Lefty Hiroya Miyagi, pitching for the first time in over a month, struck out six over five scoreless innings to help the three-time defending Pacific League champion Orix Buffaloes to a 3-1 win over the league-leading SoftBank Hawks on Thursday.
Miyagi (3-4), who pitched for Japan in last year's World Baseball Classic, suffered a left pectoral muscle injury on May 8. In his first game back, he held the Hawks to two hits and a walk at Kyocera Dome Osaka.
His teammates gave him a three-run first-inning lead on a two-run Tomoya Mori homer and a Leandro Cedeno RBI single, and Miyagi pitched out of a second-inning jam after an error opened the door for a SoftBank rally.
"Even when I got into trouble, I was able to pitch my way out and get the job done," Miyagi said after his 85-pitch comeback effort.
Andres Machado recorded his 10th save for Orix after Buffaloes rookie Seiryu Kotajima's streak of 22 scoreless innings to start his career ended when he allowed an eighth-inning run.
Among other games on Thursday, the Central League-leading Hiroshima Carp came from behind in the ninth to beat the Yakult Swallows 4-3 and sweep their series.
