Yasutaka Shiomi and Munetaka Murakami combined to drive in five runs as the Tokyo Yakult Swallows beat the DeNA BayStars 5-3 on Wednesday after the Central League club deactivated six players due to coronavirus issues.
Star second baseman Tetsuto Yamada, two-time batting champion Seiichi Uchikawa and former major leaguer Norichika Aoki were among five Swallows players sent home after backup catcher Akihisa Nishida's test came back positive.
Even without three of their best players, Yakult blasted Taisei Irie (0-1), the BayStars' top draft pick last fall, for five runs in his five-inning pro debut.
Shiomi singled in two runs in the third and another in the fifth, ahead of young slugger Murakami's second home run of the season.
A bright spot for the BayStars, still winless in five games under new manager Daisuke Miura, was a three-run sixth-inning homer from rookie infielder Shugo Maki, their second draft pick last year.
Dragons 5, Giants 3
At Nagoya's Vantelin Dome, Chunichi overcame a two-run first-inning home run by Zelous Wheeler to beat Yomiuri, which suffered its first loss of the season.
Carp 4, Tigers 2
At Hiroshima's Mazda Stadium, former Arizona Diamondback Kevin Cron broke a 2-2 tie with his first home run in Japan in the Carp's win over the Tigers.
PACIFIC LEAGUE
Buffaloes 7, Hawks 2
At Osaka's Kyocera Dome, 36-year-old former relief ace Hirotoshi Masui (1-0) held previously unbeaten Fukuoka Softbank scoreless for five innings.
Eagles 2, Marines 1
At Chiba's Zozo Marine Stadium, Eigoro Mogi broke up a scoreless game with a two-run sixth-inning single and three Rakuten relievers made a 2-1 lead stand up to beat the winless Marines.
Fighters 1, Lions 1 (9)
At Sapporo Dome, Seibu's Wu Nien-ting's first pro home run opened the scoring in the fifth inning before Nippon Ham caught up in the sixth.