Tomoyuki Sugano pitched seven solid innings to push the Yomiuri Giants into second place in the Central League on the strength of a 3-0 win on Tuesday over the Hanshin Tigers, who dropped back into third.
Before 46,795 at Tokyo Dome, Sugano (10-10) surrendered three singles and three walks, while striking out 10, two of them after the Tigers loaded the bases with one out in the second inning.
"I didn't have my best stuff today, but (catcher Seiji) Kobayashi called a great game and got me through it," said Sugano, who has reached double digits in wins in each of his three pro seasons. "We don't have a lot of games left to play, so I was more fired up today than usual."