Ace Kenta Maeda threw a five-hit shutout and Ryohei Matsuyama drove in three runs on Friday as the Hiroshima Carp beat the Hanshin Tigers 6-0 in the first game of an enticing three-game series.

The win before 31,476 at Mazda Stadium moved the third-place Carp to within a 1-1/2 games of the second-place Tigers in the Central League standings. Hiroshima remains three games back of the league-leading Yomiuri Giants.

Maeda (10-6) walked three and hit a batter, while striking out 12 in a 139-pitch effort. The right-hander didn't allow a hit until the fourth inning, by which time he held a 3-0 lead courtesy of a pair of clutch hits from Matsuyama, who returned to the Carp lineup for the first time in over two months.