NAGOYA, Japan (Interstat) — Teruaki Sato launched two home runs and drove in five as the Hanshin Tigers overpowered the Chunichi Dragons 9-3 on Saturday afternoon at Nagoya Dome, extending their strong start to the season while deepening the home side’s early struggles.

A crowd of 36,678 watched the Tigers methodically build a lead before breaking the game open, improving to 10-4 across all competitions. The Dragons fell to 3-10.

The most important sequence of the game arrived in the top of the seventh inning, with Hanshin leading 4-1. After back-to-back singles by Takumu Nakano and Shota Morishita with one out, Sato stepped in against reliever Reia Nakachi. The Tigers’ third baseman, who had walked twice in his previous plate appearances, connected on a three-run blast to right-center field, turning a manageable deficit into a 7-1 chasm and effectively sealing the outcome. Sato later added a two-run homer in the ninth for emphasis, finishing 2-for-3 with five RBIs.

Hanshin starter Takato Ihara earned the win, improving to 2-0. He worked six solid innings, allowing one earned run on six hits while striking out six. The lone damage against him came on a two-out solo home run by Chunichi’s Asahi Hanada in the third inning. The Tigers’ bullpen, featuring scoreless innings from Takuma Kirishiki and Rafael Dolis, who struck out two in the eighth, preserved the advantage.

Chunichi’s Yudai Ohno took the loss, falling to 1-1. He was charged with four runs on seven hits over four innings of work. The Dragons’ offense was held largely in check until the eighth, when Miguel Sano hit a two-run homer off Kirishiki, accounting for the final margin.

Hanshin’s offense was relentless, collecting 11 hits. They struck early, with Morishita hitting a solo homer in the first and Yusuke Ohyama adding another in the second for a 2-0 lead. After Hanada’s homer cut the lead in half, the Tigers responded with two runs in the fourth on a sacrifice fly by Torai Fushimi and an RBI single from pitcher Ihara. Sato’s seventh-inning blast then put the game out of reach before his ninth-inning shot provided the final tally.

The victory continued a dominant series for Hanshin, who defeated the Dragons 5-3 on Friday. Sato, named the top star of Saturday’s contest, has been on a tear, including a 4-for-5, four-RBI performance just four days prior.

The game, which lasted 3 hours and 8 minutes, defied some pregame expectations. While Interstat’s game simulator projected a 6-3 Hanshin victory and its ELO system gave the Tigers a 67% probability to win, the total score of 12 combined runs went well under the posted over/under line of 5.5, and Hanshin easily covered the spread as a 1.5-run favorite.

The Tigers will go for a series sweep on Sunday in Nagoya before returning home to face the Yomiuri Giants in a three-game set starting Tuesday. The Dragons, seeking to stop their skid, will host Hiroshima after Sunday’s series finale.