Arizona Diamondbacks right-hander Yoshihisa Hirano became the third Japanese major leaguer with 73 games pitched in relief in a season when he, along with three others, combined for a one-hit shutout on Wednesday.

In the Diamondbacks' 9-0 victory over the Chicago Cubs, Hirano worked a scoreless eighth inning at Chase Field, though the first batter he faced, Addison Russell, reached on a throwing error by third baseman Ildemaro Vargas.

Hirano then got Albert Almora Jr. to ground out into a double play and Kris Bryant to strike out swinging. He was not involved in the decision.

"I somehow knew for sure I'd pitch if we were winning," Hirano said.

"We had a huge lead so I had planned on throwing fastballs aggressively. I'd like to surpass (the single-season record for pitching appearances) so I'd like to play in as many games as possible," he said.

Akinori Otsuka made 73 appearances in 2004 while playing for the San Diego Padres and Koji Uehara matched the record in 2013 with the Boston Red Sox.

In his rookie year in MLB, the 34-year-old Hirano, who spent 12 seasons with the Orix Buffaloes in Japan including a one-year injury layoff in 2008, is 4-3 with a 2.09 ERA and two saves.