TOKYO (Kyodo) -- Yukinori Kishida squeezed in the tiebreaking run as the Yomiuri Giants avoided elimination Saturday with a 4-1 win over the DeNA BayStars in Game 4 of the Central League Climax Series final stage.

The BayStars, who finished third in the league this year, had swept the best-of-three first stage on the road against the Hanshin Tigers, and won their first three at Tokyo Dome.

DeNA leads the six-game final stage 3-2, with the Giants receiving a one-win advantage as league champions. The stage winner will meet the Pacific League champion SoftBank Hawks in the Japan Series, starting Oct. 26.

With the game tied 1-1 in the seventh inning, veteran Hayato Sakamoto reached on his second hit, went to third on a run-and-hit single and scored on Kishida's safety squeeze.

After a double steal, two more runs scored on a grounder to first when the throw home bounced past the catcher.

Giants' lefty Haruto Inoue struck out six over six innings, allowing just the one hit and no walks. Kyle Keller earned the win by striking out two of the BayStars' most dangerous hitters, Tyler Austin and Toshiro Miyazaki, with a runner on to end the seventh.

Yomiuri closer Taisei Ota closed it out in the ninth by fanning Austin and Miyazaki with two runners on base.

"(Catcher) Kishida called a great game, and the gutsy defense behind me gave me courage," Inoue said. "Now we all want to fight hard to reach the Japan Series."