Cuban left-hander Livan Moinelo struck out 12 in seven innings and rookie Ryuta Hirose hit his first career home run as the SoftBank Hawks beat the Hanshin Tigers 2-0 in interleague play Friday.
Moinelo (4-2) scattered six hits and a walk in a 109-pitch outing at Mizuho PayPay Dome before Yuki Matsumoto worked the eighth and Roberto Osuna finished for his 18th save.
Hirose connected off Masashi Ito (3-2) for a two-run shot in the fifth inning. The Pacific League-leading Hawks became the first team in Japanese baseball to reach 40 wins this season.
In other interleague action, Masaya Yano hit a sacrifice fly in the top of the 11th inning as the Central League-leading Hiroshima Carp edged the Rakuten Eagles 1-0.
The DeNA BayStars extended their winning streak to five games with a 5-1 victory over the Seibu Lions.
