Tetsuto Yamada drove in three runs and scored three times in the Tokyo Yakult Swallows' 12-6 victory over the Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks Tuesday, handing last year's Japan Series champions their first interleague loss.

In front of 28,154 at Jingu Stadium, the Swallows won their sixth straight and tied the Hawks for the interleague lead. The win streak, which lifted Yakult out of last place in the Central League, is the club's longest in three years.

Leadoff man Yamada went 2-for-4, while former major leaguer Norichika Aoki went 3-for-4 with four RBIs. Yamada opened the scoring in the bottom of the first. He singled off righty Tadashi Settsu (1-1) and scored on Aoki's double. Settsu struggled with his command and needed 32 pitches to close the inning.