Mel Rojas Jr. blasted a three-run third-inning home run and the Hanshin Tigers piled on the runs, snapping an eight-game losing streak with a 10-2 win over the Central League-leading Tokyo Yakult Swallows on Thursday.
The Swallows' loss snapped their three-game win streak and cut their CL lead to six games after Keita Sano's tie-breaking home run lifted the second-place DeNA BayStars to a 4-3 win over the Yomiuri Giants.
At Jingu Stadium, Rojas came up with two outs and two on against right-hander Cy Sneed (6-5) in the third inning and punished a 2-2 thigh-high fastball, pulling it down the line and well back in the right-field stands for his eighth home run.
Fumihito Haraguchi made it 4-0 in the fourth with his first home run of the season. The Swallows cut the lead in half on Jose Osuna's two-run double off Tigers starter Junya Nishi (4-2) in the fifth before Hanshin pulled away with five runs in the seventh.
Elsewhere in the CL, the Chunichi Dragons beat the Hiroshima Carp 6-1.
The Pacific League-leading Seibu Lions beat the second-place Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks 8-5 after Brian O'Grady broke a first-inning tie with a three-run home run, while the Tohoku Rakuten Golden Eagles edged the Hokkaido Nippon Ham Fighters 2-1.