Hanshin catcher Akihiro Yano slammed a go-ahead two-run homer off BayStars closer Eddie Gaillard in the bottom of the ninth inning to lift the Central League-leading Tigers to a 4-3 "sayonara" victory over Yokohama at Koshien Stadium on Friday.
With the win, the Tigers slashed their magic number to six.
Trailing 3-0, Tomoaki Kanemoto connected for RBI singles in the sixth and eighth to cut Yokohama's lead to one run.
With one out in the ninth, Shinjiro Hiyama singled and Yano followed with the game-winning homer into the center-field bleachers.
Carp 2, Giants 1
Tom Davey pitched five-hit ball over the distance as Hiroshima edged Yomiuri at Tokyo Dome.
Davey (4-1) walked three and gave up one run on a homer by Yoshinobu Takahashi in the ninth.
Tomonori Maeda sacrificed home a run in the first and added an RBI single in the fifth.
Forty-year-old lefty Kimiyasu Kudo fanned 10 batters over eight innings -- his third game of the season with double-digit strikeouts -- setting a Japan Pro record for most games with double-digit strikeouts in one season for players over 40.
Swallows 5, Dragons 3
Shinya Miyamoto and Ryuji Miyade had three hits each as Yakult downed Chunichi at Nagoya Dome.
PACIFIC LEAGUE
BlueWave 11, Buffaloes 0
Roosevelt Brown and Jose Ortiz combined for five hits and six RBIs as Orix whipped Kintetsu at Yahoo BB Stadium.
Kazuya Motoyanagi (2-1) went the distance on 131 pitches, scattering five hits while walking one for the win.
Marines 13, Fighters 4
Jose Fernandez had three hits and three RBIs while Tomoya Satozaki had three hits -- including a solo homer -- and four RBIs as Lotte beat Nippon Ham at Chiba Marine Stadium.