Reigning Central League MVP Shoki Murakami bounced back from his awful season debut to throw seven innings for the Hanshin Tigers in a 1-0 win Tuesday over the Hiroshima Carp, who failed to score for the fourth straight game.
In the Tigers' first game of the season at historic Koshien Stadium near Osaka, Murakami (1-1) struck out eight while allowing two hits and a walk over seven innings for the defending Japan Series champions.
The right-hander, who contributed to Hanshin's fifth-inning run off Carp lefty Hiroki Tokoda (0-1) with a sacrifice, was coming off a season debut in which he allowed five runs over three innings.
"Last time, I couldn't contribute, so I needed to do that tonight," Murakami said.
He got a boost to start the game on a sparkling play by three-time Golden Glove-winning center field Koji Chikamoto, who singled in the Tigers run after Murakami's sacrifice.
"When he made that play, I thought this was going to be my night," Murakami said. "I always depend on him, and I intend to do the same in my next start."
Among other games Tuesday, Sho Nakata drove in all of the Chunichi Dragons' runs as they won their fourth straight, 3-1 over the DeNA BayStars, moving past their hosts into sole possession of the CL's top spot for the first time since May 10, 2016.
