Kaito Yoza scattered seven hits over the distance for his first career shutout as the Pacific League-leading Seibu Lions beat the Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks 6-0 on Saturday.
The Lions' second straight win at the Hawks' home park, Fukuoka's PayPay Dome, moved them 1½ games ahead of second-place SoftBank.
A submarine right-hander, Yoza (8-3) struck out five without allowing a walk. He had the Hawks' hitters off balance the entire game, while his infielders turned three double plays behind him.
"The atmosphere within the team is really good, so I took the mound trying to keep that going for another game," Yoza said. "I'm happy (with the shutout), but most of all, I'm simply exhausted."
Rookie Hawks' lefty Tomohisa Ozeki (6-6) surrendered the lead in the first as Hotaka Yamakawa and Wu Nien-ting each singled in a run.
Sosuke Genda doubled in two more runs in the second, while Tomoya Mori and Yamakawa each drove in a run in the fourth.
Last year's PL champs, the Orix Buffaloes, moved to within a half game of the Hawks with a 6-4 win over the Lotte Marines, while the Tohoku Rakuten Golden Eagles are further half-game back in fourth after Masahiro Tanaka (6-7) pitched seven innings in a 7-0 win over the Hokkaido Nippon Ham Fighters.
In the Central League, the second-place Hanshin Tigers beat the league-leading Tokyo Yakult Swallows for the second straight night 7-3, while Pedro Revilla homered and singled in a run in his Japan debut to power the Chunichi Dragons to a 3-0 win over the Hiroshima Carp.