Masaru Takeda took a shutout into the seventh inning, Sho Nakata doubled in a much-needed insurance run in the eighth and the Hokkaido Nippon Ham Fighters beat the Seibu Lions 4-2 on Saturday.
Takeda (6-5) held the Lions to one run on two hits in 6⅓ innings at Seibu Dome in winning his fourth consecutive decision. The second-place Fighters have won three games in a row.
After Jose Fernandez's pinch-hit two-run homer pulled Seibu within 3-2 in the seventh, Nippon Ham answered right back in the eighth with Nakata's RBI double that chased Lions ace Hideaki Wakui (4-6).