Michihiro Ogasawara got his 2,000th career hit and Hirokazu Sawamura made his Tokyo Dome debut, but Kenji Johjima changed the course of the game with one swing of the bat on Thursday.
The former Seattle Mariners catcher hit a tiebreaking solo homer in the sixth inning off the hard-throwing Yomiuri rookie, leading the Hanshin Tigers to a 2-1 victory over the Giants.
"That fly ball wouldn't have gone over the fence if we weren't playing at Tokyo Dome," Johjima said, referring to the hitter-friendly indoor ballpark. "As the catcher, I'm thrilled to have homered in a game like this and helped the team win."