MATSUYAMA (Kyodo) -- Hiroto Saiki flirted with a no-hitter Tuesday for the Hanshin Tigers as they beat the Yakult Swallows 5-1 in the Central League.

The 26-year-old right-hander took his no-hit bid into the bottom of the sixth inning at Matsuyama Botchan Stadium before Haruki Nishikawa broke it up with a two-out single to center field.

Saiki (1-2) finished with five strikeouts against two hits and a walk in seven scoreless innings for his first win of the season. Unlike his previous quality start, in a 1-0 loss to Yakult a week earlier, he got strong offensive support from the Tigers' lineup.

He was able to work with an early lead thanks to Shota Morishita's RBI single in the first inning against Yasunobu Okugawa (0-1).

The Tigers broke open the game in a four-run sixth inning, with Teruaki Sato delivering an RBI triple and Ryutaro Umeno a two-RBI double.

"I'm happy to get my first win," Saiki said. "It would be nice to start like this every time."

Hanshin skipper Kyuji Fujikawa praised the consistent approach of his starter, who earned a team-high 13 wins last season.

"He played the game at his own pace," the former big-league pitcher said. "The way he sticks to pitching his own game is his strength."

Among other results, the CL-leading Hiroshima Carp clobbered the Chunichi Dragons 7-1.