JAPAN – Hisashi Iwakuma tossed eight shutout innings and Daisuke Kusano belted a two-run homer to lead the Rakuten Eagles to a 7-0 victory over the Orix Buffaloes Saturday at the Tokyo Dome.

Iwakuma (2-1), the 2008 Pacific League MVP, retired 21 straight batters – including 19 groundball outs – after a shaky opening frame to help Rakuten claim their first win of the young season.

HAWKS FLY PAST MARINES
Hiroki Kokubo’s two-run single in the ninth propelled the Softbank Hawks to a dramatic 7-4 victory to snap Lotte’s three-game winning streak at Chiba Marine Stadium.

FIGHTERS TAME LIONS
Nippon Ham rallied for two runs in the eighth to dispose of Seibu 6-4 and capture their fourth consecutive win at the Seibu Dome.

CENTRAL LEAGUE

TIGERS RALLY LATE TO MAUL BAYSTARS
Hanshin broke open a tight game with four late runs to beat Yokohama 9-4 and secure their third straight victory at Yokohama Stadium.

HOMER LIFTS GIANTS OVER DRAGONS
Yomiuri rallied to beat Chunichi 3-2 on Takayuki Terauchi’s game-winning solo homer in the eighth inning at Nagoya Dome.

SWALLOWS BLANK TOYO CARP
Yoshinori Sato combined with four relievers on a three-hit shutout as Yakult edged Hiroshima 1-0 for its third straight win at Jingu Stadium.

Complete recaps at: JapanBall.com

Photo courtesy of japanesebaseball.com

Tags: Japan