Hiroki Kokubo, who underwent surgery on his knee last April, made his first game appearance in a year and went 1-for-3 as the Yomiuri Giants produced 10 hits to defeat the Yokohama BayStars 5-1 in a preseason game Friday at Fujisakidai Stadium.
Meanwhile, at Nagoya Dome, Kenshin Kawakami allowed just one hit in three innings and combined with four pitchers on a four-hit shutout as the Chunichi Dragons blanked the Seibu Lions 4-0.
At Yahoo BB Stadium in Kobe, Lee Seung Yeop hit a solo homer and Masaumi Shimizu followed with a three-run drive for the Chiba Lotte Marines, who beat the Orix BlueWave 12-2, while at Fukuoka Dome, Yoshinori Ogata and Kazunori Okagami had two RBIs apiece as the Hiroshima Carp outscored the Daiei Hawks 9-7 before 38,000 fans.