Alex Cabrera hit a tiebreaking three-run homer and Chihiro Kaneko pitched one-run ball over eight innings Sunday, leading the Orix Buffaloes to a 5-1 win over the Hokkaido Nippon Ham Fighters to move into sole possession of third place in the Pacific League.
Atsunori Inaba's fourth-inning drive gave the Fighters a 1-0 lead, but a Shinji Shimoyama RBI single in the fifth tied the game before Cabrera homered in his third consecutive game with a shot over the left-center wall at Kyocera Dome.
Kaneko (9-8) allowed four hits, struck out four and walked three, helping his team return to .500 for the first time since April 1.