A night after having a dreadful start mercifully aborted by rain, Chiba Lotte lefty Takuya Furuya (7-1) allowed two runs in seven innings in the Marines' 4-3 win over the Seibu Lions.
By winning the game, a makeup of Sunday's contest that ended with Seibu 4-0 after 1 1/2 innings, the second-place Marines moved to within eight games of the Pacific League-leading Tohoku Rakuten Golden Eagles. Rakuten will visit QVC Marine Field on Tuesday for the start of a three-game series.
With the game tied 2-2 in the seventh, pinch hitter Kazuya Fukuura singled in the go-ahead run for Lotte and Kei Hosoya doubled in an insurance run.
Furuya, whose career has had a rebirth as a starter with superb control of his breaking pitches this season after years spent in middle relief, allowed three hits and hit a batter, while striking out three. He threw 98 pitches in his sixth straight winning decision after a 50-pitch effort on Sunday.