Masahiro Tanaka pitched a two-hitter for his third shutout of the season, leading the Tohoku Rakuten Golden Eagles to a 2-0 win over the Tokyo Yakult Swallows on Wednesday.
Tanaka (6-0) won a pitching duel with fellow young right-hander Yoshinori Sato (2-3), striking out nine and walking one in interleague play at Kleenex Stadium.
Masato Nakamura broke a scoreless tie in the sixth inning with a sacrifice fly. Pinch-hitter Fernando Seguignol had an RBI fielder's choice in the eighth.
"Yoshinori was pitching very well, so my concentration level automatically went up," Tanaka said.