Seibu Lions submarine right-hander Kaito Yoza kept the SoftBank Hawks scoreless for August with a two-hit shutout in his team's 2-0 Pacific League victory Wednesday.
Yoza (2-2) did not walk a batter and needed just 102 pitches to go the distance at Seibu's Belluna Dome just outside Tokyo, as the Lions blanked the Hawks for the second straight day.
Hawks right-hander Shuta Ishikawa (3-5) allowed two runs over 6-2/3 innings to take the tough loss.
"Spectacular pitching," Lions manager Kazuo Matsui said. "He established a rhythm, changed speeds and completely prevented the opposing batters from getting their timing."
Seibu broke the ice in the third, when Wu Nien-ting drew a leadoff walk and scored on Mark Payton's two-out single. Wu made it 2-0 in the fourth with a two-out RBI double.
In the Central League, Japan home run leader Kazuma Okamoto and Hayato Sakamoto each homered twice for the Yomiuri Giants in a 9-2 thrashing of the Yakult Swallows.
The last-place Chunichi Dragons beat the league-leading Hanshin Tigers 3-1, and the Hiroshima Carp downed the DeNA BayStars 4-2.
