SAPPORO (Interstat) — Kaima Taira pitched seven shutout innings and Seibu scored once in the eighth to beat Nippon-Ham 1-0 on Tuesday, Aug. 11, at Sapporo Dome.

Natsuo Takizawa singled to shallow center with one out, driving in the only run and going 1 for 4. Taira allowed two hits and struck out five in seven innings, improving to 8-3. Hiromi Itoh allowed three hits and struck out 10 in 7 1/3 innings, falling to 8-7. Hiroshi Kaino earned his 14th save with a scoreless ninth.

Tyler Nevin went 1 for 3 for Seibu. Ryota Isobata went 1 for 3 for Nippon-Ham, and Yuki Nomura was 0 for 1. Trey Wingenter struck out one in a scoreless inning for Seibu. Ren Fukushima pitched a scoreless inning for Nippon-Ham, and Hiroya Shimamoto recorded one strikeout in two-thirds of an inning.

Seibu finished with three hits, Nippon-Ham with two. Seibu improved to 57-45-3, while Nippon-Ham dropped to 59-47-2. Attendance was 34,907. The game lasted 3:03.