The rise and fall ...

Marines boot Lions from top spot

The Lotte Marines left boot prints on the Seibu Lions after 2-1 victory Thursday at Chiba Marine Stadium that completed a three-game sweep.
The Marines booted the Lions out of first place in the Pacific League, and ended up in a tie for the top spot when SoftBank and Orix later tied.
The Marines hadn’t swept Seibu in three straight since 2005, but third-year righty Yuki Karakawa (6-3) allowed a first-inning run, then got in a grove and held the Lions to a run on five hits and a walk over eight innings for his career-high sixth victory.
Ikuhiro Kiyota’s scoring flyball in the eighth plated pinch-runner Yoshifumi Okada to give the Marines the lead, and Masahide Kobayashi worked a 1-2-3 ninth for his 24th save to send the Lions to their sixth straight loss.
The Marines, who have won six of seven, moved atop the standings for the first time in more than a month.
“We did it the way we usually do and that’s with everyone contributing. It was a nice game,” said Lotte skipper Norifumi Nishimura.
The Lions, meanwhile, dropped into third place in the crowded PL, 2 percentage point behind the leaders.

BUFFALOES 4, HAWKS 4
Takahiro “T.O.” Okada’s RBI singled off host SoftBank closer Takahiro Mahara in the ninth and Orix as the Hawks played to a 12-inning tie.

CENTRAL LEAGUE
GIANTS 10, DRAGONS 4
Alex Ramirez led a six-homer barrage against Chunichi, five off starter Kazuki Yoshimi (11-7), and reached the 100-RBI plateau for the sixth straight season as Yomiuri cruised at Tokyo Dome and moved back into first place.
Ramirez cracked a mammoth three-run shot off the back wall in left field, and added a two-run shot in the seventh, his CL-best 41st, to give him 1,084 RBIs here in Japan.
It was the 40th longball for Ramirez, who has hit that figure three times.
Hayato Sakamoto hit Yoshimi’s first pitch for a homer, and added a solo blast in the second to give him 25. Hisayoshi Chono slugged his 18th and Michihiro Ogasawara hit his 27th.

CARP 6, TIGERS 1
Eric Stults (5-9) scattered six hits with no walks and five strikeouts over 8.1 innings to beat Yakult at Kyocera Dome Osaka.
Masato Akamatsu had two hits, including a double, and two RBIs to lead the Carp.

BAYSTARS 9, SWALLOWS 3
Shuichi Murata had three hits and an RBI, and Terrmel Sledge homered to back Hitoshi Fujie (2-2), who went 6.2 strong innings as Yokohama beat up Yakult at Jingu Stadium.