David Buchanan allowed five hits without a walk and drove in a run to help the Tokyo Yakult Swallows to an 8-0 win over the Central League-leading Hiroshima Carp on Friday.

Buchanan (3-1), who has yet to pitch less than six innings or allow more than three runs in any of his six starts this season, faced just three batters over the minimum in a 114-pitch effort. He struck out four.

“He (Buchanan) expanded the strike zone and located his pitches,” Carp batting coach Akihiro Higashide said.

The Swallows broke through in the second inning against lefty Kris Johnson (2-2). A one-out single and a swinging third strike on a wild pitch set the table for Shuhei Nakamura’s squeeze bunt to open the scoring. Buchanan doubled in a run, and Norichika Aoki forced in another when he was hit by a pitch with the bases loaded.

The game remained close until last-place Yakult scored five runs in the eighth off reliever Ren Nakata. The big blast was a pinch-hit grand slam by Takahiro Araki, who had decided Thursday’s 7-6, 10-inning win over Chunichi with a pinch-hit sayonara single.

Johnson allowed three runs in five innings. He gave up six hits, walked three, hit one and struck out five.

Dragons 5, Tigers 1 (11)

At Koshien Stadium, Kyuji Fujikawa (1-1) walked pinch hitter Steven Moya with the bases loaded to break a 1-1, 11th-inning tie, and Yohei Oshima broke the game open with a three-run double as Chunichi beat Hanshin.

Giants 0, BayStars 0 (12)

At Yokohama Stadium, Yomiuri wasted eight innings of two-hit ball from Tomoyuki Sugano as its hitters were blanked by eight Yokohama pitchers in a game declared a tie.

PACIFIC LEAGUE

Lions 6, Eagles 5

At Sendia’s Rakuten Seimei Park, Fumikazu Kimura broke a ninth-inning tie by singling with one out, stealing second and scoring from there on a wild pitch that rolled to the first-base dugout as league-leading Seibu got past Tohoku Rakuten.

Marines 6, Fighters 3

At Sapporo Dome, Mike Bolsinger (2-1) allowed three runs over six innings, Seiya Inoue singled in the tie-breaking run in a five-run sixth inning, and three solid innings from the bullpen sealed Chiba Lotte’s win over Hokkaido Nippon Ham.

Buffaloes 5, Hawks 4

At Yafuoku Dome, Fukuoka SoftBank relievers Yuito Mori (0-1) and Livan Moinelo combined to allow two runs in the ninth in a loss to Orix.

Shuhei Fukuda’s pinch-hit single off Moinelo tied it and Masataka Yoshida’s sac fly scored the Buffaloes’ go-ahead run.