Sho Nakata hit a tie-breaking double to help the Hokkaido Nippon Ham Fighters move within three games of the Pacific-League lead as they beat the front-running Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks 6-3 on Sunday.
With the game tied 3-3 in the sixth with one out and a runner on second, Nakata swung feebly at a pair of forkballs from SoftBank starter Sho Iwasaki. The right-hander missed in the heart of the plate with a 1-2 fastball, and Nakata drove it to the wall in left center.
Lefty reliever Yuya Iida surrendered a single to Kensuke Tanaka before Daikang Yoh sliced a two-out, opposite-field double off right-hander Yuito Mori to make it 6-3.