Hiroyasu Tanaka had a pair of RBI singles and Kyohei Muranaka pitched his second complete game of the season as the Tokyo Yakult Swallows beat the Yomiuri Giants 4-2 on Friday.
Tanaka followed a tying triple by Norichika Aoki with his second RBI single of the night in the fifth inning to give Yakult the lead for good at 3-2, helping the Swallows take the opener of a three-game set against the second-place Giants at Jingu Stadium to increase their Central League lead to three games.
Kazuhiro Hatakeyama doubled in an insurance run in the eighth.