Hawks center fielder Ukyo Shuto made a huge catch early in the game and blasted a ninth-inning sayonara home run to end it, lifting the Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks to a 5-4 walk-off win over the Orix Buffaloes on Saturday.
The Hawks, second in the Pacific League, blew a three-run eighth-inning lead, but reliever Livan Moinelo (1-1) retired the Buffaloes in order in the ninth, and Shuto hit the first pitch he saw from rookie Yuki Udagawa (0-1) who was pitching in just his fourth career game.
"I was trying to get on base, and looking for a good pitch to swing at," Shuto said. "It's a pitcher I don't ordinarily see, so I was thinking I might take a cut at the first pitch before I fell behind in the count."