HIROSHIMA, Japan (Interstat) — In a game that defied pregame projections and stretched into extra innings, the Hanshin Tigers scored three runs in the ninth to force extras and two more in the 10th to secure a 7-5 victory over the Hiroshima Carp on Saturday night at Mazda Zoom-Zoom Stadium.

A crowd of 31,414 watched a contest that lasted three hours and fifty-nine minutes and saw the visiting Tigers improve to 6-2, while the Carp fell to 3-4.

The game’s most critical sequence arrived in the top of the ninth inning with Hanshin trailing 5-3. Facing Carp reliever Taiga Tsuji, shortstop Seiya Kinami led off with a single. After an error and a hit-by-pitch loaded the bases with no outs, pinch-hitter Torai Fushimi grounded out to bring home one run, cutting the deficit to 5-4. With two outs and runners on second and third, Takumu Nakano delivered a clutch single to shallow left, plating both runners and catapulting the Tigers into a 6-5 lead, their first since the second inning.

Hanshin added crucial insurance in the 10th. After Teruaki Sato singled for his fourth hit of the night, Kinami launched a two-run home run to right field off Tsuji, providing the final margin. Kinami finished 3 for 5 with the homer and two RBIs.

The Tigers had built an early 2-1 lead, scoring single runs in the first and second innings against Hiroshima starter Freddy Tarnok. Sato drove in the first run with a first-inning single, and Koji Chikamoto added an RBI single in the second.

Hiroshima chipped away, tying the game in the fourth on RBI hits from Shogo Sakakura and Elehuris Montero. The Carp then took the lead in the seventh on a solo home run by Shogo Akiyama and extended it to 5-3 in the eighth on Tai Sasaki’s solo shot to left-center.

Hanshin starter Koutaro Ohtake worked five innings, allowing three runs on seven hits. Tarnok was effective for Hiroshima, yielding two runs on six hits over five innings. The Tigers’ bullpen combination of Daiki Hayakawa, Dauri Moreta and Rafael Dolis sealed the win. Moreta pitched a scoreless ninth to earn the victory, improving to 1-0. Dolis worked a perfect 10th for his first save of the season.

Tsuji took the loss for Hiroshima, falling to 0-1 after surrendiring five runs in two innings of relief.

The victory continued Hanshin’s strong start to the season and marked their second consecutive win over Hiroshima in this series. The Tigers’ 7-5 final score contradicted a pregame simulation by Interstat that had projected a 5-4 Carp victory, though Hanshin entered with a 66.9% win probability according to the same service’s ELO ratings. The combined 12 runs went over the posted over/under line of 6.0.

The two teams conclude their three-game series on Sunday in Hiroshima.