Crash-saving tactics …

Muranaka goes the distance as Swallows stave off Giants

The Yakult Swallows have been in quite a slide recently, and that’s exactly the way they ended their win on Friday night.

Kiyoshi Miwa made a sliding catch in left field, squeezing the final out of Kyohei Muranaka’s second complete game of the season as the Swallows topped the Yomiuri Giants 4-2 at muggy Jingu Stadium on Friday night.

It seems a complete-game effort on the mound is the perfect tactic when it comes to holding onto the top spot in the Central League.

Muranaka (3-4) held the Giants to four hits, while allowing two walks and fanning seven as the Swallows clinched a winning record against the Giants for the first time in 12 years and won first back-to-back games for the first time since Aug. 21-22.

Muranaka, who went the distance for the first time as a pro on July 29 to beat Yomiuri, helped the Swallows breathe life into their league lead as they pushed it to three games over the Giants.

Yakult guaranteed it would hold onto to its lead through the three-game weekend series, but more importantly, it slowed down one of the league’s hottest teams.

Hiroyasu Tanaka followed Norichika Aoki’s game-tying RBI double in the fifth with a clutch single for what proved to be the difference.

“I came up with a chance for us to score and I definitely wanted to come through there,” said Tanaka, who also singled home a run in the third.

“Before the game the entire team got together and said, ‘We’re going to going to win today,’ and that’s how we approached the game.”

Muranka retired the final 16 Giants to close it out with a season-high 129 pitches.

Giants rookie righty Hirokazu Sawamura (6-11), making his first start at Jingu, allowed three runs, two earned, over seven innings to suffer the loss.

It wasn’t all good for the Swallows. Backup catcher Ryohei Kawamoto -- filling in for injured starter Ryoji Aikawa -- was carried off the field on a stretcher in the seventh after hurting his right leg while sliding into second base.

PACIFIC LEAGUE

LIONS 5, HAWKS 3

Takeya Nakamura homered for the second straight night, connecting on his Japan-leading 35th blast with a man on to break a 2-2 tie as Seibu dropped the slumping Hawks at Seibu Dome.

Kazuyuki Hoashi (7-5) limited SoftBank, which has lost six of seven, to three runs over eight innings as the Lions touched up Toshiya Sugiuchi (7-6) for four runs on six hits and four walks in his six innings. Sugiuchi lost his third straight.

BUFFALOES 3, FIGHTERS 2

Mitsutaka Goto’s RBI double broke a tie in the seventh as Orix topped Nippon Ham at Kyocera Dome Osaka for its seventh win in eight games.

Goto has hit in 15 straight games.

EAGLES 6, MARINES 3

Luis Garcia’s three-run homer in the fourth inning put Rakuten on top for good and rookie lefty Takahiro Shiomi (7-7) won his third straight decision as the Eagles topped Lotte at The Q.

Shiomi yielded three runs on six hits and no walks with seven Ks to tie him with Hiroshima’s Yuya Fukui for most wins among rookies.

The Dragons and Carp, and Tigers and BayStars were rained out.