Nobuhiro Matsuda made an encore performance with a tiebreaking RBI double in the sixth inning, Tsuyoshi Wada got his 100th career win and the first-place Fukuoka Softbank Hawks beat the Orix Buffaloes 4-3 on Wednesday.
Matsuda tied the game in a three-run fourth with his first run-scoring double of the night and gave the Hawks the lead for good when he doubled down the left-field line in the sixth at Kyocera Dome.
Wada (9-3) fell into a 3-0 hole in the first but rebounded. He allowed three runs — one unearned — on seven hits in seven innings of work.