SMBC Japan Series 2026 Game 1 DeNA vs Softbank Hawks (24th, Yokohama)

The Softbank Hawks were caught in a tie as their second pitcher, Yuki Matsumoto, failed to hold the lead. In the eighth inning with a 1-0 lead, he gave up a painful home run to DeNA's Maki.

In the bottom of the seventh with no outs and a runner on first, Yamamoto Yu hit a doble down the left-field line. He expanded the scoring opportunity with a multi-hit performance against his former team, where he played until mid-May. From no outs and runners on second and third, the team took the lead on Shoji's groundout to second, but they were held to only this single run.

Starting pitcher Uwasawa, guided by Yamamoto Yu's excellent lead, delivered a powerful performance, pitching seven innings with no runs. Last year, in his Japan Series debut in Game 2, he held the opponent to a minimum of one runs over six innings, recording seven strike out including four in a row, and became the win pitcher. A win for the second consecutive year was put on hold.