Every Fukuoka SoftBank hitter in the starting lineup had an RBI as the Hawks beat up on the Orix Buffaloes for a season-high 17 hits in a 22-6 win Tuesday.
Rick van den Hurk improved to 6-1 despite being less than stellar, giving up five earned runs — all to Tony Blanco, who had two home runs — in six innings.
But on a night when Yuya Hasegawa went 3-for-4 with five RBIs, and Yuki Yanagita homered and drove in four runs while scoring three times and drawing three walks, the reigning Japan Series champions could afford an off outing from van den Hurk.