HOUSTON - Tatsuya Imai picked up his sixth win of the season after allowing one run over six innings as the Houston Astros held off the Miami Marlins 5-3 on Tuesday.
Imai (6-4) surrendered four hits and three walks while striking out eight, backed by five runs of support before he left the mound.
The right-hander threw 96 pitches at Daikin Park before the Astros bullpen allowed two further runs.
"The best thing was that I managed to keep the runs to a minimum," the Japanese rookie said. "I was able to effectively use changeups, and that became a great takeaway."
In other Major League Baseball action, Seiya Suzuki had a productive day at the plate despite going 0-for-3, driving in two runs as the Chicago Cubs routed the Detroit Tigers 11-2.
He drew a bases-loaded walk, one of three walks for the game, to register an RBI during the Cubs' six-run rally in the opening inning.
The right-handed slugger batted in another run on a groundout to third base in the seventh at Wrigley Field.
