SAPPORO, Japan (Interstat) — A pair of three-run home runs, bookending a dominant relief effort, propelled the Hokkaido Nippon-Ham Fighters to a 6-3 victory over the Orix Buffaloes on Saturday night at Sapporo Dome, leveling the series and both teams’ early-season records.

In a game that defied pregame projections which favored Orix, the Fighters’ power surge in the fifth and seventh innings erased an early deficit and secured the win before a crowd of 32,252. The victory improved Nippon-Ham to 4-4 across all competitions, mirroring Orix’s record after the loss.

The Buffaloes struck immediately against Fighters starter Kota Tatsu. After a leadoff strikeout, Yuma Mune launched a solo home run to right field, his first of the season, to give Orix a 1-0 lead. The offense continued as Ryoma Nishikawa and Bob Seymour followed with singles, and Keita Nakagawa drove in Nishikawa with another single to shallow right. The two-run first inning established an early advantage for the visitors.

Orix continued to pressure Tatsu, putting two runners on with no outs in the second inning, but a sacrifice bunt and two strikeouts stranded both in scoring position. Tatsu settled in from there, navigating traffic over 5 2/3 innings. He allowed nine hits and two earned runs while striking out eight, keeping the Fighters within reach.

That reach was fully extended in the bottom of the fifth against Orix starter Allen Kuri. Shun Mizutani and Tatsuki Mizuno led off with singles, putting runners on the corners. Fighters captain and center fielder Haruki Nishikawa then delivered the pivotal swing of the game, crushing a three-run homer to right field to erase the deficit and hand Nippon-Ham a 3-2 lead. Kuri finished with a quality start, yielding five hits and three runs over six innings with six strikeouts, but was left with a no-decision.

The Buffaloes clawed back to tie the game in the top of the sixth, albeit in unconventional fashion. With two outs, Kotaro Kurebayashi reached on a fielding error by third baseman Yua Tamiya. A subsequent error by first baseman Kotaro Kiyomiya on a grounder by Yuma Mune allowed Kurebayashi to race around from first base to score, making it 3-3.

The deadlock was short-lived. In the bottom of the seventh, the Fighters’ offense erupted again against Orix reliever Soichiro Yamazaki. Yua Tamiya led off with an infield single and was sacrificed to second. After a strikeout, Yamazaki intentionally walked Kotaro Kiyomiya to set up a force play. The strategy backfired when second baseman Yuki Nomura connected for the Fighters’ second three-run blast of the night, a towering shot to right field that broke the game open at 6-3.

From there, the Nippon-Ham bullpen slammed the door. Following Tatsu, five relievers combined for 3 1/3 perfect innings. Hiroya Shimamoto, Seigi Tanaka, and winning pitcher Kenta Uehara each recorded an out in the sixth and seventh. Uehara earned the win, improving to 1-0. Kenta Uehara and Taisei Yanagawa handled the final two frames, with Yanagawa pitching a flawless ninth to secure his first save of the season.

The most important sequence of the game was undoubtedly Yuki Nomura’s three-run homer in the seventh inning. It transformed a tense 3-3 tie into a commanding 6-3 lead, capitalizing on a strategic intentional walk and providing the decisive runs against a tiring Orix bullpen. This clutch hit, following Haruki Nishikawa’s game-tying homer two innings prior, represented the core of the Fighters’ comeback victory.

Orix, which had been installed as a pregame favorite with a -1.5 spread, managed nine hits but went 2 for 10 with runners in scoring position and left seven men on base. The Fighters’ 11-hit attack proved more timely. The total of nine runs combined fell under the posted over/under line of 7.0.

The loss was charged to Yamazaki, who fell to 1-1 after allowing three runs in one-third of an inning. The two teams will conclude their three-game series on Sunday afternoon at Sapporo Dome.