Luis Mendoza had a hard time against the Seibu Lions in 2014. In their first meeting this year, it was Mendoza, who got a helping hand from Sho Nakata and Kensuke Tanaka, and left standing as the king of the Tokyo Jungle.

Mendoza threw eight scoreless innings, Nakata and Tanaka connected on two-run homers, and the Hokkaido Nippon Ham Fighters, the Pacific League's hottest team, beat the Lions 4-0 on Tuesday night at Tokyo Dome.

"It feels great," Mendoza said. "I got early runs and my team was playing good defense. I just tried to make quick outs and have fast innings."