Tony Blanco hit a tiebreaking solo home run in the eighth inning as the Chunichi Dragons edged the Hiroshima Carp 2-1 on Wednesday for their fourth straight win.
The victory, coupled with a Tokyo Yakult loss, pulled the Dragons within 3 percentage points of the Central League-leading Swallows.
Yudai Kawai (4-3) held the Carp to one unearned run and four hits over eight innings at Nagoya Dome. The left-hander retired 15 straight batters between the fourth and eighth innings.