Tokyo, 10 April, /AJMEDIA/
Kotaro Kiyomiya hit his first home run of the season and rookie Shoma Kanemura threw 6-1/3 effective innings, leading the Nippon Ham Fighters to a 7-2 win over the Orix Buffaloes on Sunday.
The last-place Fighters jumped out to a 4-0 lead in the top of the first inning at Kyocera Dome Osaka on back-to-back home runs by Kiyomiya and Yuki Nomura, the first of which was a three-run shot.
Kanemura (1-0) gave up nine hits but limited the 2022 Japan Series champion Buffaloes to two runs.
“I’m simply happy,” the 22-year-old right-hander said. “My teammates scored runs early and allowed me to concentrate on my style of pitching. I’ll try to give my team a chance to win by pitching well in my next outing.”
Chusei Mannami added a solo homer in a three-run third.
Former San Diego Padres pitcher Jacob Nix (0-1) lasted only two innings in his first start in Japan.
In other Pacific League action, Hisanori Yasuda and Kyota Fujiwara each homered and drove in seven runs between them as the Lotte Marines trounced the Rakuten Eagles 10-1 to extend their winning streak to five games.
Koya Fujii pitched 5-2/3 scoreless innings as the SoftBank Hawks beat the Seibu Lions 3-1.
In the Central League, the DeNA BayStars and the Hiroshima Carp both stretched their winning streaks to four. The BayStars defeated the Chunichi Dragons 8-0, while the Carp beat the Yomiuri Giants 4-2.
The Yakult Swallows and the Hanshin Tigers played out a 1-1, 12-inning tie.