Hiroshima Carp ace Kenta Maeda pitched five shutout innings to lead Samurai Japan in a 2-0 victory over a group of visiting major league stars in Game 1 of the Japan All-Star series on Wednesday night in Osaka.

Eight years ago under Bruce Bochy, this year's World Series championship manager with the San Francisco Giants, the MLB stars won the series 5-0. So much for a sweep this time.

Maeda, who went 11-9 with a 2.60 ERA this past season, got rolling strong in a match-up against Los Angeles Angels right-hander Matt Shoemaker, the 28-year-old who went 16-4 with a 3.04 ERA as an American League Rookie of the Year finalist.