Second baseman Akihiro Higashide and centerfielder Alex Ochoa, the number one and two hitters, each drove in two runs to spark the Hiroshima Carp past the Hanshin Tigers at Koshien Stadium 5-3. It was Hanshin's final game of the season at Koshien and they have now lost nine of their last ten. Shinobu Fukuhara started for the Tigers and was tattooed for four runs on six hits in 1.2 innings to be afflicted with the defeat. 

Michito Miyazaki, starting for Hiroshima with his grandparents and father in attendance, picked up his first win in seven tries as a starter with 7.1 innings of two run, four hit ball while striking out five and walking two and is now 3-5 on the year. 

The fish did almost all of their damage in the second, as shortstop Eishin Soyogi doubled to left with one out and leftfielder Shigeru Morikasa singled to center. Catcher Yoshiyuki Ishihara beat out a ground ball toward short and Soyogi hustled in for a 1-0 lead. One out later, Higashide singled to center for an RBI and Ochoa singled to center for two more to knock Fukuhara out of the box and raise it to 4-0. 

In the fourth, Morikasa doubled to right off of Ryo Watanabe and, one out later, Miyazaki singled to center. Higashide Higashide singled to right and Morikasa did the cadillac walk to the plate to make it 5-0. That was their last hit through seven. 

Miyazaki restrained Hanshin on one hit through three and then a single each in the fourth and fifth before fashioning two hitless frames to cruise through seven. 

However, in the eighth, Tigers backup centerfielder Kodai Sakurai singled to center and reserve shortstop Shuta Tanaka walked. First baseman Andy Sheets grounded into a 4-6 force. Takahiro Aoki was summoned from the bullpen and pinch hitter Shinjiro Hiyama singled to right for his club's first RBI non-homer hit in 36 innings. One out later, Ryuji Yokoyama stood in for Aoki and third baseman Makoto Imaoka singled to left to usher Sheets in to trim it to 5-2. That was his first RBI safety in 75 plate appearances (June 19th). Rightfielder Lin Wei-tzu struckout to leave them loitering. 

Katsuhiro Nagakawa came on to close it in the ninth for the Carp and retired the first two batters, but he left a 91mph fastball in Sakurai's wheelhouse and the youngster creamed it over the centerfield wall to draw within 5-3. Tanaka struckout and that was all she wrote. 

Hanshin's regular shortstop, Takashi Toritani, came out after the seventh due to the aftereffects of being hit in the right side by the ball a couple of games ago, thereby terminating his streak of 389 consecutive games playng in every inning. He didn't practice with the team before the match, either.

For Hiroshima, Ochoa was 2-5 and is at .309. 

For Hanshin, Sheets was 1-3 and is at .243. Darwin Cubillan also got into the game and tossed two scoreless innings on a hit. 

An eighth inning two run double by Yakult second baseman Hiroyasu Tanaka dissolved a 1-1 tie and enabled the Swallows to down the Yokohama Bay Stars 3-1. Kazuhisa Ishii went eight innings of one run, three hit ball while striking out six and walking three for the birds to earn his ninth win.

Daisuke Miura started for Yokohama and he went eight innings of three run (one earned) ball on four hits while striking out five and walking one for his 13th loss. 

Yakult went up top shortly after the beginning of the contest, as leftfielder Alex Ramirez smacked a first inning shot over the leftfield wall for a 1-0 lead. They would generate only one more hit through six. 

Ishii no hit the Stars over the first four innings and it was broken up in the fifth on an infield single. He put six of the next seven away after that, but in the seventh, first baseman Yuki Yoshimura blasted a delivery into the centerfield seats to knot it at one all. 

However, Miura would be subject to some bad luck in the eighth, when third baseman Kazuhiro Hatakeyama walked and went to second on a sacrifice. Ishii scorched a shot to right that was dropped by rightfielder Seiichi Uchikawa, putting men on second and third. Tanaka doubled down the leftfield line to slingshot both men in for a 3-1 advantage. 

Ishii was perfect in the bottom of the inning and handed it off to Brian Sikorski, who was touched for a leadoff single by centerfielder Tatsuhiko Kinjo. But third baseman Shuichi Murata lined out to Tanaka, who doubled Kinjo off of first, and Yoshimura struckout to put it in the books. It was Sikorski's first save of the season.

For Yokohama, Matt White went two-thirds of a scoreless inning on two hits and is at 5.65. 

For Yakult, Ramirez was 2-4 and is at .350. Rightfielder Aaron Guiel was 0-4 with two strikeouts and is at .244. 

The Dragons Western League club is tops in Japanese pro minor league baseball, as they took the big game from Yomiuri's Western League outfit 7-2 for their fourth ni gun championship. Reliever Kazuki Yoshimi was named MVP. 

Hanshin Ryan Volgelsong, who went 0-4 with a 10.80 ERA in four September outings,  will not be part of the initial playoff roster, according to Hochi Sports. Instead, Keiji Uezono will open one of the first round games.

Leftfielder Tomoaki Kanemoto pulled a prank on his old Hiroshima teammate Shinji Sasaoka, who is retiring at the end of the season. He left several pictures of the late wrestler Giant Baba as well as a toy replica of a championship wrestling belt on the Carp bench with a note indicating it was for the righthander. Sasaoka is said to vaguely resemble Baba. Sasaoka's reaction? "Get that crap out of here!"

Yokohama Closer Mark Kroon is the focus of interest from Yomiuri, but the Bay Stars would like to hold on to him and it is thought that he will get a multiyear offer from them. 

Yomiuri If the Giants clinch the pennant on the first, when they are off, there will be no doage for manager Tatsunori Hara because he believes it would be just too forced a gesture. However, they will be at Tokyo Dome and if the Central League race is decided, they will repair to a nearby hotel for the beer spraying party. 

Miscellaneous Boston reliever Hideki Okajima gave up two hits Saturday against Minnesota in the ninth innings of a 6-4 game, but he struckout Jason Morneau looking and got Mike Cuddyer to ground into a double play for his fifth save. 

Hideki Matsui was sat out of Saturday's game due to water on the knee. He will DH during the playoffs. 

Seattle centerfielder Ichiro Suzuki was 2-4 Saturday in a 5-1 triumph over Texas. Catcher Kenji Johjima was 0-4. 

The Colorado Rockies smashed the Arizona Diamondbacks 11-1 Saturday,. as second baseman Kazuo Matsui went 1-2 with two walks. 

Dodgers closer Takashi Saito grabbed his second win Saturday when he tossed two shutout innings on a walk and his team won it on a walkoff knock in the tenth 6-5 against San Francisco. 

Tampa Bay third baseman Akinori Iwamura will play second Sunday, but Saturday, he went 2-4 with a walk and two RBIs in a 5-3 loss to Toronto. 

Cardinals outfielder So Taguchi was 2-5 with an RBI in a 7-3 victory over Pittsburgh.