YOMIURI ALONE ATOP CENTRAL STANDINGS

Import first baseman Seung-Yeop Lee bashed a pair of solo homers and Alex Ramirez pounded a two-run bomb to lead the Yomiuri Giants to a 4-3 win over the Chunichi Dragons on Friday, April 17 at the Nagoya Dome. Ramirez’ homer in the fourth inning tied the game at 3-3, and Lee’s second roundtripper of the night put the Giants ahead for good. Yomiuri starter Sun Tono’s record went to 2-0 after a five-inning outing in which he let in three Chunichi runs on five hits, and closer Marc Kroon came on for his third save of the young season. Chunichi’s Kazuki Yoshimi gave up all three homers.

The win gave Yomiuri sole possession of first place in Japan’s Central League with a 6-3-2 record. Chunichi, Yakult and Hiroshima are all in a virtual tie for second at 6-5, although Hiroshima also has a tie. Hanshin is in fifth place with a 4-6-1 mark, while Yokohama brings up the rear at 4-8.