Chiba Lotte Marines ace Yoshihisa Naruse struck out 12 in his second consecutive shutout as the Marines beat the Orix Buffaloes 6-0 on Tuesday afternoon.
Naruse (2-1) extended his career winning streak against the Buffaloes to 10 games dating back to August 2009, scattering six hits and walking none in a 135-pitch outing at QVC Marine Field.
"My slider worked well throughout the game," Naruse said. "I pitched carefully because my fastball wasn't good enough today. I really made an effort to stay away from the middle of the plate."
"My teammates gave me plenty of run support, so I was able to relax on the mound," Naruse said. "I'm far from my best form, but I've shut out my opponents two games in a row. That makes me think I can find a way to win even when I'm not at my best."
Fighters 3, Hawks 2
At Sapporo Dome, Yu Darvish pitched eight solid innings to lead Hokkaido Nippon Ham to a win over Fukuoka Softbank.
Eagles 2, Lions 0
At Shiga Prefecture's Ojiyama Stadium, Hisashi Iwakuma (3-0) threw a five-hit shutout with 13 strikeouts as Tohoku Rakuten beat Seibu.
CENTRAL LEAGUE
Dragons 3, BayStars 2
At Shizuoka Prefecture's Hamamatsu Stadium, Maximo Nelson pitched seven shutout innings, Tony Blanco keyed a three-run third with a two-run single and Chunichi snapped a three-game skid.
Carp 6, Tigers 4
At Hiroshima's Mazda Stadium, Eishin Soyogi had a game-tying RBI triple and Jun Hirose followed with a three-run homer in the seventh inning as the Carp rallied past Hanshin.
Swallows 7, Giants 1
At Shizuoka Prefecture's Kusanagi Stadium, Masanori Ishikawa threw one-run ball over seven innings and Tokyo Yakult routed Yomiuri for its seventh win in nine games, including two ties.