Manabu Mima pitched his first career shutout and the Tohoku Rakuten Golden Eagles moved to within one win of bringing Sendai its first Japan Series after a 2-0 win over the Chiba Lotte Marines in Saturday's Game 3 of the Pacific League Climax Series final stage.
Mima, who went 6-5 this season, allowed four hits and issued two walks, while striking out seven to give the Eagles a 3-1 lead in the series. As league champs, they received a one-win advantage and can clinch a Japan Series meeting with the Yomiuri Giants with a win or tie on Sunday.
Before a record Kleenex Stadium crowd of 24,396, Mima delivered Rakuten's third straight impressive pitching performance. Ace Masahiro Tanaka pitched a shutout in Thursday's 2-0 win, and rookie Takahiro Norimoto threw nine innings of one-run ball in Friday's 4-2, extra-inning loss.