Ernesto Mejia and Hideto Asamura both went deep as the Seibu Lions defeated the stuttering Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks 6-3 on Thursday, trimming the Pacific League leaders' advantage to nearly nothing.
The Hawks, two-time reigning Japan-Series champions, held an 11-½ game lead over the then third-place Hokkaido Nippon Ham Fighters on June 24 — when Nippon Ham was two games into a franchise-record 15-game winning streak. The Fighters' winning percentage improved to .620 after a 6-1 win over the Orix Buffaloes, while the Hawks, who have lost eight of their last nine games, are at .621. The two teams begin a three-game series on Friday at Sapporo Dome.
At Osaka's Kyocera Dome, Asamura drove in two runs in the first with a double off Nao Higashihama (7-6) before the Hawks clawed back 3-2, but Mejia tied the game in the sixth with his 29th homer and rookie Wu Nien-ting's based-loaded single plated two runs off reliever Yuito Mori as the Lions took the lead for good.