro Mahara worked the ninth for his 10th save.
Lions 4, Buffaloes 2
At Goodwill Dome, Seibu had three consecutive hits to tie the game 2-2 in the eighth and catcher Toru Hosokawa hit a one-out, two-run single with the bases loaded to lift the Lions over Orix.
Fighters at Marines — ppd.
CENTRAL LEAGUE
Giants 9, Dragons 5
At Nagoya Dome, pinch-hitter Kenji Yano hit a game-tying two-run homer and Michihiro Ogasawara doubled home the go-ahead run in a four-run seventh inning as the Giants rallied to hand Chunichi its fifth straight loss and remain atop the standings.
Trailing 5-1, Yomiuri started the rally in the sixth with a Tomohiro Nioka run-scoring single and an RBI grounder by Shinnosuke Abe.
Chunichi reliever Yuya Ishii (1-1) walked Damon Hollins leading off the seventh and Yano followed with his first homer of the season to knot the game at five.
Swallows 14, Carp 8
At Hiroshima Stadium, Tomohito Yoneno drove in four runs with a game-tying two-run homer and a go-ahead two-run double as Yakult rallied to beat Hiroshima, which had its four-game winning streak snapped.
Yoneno connected off rookie Takahiro Aoki (0-5) in the second to tie it at 4-4 and hit his tiebreaking double in a three-run fourth to give the Swallows the lead for good.
Tigers at BayStars — ppd.