New acquisition Craig Brazell hit a pair of impressive home runs and journeyman lefty Takuya Furuya had a solid outing as the Chiba Lotte Marines beat the Fukuoka Softbank Hawks 7-3 on a rainy Wednesday night.
Furuya (2-1), who came within one strike of a no-hitter in his season debut on June 26, baffled the Hawks for the first six innings. He left having allowed three runs on five hits and a hit batsman in 6 2/3 innings, while striking out four in the final game before the All-Star break.
With the Marines leading 5-1 in the third, Brazell hit the first pitch he saw from right-hander Sho Iwasaki (1-2) into the wind to the opposite field, depositing it among the Hawks' fans in left field. In the fifth, he hit another first pitch, rocketing it off the facade that towers 30 meters over QVC Marine Field's right-field stands.