Naoyuki Uwasawa pitched into the eighth inning to earn the victory as the Pacific League's last-place Nippon Ham Fighters rolled off their seventh straight win 1-0 over the Seibu Lions on Saturday.
At Sapporo Dome, Uwasawa (6-5) allowed five hits and three walks over 7⅓ innings to outduel Kona Takahashi (6-7) and hold off the Lions, who fell a half-game out of first place.
With the game still scoreless in the fifth, a superb throw from right fielder Daiki Asama snuffed out a potential Seibu rally. Shuta Tonosaki tried to advance to third on a fly to right, but Asama's one-hop throw ended the threat.
Third baseman Yuki Nomura, who made the big tag, drove in the game's only run in the sixth, plating Kensuke Kondo from second with a long double to center.
Elsewhere in the PL, Masahiro Tanaka (5-7) threw seven shutout innings to outpitch Japan's Tokyo Olympic ace Yoshinobu Yamamoto (9-5) in the third-place Tohoku Rakuten Golden Eagles' 7-3 win over the Orix Buffaloes.
In the Central League, Hisayoshi Chono homered twice and drove in five runs against his old team as the Hiroshima Carp battered the Yomiuri Giants 11-4. The Yokohama DeNA BayStars beat the league-leading Tokyo Yakult Swallows 3-2, while the Chunichi Dragons got past the Hanshin Tigers 3-1 in 11 innings.