Baseball: Ito outduels Sugano to lead Tigers past Giants

Masashi Ito won a pitchers’ duel with Yomiuri Giants ace Tomoyuki Sugano Saturday to lead the Central League-leading Hanshin Tigers to a 3-0 victory.

Ito (3-2) threw seven scoreless innings and left with a 1-0 lead thanks to Yusuke Oyama’s 10th home run off Sugano (1-2) in the fourth inning.

“I thought going in it was going to be a low-scoring game, and I’m glad we could win,” Ito said. “The home run gave me a boost.”

Sugano, pitching in just his third game of the season, also went seven innings but was stuck with the tough loss as Hanshin relievers Yuta Iwasada and Suguru Iwazaki each retired...