The seventh game between Chiba Lotte Marines and Tohoku Rakuten will be held at Zozo Marine Stadium from 3:00 p.m. on May 5th.

[Match record] Chiba Lotte Marines (6th place) vs. Tohoku Rakuten (4th place) 2 wins, 4 losses

[Announced starting pitchers]
Chiba Lotte Marines: pitcher Haruya Tanaka 2 wins and 1 loss in 3 games, ERA 2.12
Tohoku Rakuten: Kosei Shoji pitcher 6 games, 2 wins, 2 losses, ERA 3.09 (minor team record)

For the first time since turning pro, Chiba Lotte Marines will entrust pitcher Haruya Tanaka with stopping their losing streak, starting with only seven days of rest without being removed from the pitching roster. In his April 4th game against Tohoku Rakuten, Tanaka gave up nine hit in five innings, but only two runs, demonstrating his ability as starter. He has also started two games since then, earning wins in both games. He hopes to live up to the expectations of his management by pitching well even after only seven days of rest.

On the other side of the pitching charts, Tohoku Rakuten will be facing pitcher Kosei Shoji, who will be mound for the first time this season. Due to right elbow cleaning surgery last September, he began the season in the minor leagues, but in the farm team he pitched 32 inning in six starts, posting an ERA of 3.09. In his last two games, he's showing signs of improvement, allowing just one earned runs in 13.2 inning. Will he be able to produce results in his return game and bounce back from last season, when he only managed one win in seven appearances?

Written by Ao Yokoyama

・ Pacific League standings /individual results