The Hiroshima Carp outlasted the Central League-leading Yomiuri Giants in a tense 4-3 win on Wednesday evening, with Tetsuya Kokubo coming off the bench to drive in the winning run with a sacrifice fly.
With the score tied 3-3 in the bottom of the eighth, Kokubo faced lefty relief ace Tetsuya Yamaguchi with one out and runners on the corners. He flied out to center and Yoshihiro Maru just beat a strong relay throw home to score the go-ahead run.
"I went to the plate relaxed, thinking all I needed was an outfield fly," said Kokubo, who came off the bench to face Yamaguchi the night before and singled in the go-ahead run in a game Hiroshima went on to lose.