Hiroshima Carp vs Yakult Swallows

Okugawa (7–8) began his night in a hole. Hiroshima leadoff man Shogo Nahara ripped a double down the left-field line on the first pitch of the game, putting the go-ahead run 180 feet away with nobody out. The right-hander bore down, retiring Kikuchi, Fabian and Sakakura in order to escape.

From the second through the fifth, Okugawa didn't allow a runner past first base, retiring 11 of 12 batters after the opening double.

Yakult broke through against Hiroshima starter Masato Morishita (6–9) in the fourth. With two outs and a runner on second, Tamon Masuda lined a single to left to open the scoring. After an intentional walk to Uchiyama loaded the bases, Okugawa helped his own cause — he punched a single through the middle that plated another run and made it 2–0.

The Swallows added another in the fifth. Akabane doubled to the right-field gap with two outs, scoring Koga from first to stretch the lead to 3–0.

Hiroshima got on the board in the sixth. Pinch-hitter Kei Sato led off with a single, advanced to third on a groundout and scored on Kikuchi's RBI groundout to second. But Okugawa stranded the inning with no further damage, then worked a clean seventh and eighth — finishing at 112 pitches with five strikeouts and zero walks.

Noboru Shimizu worked a 1-2-3 ninth with a strikeout to earn his fourth save.

The fourth-inning sequence was decisive. After Koga singled with two outs, Masuda's RBI hit gave Yakult a lead it would not relinquish. But the knockout blow came two batters later — Hiroshima manager Atsushi Kataoka chose to intentionally walk Uchiyama to load the bases for the opposing pitcher. Okugawa made him pay, lining a 2-2 pitch into centre field for a two-run cushion. The at-bat shifted win expectancy decisively and forced the Hiroshima offence to chase the game rather than play from a tie.

Yasunobu Okugawa, Yakult Swallows (Player of the Match) — 8 IP, 5 H, 1 ER, 0 BB, 5 K, 112 pitches; also 1-for-3 with an RBI single. His ERA dropped to 2.93. This was his third time this season stopping a Yakult losing streak of three-plus games.

Masato Morishita, Hiroshima Carp — 6 IP, 5 H, 3 ER, 4 BB, 3 K, 104 pitches. The loss was his ninth of the season, and it ended a run of three consecutive high-quality starts (7+ IP, ≤2 ER) since returning from a month-long re-adjustment period on 7 August.

Tamon Masuda, Yakult Swallows — 1-for-4 with the go-ahead RBI single in the fourth inning.

Noboru Shimizu, Yakult Swallows — 1 IP, 0 H, 1 K, 0 BB for his fourth save. His season ERA stands at 2.16.

Yakult's seven hits and three runs were enough because Okugawa was nearly untouchable. He faced 28 batters and walked none — a critical detail given Hiroshima's only run came via a groundout rather than a hit. The Carp mustered just five hits total, with only one extra-base hit (Nahara's first-inning double). Hiroshima's bullpen (Tsuji, Endo, Horie) combined for three scoreless innings, but the early three-run hole was too deep: the Carp went 0-for-3 with runners in scoring position after the sixth.

Okugawa threw first-pitch strikes to 19 of 28 batters (68%) and generated seven groundball outs against just two flyouts, keeping the ball on the ground and out of the alleys.

Yakult (now 51–59–1) climbed to within 11.0 games of first-place Hanshin and remains fourth in the Central League, 0.5 games behind third-place DeNA pending that night's result. The win was critical for Yakult's morale after six straight losses.

Hiroshima (43–61–4) stayed anchored in last place, now 16.5 games off the lead. The Carp have lost five of their last six and are mired in a six-game stretch against teams still alive for the Climax Series race. Morishita's struggles — he is now 6–9 with a 3.88 ERA — underscore a rotation that has struggled to consistently support a bottom-third offence.

The season series now stands at 12–7 in Yakult's favour with several meetings remaining.

Next up: Hiroshima travel to face the Chunichi Dragons at Vantelin Dome Nagoya on 29 August (18:00 JST). Yakult host the Yomiuri Giants at Meiji Jingu Stadium on the same date.

A game defined by one sequence: the intentional walk that backfired. Okugawa's all-around performance — quality start plus timely hitting — was exactly what a six-game-losing-streak team needed. Hiroshima's offence, without the bats to overcome a three-run deficit against a pitcher issuing zero free passes, had no answer.

Sources: Nikkan Sports game report & box score (cl2026082803), NPB.jp official standings/scores, Sports Bull NPB results, MCP provider payload.