(Interstat) — Yomiuri Giants host the Tokyo Yakult Swallows on Saturday night at Tokyo Dome, one night after Yakult escaped with a 1-0 victory in the opener of their three-game series.

Yomiuri enters at 53-44-2, while Yakult is 45-53-1. The season series is tied 5-5.

In Friday’s opener, Yakult snapped a seven-game losing streak behind right-hander Yasunobu Okugawa, a player to watch. Okugawa threw a complete-game two-hit shutout, striking out seven. Hideki Nagaoka homered and drove in the only run, and Yukihiro Iwata added two hits.

Yomiuri’s player to watch is right-hander Spencer Howard, who pitched well in defeat. Howard allowed one earned run on nine hits over seven innings and struck out eight. Relievers Shunya Morita and Kenshin Hotta each followed with a scoreless inning.

The Giants had won three of four before Friday, but their lineup managed only two hits against Okugawa. Yakult’s offense has struggled much of the season, yet the Swallows have now beaten Yomiuri in three of their past four meetings.

Interstat’s game simulator projects a 4-2 final in favor of Yomiuri, and its Elo model gives the Giants a 62.80 percent win probability. The betting line, however, lists Yakult as a 1.5-run favorite, with the over/under at 6.5.

Yomiuri has the better overall record and home-field advantage at Tokyo Dome, but the Giants will need to solve Yakult’s pitching. The Swallows’ staff has held Yomiuri to one run or fewer in three of the past five head-to-head games.

Yakult’s recent stretch has been shaky, though. Before Friday’s win, the Swallows had lost seven consecutive games, including series sweeps at Chunichi and at home against Hanshin. Yomiuri, by contrast, has shown more consistency and took two of three at Hiroshima before returning home.

Saturday’s game is the middle contest of the series. The teams will meet again Sunday at Tokyo Dome, then Yakult returns home to face Hiroshima, while Yomiuri hosts Hanshin on Tuesday.

For Yakult to win again, it will need another strong effort from its pitching staff and timely hitting. For Yomiuri, the key will be getting to the Swallows early and avoiding another close-game offensive lapse.

Okugawa and Howard were the central figures Friday. Their teams now turn to the rest of the roster for the rematch, with a chance to seize momentum in a season series that remains deadlocked.