Nate Minchey pitched a two-hitter for his first complete game this season as the Chiba Lotte Marines shut out the Orix BlueWave 3-0 in the Pacific League on Monday after losing four straight in double-digits.
Minchey (5-3) retired the side in order in all but two innings in his 99-pitch outing, walking just one and recording his 1,000th career inning along the way at Chiba Marine Stadium in the shortest game in either leagues this season at 2 hours, 4 minutes.
"I was able to limit my mistakes tonight and we played good defense, so I got lucky. My back was tight and I wasn't feeling well, but I tried to keep it low and focus on keeping the lead," said Minchey, formerly of the Hiroshima Carp.
Masaumi Shimizu, Kazuya Fukuura and Rick Short hit solo home runs off Hisashi Ogura (2-4) in the third and fourth innings to put an end to a four-game nightmare in which Lotte allowed a total of 52 runs.