Baseball: Mune, Azuma lead Buffaloes to 2-1 Japan Series lead

Yuma Mune doubled in two runs and Yuma Tongu hit a solo home run as the Orix Buffaloes edged the Hanshin Tigers 5-4 in Tuesday’s Game 3 to lead the best-of-seven Japan Series two games to one.

An inning after Tongu, the 2023 Pacific League batting champion with a .307 average, homered to tie the game at 1-1, Mune capped a three-run fifth inning with a two-run double to right-center at Koshien Stadium.

A sacrifice fly by Kenya Wakatsuki pushed the Buffaloes’ lead to 5-1 in the sixth, but the Central League champion Tigers battle back to score three runs in the seventh, with rookie Shota Morishi...