Kan Otake threw seven shutout innings en route to his first win of the season as the Hiroshima Carp beat the Hanshin Tigers 1-0 on Sunday.
Otake (1-1) scattered five hits, struck out three and walked none. The Central League teams play each other in their final game of the season on Monday.
Akihiro Higashide broke a tie with an RBI single off Daiki Kiyohara (0-1) in the fifth. Hanshin suffered its 70th defeat of the season, condemning it to a record of under .500 for 2011.
Hanshin's Matt Murton, who is still in contention for the batting title, went 2-for-4 to improve to a .313 average. Hisayoshi Chono, who has finished his regular season schedule with the Yomiuri Giants, leads the league at .316.