The Tokyo Yakult Swallows took advantage of Hiroki Kuroda’s poor command early and held on for a 5-4 victory over the Hiroshima Carp on Friday night.

Yasuhiro “Ryan” Ogawa (3-0) allowed three runs in seven innings to earn the win after giving up four hits and two walks. The right-hander struck out four.

The Swallows scored all five of their runs in the first three innings with the big blow being Tsuyoshi Ueda’s three-run, second-inning double of Kuroda (3-2), who is pitching in Japan this year after seven seasons in the majors. The win snapped Yakult’s four-game losing streak before a home crowd of 29,819 at Jingu Stadium.

“It was a tough outing, but my teammates scored early and made good plays behind me,” Ogawa said. “I’m glad I could hang on.

“It was great to go up against a pitcher I have so much respect for. Tonight was tough, but my desire to win never wavered.”

Kuroda allowed five runs on six hits, a walk and a hit batsman, while striking out one. It was the most runs he has allowed this season.

Early on, a lot of his pitches were elevated and the Swallows didn’t miss many. When they did make contact, Swallows hitters found holes. Tetsuto Yamada lined a 2-2 splitter into center for a leadoff single in the first. A sacrifice and an infield single put runners on the corners, and Yamada scored on a groundout.

Kuroda knocked down a chopper to the mound to start the Swallows second, but couldn’t find the ball, giving the hosts a leadoff infield single. A single, a sacrifice and a hit batsman loaded the bases with two outs, and Kuroda hung a two-seam fastball in the heart of the zone. Ueda drilled it to the center-field wall, and it was a 4-0 game. Kuroda surrendered a solo homer in the third to Yuhei Takai before retiring 10 of the last 11 batters he faced.

“I put that pitch where it was easy to hit and that was the game,” Kuroda said of Takai’s home run.

The Carp, on the other hand, hit into tough luck. Kuroda was denied an RBI single in the third, when he hammered an Ogawa mistake with a runner in scoring position only to line out to second. The visitors broke through in the third when Eishin Soyogi capitalized on two walks with a two-out, three-run homer.

The last-place Hiroshima made it a one-run game in the eighth on two singles and an RBI groundout against Logan Ondrusek. But Tony Barnette got the last four outs to record his eighth save.

Dragons 3, BayStars 1

At Nagoya Dome, Hector Luna and Ricardo Nanita hit back-to-back RBI singles in the eighth inning as Chunichi snapped a 1-1 tie and held on to beat Yokohama.

Dragons ace Kazuki Yoshimi worked seven innings and did not figure in the decision, but saw his 25-inning scoreless streak end in the sixth inning.

PACIFIC LEAGUE

Lions 4, Eagles 1

At Sendai’s Kobo Stadium, 19-year-old Tomoya Mori hit a tie-breaking two-run homer in the sixth inning as Seibu handed 40-year-old Tohoku Rakuten right-hander Kenny Ray (4-1) his first loss in five starts.

Fighters 11, Marines 3

At Chiba’s QVC Marine Field, each of Hokkaido Nippon Ham’s starters got a hit in a 15-hit pounding of Chiba Lotte.

The Fighters’ Sho Nakata hit his ninth home run, while Marines starter Rhee Dae-eun (4-1) allowed five runs in three innings for his first loss in Japan.

Hawks 5, Buffaloes 2 (10)

At Osaka’s Kyocera Dome, Lee Dae-ho hit a game-tying ninth-inning homer off Orix closer Yoshihisa Hirano.

Akira Nakamura put Fukuoka Softbank ahead in the 10th with a bases-loaded walk, and Seiichi Uchikawa singled in two more.

Closer Dennis Sarfate loaded the bases in the bottom of the inning but ended the game with a strikeout for his seventh save.