TOKYO (Interstat) — In a tense, low-scoring affair that defied pregame projections, the Yomiuri Giants edged the Tokyo Yakult Swallows 3-2 on Friday night at a packed Tokyo Dome, leveraging timely hitting and a lockdown bullpen to secure a series-opening victory.

A crowd of 41,793 watched as the Giants, despite being outhit 10-5, executed in critical moments to improve to 7-5 across all competitions. The Swallows, who entered as statistical favorites according to Interstat’s simulator but saw their eight-game hitting streak with runners in scoring position snapped, fell to 8-4. The game’s total of five runs sailed over the pregame over/under line of 5.5, while Yomiuri covered the spread of -1.5.

The most important sequence of the game arrived in the bottom of the seventh inning, breaking a 2-2 deadlock. Leading off the frame, Yomiuri’s Trey Cabbage turned on a pitch from Yakult starter Kojiro Yoshimura and launched a solo home run to right field. The blast, Cabbage’s first of the season, provided the decisive run and shifted momentum permanently to the home side. It was a costly mistake in an otherwise sterling outing for Yoshimura, who was saddled with a hard-luck loss.

Yoshimura, named Yakult’s top star, delivered a performance worthy of a win, pitching seven strong innings while allowing five hits and two earned runs, striking out six and walking none. His effort followed a similarly sharp but unsupported outing against Chunichi on April 3, where he also took a loss despite allowing just one run. On this night, his counterpart, Yomiuri’s Kazuyuki Takemaru, navigated constant traffic to earn the win. Takemaru worked 5 2/3 innings, surrendering eight hits but only one earned run, stranding multiple Swallows baserunners to keep his team in the game and improve to 2-1.

The Giants struck first in the second inning. After Cabbage singled with one out, Riku Masuda doubled down the left-field line to plate him. They added a second run in the third courtesy of a two-out, RBI double from Yuta Izuguchi that scored Shunsuke Urata, who had reached on an error and stolen second.

Yakult, persistent all evening, chipped away. They halved the deficit in the fourth. Consecutive singles by Yudai Koga, Jose Osuna and Yukihiro Iwata loaded the bases with one out. Shu Masuda then lifted a sacrifice fly to center, scoring Koga. The Swallows threatened for more, but Osuna was caught stealing third to end the inning. They tied the game in the eighth against reliever Taisei Ota. Hideki Nagaoka and Domingo Santana led off with a single and double, respectively, putting runners on second and third with no outs. Koga then grounded out to second, allowing Nagaoka to score, but Ota limited the damage by striking out Iwata to strand the go-ahead run at third.

Following Cabbage’s go-ahead homer in the seventh, the Yomiuri bullpen slammed the door. Eito Tanaka worked a perfect eighth, striking out two. In the ninth, closer Raidel Martinez needed just 10 pitches to retire the side in order, striking out one to seal his third save of the season and preserve the victory for Takemaru.

The game was a study in missed opportunities for the Swallows, who left nine men on base and went 1-for-10 with runners in scoring position. Santana and Koga each had two of Yakult’s 10 hits. For Yomiuri, Cabbage’s 2-for-3 night, including the homer, provided the necessary offensive spark on an evening where hits were scarce.

The two Central League rivals will resume their series at Tokyo Dome on Saturday.